Hotel suggestions for Tampa

[imatarb]

Hey Ken...

 

I just booked the Radisson Bay Harbor Hotel in Tampa for $59/night thru Priceline in December after disembarkation. Any thoughts on this property?

 

Also, how far from the airport, the pier and Channelside?

[Shawnesville]

I just booked the same one for $55!

We're good ;)

[Cracker Ken]

HeidiHo - You could go to Bradenton/Sarasota, but it will be about an hour or so getting up to Tampa, a little more depending on where you are going. I don't think there are any shuttles servicing Tampa from there, and a taxi would require a second mortgage. A rental would work. You could rent a one-way, turn it in at the airport, and maybe get a shuttle van to a local hotel near the airport (see info earlier on this thread). You just have to weigh the savings on the airline tickets against the car rental fees and the inconvenience of going to another area first.

 

imatarb - The Radisson Bay Harbor Inn is roughly 9 miles from the cruise terminals, which are within blocks of, or actually at (depending on which line you are cruising with) Channelside. Carnival usually uses the terminal that's part of the Channelside complex. You are only about 2 miles from the airport, maybe 3 by car. I saw one poster that didn't like this place one time. I haven't been in hotel rooms there, but the exterior is fine. It's in a nice area (primarily an area with office buildings, hotels, and some restaurants). It sits right on the water, with a pool overlooking the bay. Rooms on the W. side of the building would be best, overlooking the bay. I've been inside the corridors and have been to meetings and luncheons in their conference center, and had no problems. Most Radissons have a decent reputation. George Steinbrenner (owner of the NY Yankees) owns this place. They have a restaurant there, kind of a casual seafood/crab shack type restaurant. I havent dined there. There are other places very close, like Bahama Breeze and Landry's Seafood. I like those two places and have eaten at both of them.

 

Ken

[jessemon]

Hey Ken,

Just to let (imatarb) know something. My wife and I go to the Radisson about once a month if not more to sit outside at the restaraunt there. It's called Crabby Bill's. It is not fancy, but the food is decent. It is very Coastal. From buckets of clams (2 dz. for $8.99) to lobster tail, catfish and great crab cakes($7.99 for one & worth the price) it actually has more crab than bread crumbs.;)

On their foam beer koozies it says "Don't worry be Crabby" and their aprons say "We don't just serve crabs here, we serve nice people too".:p :eek:

To Ken...here we go again with the pins and needles for the weekend. Another hurricane...can you believe it??????

Living on the top of Tampa Bay right on the water (Bayport) this is getting old fast. After watching what happened on the Gulf Coast if they say late Thursday they think this thing will get more north...the birds, dog & I will be going to see my wife in Kentucky where she is working on a project.

[Ehpride]

We're going to be in Tampa on New Year's Eve and had previously booked at the Days Inn Airport/Stadium. I've been reading really bad reviews about it so checked around and found the Days Inn Tampa Port of Tampa/Ybor City. Has anybody heard anything about this motel? Is it in a good area? It looks pretty promising and has to be cleaner than the other based on reviews I've been reading.

[Cracker Ken]

Ehpride - I would not recommend the Days Inn Port of Tampa/Ybor. First of all, it's not in Ybor or at the Port of Tampa, even though the title would seem to infer that. It's not too far away, but in that corner of town, a mile or two can make a huge differencein the surrounding areas and safety factors. This is an older, outside room entry, LaQuinta Inn, converted to a Days Inn. The surrounding area isn't good. I wouldn't go outside in that area at night without making use of my concealed weapons permit, and wouldn't park a car I own outside overnight. You would be better off at the Days Inn Dale Mabry Hwy than at this one. There's a decent Holiday Inn Express on Dale Mabry near the Tampa Stadium that's right next to Sam Seltzer's Steakhouse. That's area's acceptable. Are you driving into Tampa or flying? Some of the places near the airport that we have discussed a lot on this thread are nice, and not overly expensive. Those Days Inn's might have good prices, but you get what you pay for. I'm glad you asked about that location, and hope you take my advice.

 

Jessemon - Yep, here we are "living in the cone" again. Not a good feeling. I keep watching the reports in TV and at the NHC web site, this is a weird storm. Anyting is possible. Yes, I'd head for the hills if I lived around the Bayport area, or anywhere in upper Tampa Bay. The old Johnny Cash song, "5 Feet high and Risin' " comes to mind, if you know what I mean? Our offices are on the tip of Rocky Point. I wish they would move them to Hidden River ofc park in NE Tampa, or New Tampa.

I'm a remote worker, and I work from home, so if the office floats off into the Gulf, I've still got a place to work. With the current size of Wilma, if it comes across and exits at Palm Beach, we won't be too far from the hurricane force winds, and certainly in the tropical storm force area over here in Lakeland. At least we don't have to worry about flooding over here. If it floods where I'm at, it's time to build an Arc. It will be a tense weekend, that's for sure.

[Ehpride]

Wow...thanks for the heads up, Ken! I booked the Holiday Inn Express. I'd rather be safe, but the other Days Inn, from the reviews I've read just seemed too dirty. The least we want is a clean room in a safe neighborhood!

[gjules]

Wow...thanks for the heads up, Ken! I booked the Holiday Inn Express. I'd rather be safe, but the other Days Inn, from the reviews I've read just seemed too dirty. The least we want is a clean room in a safe neighborhood!

 

Ken, thanks for the information! (Ehpride happens to be my dd and vacation planner!!) I don't want fancy or expensive, but I DO want clean AND SAFE!!! I feel much better about our time in Tampa now! Thanks again and stay safe down there. We'll be thinking about you and praying for the best!

 

Julie

[imatarb]

Thanks for all the information, Ken, and we'll also be sure to check out Crabby Bill's. I think I was at one of them in Destin, FL. I agree with the cool atmosphere.

 

Whew! Just glad that the hotel we chose isn't less than desirable!

[Cracker Ken]

imatarb- Thanks, and when you get back from this trip, look up this thread and give us a review of the Radisson, the rooms, etc.

 

Ehpride - I hope the Holiday Inn Express works out OK for you. I find that hotel to be consistent most everywhere I go. I stay at them on business trips most of the time, either that or Hampton Inn. The free breakfast at Holiday Inn Express isn't bad, and they have those great hot cinamon buns too. There's a big steak house right next to the Holiday Inn Express near the stadium. It practically joins the hotel.

 

Ken

[Colton's dad]

BUMP, just to keep great info coming

[HeidiHo]

HeidiHo - You could go to Bradenton/Sarasota, but it will be about an hour or so getting up to Tampa, a little more depending on where you are going. I don't think there are any shuttles servicing Tampa from there, and a taxi would require a second mortgage. A rental would work. You could rent a one-way, turn it in at the airport, and maybe get a shuttle van to a local hotel near the airport (see info earlier on this thread). You just have to weigh the savings on the airline tickets against the car rental fees and the inconvenience of going to another area first.

 

Ken

 

Thanks Ken,

 

I just bought our airline tickets and managed to get a good rate direct to TPA so we are all set.

[efkart]

8 of us will be flying into Tampa on X-Mas eve, pre-cruise, staying at Embassy, Springhill and/or hopefully the newly built Holiday Inn Express near the stadium. We plan to rent a car and take in Busch Gardens on the 25th. Seeing as most places will be closed for Christmas, any other suggestions for what to do with the day? How about for dinner that night? Thank you!

[Cracker Ken]

efkart - I don't know if Busch Gardens is open on Christmas Day or not. I don't think I've ever noticed. As for dinner on Christmas, that might be hard to do. A few years ago we had a death in the family, so we set out to find a nice place to eat on Christmas evening. There were some open places in town, but they were all booked up with reservations. After exhausting everything I knew of in town (several locations), we returned back to our home town just outside of Tampa and went to a nice buffet restaurant for dinner. Lots of places are closed down that day, and only some of the nicer places in town were open, but couldn't seat us.

 

Ken

[jessemon]

efkart,

Checked the Busch Gardens wed site, they are open from 9:00 to 7:00. You can even but your tickets online so you don't have to stand in line. Check it out. I agree with Ken about dinner on Christmas. My wife and I live in Tampa and not much is open. I have a suggestion though. About two weeks before you come go to a web site called....TBO.com. It is a compo of the Tampa Trib and channel 8 news. On Fridays they have a section called Weekend. Maybe you can get some leads out of that. Click on the Trib. to see the newspaper.

Jeff

[efkart]

Thanks to both of you for the suggestions! We have our Busch Garden tickets already, so no standing in line. I will check that tbo.com site before we leave. Maybe our hotel will be able to hook us up with a nearby place for good Chinese food take-out that day. My family would be happy with that!

[bellera]

I see we have some very informed Tampa Bay residents here to help us with our vacation plans! Hopefully you all were spared any damage during the hurricane.

 

DH and I are booked into the DoubleTree Tampa Westshore in January for the night before our Inspiration cruise. Is this a decent hotel? And is there anything around it as in eating and shopping?

 

Also, the hotel will be picking us up at the airport and then taking us to the cruise terminal the next day. We would like to get a few rounds of golf in before our cruise and was wondering how the taxi service is for service and price? Or would we be better to rent a car for the day and drive ourselves to the course?

 

And - are there any decent golf courses really close to the hotel?

 

Thanks in advance for any info you can give me.

[jessemon]

bellara,

Ken is much better at the hotels than I am but I know on this thread Ken has made more than one comment on it and I think they were all good. As to golf...rent a car and do it early that time of year. Within range and easy to get to just north of the hotel you will be at is Westchase and the Eagles. (10 to 12 mles away from the airport and where you are staying) I love the Eagles. You want to set it up on that course to play the Islands side. Westchase is nice but pricey for what it is. It is in a "yuppievelle" area.

Oops...there I go again...not very PC!!!!;)

Across the bridge in St. Pete is the Mangroves...very nice public course.

(15 miles or so from the airport) All are easy to get to without alot of turns.

[Cracker Ken]

bellera - The Double Tree Westshore is on Cypress just E of Westshore. Almost next door is a Chuck's Steakhouse. On Westshore about 1/4 mile S of Cypress, there is a Steak and Ale Restaurant. Behind the Steak and Ale is the Westshore Plaza Mall and there are a couple of restaurants on the SE side of the mall. One of them is a Maggiano's Italian Restaurant. As for the Double Tree - Years ago it was a Holiday Inn, high rise, with inside room entry. It was remodeled and turned into the Double Tree a few years ago. The area isn't bad, and it's across the street from a high school. It's all part of the Westshore business district. I haven't been in the rooms at the Double Tree, but I was in the lobby and conference rooms back when it was a Holiday Inn. You should be OK there, especially with the van service. They usually have a nice breakfast at those hotels too. All of the Double Tree's I've stayed at have been very nice.

 

As for gold, I'll defer to Jessemon on that. I don't do golf, and haven't a clue.

 

Jessemon - Regarding "PC" - I only know two definitions - 1/ Plant City, and 2/ Personal Computer. :) I'm a nice guy, but I don't spend a lot of time worrying about the other PC. I won't get started on that issue.:rolleyes:

 

Ken

[bellera]

Thanks for the info - it sure helps!

 

jessemon - when you say rent a car and do it early - do you mean get a tee time for early in the day or get a tee time well in advance?

 

We fly into Tampa @ 9:55 a.m. on a Friday and then sail on Saturday. So we thought we could get a round in on Friday and Saturday.

 

I had seen Westchase but not Eagles - I will have to look that one up.

 

Cracker Ken - well you just made my husbands vacation! He loves steak and I am sure we will have to try out one of the steakhouses. I for one would rather have the Italian!

 

One more thing - is there a grocery store or something of that sort nearby? We are a tad addicted to Diet Coke and we will need to have a case or 2 around! Beer is also a necessity!

 

Now I guess if we rent a car we have more options. Do you have any suggestions on a rental company?

[spaceguy]

We are sailing on the Carnival Miracle starting 15 Jan 06. We are not familiar with Tampa at all. There will be 4 of us flying into the Tampa airport on 14 Jan to spend the day, and night before the cruise.

 

Mrs Spaceguy got us two rooms at Hilton Garden Inn Tampa East/Brandon

> 10309 Higland Manor Drive, Tampa, Florida 33610 through Priceline.

 

We understand Tampa is full that weekend due to the Kennel club convention.

 

Is the hotel she got a decent one and how is it in relation to the airport and cruise terminal?

 

Second, is there a rental car company that lets you pick up a car at the airport and turn it in at the cruise terminal? If so which ones?

 

If not we need a car for Sat and what would some of you experienced CCers recommend if we have to turn the car in someplace else on Sunday and still get to the cruise terminal?

 

Thanks!!

[jessemon]

bellara,

I would book tee times before you come to Tampa..it is as we call it..."Snow bird season." The courses will be busy. What I meant though when I commented was I would book a car early. They run short during winter.

Hope this helps. On the way to the course you will find soda, beer or whatever you need for the day.

[Colton's dad]

HI Ken or local helpers, We will be in town for Friday and Satarday pre Sunday cruise. Coming down from Canada with 3 kids I see that there is a large (on Tampa city page scale) large Christmas parade on Dec, 3 in town. 2 ? - a) if we do Busch gardens Sat, will it affect travel up there and should we expect alot of extra car traffic. b) should we do Busch Friday and plan on attending a huge , should'nt miss event. :confused: Weather will play final role. Thanks in advance on for past info

[jessemon]

Hey Ken,

Just letting you know. I was talking to a friend of mine today who owns a large plumbing company here in Tampa. There is a new Embassey Suites going up across from the Tampa Convention Center in downtown. Which will be across from the Marriott at Channelside. It is well underway and will give more options for people taking cruises and construction is well underway. Will find out completion dates soon.

[jessemon]

Hey Ken,

Just letting you know. I was talking to a friend of mine today who owns a large plumbing company here in Tampa. There is a new Embassey Suites going up across from the Tampa Convention Center in downtown. Which will be across from the Marriott at Channelside. It is well underway and will give more options for people taking cruises and construction is well underway. Will find out completion dates soon.

Did I say construction is well underway twice? Got to stop watching the Florida Gators with my friends!!!! Hic!!!!:cool: