Traveling to St. Petersburg
Unless you’re saddling the grandparents with your kids at Disney World to sneak over for a game, or you’re trying to see how many Waffle Houses you can order double hash browns chunked and covered, you’re probably not driving to St. Petersburg from anywhere too far away. Instead, you’re almost certainly coming via air, and you’re almost certain to love Tampa International Airport as much as most travelers do, or the airfares at the smaller St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport if your point of origin is on Allegiant Air’s map. But if you’re trying to pull off a Miami Marlins-Tampa Bay Rays doubleheader, we have you covered on other options, like Amtrak or buses.
In this chapter, we’ll cover:
Flying to Tampa Bay
Plane flying out of TPA airport
Tampa International Airport (TPA) routinely makes the lists of the best airports in the United States, and with non-stop flights to more than 90 cities, there’s a good chance you’ll find an easy flight to the Sunshine State. As much as anyone can “love” the hustle and bustle of flying, you’ll enjoy TPA, which features a hub-and-spoke design, so you’re only fighting your way through security at your specific terminal rather than with the entire airport population.
While TPA is almost always your best option to fly into the region, don’t dismiss the much smaller St. Pete-Clearwater Airport (PIE). It’s a hub for Allegiant Air, with non-stop flights from nearly 60 cities, many of them smaller, which might be more convenient for you depending on where you live. Sun Country also flies to PIE from Minneapolis, and there are often seasonal flights to the airport from Canada. It’s less than a 20-minute drive to Tropicana Field.
Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport (SRQ) is about 45 minutes from Tropicana Field, so depending on your overall plans, it might be worth a look. But it’s a small airport with limited service, and you’d need a rental car to commute back and forth from SRQ.
Orlando International Airport (MCO) is a good 2.5-hour drive from St. Petersburg, so while it doesn’t make sense for a baseball-only visit, if you’re looking for a combo baseball/theme parks vacation, it is much larger than TPA so you might find more convenient or cheaper flights into Orlando.
Transportation from airports to hotels
Realistically, your two options for getting from Tampa International Airport to St. Petersburg are renting a car or using a rideshare service. Taxis are almost always more expensive than rideshare services here, and, to put it as nicely as we possibly can, the Tampa Bay metro region’s public transportation is an embarrassment.
TPA has a modern on-site rental car center that can be easily and quickly accessed via a short light-rail tram ride from the terminal, with all major rental car companies available. Some cheaper rental car options are available off-site with courtesy shuttle buses. Just be careful of the extra time required to add that off-site transit into your schedule, especially if you’re trying to make an early evening flight out of TPA following an afternoon Rays game.
Depending on the time of day, expect to pay $30-$40 pre-tip for a rideshare from TPA to St. Petersburg. Yellow Taxi charges a flat rate of $62 pre-tip to downtown St. Petersburg, so that’s a good number to keep in your head in case you encounter surge pricing from the rideshare services.
Think we were kidding when we said public transportation is an embarrassment? A trip from TPA to Tropicana Field will only cost you $4.50… but it will take more than 2 hours and require some walking and changing of buses. There are better ways to save a few bucks, so don’t try to save them here.
Rental car counters at St. Pete-Clearwater are conveniently located in baggage claim, but only five companies are represented. The airport is slightly closer to Tropicana Field than TPA, so the flat-rate for a taxi is $45, while rideshare will be about the same as TPA ($30-$40 depending on the time of day). No public transportation serves PIE.
If you’re flying into Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport or Orlando International Airport, rental cars are your only reasonable option for getting to the ballpark.
Trains and Buses
Union Station Tampa
Unless you are nostalgic for the transportation days of your great grandparents and want to enjoy taking a week to get somewhere that a plane will get you in two hours, trains and buses are only options for getting to St. Petersburg if you’re doing that Miami Marlins-Tampa Bay Rays doubleheader. And even then, these are options only for the true adventurers. (A complicating issue here is that you have to go from South Florida to Tampa, and then from Tampa to St. Pete. If you were ending your trip in Tampa, for a Bucs or Lightning game, it might be a little more feasible).
Before we tell you how to make this trip happen in other ways, take a minute to look into flights. Most days you should be able to find quick flights from South Florida to Tampa in the $50-$70 range if you book in advance, which should make you pause at least a little before hopping on a train or a bus.
But if you insist, Amtrak will take about 5.5 hours from Miami to Tampa, allowing you plenty of time to catch up on work for a fare of about $30. The train station is in an area of downtown Tampa that we don’t believe is as safe as other areas, so you won’t want to linger there. Rideshares from the train station to Tropicana Field will be between $30-$40, depending on the time of the day, while a taxi will cost you twice that ($60-$80). Alamo has a rental car counter at the train station, so that’s an alternative you can consider.
Red Coach will cost you $25 and take you more than 5 hours but will drop you off at the University of South Florida, which is about as far from Tropicana Field as one can get and still be in the Tampa Bay metro area. Flix Bus and Greyhound will cost you about the same, take about an hour longer, but will drop you at the Tampa Bus Station, which, while closer than USF, still isn’t anywhere near Tropicana Field.
Our advice: Consider trains and buses only as last resorts. If even then.
Driving to St. Petersburg
Highways to St. Pete
Everyone loves a good road trip, no? If you’re looking to do that Miami Marlins-Tampa Bay Rays doubleheader, or even the Miami Marlins-Tampa Bay Rays-Atlanta Braves tripleheader, a car might be a good option. LoanDepot Park to Tropicana Field is about a 4-hour drive, and Truist Park to Tropicana Field is about a 7-hour drive, both on 1-75 to 1-275, which dumps you right near the Trop.
If you’re trying to make the Orlando theme parks a part of your trip, you can probably make it from Disney to the Trop in about 2 hours, but during rush hour and theme park opening and closing times, I-4 becomes a parking lot and you’ll need to add an hour at least to that drive.
Our advice: Florida is a BIG state. Fun fact—you can almost drive from Pensacola to Cincinnati faster than you can drive from Pensacola to Miami. There aren’t many scenarios where driving to St. Petersburg makes sense.
Bottom Line
- Flying into TPA is the likely and obvious choice, but PIE is a good option if available to you
- Trains and buses don’t really work very well here.
- Driving is the easiest option in Tampa/St Pete, and will make much of your experience easier. But rideshares usually work fine as well, notwithstanding surge pricing and the occasional wait times.
