Girl’s Weekend in the Tampa Bay Area (Sunday – Tuesday/Wednesday)

These past few days were just so fun I thought I would put together a little itinerary of the things we did. This was a quick trip with my two best friends from college. We met freshman year and now, almost 25 years later, we had the most amazing time running around Tampa seeing some of my favorite things.

They both flew in on Sunday. One later than the other, so we started our excursions with a little stop at Buddy Brew in Hyde Park. We both ordered cappuccinos and sat at their little bar chatting while we waited for our other friend to land. Once we were together we dropped their things at the house, gave a quick tour (of course) of the house and we were off to Dunedin.

Dunedin is such a cute little walkable town and its right on the water so the views are unbelievable. Our first stop was at the Fenway Bonvoy Marriot Hotel. We valeted the car and headed upstairs to their Hi-Fi Rooftop Bar. The views there are stunning, looking out at the those inner coastal waters and clearwater in the distance. There is always a beautiful breeze and it was a perfect spot for some appetizers and cocktails (we ordered the mushroom pizza and margaritas…and neither were a disappointment).

We left the car there and walked down to Caracara near Main Street. Its an Asian Tapas and Taco – Bar. This is a fun and delicious small place. If you can sit outside, and that’s your thing, do it. Everything is more fun al fresco…am I right? You can order anything there BUT YOU MUST order there Falafel Boa. Honestly, these are to die for. It comes with two but you can ask to have three, or four, or more. And you will always want more. When we finished up there, we went down to the Brewery, sat and talked…FOREVER. We finished by walking down by the marina and then headed back to grab the car from the hotel. It was a perfect little day and each part gave us time to sit, enjoy one another, and laugh ALOT!

The next day, we headed into Tampa, down by the River Walk. Tons of easy parking down there for just a few bucks. I made a brunch reservation at Ulele near Armature Works and we sat outside under an umbrella. They have huge fans out there, so as the summer heats up it should still be pretty refreshing to sit out there. They have so many yummy options but truly, if you have the chance for a Blackened Grouper Sandwich anywhere in the Tampa Bay Area…do it! I am sure you would agree too, that every lunch should finish with dessert, so get two scoops of ice cream, coffee and coconut. So, so delicious! We finished our lunch and walked the river walk for a bit and then strolled through Armature Works and headed out.

We then headed out to Sparkman Wharf in the Channelside Area. They usually have cruise ships that people always love to see. They are ginormous. Tons of places to grab a bite to eat and drink and sit outside. It was early afternoon, so we kind of ended up in that area between lunch and dinner, so someone there suggested we walk down to Waters Street. I am so glad they did. This little afternoon turned out amazing! We walked into Boulon Brasserie which is a darling French place and only their bar was open at the time (around 3:30). The air conditioning felt so good so we decided to sit inside, at the bar and order some cocktails. You guys, when we walked in we were the only customers and we didn’t close it down, but we stayed until we looked around and it was full. The bartenders were awesome and so attentive. We stayed for hours, chatted about every memory we can think of, laughed and laughed harder. The service and the food was amazing and the interior is stunning; casual, elevated, inviting, stunning!

In two days we did so much. Every spot we visited never rushed us, let us enjoy our time and gave us an amazing experience. One friend left the next day and the other the following. We laid low the rest of time, hung at the house and I dropped her at the airport and headed home.

These girls fill me up with their friendship from miles away and make my cup overflow when they are near. It was good. It was well timed for all of us. And truly, we have the most generous husbands to man the ships of our lives for a bit so we could just be together. God is good and I am grateful.

If you ever plan a little girl’s weekend, whether local or from afar, the Tampa Bay Area did not disappoint and I would not change one thing about the things we did.

First Pic (Maybe 2002) Second Pic 2023