Things to Do in Clearwater Beach: Tours, Tickets & Boat Trips

Ranked by traveller reviews: 1) the Little Toot dolphin adventure, 2) the Encounters with Dolphins tour, 3) the tropical buffet or sunset cruise, 4) the Sea Screamer speedboat, 5) parasailing over the Gulf, 6) the floating tiki-bar cruise, 7) the schooner Clearwater sunset sail, 8) Sunsets at Pier 60, 9) the Clearwater Marine Aquarium and 10) a day on Caladesi Island via the Honeymoon Island ferry.

Plan three to four days, or a week with day trips. Day one: the beach and Pier 60 sunset. Day two: a dolphin cruise, the Clearwater Marine Aquarium and dinner at Frenchy’s. Day three: Honeymoon Island and the ferry to Caladesi. Day four: Dunedin’s breweries or Tarpon Springs’ sponge docks, and a schooner or tiki sunset sail. With more time add St. Petersburg, Fort De Soto and the Sunken Gardens.

Clearwater Beach and Sand Key Park (paid parking only), the Sunsets at Pier 60 festival every evening from two hours before sunset, the Beach Walk, watching the fishing boats and pelicans at the marina, the Dunedin Causeway beaches, cycling the Pinellas Trail, browsing Tarpon Springs’ sponge docks and Dunedin’s Main Street, and the Coachman Park waterfront in downtown Clearwater. The Jolley Trolley along the beach costs a couple of dollars.

Caladesi Island State Park by ferry from Honeymoon Island (20 minutes), Dunedin’s Scottish-flavoured Main Street and breweries (15 minutes), Tarpon Springs’ Greek sponge docks (25 minutes), St. Petersburg’s Dalí Museum and Pier (35 minutes), Fort De Soto’s beaches (50 minutes), Tampa’s Busch Gardens, Florida Aquarium and Ybor City (40 minutes), Weeki Wachee’s mermaids (one hour) and the manatees of Crystal River (90 minutes).

Start at Pier 60’s sunset festival, or on a sunset cruise, schooner sail or tiki boat, then Frenchy’s Rockaway Grill, Shephard’s Tiki Beach Bar for live bands, Jimmy’s Crow’s Nest rooftop, Palm Pavilion and Crabby’s on the beach. Downtown Clearwater has Ruth Eckerd Hall concerts and the Capitol Theatre; Dunedin’s Main Street and breweries are 15 minutes away.

Winter is peak season, with highs in the low 70s°F, the driest skies of the year and every dolphin and sunset boat running. Spring training brings the Phillies to BayCare Ballpark from late February, manatees gather in the warm springs an hour north, and December has the lighted boat parade and Pier 60’s holiday events. The Gulf is cool for swimming (60s°F) but perfect for shelling walks.

The Clearwater Marine Aquarium’s rescued dolphins and turtles, a dolphin cruise on the Little Toot, Captain Memo’s pirate cruise, the Pier 60 playground and sunset festival, the calm shallow water and lifeguards on the main beach, the Caladesi ferry, Celebration Station’s go-karts, Splash Harbour water park in Indian Rocks and the Jolley Trolley ride. Older kids love the Sea Screamer and parasailing.

March to May and October to November — warm, dry and less crowded than the winter peak, with the Gulf warm enough to swim from April. Summer is hot with daily afternoon storms; hurricane season peaks in September. December to February is busy and pleasant but cool for swimming.

Yes — Caladesi is one of the last undeveloped barrier islands on the Gulf, reached by a 20-minute ferry from Honeymoon Island State Park, with three miles of white sand, mangrove kayak trails and almost nobody on it. Take the first ferry of the morning, bring water and shade, and combine it with Honeymoon Island’s beaches and osprey trail on the way back.