What to see in Tampa area if considering relocating to general area? (Clearwater: amusement park)

[Guitarguy73]

We live in Philadelphia and are going to FL next week and spending about 4 days in the Tampa area before heading to Disney. Although it's probably not the best time to try and convince the wife to move to FL with it being July and very hot but I figured we might as well drive around and experience the local Tampa/Palm Harbor/Clearwater/Apollo Beach area.

If this is my initial shot at showing my wife all the cool areas and neighborhoods where are the best places to go? Realistically looking at things, I don't think Fishhawk Ranch would work for us, it's too far from the water which is one of the reasons we would even consider moving to FL. If we did this our budget would be about 800K but less would be great. Nice suburban area with great schools would be our goal. On the water would be awesome but we would like to be 30min or less to the boat.

Any recommendations for cool waterfront restaurants?

Thanks.

[JayGatsby]

Most of the water front restaurants I know of are in Tampa are by Rocky Point. Armani's, Rusty Pelican, and Oyster Catcher are all upscale restaurants offering a nice view of Tampa Bay.

If you want to show your wife some nice areas, I think Downtown St. Pete and the Old Northeast would be a must see. In Tampa, Hyde Park, Davis Island, Beach Park, and Golfview are some of my favorites, but they're more of just good places to live rather than places to do stuff. 800k will get you into any of them, but the nicest homes in each of those neighborhoods are into the 7 figures.

[JayGatsby]

One more place to think about is the Dana Shores area of Tampa. It isnt quite as upscale as the other areas I mentioned, but it is probably the most affordable neighborhood on Tampa Bay in Tampa.

[Yeoldfartingvet]

Use this website. Downtown Tampa Florida - Official Discover In-Town Guide & Map of Downtown Tampa

And go nuts! Have fun!

[MAniacTHW]

Take a stroll down Tampa's new Riverwalk and make a stop at Jose Marti Park in Ybor City. There are tons of cool places in Tampa.

[theurbanfiles]

I think Ybor City is also worth seeing. It is somewhat rough around the edges, but in the main areas itself is vibrant and tons of fun. Almost calls to mind the French Quarter to some degree. Definitely recommend going to the Columbia Restaurant over there as well, it's the oldest restaurant in the state of Florida.

Also recommend checking out Tarpon Springs and the Sponge Docks there. Definitely a nice community that also happens to have ethnic flair in northern Pinellas County. Fort DeSoto State Park is worth checking out as well, very cool blend of nature, beach and history. I have heard Dunedin is a very cool town but have not yet been, and if you are into more tourist trapness and the amusement park experience, the Clearwater Beach Pier might be worth seeing as well. That's all I can think of, but the Bradenton/Sarasota area to the south has some cool stuff also.