Discover two distinctly different waterfront destinations in one.
Located just 25 minutes from Tampa International Airport, St. Pete and Clearwater are neighboring destinations offering two distinct experiences for groups. Prevue was invited to soak up the coastal vibe on a media visit that began with a stay at The Vinoy Resort & Golf Club, located in downtown St. Petersburg.
Built overlooking the Tampa Bay waterfront in 1925 in an opulent Mediterranean Revival style featuring an iconic pink facade, the 354-room property underwent a $110 million restoration in 2023. As well as extensive upgrades to its veranda, grand lobby, guest rooms and meeting spaces, plus the addition of new dining options and a new spa and wellness area, the property also rebranded to join Marriott’s Autograph Collection.
Once the playground of celebrities and presidents—including Babe Ruth, Herbert Hoover, Calvin Coolidge and James Stewart—the hotel is steeped in history and its meeting spaces include the original 6,120-sf Vinoy Grand Ballroom, featuring a centerpiece blown glass chandelier by artist Dale Chihuly as well as the original jazz age bandstand. The renovation also added additional ballrooms and meeting spaces, including the 11,520-sf Palm Court Ballroom, and boasts 75,000 sf total meeting space.
“The Vinoy offers a combination of historic grandeur and modern resort amenities in a highly walkable waterfront destination that has great airlift,” says Alice Land, Director of Sales and Marketing at The Vinoy. “It distinguishes itself through a blend of historic character, resort amenities and an unmatched location. As a 1925 landmark, the property offers a sense of place and story-driven environment that newer hotels cannot replicate.”
This sense of place was evident throughout the property’s many outdoor spaces, dining and reception venues, such as front porch cocktail bar The Veranda, outdoor restaurant Parasol and the elegant 13,000-sf Tea Garden and Lawn. Fine dining restaurant Elliott Aster by Michelin-award-winning Chef Lee Wolen opened at the hotel in 2025 and has since become a local favorite with tables much in demand. It offers a private dining space for up to 45, or a full buyout for up to 350. We were treated to a selection of dishes from its Italian-inspired menu, including a delicious pull-apart focaccia and radiatore alla vodka.
Our group was shown how the hotel can work with local DMC Hello Florida to host a group event at The Vinoy Golf Club’s 18-hole course including a putting experience, lite bites and a craft cocktail station out on the course. The hotel also owns the nearby 74-slip Vinoy Marina offering a range of charter options. Our group took a sunset sail around Tampa Bay with Komko Charters and were delighted to encounter unexpected dolphins out on the waters.
The historic hotel sat vacant for much of the 1970s and ’80s, and its regeneration during this time mirrors the destination’s own revival as a vibrant local hub for art and culture. Groups can explore the many galleries and unique boutique shops of its walkable downtown, as well as the Museum of Fine Arts just steps from the hotel, the Museum of the American Arts and Crafts Movement, and the Chihuly Collection at the Morean Arts Center.
A Surreal Escape in St. Pete
Another key component of St. Pete’s rebirth as a buzzing arts destination was the opening of the Dali Museum in 1982. The 60,000-sf museum contains more than 2,400 Salvador Dali works, including nearly 300 oil paintings, watercolors and drawings, and is the largest collection of the artist’s work in the U.S. The museum’s foyer features a unique spiral staircase and geodesic glass structure and is available for private events, as is its outdoor Avant-Garden space and a private meeting room that can seat up to 100.
Dali Alive 360° is an immersive multi-sensory digital experience housed in a 39-ft-tall dome that was added to the museum in 2023 and can be booked for private events. The museum also offers unique Innovation Labs that include gallery experiences, workshops and creativity-driven activities for teams that are designed to explore perception, kick-start innovation and apply Dali’s creative process to solve specific business problems.
The Warehouse Arts District is an up-and-coming section of St. Petersburg’s Midtown packed with galleries, artist studios, record shops, coffee shops and restaurants. Our group visited St. Pete Athletic in the heart of the district, which combines pickleball, padel and table tennis courts with a full bar and restaurant, plus a range of flexible events spaces for groups. As well as the 5,000-sf Aviary space, the venue offers a 3,000-sf garden, several lounge areas from 300-750 sf, plus a 14-seat boardroom.
“The combination of St. Pete and Clearwater in a single destination offers incredibly complementary experiences, with distinctly different offerings,” says Stephanie Alexander-Priakos, Director of Meetings and Conferences, Visit St. Pete-Clearwater. “St. Pete is known for its vibrant arts and cultural scene, which makes it especially appealing to groups seeking a more urban, creative environment with off-site venue options. Clearwater Beach, on the other hand, is centered around its award-winning beaches and relaxed coastal atmosphere. It is particularly attractive to incentive groups and wellness-focused retreats looking for a more laid-back setting.”
Clearwater Beach: A Gulfside Getaway
Our host hotel for the Clearwater portion of our visit was the 297-room Hyatt Regency Clearwater Beach, another striking pink building located just steps from Clearwater Beach’s award-winning 2.5 mile-stretch of sugar-white sands. The hotel’s 20,000 sf of function space includes a 4,000-sf ballroom as well as the 4,000-sf rooftop Sky Terrace with stunning panoramic views over both the Gulf and Intracoastal waterways. SHOR American Seafood Grill boasts an outdoor terrace where we took in perfect sunset views over the ocean while I tried the pan-seared Florida grouper and a Mai Tai served in an authentic tiki mug.
New to the beachfront is the Opal Sol, which opened in 2025 with 248 panoramic Gulf-facing suites and 57,195 sf of event space, as well as three pools, seven restaurants and the full-service Opal Spa. The hotel is connected via a skyway bridge to the 230-room Opal Sands with a further 48,830 sf of event space. Wyndham Grand Clearwater Beach is located nearby and offers 343 rooms and more than 22,000 sf of event space, including the area’s largest ballroom at 10,632 sf, divisible into five sections.
The 162-room JW Marriott Clearwater Beach Resort & Spa, meanwhile, offers 18,500 sf of meeting space, a rooftop pool and restaurant, as well as its own stretch of private beach that can be utilized for events. The resort’s Spa by JW is rated number-one among the JW brand’s spa facilities within the U.S., and its Latitude 28 restaurant by Executive Chef Indrajit Suryawansh serves Gulf coast flavors as well as some fantastic Indian cuisine.
Clearwater Beach offers a full calendar of events throughout the year and our visit coincided with the Pier 60 Sugar Sand Festival showcasing creations made by professional sand sculptors as well as live music, food vendors and more. Groups can choose from a number of sightseeing tours on the Gulf such as Little Toot Dolphin Adventures, which took us out on the water to get up close with an entire school of dolphins eagerly swimming along in the wake of the boat.
More info: visitstpeteclearwater.com/meetings
