Things to Do in St. Petersburg
If the city of St. Petersburg, Florida were a meal, it would be all desserts—one yummy, luscious treat after another.
It's a city built for delight, and the weather certainly cooperates, winning St. Pete the title of “most consecutive days with sunshine” at 768 days. Glittering between the Gulf of Mexico and Tampa Bay, this picturesque charmer tempts you with award-winning white-sand beaches, fantastic views, top-quality museums and an enormous one-of-a-kind outdoor market offering the region’s freshest and finest artisanal foods for you and your family or friends or enjoy.
Sizzling Beaches
Mother Nature unrolls a white, sandy carpet over a full 35 miles of St. Pete's coastline for you to play on. And it's not quantity over quality, either. St. Petersburg has two beaches that regularly appear in published lists of the top 10 beaches in the United States. Dig your toes into the longest undeveloped stretch of public beach in the nation at magical St. Pete Beach. Ready for a whole new definition of water sport? Sail through the balmy morning air parasailing, kiteboarding or windsurfing at St. Pete Beach. Or, let the kids splash to their hearts' content in the clear, shallow waters of bustling Clearwater Beach, while you delight in the feel of the silky sand on your feet.
Dazzling Dali
You won't need a special passport to step into the surreal universe of Salvador Dali, but it feels like you should. Even the outside of the city's breathtaking, distinctly Dali-esque museum is enough to set your mind a-spin, with its melting glass exterior and small, creative touches like a park bench with a crutch holding up one end. Inside the Dali Museum, you'll explore the largest collection of this master's work outside of Europe. Whether or not you adore such masterpieces as "Venus with Drawers and Pompoms" or "Eggs on the Plate Without the Plate," they will definitely take you down an imaginative road you've never traveled before.
Growing Exotica
The name, "Sunken Gardens," might make you think you're off to a family fun ride, but in St. Pete, it's a seven-acre botanical garden right in the heart of the city. Stroll meandering paths lush with some 50,000 exotic plants from around the world, including some of the oldest tropical plants in the region. Get sprinkled by shimmering waterfalls and fluttered in the butterfly aviary. A hundred years young, the Sunken Gardens offers demonstration gardens; a display of snakes, spiders, and scorpions; and a rain forest information center.
Eating in Paradise
The coolest place to dine in this outdoor playground is...outdoors. The first Saturday of your get-away, head downtown for the St. Pete Saturday market (corner of 1st Street and 1st Avenue S, St. Petersburg) offering a broad array of gourmet food. Taste-travel to more than 15 countries with specialties from Greece, Italy, France, Belgium, Germany, Poland, Ethiopia, Ecuador and more. Build your own picnic with the market's fresh natural products, while enjoying live music, or buy prepared meals to take with you. For inside dining—or during summer when the outdoor market is closed—try Mazzaro's Italian Market (2909 22nd Avenue North, St. Petersburg), where you can stock up on Italian delights or dine in.
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