Day Trippin' › Florida › From Tampa › Within 3 hours
128 places are worth the drive within 3 hours of Tampa, counted by road time from ZIP 33602: 15 under 1 hour, 48 1 to 2 hours and 65 2 to 3 hours.
The mix leans toward beaches & lakes, history and wildlife, mostly to the northeast and south. Three hours each way makes a long day trip, or an easy overnight if you would rather not drive back the same day.
The headline places are Fort De Soto Park, The Ringling and Siesta Beach, and the closest real day trip is The Dalí Museum (25 min).
Under 1 hour 1 to 2 hours 2 to 3 hours
Photo: Richard Mc Neil, CC BY 3.0
Beach · 42 min southwest
Nearly three miles of beach, a historic fort, fishing piers, a dog beach and a big campground at the mouth of Tampa Bay.
Photo: This Photo was taken by Wolfgang Moroder. Feel free to use my photos, but…, CC BY-SA 3.0
Museum · 58 min south
Circus museum, a grand Venetian-style mansion, an art museum and bayfront gardens on one big campus.
Photo: AbeEzekowitz at English Wikipedia, CC BY 2.5
Food town · 37 min northwest
Greek town on the water with sponge boats, bakeries and Greek restaurants along Dodecanese Boulevard.
Photo: Tupelo the typo fixer, CC BY-SA 4.0
Bike trail · 43 min north
Florida's longest paved rail trail, about 46-47 miles through small towns and forest.
Photo: qwesy qwesy, CC BY 3.0
Aquarium · 32 min west
Working marine rescue center where you can meet rescued dolphins, sea turtles and otters.
Photo: Nathan Forget, CC BY 2.0
Theme park · 56 min east
A LEGO park for kids 2-12 on the site of old Cypress Gardens, plus a water park and Peppa Pig park.
Photo: Dough4872, Public domain
Beach · 1 hr 7 min south
Soft quartz sand that stays cool underfoot, gentle water and free parking. Often ranked among the best US beaches.
Photo: TheWanderingTraders, CC BY-SA 4.0
Theme park · 1 hr 11 min northeast
Cinderella Castle, classic rides and parades. The heart of Walt Disney World.
Photo: Ramos Keith, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Public domain
Wildlife · 1 hr 21 min north
Boardwalks over clear springs where hundreds of manatees gather on cold winter days.
Photo: LittleT889, CC BY-SA 4.0
Hike · 1 hr 21 min north
Quiet trails and a long loop through salt marsh and pine flatwoods on the Nature Coast. Great for birding and biking.
Photo: Ebyabe, CC BY 2.5
Small town · 1 hr 40 min northeast
A hilly lakeside town with antique shops, festivals and lake views.
Photo: Ebyabe, CC BY-SA 3.0
Bike trail · 1 hr 58 min north
A 16-mile paved rail trail through forest and along Paynes Prairie.
Photo: Gzzz, CC BY-SA 4.0
Museum · 2 hr 1 min east
See the Space Shuttle Atlantis, a Saturn V rocket and launch pads. A must for space fans.
Photo: Mathisen, Jim (USFWS), Public domain
Wildlife · 2 hr 33 min south
Drive, bike or walk a four-mile loop on Sanibel past roseate spoonbills, pelicans and wading birds.
Photo: Pengd0t, CC BY-SA 4.0
Springs · 2 hr 36 min north
The classic Florida tubing river, crystal clear and cool, with swim spots at the head spring.
Photo: Fred Ward, Public domain
Small town · 2 hr 50 min southeast
Sugar town on the south shore of Lake Okeechobee, a base for bass fishing and airboat rides.
Photo: Operator 16, CC0
Hike · 2 hr 5 min north
A boardwalk drops 120 feet into a giant sinkhole with tiny waterfalls and ferns.
Photo: Connor J Williams, CC BY 2.0
Family fun · 2 hr 8 min east
An 800-foot pier with food, bars, an arcade, live music and surf lessons.
Our picks, by drive time, include Fort De Soto Park (42 min), The Ringling (58 min), Tarpon Springs Sponge Docks (37 min), Withlacoochee State Trail (43 min) and Clearwater Marine Aquarium (32 min). The full list on this page has 128 places, each with its drive time and direction from Tampa.
63 places within 2 hours, 128 within 3 hours and 173 within 4 hours of Tampa, by road from ZIP 33602.
14 of the 128 places need no pass or fee, such as Hontoon Island State Park, Mount Dora and Clewiston. Fees and passes change, so check each place before you go.
128 places are marked good for kids, including Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center State Park, Suwannee River State Park and Blue Spring State Park.
They are by real roads on a typical day, from the middle of ZIP 33602 to each place (OpenStreetMap data with the OSRM route planner). Traffic, weather and closures can change them. Places under 25 minutes from the city center count as in town, not a day trip, so they are left out.
Yes. Type your ZIP code into Day Trippin' and it shows everything by drive time. Your ZIP is used for that one search and is not saved.
Drive times are by road on a typical day from ZIP <class 'zip'> (OpenStreetMap data with the OSRM route planner). Facts checked against official sites; passes and hours change, so check before you go.