It’s fun to do a tour every once in a while, even if you have lived in Tampa Bay for years. From real-estate boat tours to learning about our city’s most haunted spots, there are tons of ways to explore Tampa Bay that won’t make you feel like a total tourist.
Tampa Brew Bus
(813) 990-7310
Ubers are out. Brew Busses are in. On Tampa’s own Brew Bus you’re welcome to drink their own craft beer as you’re shuttled from brewery to brewery. They have a variety of tours that hit different breweries throughout Tampa, or you can schedule a personalized tour to really impress your visitors.
Photo via brewbususa.comSerengeti Safari Tour
813-883-4386
Stand inside of a jeep as you go on a 30-minute off-road Busch Gardens Serengeti Safari Tour. Get the opportunity to hand-feed giraffes, meet zebras and learn about the other creatures around the park. Also make sure that you and the people you’re with are ages five and up.
Photo via Busch Gardens/FacebookThe Calypso Queen
727-462-2628
You won’t be able to miss this massive, triple decked, rainbow colored boat docked in the Clearwater Beach Marina. Take a day or evening cruise on the Calypso Queen and enjoy a large buffet spread equipped with wine, beer, and rum punch. The captain also gives a narration of the history and environment of the Clearwater Coast, but you might be focusing too much on the booze.
Photo via starlitecruises.comMalcolm Douglas Crocodile & Wildlife Park Tour
089-193-6580
The Malcolm Douglas Crocodile & Wildlife Park Tour introduces you to more than just their 2,500 crocodile sanctuary but also include colorful birdlife, a cassowary, kangaroos, euros and wallabies, as well as emus, jabirus, snakes and lizards.
Photo via malcolmdouglas.comDunedin Food Walking Tour
813-310-4401
This three hour food tour will have you loosening your belt. Your tour guide will take you to and from locally owned restaurants, like the iconic Hog Island Fish Camp and Sea Sea Riders, and breweries to taste their house specialities. Burn off some of those calories (or cramp up) and learn some Dunedin cultural history on this walking food tour.
Photo via tampabayfoodtours.comOld City Helicopters Tour
813-254-1300
Old City Helicopters Tour offer a variety of sky-high tours around Tampa Bay. According to their website, the helicopter pilots can fly low over the water so you can try to spot manatees or dolphins.
Photo via Old City Helicopters/FacebookMangrove Tunnel Kayak Ecotour
941-313-8452
Walking tours are too mainstream, so why not take your family on this two hour adventure through the protected waters of Lido Keys on a big orange kayak. Get the chance to spot manatees, bottlenose dolphins and the rest of the Sarasota ecosystem. Not to mention anyone three years or younger are free!
Photo via adventurekayakoutfitters.comParadise Boat Tours
941-465-8624
Paradise Boat Tour is a great place to go if you’re looking for wild dolphins. This 90-minute adventure is a pretty much guarantee to hangout with our local bottlenosed friends. Did we mention that there will be dolphins?
Photo via paradiseboattours.comPedalPub
727-581-3388
PedalPub is a fun way to explore St. Pete while also drinking on a human-powered bar cart. You can BYOB on this two hour bike excursion through some of St. Petersburg’s most historic areas.
Photo via PedalPub St. Pete/FacebookPirate Water Taxi
813-390-3711
You can drive to downtown Tampa’s hottest spots like the Straz Center, Armature Works, and Curtis Hixon Park, or you can see them from the Hillsborough River. The Pirate Water Taxi offers a multi-stop, narrated tour of downtown Tampa. Save yourself the headache of downtown parking and hop on this bright yellow water taxi.
Photo via Pirate Water Taxi/FacebookThe Ringling Museum Tour
941-359-5700
The Ringling Museum Tour offers six different ways to explore the vast museum and their winter home, the Ca’ d’Zan. Each tour is priced differently depending on what you want to see, but all come with admission to the main museum.
Photo via ringling.orgTampa Bay Mafia Tour
813-358-3455
Guaranteeing “you’ll never see Ybor City the same way again,” this two hour tour takes you through some of Tampa’s favorite locations of mobsters back in the day. Explore old gambling palaces, street corners and alleys where some mobsters met their demise. Additionally, learn about bolita, the rumored tunnels of Ybor and the Era of Blood taught by the one and only Scott M. Deitche.
Photo via tampamafia.comGhosts of Tampa Theatre Tour
813-274-8286
Learn the secrets and stories of this spooky Ghosts of Tampa Theatre Tour. This 75-minute adventure takes you from the backstage to the balcony, all while learning the bizarre history of this haunted theatre.
Photo via tampatheatre.orgTampa Bay Food Tours
813-310-4401
These three hour walking tours offer you the chance to meet some of Tampa Bay’s best restaurants and the chefs, and did we mention there will be food?
Photo via tampabayfoodtours.comTampa Bay Fun Boat
(727) 204-9787
Tampa Bay’s Fun Boat is exactly what it sounds like. Find out where Derrick Jeter lives and the rest of Tampa Bay’s richest residents. Not to mention you can BYOB, while you experience the city through the sea until 7 p.m.
Photo via Tampa Fun Boat/FacebookTaste of St. Pete
727-900-5123
Taste of St. Pete is a great way to try some of St. Petersburg’s best cuisine. This two and a half hour tour takes you around Central Ave. tasting and learning the history behind some of the most vibrant restaurants.
Photo via Taste of St. Pete/FacebookFlorida Tiki Tour
727-418-6070
Florida Tiki Tour takes you and five friends on a ride through Johns Pass and Boca Ciega Bay area atop a huge, floating Hawaiian-style tiki hut. Make sure to grab a cooler and your favorite drinks before hopping aboard.
Photo via floridatikitours.comUrban Kai
813-598-1634
This tour is a little more physically demanding. Nonetheless, Urban Kai is sure to have you and your guests in for a great experience on the water. This tour takes you around the Gandy area while on top of your own stand-up paddle board, plus stick around for booze and bites at The Getaway.
Photo via Urban Kai/FacebookYuengling Brewing Tour
570-628-4890
The Yuengling Brewing tour is a solid way to spend the day with the fam. Get a feel (and taste) for how they make their beers and the time spent making it.
Photo via Yuengling Brewing/FacebookGhost Party Tours
813-610-1063
Tampa Bay has a pretty bloody past, and this is a tour group offers a quite a few ways to learn all about it, like actual ghost hunting, to family-friendly ghost tours.
Photo via Ghost Party ToursKraken Cycle Boats
813-603-3117
Similar to its close cousin, the land-locked peddle bar, Kracken Cycle Boats let a group of buds cruise the Hillsborough River in a pedal-powered boat, which is also fueled by booze.
Photo via Kracken Cycle BoatsTampa Segway Tours
800-975-3177
Walking tours are cool, but not using your legs is even cooler. Running Thursdays through Saturdays, these Segway tours teach guests all about historic Ybor City, all while gliding along the area’s famed brick streets.
Photo via electricglidetours.com
