Tropicana Field Introduces NON-GAME DAY Parking
The look of downtown St. Pete has changed a lot over the past decade. New restaurants, bars, event spaces, high rise condos and shops have made finding a parking spot much more of a challenge. The City of St. Petersburg has come up with one solution to help.
The city has announced the many of the 7,000 parking spaces at Tropicana Field will become available on days when there’s no Tampa Bay Rays game. Lots 5, 6 and 7 will not be available on event days. Lots 6 and 7 will be unavailable during weekdays business hours from 7am to 5:30pm.
How This Helps
Obviously for those visiting a business nearby, it’ll be convenient. But keep in mind two other things that are right next to The Trop: the free SunRunner bus and the Pinellas Trail. I used the Sun Runner for the first time last month. It takes you from downtown St. Pete to the beaches and back for free. And if you’re a bicyclist, you already know how far the Pinellas Trail can take you.
How It Works
Pull into The Trop parking lot and find a spot. Open the Park Mobile app on your phone and make your payment there. According to the Rays rep I spoke with, it’s a flat $6 fee. The day resets at 6am, so there’s no rush to get out by a particular time if you’re spending the night out downtown St. Pete.
Tampa Bay Area Beaches With Cheap Parking
Ben T Davis/Cypress Point Park
This narrow beach is the perfect hangout spot. It’s great for cookouts, birthday parties, and everything in between. Parking rates at Ben T. Davis are $2.50/hour. Or you can head to Cypress Point Park which is an oceanfront park with mangroves, canoe dock, picnic shelters, and a volleyball court. Parking here is free, you just have to get here early to claim a spot.
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Indian Rocks Beach
Indian Rocks Beach offers the most beach access parks (the most in Pinellas County). 27th Ave to 19th Ave, a few FREE public parking spots are provided at each access.
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Dunedin Causeway/Honeymoon Island
The Dunedin causeway is by far one of the cheapest options when it comes to beach days in Tampa Bay. It costs NOTHING to park at the causeway and enjoy the views of boaters, kayakers and jetski’s zoom across the bay. If you want that actual beach feel with soft sand and less rocks in the water, keep driving to Honeymoon Island. Parking is $8 per car and that’s all day. Let’s say you spend 5 hours out on the beach, that’s $1.60/hour.
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Pass-A-Grille
Pass-A-Grille also has plenty of cheap parking options. Meters are a $3.35/hour rate. Holidays are a $15 flat fee. You can also find a bunch of FREE parking along 8th ave.
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Sand Key
The daily parking fee at beach pay stations is $5. This lasts all day making it one of the cheaper options for beach parking!
Photo: Pinellas County
