What to do in the TampaBay Area

Some of you may not be very familiar with the Tampa area, so below we have included some information that will help you get acquainted with the things you can do in your free time, and, yes, you should make time for that. One thing that most of our class will agree with is to maintain some type of fitness schedule. You do not need to be training for an Ironman, but you really should make sure you get some type of physical activity in more days per week than not. That hour at the gym will help clear you mind, give you some respite from schoolwork, physically tire you out, and most importantly keep you healthy; it will not turn you from an A to an F student.

Otherwise, Tampa is a pretty big city, and most anything you would want to do (and can afford), you can find in the Bay area. When people talk about the TampaBay area they usually are referring to Pasco, Hernando, Citrus, Hillsborough, Pinellas, Polk, Manatee, and Sarasota counties. USF is located in northern Hillsborough. It would probably be worth 10 minutes of your time to look at a map of the area and get your bearings. Below are listed some of the major streets in the immediate Tampa and USF areas. Traffic on most of these roads is pretty heavy during rush hours:

  • Bruce B Downs/30th St: runs north/south (N/S) from Pasco county down well south of USF. The bridge between our med school and the VA spans Bruce B Downs.
  • I-275: runs N/S, but also west across TampaBay (the body of water) to connect Hillsborough and Pinellas counties. This is how you get to St. Petersburg, and there are lots of useful stops along the way.
  • Dale Mabry: about 15 minutes west of USF, this also runs N/S from Pasco county all the way down to MacDill Air Force Base. Probably the main road for all of HillsboroughCounty.
  • US-19: main N/S road in PinellasCounty. Equivalent to Dale Mabry.

Note there are no east/west roads listed, and that’s because there is not one main one. There are a lot of them that are pretty useful, each running different length. Some ones worth knowing around USF (listed from north to south) are Bearss (yes, it is spelled it right… it’s a family name), Fletcher, Fowler, Busch, and Hillsborough. Except for Fowler, any of these will take you between Bruce/30th and Dale Mabry.

  • Bars/Clubs

Any type of bar or club you would want, we have at least one of them in Tampa. There are two big club areas, but plenty of other ones scattered about. The two big areas are Ybor and Channelside, and most would agree Channelside is a little more upscale (and more expensive). Both have a decent assortment of dance clubs and general bars. Some other clubs that students in our class have enjoyed are listed here (you can get the exact locations and directions online pretty easily). This is certainly not an all-inclusive list.

  • Peabody’s (New Tampa)
  • MacDinton’s (Hyde Park)
  • Dubliner (Hyde Park)
  • Splitsville (Channelside)
  • Hyde Park Café (Hyde Park)
  • Bahasa Lounge
  • Po Boys (Hyde Park)
  • Howl at the Moon (Channelside)
  • Round Up
  • Dallas Bull
  • Meridian Hookah Lounge
  • Al Aqsa Hookah Lounge
  • Comedy Club (Ybor)
  • Stump’s Supper Club (Channelside)
  • The Castle (Ybor)
  • The Rack (Hyde Park)
  • Jackson’s (HarbourIsland)
  • WhiskeyPark (Carollwood and Hyde Park locations)
  • Prana (Ybor)
  • Orpheum (Ybor)
  • Obrien’s (DavisIsland)
  • Beef O Brady’s (Bearrs Avenue, Northdale, and South Tampa)
  • Hyde Park Café (Hyde Park)
  • Empire (Ybor)
  • Amphiteatre (Ybor)
  • Tampa Ale House (Carollwood)
  • Green Iguana (Ybor, Anderson Rd, and Rocky Point Rd locations)
  • Margarita Mama’s (University Mall)
  • Coyote Ugly (Ybor)
  • Blue Martini (International Mall)
  • Bilmar Station (Carollwood)
  • Gyms/Recreation

Here is a list of a few places, most of which are located in the USF area, other areas of Tampa, of course, have their own acommodations, so ask around.

  • USF Recreation Center (located right next to the Sun Dome) – free weights, weight machines, good mix of cardio equipment, indoor lap pool, aerobics, and kickboxing… and you can’t beat the price – FREE, for all USF students. Just bring your student ID card to get in.
  • Lifestyles Fitness Center (2 locations: Bruce B Downs and Amberly Drive; Hyde Park) – this is a very nice facility that of course has all the stuff you’d want – weights, machines, lots of cardio equipment, various classes, and a friendly staff. The downside is you have to pay. They offer a medical student discount, so make sure you ask for it if you go. There are also different tiers of membership offering different services, with the middle tier costing around $35/month with our discount. Some advantages noted by our class: less of a meat-market atmosphere, more cardio equipment, better overall equipment, better hours (opens at 5am vs. 6:15am for USF), cleaner showers.
  • New Tampa YMCA (just off Bruce B Downs in New Tampa) – all your standard equipment, outdoor pool, spin classes, aerobics stuff, etc. They also give a student discount, so ask for it. This is a full-scale Y, so they also have basketball courts, child-care, and even a rock-climbing wall inside. There are similar advantages to the Y to those listed for Lifestyles.
  • Shapes Total Fitness - 12 locations in Tampa
  • Curves for Women
  • These four gyms require a membership fee and/or monthly fees. If this is not an expense you wish to pay, rest assured that the USF Rec center offers great exercise amenities.
  • USF Riverfront Park (east of campus on Fletcher) – this is a neat little facility free to students. Located on the HillsboroughRiver, you can canoe or kayak on the river for a small rental fee, play volleyball on the courts, picnic there, etc. It is one of USF’s little gems, so if you are into outdoors stuff, check it out. Find info at the same website as above.
  • USF Intramural sports – you will get emails from upperclassmen as each season starts, but the medical students collectively usually form teams in flag football, soccer, and basketball. There are other sports, and you don’t have to join a medical student team. These leagues are free for students to join.
  • Dance Studios - Temple Terrace Ballet (Ballet Mistress is Matilde Barreto, 786-4916; the number for the TempleTerraceRecCenter where classes are held is 989-7180). Firethorn Dance Studio is NOT recommended. The main undergraduate campus also has a dance department you could look into if interested.
  • Gracie Tampa Jiu Jitsu – a great way to relieve stress, get exercise, and learn some self defense. It’s not uptight like traditional self defense.
  • Museums/Art/Music/Sports
  • SalvadorDaliMuseum (St. Petersburg, near the Pier)
  • Museum of Science and Industry (right across from USF on Fowler) – they have an IMAX Dome, something everyone should experience at least once
  • USF Theatre Productions
  • Hat Trick Theatre productions (Ybor)
  • Tampa Museum of Art (downtown Tampa)
  • RinglingMuseum of Art (Sarasota)
  • Ruth Eckerd Hall (Clearwater) – performance venue for concerts, plays, etc.
  • St. Pete Times Forum (downtown Tampa) – concerts, Lightning hockey (if there is hockey again before you graduate med school)
  • Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center (downtown Tampa)
  • Raymond James Stadium (Dale Mabry Hwy) – Bucs and USF home stadium, concerts, monster trucks
  • Tropicana Field (St. Petersburg) – Devil Rays baseball
  • USF Sundome (on campus) – many USF sports, concerts
  • Ford Amphitheatre (Tampa Fairgrounds) – concert venue
  • Minor league baseball – great value and often better players than the D-Rays
  • Tampa Yankees
  • Clearwater Threshers
  • St. Pete Devil Rays
  • Dunedin Blue Jays
  • Lakeland Tigers
  • On-Campus Culture
  • USF Museum of Modern Art – Dr. Nixon will take you there once during Humanities, but they change the exhibits often so it is worth going back later in the year
  • Language Lunches – this is nothing formal, but students have been known to organize lunches where you only speak a foreign language, most often Spanish since that’s the most useful foreign language in Tampa.
  • Shopping
  • Malls
  • Brandon Towncenter
  • CitrusPark Towncenter
  • University Mall
  • Westshore Mall
  • InternationalPlaza (the most upscale in Tampa)
  • Clearwater Mall
  • other quaint little places to spend you tuition money
  • Hyde ParkVillage
  • Channelside
  • St. Petersburg Pier
  • Tarpon Springs area (strong Greek influence in this area)
  • Ybor (strong Hispanic influence in this area)
  • Food – in addition to all the grocery stores there are a few specialty markets you may want to check out
  • Fresh Market (various locations in the Bay area) – a more upscale grocery store with good, but expensive, selections of produce, nuts, grains, meats.
  • Chuck’s Natural Foods (near Publix on 56th) – great for healthy snacks
  • Wild Oats (South Dale Mabry and I-275) – this is an all organic grocery store, with a great selection of cheese and other gourmet items, but a bit more expensive.
  • Land and Sea Market (Bruce B Down, about 2 miles north of campus) – good selection and prices on meats, chicken, and seafood, Farmer’s Market – located on Hillsborough Avenue, this is a wholesaler to area restaurants, so it’s open very early in the morning, but you have to buy in bulk.
  • Theme Parks/Attractions
  • BuschGardens – look into the season pass, as it is located near campus so it would be easy to go for just a few hours. Not a bad way to enjoy some of your free time.
  • AdventureIsland – Busch’s sister complex, this is a water park. Closed during the winter months.
  • LowryPark Zoo (Sligh Avenue in Tampa)
  • Florida Aquarium (right next to Channelside) – another one where it is worth looking into the annual pass, as it is a pretty good overall value.
  • Beaches – St. Petersberg and Clearwater have amazing beaches