Ybor City State Museum, Tampa

Advantages: An underrated treasure on Florida's Gulf Coast
Disadvantages: None really

...are replicas of the trams which ran in Tampa at the turn of the century and feature polished oak bench seats and polished brass fittings. This is a ‘not for profit’ operation and one way fares are $ 1.25 per person. Eat at: Jackson’s Bistro, Harbour Island. Great atmosphere particularly at sunset; good food, excellent wine list. 5. YBOR CITY This is another district of Tampa that is undergoing a burgeoning renaissance. The architecture is Olde Worlde; the graceful Spanish style houses have iron balconies and pillars that date back to the nineteenth and early twentieth century. Ybor City was the centre of Floridian cigar manufacturing, set up and worked by early immigrants from Cuba. It is also home to the Ybor Gold micro brewery. A new Spanish influenced Mall (Centro Ybor) opened in 2000. There are parks, museums, guided and self... Read review

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Advantages: Tampa is in Florida, the sunshine state.
Disadvantages: Avoid our rainy season. July - October.

...When we first moved to the states almost 15 years ago, we rented an apartment in Tampa, so that we could explore the area. We had visited the area previously but wanted to be sure that this was right for us. Tampa is a very large city and we lived on the outskirts of it, called 'Town and Country'. We found the roads to be really congested at peak times. Since then there has been a great deal of expansion, and new and improved highways. This was certainly needed. We would avoid going out until after the rush hour, the same too in the evenings. We explored many beautiful parks. Sir John Chestnut is one of the prettiest and largest in the area. It has a five mile wide lake as it's main feature. All day long people are trailering their boats, to set them on Lake Tarpon. We used this regularly before we purchased our restaurant. We... Read review

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Advantages: Ideal up market, up tempo hotel in downtown Tampa
Disadvantages: Limited choice of food

...‘pay-as-you-go’ multi-story car park, but multiple use valet parking is offered for a daily charge of $12. The valet parking entrance is on Tampa Street. Outside the main door are stops for the Hillsborough Public Transport System Uptown and CrossTown Connector buses (Free). A short walk away is the new electric streetcar service to Ybor City. The reception and concierge desks in the foyer and are reached from the Jackson Street entrance. Gold passport holders have their own check in desk. We arrived at eleven o’clock in the morning and our rooms were ready for us. There is a small shop selling newspapers, T-shirts and souvenirs which until very recently was managed by WH Smith. I gather they are currently selling out their interests in the States. The hotel has 521 rooms (108 designated Gold Passport) and 18 suites... Read review

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