A couple of weekends ago Blake and I made the trip to Tarpon Springs for the day – and this is a trip we will definitely be taking again! There is so much to see and do around this area – more for just a day’s worth of adventures!
Here is the video from our trip:
I would actually suggest to spend 2-3 days exploring this area! Tarpon Springs is a great place to travel if:
- you’re a food junkie – and especially love greek food
- if you want to travel to Greece but don’t have a passport – and also want to remain in the US. This place looks and feels like you’re in a different country! (speaking from a girl who has actually never been out of the country)
- love touristy shops – there are a ton of places to pop your head in!
Our Itinerary: Tarpon Springs
Stop One: Down Town Tarpon Springs
If you’re a girl just looking for a good instagram backdrop, or if you’re someone who loves looking at old, beautiful buildings, this is a great place to be! The downtown area had plenty of food-stops (restaurants?), but because blake and I were planning to head down to the sponge docks, we skipped the tempting eateries on this side of town. I wish we could have spent more time in this area! (PRO TIP: PARK HERE AND WALK TO THE SPONGE DOCKS. why? because parking at the spongedocks costs $$$, or you could walk to the sponge docks, get some exercise, and really get to enjoy the town you’re exploring)
Stop Two: The Sponge Docks
Your first sign you’ve made it to the sponge docks is a building called the sponge factory! It’s a big building that sells lots of sponges (go figure). Now, this area is beautiful. I’m talking a river on one side, and various tourist shops and greek cuisines on the other. I wish B and I could’ve spent more time here as well! We ate at Hellas and had excellent service! I would definitely recommend!
Stop Three: Hiking Trails
Blake and I went to Brooker Creek Preserve to hike some trails! This may be kinda TMI, but this trail had the BEST bathrooms that I have ever seen on a trail – I guess I can’t speak for the men’s, but the women’s bathroom came complete with a scenic view of the forest!
The actual hike itself was very nice – and it was one of those “choose your own terrain” kind of hikes: the closest trail to parking was nice wooden boardwalks, the medium far parts were sand/dirt trails, and then black water cutoff? Well, let’s just say you should probably watch the video for that haha.
To wrap it up
We had so much fun in Tarpon Springs, and we had so much fun sharing our adventure with you! Let us know if you have been or if you would like to go to Tarpon Springs, Florida!
Thanks for reading!
megan xx
I hear Tarpon Springs is awesome. We haven’t been so thanks for putting this together! We will have to make it back there some day!
Hoping to get over to Tarpon Springs when we stay on Treasure Island next month. Thanks for the parking tip. Can always use some extra walking steps!
I have lived here my whole life and have never been to Tarpon Springs. I am missing out. I love the idea of finding the best hiking wherever we go, and your choice here looks like tons of fun. My kids would love it. Maybe we will head down that we over the summer.
I’ve been to Tarpon Springs several times and it does make for a great day trip. I only live 30 minutes away. They have some awesome Greek food!
Brooker Creek Preserve is one of my favorite places in the Tampa Bay area. I go several times a year. It’s wonderful to see what this part of Florida, and really much of Florida, would have looked like a 150+ years ago. Tarpon is also great. I live 10 miles down the road so go there for the Greek food and great history. Great kayaking around there, too.
I visited Tarpon Springs while biking the Pinellas Trail. It is the absolute high point of that particular ride. I didn’t visit the sponge docks because I was exhausted, but I did have one of the best lunches of my life. Thanks for this post…I think it’s high time Steve and I took a jaunt over to Tarpon Springs.