Weekend Trip: Clearwater Beach, Florida, Clearwater, Florida (B)

The hubby had to work a show out of town but this time it was only 2 hours away from home, in Clearwater Beach Florida. I decided why not take advantage of my few days off and join him at the new Wyndham Grand Clearwater for a mid week getaway? The hotel costs were already covered by his job, so it was just a matter of packing a backpack and filling the gas tank. Did I mention Clearwater beach was voted one of the top 10 beaches in Florida?

We have been to Clearwater Beach many times before but we usually come early in the morning and head back to Orlando late afternoon. It was a different experience and really nice to actually stay for a few nights and explore this beach town a bit more; granted I did A LOT of just sitting at the beach under the shade, with a good book. The biggest difference was experiencing Clearwater Beach at night. The Wyndham we stayed in was near Pier 60 and Marina area, so it was close to all the action. Walking around the beach after the sun goes down, we got to see Pier 60 come alive with local vendors selling handmade soaps, jewelry, candles and leather goods while performers entertained crowds of tourists and Floridians alike with singing, dancing, acrobats and randomness. A couple of blocks in either direction, and you have a wide selection of restaurants from tiny pizza joints to elegant dining; bars and cheesy souvenir stores to cute beachy shops scattered around for your convenience. Be sure to go up a street or two for even more eating options like the cool Pearly’s Beach Eats on Papaya St (between Mandalay Av. & Poinsettia Av.) ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).