A Complete Guide to Dog Friendly Tampa Bay

The Tampa Bay area is home to one of the most dog friendly communities in Florida. From some of the best dog friendly beaches in Florida to some of the nicest pet-friendly hotels in Florida, there is no reason not to bring your dog on your next trip to the Tampa Bay Area. Check out some of the best Tampa Dog Friendly activities, hotels, and restaurants below!

Tampa Dog Friendly Activities

1. Tampa Bay Riverwalk

In the heart of downtown Tampa, the roughly 2.5-mile path along the bay offers a number of dog friendly Tampa restaurants, dog friendly bars, and shopping. One of our favorite spots along the Riverwalk is The Sail Pavilion, which has water bowls and doggy ice cream for your four-legged friends! You can find The Sail right next to the Tampa Convention Center, be sure to check out their schedule because they have live music, karaoke, and trivia every week!

Dog Friendly Shopping in Tampa Bay

Hyde Park Village

Historic Hyde Park Village is also in downtown Tampa and is one of the most dog friendly places in the Tampa area. All of the shops are pet friendly and some even have water bowls for their furry patrons. Downtown Dogs is your place to stop and get an extra special treat for your dogs. Hyde Park also has block parties and other fun events throughout each month. There was a dog luau this past April!

Central Ave St. Petersburg

Saint Petersburg is full of Art and culture, and the center of it all is Central Ave that runs from Treasure Island on the Gulf side straight to the heart of downtown St. Pete. The best shopping is near downtown where you’ll find shops, restaurants, bars, and even mural walls to get your next instagram photo.

Saint Armand’s Circle Sarasota

St. Armand’s circle is the perfect place in Sarasota to take your pup for an afternoon of dog friendly shopping and dining. St. Armand’s is home to some of our favorite resort wear boutiques like Shore Brand and Lily Pulitzer, and don’t forget to stop by the Daiquiri Deck to try one of their 14 different daiquiri flavors.

Dog Friendly Beaches in Florida

The Tampa Bay area is known for having some of the best beaches in the United States. Clearwater Beach was named best beach in the United States in 2018 and is always in the top 2 or 3. Siesta Key is another local beach that is usually high in the rankings, but they aren’t dog friendly. Within about an hour’s drive from downtown Tampa, there are three of the best dog friendly beaches in Florida.

Davis Island Dog Beach

If you’re looking for a Tampa dog beach, look no further than Davis Island Dog Beach. Located in the heart of Tampa Bay on Davis Island right by Peter O Knight Airport, the Davis Island Dog Beach is very easily accessible from anywhere in the Tampa Bay Area. It’s also nestled in a little cove where the majority of the waves are blocked, so you’ll almost never have to worry about it being too rough. The beach isn’t very big so it gets crowded, but it is a very fun atmosphere because all of the dogs are having so much fun.

Fort Desoto Dog Beach

Fort Desoto State Park is located south of Saint Petersburg just a short drive from some of Saint Pete Beach’s best hotels. The Fort Desoto dog beach is directly on the Gulf of Mexico. The dog friendly stretch of beach is much larger than Davis Island, but being directly on the Gulf, it can get wavy. The park also has a HUGE dog park, so your dog can run around and dry off before getting back in your car.

Brohard Paw Park, Venice Beach Florida Dog Beach

Just a little bit south of Sarasota, you’ll find Venice Beach Florida. Known for being the Shark Tooth Capital of the World, it has a famous pier with several delicious restaurants on it. Unfortunately, these restaurants are not dog friendly, but on the South side of the pier, there is one of the largest fenced dog beaches in Florida and the only dog beach in Sarasota.

Tampa Dog Parks

In addition to the amazing dog friendly beaches in Florida I mentioned above, there are several Tampa Dog Parks that are worth checking out to tire out your furry friend.

Deputy Kotfila Memorial Dog Park

In the Channelside District of downtown Tampa is the Deputy Kotfila Memorial Dog Park. There is a decent amount of parking and both a large and small dog fenced in park. This Tampa dog park is situated right under the Selmon Expressway, so the whole park is in the shade, which is nice for those hot summer days.

Dr. Otts Off Leash Dog Park

About 30 minutes south of downtown Tampa in Ruskin is Dr. Ott’s Off Leash Dog Park. The park is only open Thursday-Sunday, so if you’re visiting from out of town during the week, check out the Apollo Beach Dog Park instead. The 4 acres of land is perfect to let your dog run off the leash. There is plenty of seating for the humans, and Grace’s favorite part is the little pools to cool off in.

Queenie’s Dog Park at Water Works Park

Queenie’s Dog Park at Water Works Park is at the far North end of the Tampa Bay River Walk near Armature works and Ulele. We haven’t checked this one out yet, but it looks like a nice little place for the dogs to run close to downtown.

Tampa Dog Friendly Restaurants and Bars

Yappy Hour at Tampa Bay’s Breweries

The Tampa Bay area is home to some really fantastic craft breweries. Some of our favorites are Coppertail, Cigar City, and Tampa Bay Brewing Co. There are more breweries and almost all of them are dog friendly! So if you’re in the mood for a flight of beer you don’t have to leave Sparky at home!

Dog Bar St. Pete

I wasn’t sure whether to include this under dog parks or here, because it’s both! Space for the dogs to run around and a full-service bar! When you visit Dog Bar St. Pete make sure you bring your pup’s vaccination records. If you check out their schedule online, they list the days there will be food trucks there too, otherwise, Uber Eats and Doordash are great options to get food delivered. If you haven’t used Uber Eats before use promo code “eats-peterr105” to get $5 off your first order!

Bar Taco

One of my favorite dog friendly restaurants in Tampa is Bar Taco. Amazing Margaritas, delicious gormet tacos and guacamole, and a dog friendly patio! Located in Hyde Park, Bar Taco’s patio is also a prime people watching spot. Another dog friendly tampa restaurant in Hyde Park is Timpano, which serves delicious italian cuisine and also has some pretty great cocktails.

Sparkman’s Wharf

New in 2018 is Sparkman Wharf. Located right next to Amalie Arena and the Florida Aquarium Sparkman Wharf has several different food vendors and a centrally located bar. Their lawn area is perfect for hanging out with the pups and they have events almost weekly!

Circles

We love Circles Waterfront restaurant because its right down the road from our house. They have won just about every award in the Tampa Area for their food and they have an awesome patio and tiki bar that help them fall into the Tampa dog friendly restaurants. Plus it is situated right on Tampa Bay, so its the perfect place to watch the sunset over cocktail or dinner!

Osteria

One of the hottest new Tampa dog friendly restaurants is Osteria. Literally everything on the menu is good and they have a fantastic wine and cocktail list. Osteria is right downtown on Franklin Street.

Cask

Not far from Hyde Park in the SoHo district of Tampa is Cask, another great dog friendly tampa restaurant. Cask has great happy hour specials and everything that we have tried there has been delicious – I recommend the buffalo cauliflower for an appetizer.

Best Dog Friendly Hikes in Tampa Bay

There are a number of state parks and hiking trails within 30 minutes of downtown Tampa, all of which are dog friendly. Some of the best for hiking with your dog include Hillsborough River State Park, Alafia River State Park, Lettuce Lake Park, and Little Manatee River State Park.

Our favorite is Little Manatee River State Park because the trail can be 3 miles or 6 miles depending on if you do a full or half loop. The trails include spots of water where your dogs can safely swim since you can see the bottom and the current isn’t too strong. The only downside is that it gets very muddy when we get a lot of rain.

If you’re from the Tampa area or just visiting with your dog be sure to check out these spots! If you are traveling somewhere else from Tampa and need a dog sitter my wife Mallory is highly recommended on rover.com you can get $20 your first rover stay by using the promo code “Doggiesnkitns20”

I hope this guide to the best Tampa dog friendly activities, Tampa dog friendly restaurants, and Tampa dog friendly shopping has been helpful and you bring your pup with you next time you visit Tampa, maybe we will see you out there! If you aren’t already, you should definitely follow both our dogs Grace and Ivy on Instagram because we could all use more dog photos in our daily life.

Pin This!