Tampa Transportation

Getting There

Air

Tampa International Airport (TPA) +1 813-870-8700 http://www.tampaairport.com

TPA is located six miles from downtown and services the following airlines:

Air Canada (+1 800 776 3000 / http://www.aircanada.ca) American (+1 800 433 7300 / http://www.aa.com) British Airways ( +1 800 247 9297 / http://www.british-airways.com) Continental ( +1 800 525 0280 / http://www.continental.com) Delta (+1 800 221 1212 / http://www.delta.com) Jet Blue (+1 800 538 2583 / http://www.jetblue.com) Southwest ( +1 800 435 9792/ http://www.southwest.com ) United (+1 800 241 6522 / http://www.ual.com) US Airways (+1 800 428 4322 / http://www.usairways.com)

From the Airport

Shuttle: Bay Shuttle (+1 866 259 9929; +1 813 259 9998 / http://www.tampabayshuttle.com) Super Shuttle (+1 800 282 6817; +1 727 572 1111 / http://www.supershuttle.com)

Taxi: Yellow Cab of Tampa (+1 813 253 0121) United Cab (+1 813 253 2424)

Car Rental: Payless Car Rental (+1 727 381 5377 / http://www.paylesscarrental.com) Avis (+1 800 831 2847 / http://www.avis.com) Alamo (+1 800 327 9633 / http://www.alamo.com) Budget (+1 800 527 0700 / http://www.budget.com) Dollar (+1 800 4000 / http://www.dollar.com) Hertz (+1 800 654 3131 / http://www.hertz.com) National (+1 800 227 7368 / http://www.nationalcar.com)

Train

Amtrak (+1 800 USA RAIL / +1-800-872-7245/ www.amtrak.com)

Bus

Greyhound ( +1 800 231 2222 / http://www.greyhound.com ) accesses Tampa daily.

Car

You can reach the area by Rt. 4 from the East and from the South, Rt. 75 from the North and South, and Rt. 275 from the North.

Getting Around

Bus

Greyhound (+1 800 231 2222 / http://www.greyhound.com) Hilsborough Area Regional Transport (HART) (+1 813 254 4278 / http://www.hartline.org) Provides local transport and to the airport. Sarasota Tampa Express (+1 941 727 1344)

Train

Teco Line Streetcar System (+1 813 245 4278 / http://www.tecolinestreetcar.org) Historic Streetcars.

Traffic Information:

To find out city traffic information go to http://www.traffic.com

If traveling overseas, take the safety precaution of registering your trip at https://travelregistration.state.gov and for helpful, practical advice about traveling technicalities and safety standards check out http://travel.state.gov/ .

Planning a Trip

Getting There

Tampa International Airport (tel. 813/870-8770; www.tampaairport.com), 5 miles northwest of downtown Tampa, is the major air gateway to this area (St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport has limited service). Most major and many no-frills airlines serve Tampa International, including Air Canada, AirTran, American, America West, British Airways, Continental, Delta, JetBlue, Lufthansa, MetroJet, Midway, Midwest Airlines, Northwest, Southwest, Spirit, United, and US Airways.

Alamo, Avis, Budget, Dollar, Enterprise, Hertz, National, and Thrifty all have rental-car operations here.

The Limo/SuperShuttle (tel. 800/282-6817 or 727/527-1111; www.supershuttle.com) operates van services between the airport and hotels throughout the Tampa Bay area. Fares for one person range from $36 to $50 round-trip, depending on your destination. Taxis are plentiful at the airport; the ride to downtown Tampa takes about 15 minutes and costs $15 to $25.

Amtrak trains arrive downtown at the Tampa Amtrak Station, 601 Nebraska Ave. N. (tel. 800/872-7245; www.amtrak.com).

Visitor Information

Contact the Tampa Bay Convention & Visitors Bureau, 400 N. Tampa St., Tampa, FL 33602-4706 (tel. 800/448-2672, 800/368-2672, or 813/223-2752; www.visittampabay.com), for advance information. If you're downtown, you can head to the bureau's visitor information center at 400 N. Tampa St. (Channelside), Ste. 2800 (tel. 813/223-1111). It's open Monday through Saturday from 9:30am to 5:30pm.

Operated by the Ybor City Chamber of Commerce, the Centro Ybor Museum and Visitor Information Center, in Centro Ybor, 1514 1/2 E. 8th Ave. (btw. 15th and 16th sts. E.), Tampa, FL 33605 (tel. 813/248-3712; www.ybor.org), distributes information and has exhibits on the area's history. A 7-minute video will orient you to this area -- an 8-block stretch of 7th Avenue. The center is open Monday through Saturday from 10am to 6pm, Sunday from noon to 6pm.

Getting Around

Like most other Florida destinations, it's virtually impossible to see Tampa's major sights and enjoy its best restaurants without a car. You can get around downtown via the free Uptown-Downtown Connector Trolley, which runs north-south between Harbor Island and the city's North Terminal bus station on Marion Street at I-275. The trolleys run every 10 minutes from 6am to 6pm Monday through Friday. Southbound, they follow Tampa Street between Tyler and Whiting streets, and Franklin Street between Whiting Street and Harbor Island. Northbound trolleys follow Florida Avenue from the St. Pete Times Forum to Cass Street. The trolleys cost 50¢ and are operated by the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit/HARTline (tel. 813/254-4278; www.hartline.org), the area's transportation authority, which also provides scheduled bus service ($1.75-$3.50) between downtown Tampa and the suburbs. Pick up a route map at the visitor center .

The transportation situation has gotten somewhat better, not to mention nostalgic, with the TECO Line Street Car System (tel. 813/254-HART [4278]; www.tecolinestreetcar.org), a new but old-fashioned 2 1/3-mile streetcar system, complete with overhead power lines, that hauls passengers between downtown and Ybor City via the St. Pete Times Forum, Channelside, Garrison Seaport, and the Florida Aquarium. The cars run every 30 minutes; one-way fares are $2.50. Check with the visitor center or call HARTline for schedules.

Taxis in Tampa don't normally cruise the streets for fares, but they do line up at public places, such as hotels, the performing arts center, and bus and train depots. If you need a taxi, call Tampa Bay Cab (tel. 813/251-5555), Yellow Cab (tel. 813/253-0121), or United Cab (tel. 813/253-2424). Fares are $2 at flag fall, plus $2.25 for each mile.