What You Will Do
Discover Tampa with this self-guided walking tour! Stroll along the scenic Tampa Riverwalk and get to know the scenic side of the city, from the Kiley Gardens to the old railroad bridge and beyond. As you explore, you’ll also dig into Tampa’s rich history. Hear all about the city’s founding, trouble with pirates, battles between settlers and Native tribes, and Tampa’s very own cigar mafia. There’s no shortage of sights to see in Tampa, and no shortage of stories to tell!
After booking, check your email/text to download the separate Audio Tour Guide App by Action while connected to WiFi or mobile data. Enter the password, download the tour, and enjoy it offline. Follow the audio instructions and route from the designated starting point.
Buy once, use for one year! Ideal for extended visits and return trips over the next 12 months.
This is not an entrance ticket to attractions along the route. Check opening hours before your visit.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Itinerary
Meeting Point
Begin from MacDill Park on the Riverwalk, 100 N Ashley Dr, Tampa. After booking the tour, search your emails and texts for "audio tour". Your tour is VALID FOR ONE YEAR so follow these instructions NOW to finish setting up the tour while you have Wi-Fi/data. Do NOT wait until you are onsite.
1
Tampa Riverwalk
15 minutes
Welcome to the Tampa Riverwalk! This scenic walking path runs right along the Hillsborough River with plenty of sites to see and stories to tell on both sides of the river. Our walk today covers a little over two miles and should take around an hour and a half. So without further ado, let's get walking!
Buy once, use for one year! Ideal for extended visits and return trips over the next 12 months.
The tour is over 2 miles long, with more than 41 audio stories, and takes about 1-2 hours to complete.
2
Hotel Tampa Riverwalk
20 minutes
We’re strolling past the Hotel Tampa Riverwalk, on our right. The sleek Art Deco design might make you think it was built sometime in the early 1900s, but it actually opened in 1969. The design is actually a nod to the architectural heyday of Miami, where Art Deco was all the rage about a century ago. If you ever find yourself in Miami, make sure to check out my driving tour of the city!
3
Kiley Garden
25 minutes
That checkerboard display of grass and concrete strips off to our right is Kiley Garden, designed in the 1980s by the late landscape architect Dan Kiley. Kiley loved modern design and believed in creating outdoor spaces that fit with their surroundings. Here, Kiley created a gridded landscape, inspired by the business buildings that tower along the edge of the garden.
4
Port Tampa Bay
10 minutes
The Hillsborough River spills into Hillsborough Bay, which empties into Tampa Bay about seven miles from here. That’s also where you’ll find the Port of Tampa Bay, the largest port in the state of Florida. Tankers and cargo ships bring over 37 million tons of cargo through this port each year!
5
Julian B Lane Riverfront Park
If Tampa was such a tiny town in the 1800s, how’d it become such a big deal? That would be thanks to the discovery of one valuable mineral: Phosphate, a chemical compound of the mineral phosphorus that’s often found in rocks. Phosphate is rich in nutrients, a perfect ingredient in fertilizers that helps crops grow. And you know what, phosphate helped Tampa grow too!
6
Ybor City
During the rise and fall of Tampa’s cigar industry, the streets of Ybor City were ruled by a shady, dangerous individual known as “The Dean of the Underworld.” That man was Charlie Wall.
7
Henry B. Plant Museum
15 minutes
As we approach the end of our tour, what better time to return to the man responsible for making Tampa the city it is today: Railroad tycoon Henry B. Plant. The lush park we’re about to enter is Henry B. Plant Park, named in his honor. It’s Tampa’s oldest public park and includes a botanical garden full of orchids, palms, citrus and other tropical plants. When Plant purchased the land in 1886, there was a huge orange grove here. 150 years ago, we’d be walking through that grove right now! But Plant cut those trees down to make way for his Tampa Bay Hotel, which he built with all the money he made from the railroad.
8
Gasparilla Pirate Festival
10 minutes
Ahoy, mateys! Do you see any pirates around? There’s one day of the year they swashbuckle around, overrunning the Riverwalk and the park on our right, Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park. This all takes place during The Gasparilla Pirate Festival, an annual tradition that’s been going on since 1904.
9
Old Steel Railroad Bridge
15 minutes
That an old steel bascule bridge is the only one of its kind in Tampa. It dates back to 1915 and was once the main route into the old port of Tampa. Believe it or not, it’s still in use to this day! Occasionally, at least. Trains still chug over the bridge every once in a while, but these days, there’s more river traffic passing under the bridge than there are trains passing over it, so it’s usually left open.
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