Author Topic: Clearwater Beach Trip Report  (Read 4053 times)

Offline mtag17

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Clearwater Beach Trip Report
« on: July 16, 2017, 04:23:46 PM »
I couldn't find any thread on Clearwater Beach, FL, so here goes:

My wife and I went flew from LGA to Tampa on Delta Comfort in late May. We got to chill a little at the Centurion lounge at LaGuardia; it was nice, but it was pretty annoying to get to from our terminal.



Anyway, we arrived at the Tampa airport (which is a major improvement from the not as nice LGA), and took an Uber to Clearwater Beach. The drive is 30-45 min, but the Uber was only around $25. If you just plan to stay on the beach area, I wouldn't suggest renting a car, especially since the hotels there charge for parking.

We checked into the Wyndham Clearwater Beach using our Chase Sapphire points. It is a beautiful and clean hotel split between the hotel and timeshare sections. There is also a Hyatt and Hilton right nearby, but this one looked nicer. It also had a small fridge in the room. The big problem with it is that there was a $25/day resort fee that they didn't tell me about. Still working on getting it back...

[url=https://flic.kr/p/WAkjxt]



We requested a lower floor (for shabbos), and we got a room on the 4th floor, which is the lowest floor the rooms start on. Shabbos is a little difficult, especially if you want to go to the beach, but it's doable. The front doors are electric, but there is a nonelectric door that is left unlocked. The gates around the pool require you to scan your room key, but the constant flow of people makes it possible to slip by easily. To keep our room door from room locking on us while we were gone, we took the cardboard spa advertisement lying in the room and taped it (using painter's tape) over the holes in the door (see pictures). Also keep in mind that when you open the balcony door, the AC in the room automatically turns off, and it turns back on when the door is closed. That's a problem for Shabbos. As for the stairs, the door to the stairs was unlocked. There are also stairs hiding that lead you up to the ballroom, where you can then take a different set of stairs up to the rooms.



FOOD:
There is a large island market that has some kosher food. The owner is actually Israeli, and was very excited to see us Jews. There is also a Walgreens nearby, and a Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts (for ice cream) there too.

ACTIVITIES:
The hotel is very centrally located, and there is lots to do. There are many many different boat tours to choose from that all guarantee dolphin sightings if you're into that. We chose Sea Screamer, a big and fast yellow boat. It costed $24/person and took us into the Gulf of Mexico where dolphins were literally jumping in our wake.
We also went next door and rented bike from the back of the Hyatt (Fun Ride Rentals). We biked around the water and to a Rita's; it was really nice. They charged around $16 per bike for the 2 hours we used them; we came back a little late, but they were nice and didn't charge us. They also rent out motorcycles, mini cars, and a whole bunch of other cool stuff. Check out their website for rentals and prices.



That's pretty much it. It was more of a relaxing beach vacation. The beach was crowded (college was out), but beautiful. The sand was nearly as soft as flour.



« Last Edit: April 18, 2018, 12:48:42 PM by Something Fishy »

Offline dandu16

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Re: Clearwater Beach Master Thread
« Reply #1 on: August 06, 2017, 12:55:22 AM »
Thanks. Informative
"It is only in adventure that some people succeed in knowing themselves - in finding themselves"

Offline @Yehuda

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Re: Clearwater Beach Master Thread
« Reply #2 on: August 06, 2017, 09:39:22 AM »
Looks like a great time! Thanks for writing it up!

Offline Traveler4ever

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Re: Clearwater Beach Trip Report
« Reply #3 on: January 16, 2024, 03:47:42 PM »
Just saw your TR. Wow beautiful area! Was very informative. Thanks!