Clearwater Beach - Places to Eat & Things to Do?

EDITED TO ADD:
The Florida Aquarium is in Tampa if you're up for something like that. It is a little bit of a drive, but not too bad. It's really a pretty awesome aquarium and they have a splash park outside for the kids, so they might enjoy that. It's in an area in downtown Tampa called Channelside. There are some restaurants and shopping and stuff there too. Just something else I thought of seeing the other posts. :-)

DEFINITELY Frenchy's!

I've never done the pirate ship thing, but the kids might enjoy it (not sure how old they are). There are other boat tours you can go on that are great, especially the dolphin ones. The kids will surely love that. Beyond that, just enjoy the gorgeous white sand beaches. I grew up in Sarasota (Siesta Key was just ranked the #1 beach in the nation....that was "our" beach) and I miss it so much now that we live in TX. I definitely took it for granted when we lived there! We're moving back to FL this summer (although to south Florida) and I fully intend to visit the beach a lot more often now that I realize what we were missing! :-)

Have fun!

Hi! I live in Clearwater, I see Frenchy's has already been recemended...its great!!! The Clearwater Aqurium is right there. The famous Dolphin "Winter" is there with theprostethic tail. Johns Pass On Mederia Beach is fun. Lots of good food, shops and boat tours you can take from there. I have never done the Pirate ship cruise, but I heard it was pretty cool. I know you said you won't be going to Buesh Gardens but the only thing that is really cool is that its not just an amusement park but also a zoo. They have a ton of animals. Just a thought. Kinda pricey though. Also the Tampa Zoo is fun, Its called Lowry Park Zoo...may be kinda hot for that, but they do have some water stuff for kids to play in, we love it there. Hope this helped some.

Feel free to ask me any questions, I can find out some stuff for you if you would like :) Have fun!!

Frenchy's restaurants - they are GREAT!!!

The Pirate Ship was Ok but that was years ago - check out the Dolphin Cruises out of Hubbard marina

There will be lots to do in the area checkout the newspapers online
tbo.com
tampabay.com

The Clearwater Beach area is one of my favorite spots but will be very crowded during the summer months. Also, the water is generally not very clear due to local pollution. I've heard they've cleaned up their act in recent years but don't know that to be a fact. If you want beautiful, clear water (no pun intended), go up to Honeymoon Island, or better yet, Caladesi Island just north of Clearwater. Both islands are undeveloped but do have bathrooms & snack bar. There is a small fee to take the ferry to Caladesi, but well worth it. Shelling is good there, also. Caladesi is the only place in the area where I've found whole, intact sand dollars & starfish. Another place where the water is nicer is south of Clearwater Beach at St Pete. At the south end of St Pete is a place called Pass-A-Grille Beach. A good restaurant there is The Hurricane. It's a little pricey & there can be a long wait during peak hours but the food is quite good. The observation deck from the top of the restaurant is a great place to watch the sunset. You can also take the Shell Key Shuttle from Merry Pier over to a small, undeveloped (no bathrooms) island (Shell Key) where the water & shelling are wonderful. Just north of Pass-A-Grille is the Don Cesar hotel which is one of the most beautiful & historic hotels in the U.S. Going back north up Gulf Blvd toward Clearwater is Madeira Beach. There is an area there called John's Pass that has a lot of nice shops & a good restaurant called Sculley's. I prefer Madeira Beach over Clearwater Beach for water clarity, shelling, & things to do if I don't want to drive very far. As is always the case in crowded public areas, keep an eye on your kiddo's!