Welcome to St Petersburg Florida Vacation Rentals

St Petersburg Vacation Rentals

St Petersburg Attractions and Activities

St Petersburg Attractions

On the western shore of the bay, St. Petersburg stands in contrast to Tampa, much as San Francisco compares to Oakland in California. St. Petersburg was conceived and built a century ago primarily for tourists and wintering snowbirds. Here you'll find one of the most picturesque and pleasant downtowns of any city in Florida, with a waterfront promenade and the famous inverted pyramid-shaped Pier offering great views across the bay, plus quality museums, interesting shops, and a few good restaurants. Thanks to an urban redevelopment program, St. Pete has awoken from its slumber and actually resembles a city that could be considered hip, with renewed, restored streetscapes full of punk'd-out skateboarders, clubs, bars, and a vibrancy that goes well beyond the excitement surrounding bingo night at the "adult" communities in town. With water on three sides of the city, St. Pete is a superb location for fishing, sailing, and wandering beaches.

Museum of Fine Arts: Resembling a Mediterranean villa on the waterfront, this museum houses an excellent collection of European, American, pre-Columbian, and Far Eastern art, with works by such artists as Fragonard, Monet, Renoir, Cézanne, and Gauguin. Other highlights include period rooms with antique furnishings, plus a gallery of Steuben crystal, a new decorative-arts gallery, and world-class rotating exhibits. The best way to see it all is on a guided tour, which takes about 1 hour. Ask about classical-music performances from October to April.

Salvador Dali Museum: This starkly modern museum houses the world's most comprehensive (and most valuable, at $125 million) collection of works by the renowned Spanish surrealist—and for art lovers is reason enough to visit downtown St. Petersburg. Housing six of the artist's masterworks, the museum was given three stars by the Michelin Guide—the highest-ranked museum in the entire South. It includes oil paintings, watercolors, drawings, and more than 1,000 graphics, plus posters, photos, sculptures, objets d'art, and a 5,000-volume library on Dali and surrealism. Take one of the free docent-led tours to get the most out of the museum.

Florida Holocaust Museum: This thought-provoking museum (the fourth-largest such museum in the U.S.) has exhibits about the Holocaust (Jewish life before the Holocaust, the rise of the Nazi party, and so on), including a boxcar used to transport human cargo to Auschwitz and a gallery of art relating to the Holocaust. Its main focus, however, is to promote tolerance and understanding in the present. It was founded by Walter P. Loebenberg, a local businessman who escaped Nazi Germany in 1939 and fought with the U.S. Army in World War II.

Florida International Museum: Housed in the former Maas Brothers Department Store, long an area landmark, this excellent museum attracted 600,000 visitors from around the world when it opened its first exhibition in 1995, and the success has continued. Its outstanding exhibit on the Cuban Missile Crisis was such a smash hit that it's now permanent -- and well worth seeing even if the two temporary exhibits don't catch your fancy. On the other hand, they very well could, since the museum is associated with -- and gets some of its staff on loan from -- the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. Call to see what's scheduled during your visit. Allow at least 3 hours to tour all three exhibitions. There's an excellent museum store here as well.

Channelside District: Out-of-towners can't help but snap photos of the rows of candy-colored condos, shops, and restaurants. The buildings are so cheery, that rain or shine, millions of tourists flock to the District day after day. There's always a concert or special event pumping music and mirth through the streets, and sports fans can catch a pro hockey game at St. Pete Times Forum. The Florida Aquarium, American Victory Museum, and Channelside Entertainment Complex are popular attractions, but for those who want only to relax, a shady spot by the water is perfect for watching the cruise ships sail into and out of the port.

Caladesi Island State Park: This 650-acre island showcases pristine white beaches, dense maritime forests, surrounded by sparkling blue waters. More than 40 species of birds, including egrets, sandpipers, and sea gulls, call this island home, and guests can walk the island's nature trail, enjoy the picnic pavilions, or paddle the kayak trail.

Florida Orange Groves & Winery: For years, Florida and California have vied for the best strawberry taste title. Now the contenders face a brand new battle: wine. Florida Orange Groves & Winery brings new blends to the table with fresh-squeezed limes, pink grapefruits, mangoes, even strawberries. Thirty-three fine flavors are available at the Florida winery, which has won oodles of state and regional awards. These are the only bottles featured at Disney's Epcot International Food and Wine Festival in October, and they're loaded with fresh banana, pineapple, kiwi, and watermelon.

There are few more attractions in St. Petersburg like Sawgrass Lake County Park, 531 Central Fine Arts Gallery, and Tropicana Field Sports Complex.

St Petersburg Activities

Biking: You can get bike and moped rentals from Whimsical Wheels Inc.
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Boating & Sailing: You will get boat rentals / charters from Buccaneer Boat & Waverunner, Captain Frank's Adventure, Charter Boat Ctr, Florida Marine Enterprises, French's Jet Ski & Boat Rental, Gandy Bridge Marina, Lady Xanadu Yacht Charters Inc, On On Charter, Resort Boat Rentals, Sailing Florida Charters, Salty Rebel Inc, Tierre Verde Boat Rentals, Xanadu Yacht Charters Inc.

Boating & Sailing Lessons: Annapolis Sailing School, Sailing Florida Charters, Sea Sense Inc.

Fishing: You will get fishing guides and charters from Barracudaville Sportsfishing Charters, Bay's Best Charters, Bite This Sport Fishing Inc, Captian Billy Currie, Charter Boat Ctr, Hoof Hearted Deep Sea Fishing, Gulf To Bay Bait & Tackle, Indecision Charters, Infinity Fishing Expeditions, Kingfish Bait & Seafood, Last Dime, Mega Bite Sportfish Charters, Pass-A-Grille Bait & Tackle, Rapco Sports, Relentless Charters Inc.

Docking: You will find marinas for docking at ABC Marina of Madeira Beach, Bay Pines Marine, Gandy Bridge Marina, Great American Marine, Gulfport Marina, Harborage Marina, Huber Yacht Sales & Svc, Lighthouse Point Marina, Mariner's Cove Marina, Maximo Marina Inc, O'Neill's Marina, Pasadena Marina Inc, Pass-A-Grille Marina, Salt Creek Marina, St Petersburg Municipal Marina.

Scuba, Snorkeling & Sightseeing: You will fidn opportunities for scuba, snorkeling and sightseeing in St. Petersburg at Aquatic Obsessions Scuba, Caribbean Queen, Captain Anderson Dinner Boat, Our Ocean Dreams Inc, Sea Trader Cruises, Sea Ventures Marine Education.

Dining and Shopping

The Pier: The Pier is a festive waterfront dining-and-shopping complex overlooking Tampa Bay. Originally built as a railroad pier in 1889, today it's capped by a spaceshiplike inverted pyramid offering five levels of shops, three restaurants, a tourist information desk, an observation deck, catwalks for fishing, boat docks, miniature golf, boat and watersports rentals, sightseeing boats, a food court, plus an aquarium. Cruise boats often operate from the Pier during the winter months, and you can rent fishing gear and drop your line into the bay year-round. There's valet parking at the end of the Pier, or you can park on land and ride a free trolley out to the complex.

St Petersburg Festivals and Events

With 360 days of sun a year and a burgeoning art community, St. Petersburg has a lot to celebrate—and does with a variety of diverse festivals year round. The Florida Pirate Festival celebrates Caribbean nautical naughtiness with cannons, comedy and characters while the Strictly Sail St. Petersburg is a destination event for sailing enthusiasts from around the country. St. Petersburg festivals commemorate the finer things in life, especially the Mainsail Arts Festival, a fine art show on a grand scale, and the rock-n-roll fueled Ribfest, a three-day event catering to sauce-loving carnivores. If that's not enough, St. Petersburg even makes up reasons to get festive. The annual SnowFest happens every December and brings man-made snow and ice-skating to downtown St. Petersburg.

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