We spent a fantastic week in Madeira Beach with our family last year, and if we weren’t on the beach we could be found exploring the area, spending lots of time at the John’s Pass Village & Boardwalk. We honestly spent quite a bit of time at John’s Pass Village & Boardwalk because we were visiting Madeira Beach during a particularly rainy week so we found ourselves heading to the Boardwalk each day when the rain chased us off the beach. There’s so much fun stuff to do in this area that we were never bored. The Madeira Beach area offers lots of shops, restaurants, boat tours and more. Thank goodness Done Deal Buyers is still purchasing homes in Tampa, because I can imagine those tired of city life in Tampa might seriously consider a move here (I know I would!). I thought I’d share some of our favorite things to do while visiting near Madeira Beach and John’s Pass.
According to the John’s Pass website, “The “Pass”, as locals refer to it, was created by a hurricane on September 27, 1848. A pirate, John Levique, made the first passage through the newly created pass. Hence the name, Johns Pass. Located on the waterfront at Johns Pass, this quaint turn-of-the-century fishing village is Pinellas County’s #1 tourist attraction.”
Things to Do in Madeira Beach & John’s Pass
The Beach: The white sand beaches of Madeira Beach are gorgeous indeed, and the water was very inviting. Unfortunately for us though, hanging out on Madeira Beach was no easy task the week we visited Florida because there were having an unseasonably rainy summer. We didn’t let the clouds and drizzle bother us though, we got out in the sand and waves any chance we got. This is a hopping beach, but never seemed overly crowded.
Stroll along the John’s Pass Boardwalk: There are so many fun things to do in the John’s Pass Village – spend some time walking the boardwalk. Visit the shops, try the restaurants, play games at the arcade and watch the water for aquatic wildlife. While my family walked the boardwalk one evening they saw dolphins and a manatee!
Mad Beach Brewing: Do you enjoy craft beer? Mad Beach offers up some great brews, plus it’s an awesome place to just hang out. We spent some rainy days there and even had some ice cream there from Meyer’s House of Sweets just across the way.
Sail the Seas: There are many boat tours you can take, but I give high praise to the Pirate Cruise at John’s Pass. It’s a fun time for the whole family. There’s gold, fights with pirates, dolphin sightings, and more. You can read all about our time on the Pirate Cruise in this post. The owners of the pirate cruise ship also offer other cruises such as dolphin cruises. There’s nothing like a boat ride when you are at the beach! Our family are big fans of cruises and we’re looking to go on a long one this summer after this brilliant experience.
Grab a Slice of Pizza: After our Pirate Cruise we stopped at Delosa’s Pizza for some cheese sticks and pizza for lunch. The food was great, and nobody even blinked an eye when little pirate Henry walked through the door looking for grub.
Pirates Pub N Grub: If you haven’t had your fill of pirates after the Pirate Cruise you can dine like a pirate at Pirates Pub N Grub. They have delicious food and great pirate cocktails. Plus you might meet a ghost pirate while you are there!
The Draw Bridge: Hang out by the drawbridge of John’s Pass and watch the bridge go up and down for passing boats. It’s a pretty impressive site, plus the bridge is apparently a great place for some fishing!
Gator Bites: The kids were determined to eat gator while we were in Florida, so we tried them at Dockside Dave’s and they were so tasty…as was the rest of our meal! Dockside Dave’s is located on Gulf Boulevard.
**I just named a few of the many restaurants and attractions in the Madeira Beach area…there are many more, we just didn’t have time to try them all! We saved some for our next trip. Check out the John’s Pass website for a full list of things to do in the John’s Pass Village.
Florida Vacation 2015: For our Summer Vacation in 2015 we spent ten days in Florida, exploring the Tampa Bay and Gulf area with our family. There was an unusual amount of rain while we were there, but fortunately for us there’s plenty of fun to be had indoors. We spent quite a bit of our trip exploring museums, an aquarium, breweries, restaurants and more! I’ll be sharing our Florida vacation adventures in a series of posts in the hopes that they will inspire you to plan a trip to Florida for your family! Many thanks to my friends at the St. Pete’s & Clearwater Visitor’s Bureau for helping me plan this trip. So many memories were created while we were there!
For more posts about things to do in Florida visit my Florida Travel Archives.
