Rainy days in Florida won't spoil vacation

September 3, 8:29 PMTampa Family Travel ExaminerCarmel Snyder

Rainy days in Florida can get you down. Especially, if for vacationers who planned to spend a vacation
soaking up the sun on the beach or by the pool.

But take heart, there's plenty to do in Tampa Bay even if it's raining.

Kid time

Nothing says family fun like a baseball game. The Tampa Bay Rays are NEVER rained out at home. Tropicana Field in downtown St. Petersburg is an indoor ball park., and always 74 degrees.

The Rays play more than 80 games in St. Petersburg. Tickets are the most affordable in major league baseball, staring at  just $11 for upper level seats. Major League Baseball games appeal to kids of all ages.

Go early and check out the game area on the lower level of Tropicana Field. Kids of all ages can give sports announcing a tryor check their pitching speed. Tropicana Field is also home to several Sting Rays. The beautiful Rays are featured in an "touch tank" aquarium. For $4, families can buy food to hand feed the Rays. The tank is open almost every game for two hours after the first pitch.

Families with young children will love Great Explorations, a hands-on museum for kids. The physical fitness area upstairs lets kids try their hands at exercise video games, or shows them how their heart rate increases with exercise.

Downstairs, kids can try out several jobs and careers from grocery store clerk and stocker to veterinarian or firefighter. Engineering areas let kids  build and race their own model cars, make a movie or create music. Great Explorations is a fantastic way to let kids burn off that extra energy before taking them back to the hotel.

Museums

Both Tampa and St. Petersburg have beautiful museums. Start at the Museum of Fine Arts, 255 Beach Drive, NE in downtown St. Petersburg, known for its fine collection of French impressionists, and featuring works by Monet, Gauguin, Renoir and Rodin. Then  check out the Salvidor Dali Museum, 1000 3rd Street, South, which houses the largest collection of the Spanish
artist's work.  Florida's Holocaust Museum, 55 5th Street, South, is also in downtown St. Petersburg.

Tampa is home to the Museum of Science and Industry, the Henry B. Plant Museum, the Tampa Bay History Center and the Tampa Museum of Art. Families can spend hours checking out the exhibits and will soon forget about the rain.

But not to worry, after all Florida is the "sunshine state."

Other area museums

Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art
600 Kosterman Road
Tarpon Springs, FL
727-712-5762

John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art
5401 Shore Road
Sarasota, FL
941-359-5700

G. Wiz - The Science Museum
1001 Blvd. of the Arts
Sarasota, FL
941-309-4949

Dunedin Historical Society and Museum
Dunedin, FL
727-736-1176

 For more info:  Tampa Bay Rays; Florida Museums