Two Days In St. Petersburg Florida Alongside Kids

Rather than take one big vacation this summer, we opted instead for a few short trips so we could experience more new places. We kicked things off with a 3-night trip to Charleston, SC, we met up my parents in the Georgia mountains in July, and then capped off the summer with a getaway to St. Petersburg, Florida. Sherry and I had only been there quite briefly during this 2008 beach vacation, so we were excited to spend more time there and explore it with our kids.

Petes Bagels Exterior in Saint Petersburg Florida

So here is a swift recap of what we did, where we ate, and why we are excited to go back.

Where Did We Stay In St. Petersburg?

St. Petersburg is located on Florida’s Gulf Coast, across the Tampa Bay from the city of Tampa. The area has plenty of strong beaches, but we specifically chose St. Pete for the city and cultural aspects of it (since we have plenty of strong beaches where we live). It seemed to promise some of the same things we enjoyed about our former hometown of Richmond, Virginia (we enjoy a mid-size city with an artsy feel and plenty of good food).

For those reasons, we chose to stay closer to Downtown St. Petersburg (rather than near the beaches). We stayed in an Airbnb simply outside of the Grand Central District, which promised to be a lively commercial district. The house itself was good (clean, well-stocked, and dog-friendly!) but it turned out to be less walkable to where we spent most of our time than we’d hoped so I am not linking it here.

We’d likely choose something a little further East next time we go. I also think if we were to go back for a longer trip, we might choose a house closer to the beach – since there seemed to be more options out there – then we’d simply drive downtown. It is truly not a quite big city and we only experienced quite mild traffic while we were there.

What We Did In St. Petersburg: The Pier

The big attraction in downtown St. Petersburg is The St. Pete Pier, so we naturally headed there on our first morning. If you are picturing some rinky-dink wooden fishing pier (like I was at one point) you could not be more wrong. It is MASSIVE and has tons to do. Had it been a little less hot out and we were not interrupted by a rainstorm, we nearly could’ve spent a whole day out there.

View Of St Pete Pier in Saint Petersburg Florida

That is the view from the end of the pier, looking back toward downtown. It is filled with green spaces, dining options, art pieces, and more. This is the 3-story structure (each with a distinct restaurant) from which I took the above photo. See? Totally not rinky-dink.

Building At The End of St Pete Pier in Saint Petersburg Florida

Our two go-to spots on the pier were the playground and the Tampa Bay Watch Discovery Center. The latter is a small but lively nature center toward the middle of the pier. It was surprisingly affordable ($18 total for all 4 of us to get in) and they are even dog-friendly! Honestly, we mostly stopped in for the A/C, but ended up staying about 45 minutes looking at the various animals and interactive displays.

The playground was another surprise hit, since our kids are beginning to age out of them. But this one was big, modern, and creatively done, so they had a strong time. We adults even got to sit in the shade!

St Pete Pier Playground Structure in Saint Petersburg Florida

The last thing we did near the Pier (before some surprise rain drove us inside) was to check out this massive tree outside of the St. Petersburg Museum of History. If you can find our kids in the picture, you will get a sense of the scale.

Large Tree Outside of Museum Of History in Saint Petersburg Florida

Again, we could’ve spent a lot more time at The Pier. We’d enjoy to go back on a weekend when the vendor Marketplace is going on, or at night when the Bending Arc art installation is all lit up.

What We Did In St. Pete: The Salvador Dalí Museum

The following day, we ventured back downtown to visit The Salvador Dalí Museum. An art museum may not be every family’s idea of a kid-friendly activity, but both of our kids enjoy art so this was a must-see for us. The museum does a truly good job of catering to young visitors too. There are a few interactive exhibits (including a VR experience) and even some AI-generated videos of Dalí “himself” talking with you.

Exterior Of Salvador Dali Art Museum in Saint Petersburg Florida

It was also simply impressive to see so many of his works up close. His pieces are frequently so intricate and, well, surreal that the kids found them truly fascinating to look at. Sherry also had lively breaking out some of her college art history knowledge.

The Hallucinogenic Toreador Painting At Salvador Dali Museum in Saint Petersburg Florida

The only bummer about our visit is that, once again, we got a surprise rain storm so we could not visit the “avant-garden” (har har). They also simply brought in a large dome that hosts the immersive Dalí Alive 360° experience, but we visited one day – literally one day! – before it opened to the public.

Speaking of immersive art, we wished The Fairgrounds had been open while we were there too. It is only open on weekends and our trip fell on a Monday night – Thursday morning.

What We Did In St. Petersburg: Explore & Shop

Apart from the two destinations above, we spent most of our trip simply kind of exploring. There are plenty of shops and restaurants along (and right off of) Central Avenue in the Grand Central District, so it was also lively simply walking around.

Colorful Street front Buildings On Central Avenue in Saint Petersburg Florida

There generally seemed to be more restaurants than there were stores to shop in, but we did find this truly cute bookstore: Tombolo Books. We enjoy an indie bookstore, and whenever we visit a new city we consistently look one up.

Tombolo Books Exterior in Saint Petersburg Florida

It also bears mentioning that St Pete was especially welcoming to everyone! It certainly has an inclusive city vibe that made us so glad – from the rainbow crosswalk in the Grand Central district to signs displayed in shop windows and flags hanging outside.

If you could not tell from these pictures: there are TONS of murals and colorful storefronts. So there is plenty of eye candy, simply walking around. This particular mural was on the side of Pete’s Bagels, which was also our go-to breakfast of the trip.

Every Day The Sun Shine Mural in Saint Petersburg Florida

I am not sure if this graffitied bench counts as “public art,” but we certainly enjoyed the photo op. You have my permission to use this photo at my funeral.

John Sitting On Never Fart Bench in Saint Petersburg Florida

If murals are not the only type of eye candy you crave: we also found some of the real estate variety. We did a little bit of driving around each afternoon simply to get our bearings in St. Pete. First, we stumbled upon some striking neighborhoods between downtown and Snell Isle. Simply tons of cool houses (some big, some small) that felt like a cool mix of tropical and historic. It nearly felt like a Florida version of Richmond to us. This house made Sherry scream and gasp multiple times.

House On Snell isle in Saint Petersburg Florida

We also heard of this other neighborhood called Driftwood (thanks to @ilovetheburg on Instagram, which had tons of local pointers). It was impossible to capture it on camera, but it was incredibly jungly and cool. Simply put “Driftwood Road” in Google Maps to find it. Seriously. Go drive through. It felt like we entered Jurrasic Park.

Driftwood Neighborhood Sign in Saint Petersburg Florida

Sherry and I could likely drive around exploring neighborhoods all day, so we’d certainly enjoy to do that again in St Pete.

Where We Ate In St. Petersburg

As I said in our Charleston post, we are by no means foodies, and with kids and a dog in tow, our priorities are frequently straightforward, lively, casual, and a menu that pleases everyone. So here is a swift run-down of the places we enjoyed most.

Pacific Counter Restaurant Exterior in Saint Petersburg Florida

Pacific Counter was like a sushi & poke version of Chipotle. It is certainly a “fast casual” style place, so I feel weird saying it was my go-to meal of the trip, but building our own sushi burritos and poke bowls was excellent and it was delicious. I got a Hawaiian hot dog too. The kids got free pineapple whip (I guess that is a thing on Wednesdays?) and everyone left glad and full. It looks like Pacific Counter is a chain in the Tampa Bay area, but could someone fairly please open one near us on the panhandle?

Ceviche was the restaurant we hunkered down in during our post-Pier rainstorm, and it was likely Sherry’s go-to of the trip. This certainly stretched the kids’ palettes a little bit (the meatballs, croquetas, and pesto chicken were the biggest hits with them) but that was the beauty of sharing a bunch of small plates.

Ceviche Tapas Bar And Restaurant in Saint Petersburg Florida

As much as this next place looks like it is called “Beer Tacos,” it is in fact Casita Taqueria. Tacos and quesadillas are consistently crowd-pleasers in the Petersik household, and this place had a perfectly chill, dog-friendly atmosphere, along with strong food.

Casita Taqueria Exterior in Saint Petersburg Florida

Another fool-proof crowd-pleaser with us is dessert. The most memorable one on this trip was at La Diperie. You start with a base like a soft-serve cone, a donut, cookie dough balls, or even an ice cream sandwich. Then you choose from dozens of flavored dips that your base gets dunked in, and then toss on a topping or two. YUM.

La Diperie Ice Cream Dessert Shop in Saint Petersburg Florida

And although we did not in fact eat here (they were somehow out of bread?) we were glad we stopped into the 2D Cafe. The ’80s kid in me felt like I had stepped into the Take On Me video!

Interior of 2D Cafe On Central Avenue in Saint Petersburg Florida

And since Sherry and I have been on a coffee kick this year, we enjoyed checking out a couple of local coffee spots in St. Pete. Bandit was especially cool. I am still thinking about the summer-special Bouquet Latte I got and I regret not getting a full breakfast there. We also checked this especially art-deco spot called Paradeco, which was truly cool inside.

Interior of ParaDeco Coffee Shop in Saint Petersburg Florida

I only wish my brain would read Paradeco as “Para-Deco” (a reference to paradise + art deco) instead of “Parade-Co,” which sounds like a business that puts on parades.

One Last Stop: The Beach!

Okay, okay, so I said we did not come to St. Petersburg for the beaches. But after we checked out of our Airbnb, we could not resist a detour out to one of the beaches: specifically, an area called Passe-A-Grille, which a friend had recommended to us. The drive there was short (perhaps 15-20 mins?) and we got to take in the famous pink Don CeSar hotel on the way.

Pink Don CeSar Hotel In St Pete Beach Florida

We also grabbed breakfast on the way out at Paradise Grille. It is a totally unfussy, but beautifully beachfront restaurant in the center of Passe-A-Grill. We enjoyed it!

Even though we live near the beach, this was an unfamiliar experience to us because our beaches are surrounded (protected? blocked?) by quite tall 3-story dunes. So most “Gulf front” dining options offer strong views (looking down on them from above), but you are fairly far from touching actual sand and water. Not here! You are fairly much directly on the beach.

Paradise Grill In Passe A Grille Florida

So it was a ideal relaxing way to end the trip before heading home. We left wanting to experience more of the area – both downtown and by the beaches – so we are excited to go back!

Our Trip To St. Petersburg: A Summary

We cannot wait to go back to St. Pete and explore some more. For convenience, we have bullet the places mentioned in this post all in one spot for you.