Tampa Hotel Tips by sarahjayn

So, the Tahitian Inn has been around forever. It just went through some remodeling and I was all excited because I thought they were going to take it back to the era in which the Tahitian Inn thrived and swank it up. However, they decided to put in a pretty sterile, though upscale, facade and totally ruined the hotel rooms by making them as cookie-cutter as they come. It's located right in the city, so with no beach or scenery to speak of, you'd think they would try harder.

Unique Qualities: There's a tiki bar and pool. The on-site diner is pretty good, too, but nothing to write home about.

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Theme: Inn
Comparison: about average
Prices: US$120-180  » Currency Converter
Phone: 800- 876-1397
Address: 601 S Dale Mabry Hwy, Tampa, FL 33609
Website: http://www.tahitianinn.com/

I went here with an ex-boyfriend right before he broke up with me. Like, literally, the next weekend it was over. That's a real bummer, too, because the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino provides ample ways for you and your money to part, and this trip was on me.
Pushing my extreme bitterness aside for a moment or two, it is a really nice place. I'd reccommend getting a suite - its not that much more than a regular guest room but a lot nicer. The suites have really fun jacuzzi tubs and big, fluffy beds. Also, there's huge bay windows that go floor to ceiling in each room so you can get a nice look at the sunset over Tampa.
The pool and patio area are nice, too, but there's an awful lot of kids with drunk parents about during the day and an awful lot of parents acting like drunk kids at night. Be careful.
Of course, there's also gambling - - I've both won big and lost big here. I think it's pretty fair as far as casinos go.

Unique Qualities: There's an on-site spa, massages are available in your room, and some pretty big acts have come to play at Floyd's (the in-house restaurant).

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Theme: Hotel
Comparison: more expensive than average

Phone: 813-6277625
Address: 5223 N Orient Road, Tampa, Florida
Directions: Located near the fairgrounds - right off I-4.

Caliente is a self-described "up-scale clothing-optional resort." You'd think that with not one but two hyphens in their description that they would also manage to be near a beach, but not so. Caliente is in a nothing-special part of Land O'Lakes - which is just a bit away from Tampa. Most of the people who visit here are either a) old and don't care what society thinks anymore in a Cacoon: the movie kind of way b) young and hippie-like c) just curious as to why this place has so many naked people d) horny but hopeless young men who have a very warped perception of nudists.
If you're in Land O' Lakes (and I can't imagine why you would be other than to go to Caliente), its not a bad place to stay. Plus, you can say you stayed at a nudist colony. I wouldn't make a special trek, though.

Unique Qualities: Besides the fact that you can leave your room in your birthday suit, there's nothing super special about this place. It's a nice enough resort, but that's about it.

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Theme: Other
Comparison: about average
Prices: US$80-120  » Currency Converter
Phone: 800.326.7731
Address: 21240 Gran Via Boulevard, Land O' Lakes, Florida
Other Contact: info@calienteresort.com