Tampa Hotel Recommendations

[Badger Bob 1947]

Looking for hotel recommendations for one night, pre cruise, from Tampa.

[JohninDC]

Lots of hotels in the Channelside area near TPA with nearby dining and shopping options.  More upscale IMHO is the Rocky Point area (we like Chase Suites), also close to TPA.  Taxi to the port the next day, if a shuttle is not offered, will run about $25+.

 

Budget, dates and how many are cruising would help the suggestions to be closer to your target.

[bajathree]

Rocky Point isn't upscale to Channelside district. Many new options in Channelside including Tampa's first and only 5 star hotel.....The Edition. 

[catinhat]

We will be flying in 3 days early and want to experience and stay near the white sandy beaches near Tampa.  Best place to go?

 

[bajathree]

2 hours ago, catinhat said:

We will be flying in 3 days early and want to experience and stay near the white sandy beaches near Tampa.  Best place to go?

 

Maybe look around staying in Clearwater Beach...lots of hotels and resorts. The nicest beaches are going to be around the Anna Maria Island area....but thats around 75-90 minutes south of Tampa and is going to be more house rentals.

Edited August 3, 2023 by bajathree

[SUESEABE]

Thinking about booking Chase Suites, Tampa for one night pre cruise. They have a 2 bedroom king suite that would fit our family of 5 perfectly (eliminating the need to book 2 rooms). Reviews are a mixed bag. Anyone stay there recently have any thoughts about the Chase?

[rjrpar]

We are flying into PIE and looking for a 2 night pre cruise stay.  Don’t care about staying by the beach but would like a vibrant area with restaurants, bars, etc

Thanks in advance

[LadyBerard]

Last time we cruised out of Tampa, we stayed at Marriot Water Street.  Loved it there.

[JohninDC]

On 8/6/2023 at 9:16 PM, SUESEABE said:

Thinking about booking Chase Suites, Tampa for one night pre cruise. They have a 2 bedroom king suite that would fit our family of 5 perfectly (eliminating the need to book 2 rooms). Reviews are a mixed bag. Anyone stay there recently have any thoughts about the Chase?

Pre-pandemic it was good - have not been back since.

[RedRover96]

On 8/8/2023 at 10:28 AM, rjrpar said:

We are flying into PIE and looking for a 2 night pre cruise stay.  Don’t care about staying by the beach but would like a vibrant area with restaurants, bars, etc

Thanks in advance

We've booked the Fairfield Inn, Clearwater close to the bay.  Great rates, GM was very nice in answering some questions I had. 

3070 Gulf to Bay Boulevard, Clearwater, Florida 33759

[chay]

On 8/6/2023 at 9:16 PM, SUESEABE said:

Thinking about booking Chase Suites, Tampa for one night pre cruise. They have a 2 bedroom king suite that would fit our family of 5 perfectly (eliminating the need to book 2 rooms). Reviews are a mixed bag. Anyone stay there recently have any thoughts about the Chase?

We stayed at Chase Suites in a 2 bedroom suite with kitchen and living room. One bedroom with a king, one with 2 queens and there was a sofa bed in the living room. We had a very positive experience, but it's been about 10 years.

There were 6 of us, some flew in, some drove. They offered a free shuttle to airport and cruise port (both ways) and allowed us to park a vehicle for free the week of the cruise. They also offered free shuttle service within the surrounding area. We took a shuttle to Target form some last minute supplies and picked up food while we were out.

[highflyingrealtor]

We Uber’d to a Holiday Inn at Clearwater Beach. Great location, fun place to stay. 😎

[DiamondSuiteCruiser]

On 8/10/2023 at 6:37 AM, LadyBerard said:

Last time we cruised out of Tampa, we stayed at Marriot Water Street.  Loved it there.

We just booked this for our next cruise. Are there many places to eat or shop near by? I haven’t had a chance to google the area yet.

[SUESEABE]

@DiamondSuiteCruiser

 

https://thepearlrestaurant.com/locations-menus/tampa/

[TJ O'Pootertoot]

I stayed at the Hampton Inn in Ybor City, where there are lots of nice restaurants and things to see for the one night before the cruise. People also seemed to like the fancier Hotel Haya, across the street. Ybor just seemd to have a little more character to it than the Channelside area.

 

The Hampton had a free shuttle to the Port and it's next door to the trolley, which also goes there and into the downtown area (which we walked around the morning of the cruise).

[SUESEABE]

During the day, Ybor is not a bad place to walk around. At night however, it can get crowded and somewhat rough. Exercise caution and use common sense if going out late at night in Ybor City.

[bajathree]

2 hours ago, SUESEABE said:

During the day, Ybor is not a bad place to walk around. At night however, it can get crowded and somewhat rough. Exercise caution and use common sense if going out late at night in Ybor City.

Absolutely correct. Ybor has lots of great restaurant and history to share. However it can get downright sketchy at night...not a reason not to stay but just to be aware of. Many areas in Miami are no different. Thats why I usually recommend Channelside over Ybor to stay in. Easy enough to jump the free trolley to Ybor in the daytime or early evening for dining or bars. 

Edited June 5 by bajathree

[TJ O'Pootertoot]

FWIW, I remember some people saying Ybor could get rowdy but whether it was a quiet night in December or just that I went to bed early, it was fine for when I was there. But there are lots of bars and cigar lounges and such so I can see how at night it could be dicier or that vibe wouldn't work for some people.

 

But it is at least worth taking the trolley to go and see.