Tampa and Tampa Bay Visitor Guide - Hotels in Ft. Lauderdale

Tampa and Tampa Bay Florida
Sunset over the Gulf of MexicoTampa Bay, one of the worlds great secluded harbors, is a vast body of water separated from the Gulf of Mexico by a peninsula that stretches from Clearwater on the north to St. Petersburg on the south. Tampa also features the largest port in Florida. Ranked among the top five best places in the nation to live in the The 1999 Places Almanac, the city ranked among the top 15 cities in the nation in a Forbes Magazine list of the best places for business and careers. Tampa gets its name from a Native American word meaning "a bundle of sticks," a reference to the region as a campsite.
Map of Tampa Bay - Click for larger mapToday, Tampa is the third largest city in Florida. Tampa is home to the Superbowl champions the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Tampa Port is the nation's seventh largest port. Tampa International Airport is known as the world's friendliest airport. The Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center is the largest theater complex south the Mason Dixon line and Tampa Convention Center is one of the largest convention centers in the Southeastern United States. A major north-south interstate highway, I-75, streaks up the east side of the bay, while I-275 branches off from I-75 north of Sarasota and travels through St. Petersburg, crossing the Courtney Campbell Causeway and heading north from downtown. Busch Gardens TampaThose two interstate highways meet just north of town. There they create a triangle known as the Busch Gardens/University of South Florida section of town. That's where you'll find Tampa's famed Busch Gardens, home of wild rides and wild animals, and an attraction that ranks among the top crowd pleasers in Florida. Other attractions in that vicinity include, the Tampa Greyhound Track, MOSI - the Museum of Science and Industry, Adventure Island water park and the D. G. Yuengling Brewery. Temple Terrace, a suburb, can be found here, too. If you're looking for a great golf vacation in Tampa, just click here for great golf vacation packages to fit any budget.
Florida Aquarium TampaOn the southern edge of downtown Tampa, the Garrison Channel passes between Harbour Island, home to the Wyndham Harbour Island Hotel, which anchors a cluster of shops and restaurants, and the Garrison Pier. Here, too, you will find the Tampa Convention Center, which houses a branch of the Tampa Hillsborough Visitor Information Center, a new Ice Palace Arena, home of the Tampa Bay Lighting professional hockey team, and the Florida Aquarium fittingly tucked in near the sea.