The St. Pete Pier costs nothing to walk onto, and it is easy to do badly anyway: to park in the wrong place, arrive at the hottest hour, walk past the best free things on the way to a restaurant, or turn up for an art installation that isn’t running. Most people who search for a St Pete Pier guide want three questions answered: what is out there, what it costs, and how to get there and park. This page answers all three in detail, with the Pier’s own published parking rates and restaurant list, checked in October 2026.
First, the thing to understand about the place. The St. Pete Pier, which opened in July 2020 on the site of the old inverted-pyramid pier, is not a pier in the boardwalk-and-arcade sense. It is a 26-acre waterfront park on downtown St. Petersburg’s shoreline, with a long pier running out into Tampa Bay at its end. Everything that makes it good, from the lawns and the beach to the playground, the splash pad, the art and the views, is free. You pay for parking, food and two small museums, and that is all.
The short answer
- Entry: free. So are the beach, the splash pad, the playground, the lawns, the public art and the tram that runs along the pier.
- Parking: the Pier’s own Dolphin and Pelican lots charge $2 an hour on weekdays and $2.50 an hour from Friday at 5pm through Sunday. Six hours costs $15 on a weekday and $18 at the weekend, and the lots are cheaper than the street meters.
- Food: seven places, from a snack bar by the beach to Teak, a sit-down restaurant on the fourth floor of the pier head. Pier Teaki, the rooftop bar, is 21 and over after 8pm.
- Paid attractions: the Tampa Bay Watch Discovery Center ($8 adults) and the St. Petersburg Museum of History.
- Time needed: two hours to walk it and see the free things; half a day with a meal and a museum.
- From Tampa: about 25 miles and 30 to 45 minutes across the bay by car. There is no passenger ferry running as of our last check.
What the Pier costs
Prices below are the operators’ published figures, checked between 19 September and 1 October 2026. Where a figure comes from a listing rather than the operator itself, the table says so.
| Item | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Pier District entry | Free | Includes the beach, splash pad, playground, lawns and art |
| Tram along the pier | Free | Runs along the pier itself |
| Downtown Looper trolley | Free | About every 15 minutes, seven days, with a stop at the Pier entrance |
| Pier lots, weekday | $2/hr for 4 hours, then $3, then $4 | $15 for six hours; Monday to Friday 5pm |
| Pier lots, weekend | $2.50/hr for 4 hours, then $3.50, then $4.50 | $18 for six hours; Friday 5pm to Sunday midnight |
| Street meters nearby | $2.50/hr for 3 hours, $5 for the 4th | Four-hour limit; enforced 9am–10pm daily |
| Tampa Bay Watch Discovery Center | $8 adult, $6 senior 62+, $3 child 4–12 | 3 and under free; $3 military and Florida teachers with ID |
| St. Petersburg Museum of History | About $15 adult | From the regional tourism office’s listing; confirm with the museum |
| Saltwater fishing licence (non-resident) | $17 for 3 days, $30 for 7 | See the fishing section before you buy one |
A family of four can spend a very good morning here for the cost of parking and ice cream. The money goes on what you choose to add, not on getting in.
What is on the Pier, walking from land to the water
The Pier District is laid out as a long walk from Beach Drive out into the bay, and the most useful way to describe it is in the order you meet things.
The Gateway, Pier Plaza and the Marketplace
The entrance at the downtown end, near the Museum of Fine Arts on Beach Drive. This is where the Downtown Looper trolley stops, where Fresco’s Waterfront Bistro sits with its wraparound deck, and where the Marketplace sets up. It is also the right place to decide how you are doing the rest. The pier head is a fair walk out, and the free tram saves your legs in the heat.
The St. Petersburg Museum of History
At the landward end of the district. It covers the city’s story, and its location on the Pier is no accident: the most famous episode in St. Petersburg’s history happened a few steps away (see below). The regional tourism office lists it as open Monday to Saturday 10am–5pm and Sunday noon–5pm, with adult admission around $15. We could not confirm those figures on the museum’s own site, so check them before you plan around them.
Benoist Centennial Plaza and the World’s First Airline
On 1 January 1914, the St. Petersburg–Tampa Airboat Line flew a paying passenger across the bay to Tampa: the first scheduled commercial airline flight anywhere in the world, about 23 minutes for $5. The monument on Benoist Centennial Plaza marks it. It takes two minutes to see, it costs nothing, and it is the most remarkable thing on the Pier that most visitors walk straight past. Our St. Petersburg guide tells the story in full.
Spa Beach, the splash pad and the playground
Spa Beach is a small swimming beach on the bay side of the district, and Spa Beach Park around it holds the Glazer Family Playground and the Majeed Foundation Splash Pad. All three are free, and together they are the reason families spend whole mornings here. Spa Beach Bistro, next to the beach and the splash pad, sells pizza, snacks, frozen treats and drinks.
Set expectations for the beach correctly. It is a pleasant bay beach in the middle of a city, not a Gulf beach. The water is calm and the sand is small. If you want the white-sand Gulf coast, that is a drive west to St. Pete Beach or south to Fort De Soto, and our guide to the beaches near Tampa compares them.
The Tampa Bay Watch Discovery Center
A small marine-science center run by Tampa Bay Watch, the nonprofit that works on restoring the bay. It is listed as open daily 10am–5pm, with admission of $8 for adults (13 to 61), $6 for seniors, $3 for children aged 4 to 12, and free for children 3 and under; active military and Florida teachers pay $3 with ID. It is modest in size and priced accordingly. It is not an aquarium day out, but for children who have just watched pelicans dive off the pier it is a good half hour, and the money goes to a group doing real work on the water you are looking at.
The lawns, the Cultural Grove and the public art
Beyond the beach, the district opens into the Great Lawn, the Tilted Lawn and the Cultural Grove. The public art along the way includes Nathan Mabry’s Myth, Xenobia Bailey’s Morning Stars and Nick Ervinck’s Olnetopia.
The most famous piece is the one to check on. Janet Echelman’s Bending Arc, the huge suspended net sculpture that appears in most photographs of the Pier, was listed by the Pier as temporarily closed when we checked in September 2026. If it is the reason you are going, look at the Pier’s website before you set off.
The Overlook and Doc Ford’s
The approach to the pier head runs past the Overlook, with Doc Ford’s Rum Bar & Grille at its southern end serving Florida and Caribbean food. It is a large, casual restaurant and the most straightforward lunch on the Pier.
Pier Point: the five-level pier head
The building at the end is called Pier Point, and it stacks most of the Pier’s food and views on top of each other. Driftwood Cafe is at ground level, between Pier Point and the Great Lawn, along with Pier Gear & Gifts and Gator Jim’s Tackle. Teak, the Pier’s main sit-down restaurant, is on the fourth floor, and Pier Teaki, a rooftop bar, is on top. From the top levels you see the bay in front of you and both cities’ skylines, St. Petersburg’s behind and Tampa’s across the water.
The Fishing Deck and The Point
At the very end, past Pier Point, the Fishing Deck and The Point look out over open bay. It is often the quietest part of the Pier, even on a busy day, because most people stop at the building.
Getting to the Pier from Tampa
St. Petersburg and Tampa are separate cities on opposite sides of Tampa Bay, and the Pier is on the far side of the water from Tampa.
- From downtown Tampa: about 25 miles via Interstate 275 and the Howard Frankland Bridge, typically 30 to 45 minutes, and longer at rush hour or in bad weather.
- From Tampa International Airport: about 20 miles by the airport’s own published figure, also across the bay. The airport’s $40 flat cab rate is for downtown Tampa and the cruise terminals, not St. Petersburg.
- From Clearwater: about 22 miles south on the same peninsula, with no bay crossing.
- By ferry: not at the moment. The seasonal Cross-Bay Ferry between downtown Tampa and downtown St. Petersburg ended on 30 April 2025. A year-round replacement was planned for the second half of 2026, but it had not been confirmed as running when we last checked in September 2026. Don’t plan a day around it until tickets are on sale.
There is no train between the two cities. For a day trip from Tampa, a car or a rideshare is the realistic way to get here, and our guide to getting around Tampa Bay covers the options.
Parking at the St. Pete Pier
The Pier publishes its parking rates, which is more than many attractions do, and doing the sums before you arrive saves money.
The Pier’s own lots: Dolphin and Pelican
Both lots charge by the hour, with the rate stepping up after the fourth hour:
- Weekdays (from midnight Monday to 5pm Friday): $2 an hour for the first four hours, $3 for the fifth and $4 for the sixth. Six hours costs $15.
- Weekends (from 5pm Friday to 11:59pm Sunday): $2.50 an hour for the first four hours, $3.50 for the fifth and $4.50 for the sixth. Six hours costs $18.
Payment is at pay stations that read your license plate, by card or cash, or through the ParkMobile app using zone 2015. The lots are enforced around the clock.
Why the lot beats the street
The on-street meters around the Pier charge $2.50 an hour for the first three hours and $5 for the fourth, with a four-hour limit, enforced from 9am to 10pm every day. Put the two side by side and the meters never win:
| Stay | Pier lot, weekday | Pier lot, weekend | Street meter |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 hours | $4 | $5 | $5 |
| 3 hours | $6 | $7.50 | $7.50 |
| 4 hours | $8 | $10 | $12.50, and you must then move |
| 6 hours | $15 | $18 | Not allowed |
Two timing details matter. The weekend rate starts at 5pm on Friday, so a Friday evening at the Pier is priced as a weekend. And the meters run until 10pm, so an evening on the street is not free either.
Park further away and ride the Looper
The Downtown Looper is a free trolley that runs seven days a week, about every 15 minutes, with stops including the Sundial garage and the Pier entrance. If the Pier lots are full, or you plan to spend the day downtown as well, parking in a downtown garage and riding the Looper to the Pier is the calm option. Downtown garage rates vary, so check the one you choose. The South Core garage near the James Museum, for example, charges $2 an hour.
On event days, from festivals on the lawns to the New Year’s Eve celebrations, the lots fill early and nearby rates can rise. Check the Pier’s events calendar before you set off.
Eating and drinking on the Pier
The Pier’s own restaurant list, as published in October 2026, has seven places. In order of how far you have to walk:
- Fresco’s Waterfront Bistro: near the entrance, with a wraparound deck over the water. Seafood, steaks, burgers and pasta, for lunch and dinner, plus weekend brunch.
- Perry’s Porch: on the waterfront, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner with a coastal menu.
- Spa Beach Bistro: beside the beach and splash pad. Pizza, snacks, frozen treats and drinks; the practical choice with children.
- Doc Ford’s Rum Bar & Grille: at the southern end of the Overlook. Florida and Caribbean food in a large, casual room.
- Driftwood Cafe: ground level at Pier Point. Coffee, breakfast, sandwiches, pizza and ice cream to take away.
- Teak: fourth floor of Pier Point. The Pier’s destination restaurant, with Gulf seafood, lunch, dinner and weekend brunch, and views across the bay to Tampa.
- Pier Teaki: the rooftop bar on Pier Point. Shareable bites and tropical cocktails, and 21 and over after 8pm.
The honest assessment is that you are paying partly for the view, especially at Teak and Pier Teaki, and on a fine weekend evening the view is worth it. If the budget matters more than the view, eat on Central Avenue or Beach Drive and come back to the Pier for a drink or an ice cream. Our guide to restaurants and food in Tampa Bay covers the wider picture, and the St. Petersburg guide maps the city’s own food districts.
Fishing from the Pier
Fishing is part of the Pier’s life, from the Fishing Deck at the end, and Gator Jim’s Tackle at Pier Point sells bait and tackle. The question visitors need answered is the licence.
Under Florida’s rules, anyone landing saltwater fish needs a licence unless an exemption applies, and one exemption covers fishing from a pier that holds its own valid saltwater pier licence. We could not confirm whether the St. Pete Pier holds one. Ask at Gator Jim’s before you cast. If the pier is not covered, a visitor needs a non-resident licence: $17 for three days, $30 for seven, or $47 for a year. Children under 16 are exempt. The free shoreline licence you may read about is for Florida residents only.
When to go
- Early morning. The Pier runs east into Tampa Bay, so it faces the sunrise, and in the early hours it belongs to joggers, anglers and pelicans. It is the coolest and quietest time to walk it.
- Late afternoon into evening. The sun sets behind downtown St. Petersburg rather than over the water. What you get from the pier head is the city skyline lit gold and then lit up, and it is the best time for the rooftop.
- Midday in summer. The worst choice. Shade on the Pier is patchy, and from May to September the heat and humidity are severe. If midday is your only option, use the tram and plan an indoor stop.
- Weekends are busier, louder and dearer to park at. A weekday morning is the Pier at its easiest.
November to April is the comfortable season. Our guide to the best time to visit has the month-by-month weather for the region.
The Pier with children
For families the Pier is one of the best-value outings in Tampa Bay, because nearly everything children want from it is free and close together. The Glazer Family Playground, the Majeed Foundation Splash Pad and Spa Beach sit side by side in Spa Beach Park, with Spa Beach Bistro next to them for pizza and frozen treats. A morning there, plus a ride on the tram out to the end of the pier to watch the pelicans and the fishing, is a full outing for a small child at the cost of parking.
A few practical points make it easier:
- Bring swimsuits and a change of clothes even if you are not planning to swim. The splash pad is the main event for most children under eight.
- Go early in summer. The play area and the splash pad have little natural shade, and by midday from May to September the heat is hard on small children.
- Strollers are easy. The deck is wide and flat all the way to Pier Point.
- Add the Discovery Center for a cheap, short indoor stop: $3 for children aged 4 to 12, free under 4.
- Know the evening rule: Pier Teaki, the rooftop bar, is 21 and over after 8pm, so plan family dinners elsewhere on the Pier after that time.
Our guide to Tampa with kids covers the rest of the region for families, including what is worth paying for and what isn’t.
If the weather turns
The Pier is an outdoor place, and two kinds of weather spoil it: summer afternoon thunderstorms and the hottest part of a summer day. Both are common from June to September, when most of the region’s rain falls in short, heavy afternoon storms. Lightning over open water is a real hazard, so leave the pier deck and the Fishing Deck when a storm builds rather than waiting under a sun shade.
The indoor options are close by. On the Pier itself, the St. Petersburg Museum of History, the Discovery Center and the restaurants at Pier Point and Fresco’s are all under cover. A few minutes’ walk away, the Museum of Fine Arts on Beach Drive is closed only on Mondays, and the Dalí Museum is south along the waterfront. A wet afternoon is a good excuse for the Dalí.
Accessibility
The Pier is one of the more accessible attractions in the region, and the Pier lists the features itself: a marked accessible route through the district, a free tram running along the pier, and restrooms. The deck surfaces are wide and smooth. Two things to plan for are distance and heat. The walk from the parking lots to Pier Point is long for anyone with limited stamina, so use the tram, and on a hot day carry water. For details on the beach and on access to the upper levels of Pier Point, contact the Pier before you visit.
Pairing the Pier with the rest of downtown St. Petersburg
The Pier sits at the edge of the most walkable downtown in Tampa Bay, and it is best treated as one part of a day rather than the whole of it:
- The Museum of Fine Arts, on Beach Drive near the Pier’s entrance: $24 for adults, closed Mondays.
- The Dalí Museum, south along the waterfront: $32 for adults, or $16 on Thursdays after 5pm, which is the best-value museum hour in the city.
- The James Museum of Western & Wildlife Art, on Central Avenue: $23, or $10 on Tuesdays.
- Central Avenue and Beach Drive for food, galleries and the murals.
Two sample plans that work:
- Half a day: park at the Pier, walk out to Pier Point, ride the tram back, see the airline monument, and finish with lunch at Doc Ford’s or Fresco’s. Three to four hours, about $8 to $10 of parking.
- A full day: the Pier in the morning before the heat, the Museum of Fine Arts or the Dalí after lunch, Central Avenue in the late afternoon, and back to the Pier Teaki roof for the skyline at dusk. Park once in a downtown garage and use the Looper.
If you are deciding between this and a day in Tampa itself, our guide to the best things to do in Tampa has the other side of the bay, including the 2.6-mile Tampa Riverwalk, which is the closest equivalent.
Honest notes
- It is a park, not a traditional pier. There are no rides, no arcade and no amusements. If that is what you want, Clearwater’s Pier 60 is closer to the old seaside idea.
- The beach is small. Lovely for children and a swim, not a beach day.
- The signature art may be closed. Check the Bending Arc’s status before you go.
- The view costs more than the food. The rooftop and fourth-floor prices reflect where you are sitting. That is fair, as long as you know it.
- Parking is the main cost, and it is cheapest in the Pier’s own lots on a weekday.
Frequently asked questions
Is the St. Pete Pier free?
Yes. Entry to the Pier District is free, and so are Spa Beach, the splash pad, the playground, the lawns, the public art and the tram along the pier. You pay for parking, food, the Tampa Bay Watch Discovery Center and the St. Petersburg Museum of History.
How much is parking at the St. Pete Pier?
In the Pier’s Dolphin and Pelican lots, $2 an hour on weekdays and $2.50 an hour from Friday at 5pm through Sunday, with higher rates for the fifth and sixth hours. Six hours costs $15 on a weekday and $18 at the weekend. Pay by card, cash or ParkMobile zone 2015.
Is there a tram on the St. Pete Pier?
Yes. A free tram runs along the pier, and the free Downtown Looper trolley stops at the Pier entrance about every 15 minutes, seven days a week.
What restaurants are on the St. Pete Pier?
Teak, Pier Teaki (rooftop bar, 21 and over after 8pm), Doc Ford’s Rum Bar & Grille, Fresco’s Waterfront Bistro, Perry’s Porch, Spa Beach Bistro and Driftwood Cafe.
Can you swim at the St. Pete Pier?
Yes, at Spa Beach, a small bay beach within the Pier District. It is calm, city water, not a Gulf beach. The splash pad next to it is the better option for small children.
Can you fish from the St. Pete Pier?
Yes, from the Fishing Deck at the end, and Gator Jim’s Tackle at Pier Point sells bait and tackle. Ask there whether the pier’s own licence covers you. If it doesn’t, visitors need a Florida non-resident saltwater licence, from $17 for three days.
How long do you need at the St. Pete Pier?
Two hours to walk out and back and see the free attractions; half a day with a meal and the Discovery Center; a full day if you add the downtown museums.
How far is the St. Pete Pier from Tampa?
About 25 miles from downtown Tampa, typically 30 to 45 minutes by car via Interstate 275 and the Howard Frankland Bridge, across the bay. From Tampa International Airport it is about 20 miles.
Related Tampa Guides
- Best Things to Do in St. Petersburg Florida — the museums, the districts and the full story of the 1914 airline.
- Best Beaches Near Tampa — when Spa Beach isn’t enough.
- Best Things to Do in Clearwater Florida — Pier 60 and the Gulf beaches, 22 miles north.
- Getting Around Tampa Bay — crossing the bay without stress.
- Tampa Riverwalk and Downtown Visitor Guide — the equivalent free waterfront on the Tampa side.
Sources and verification
Everything on this page was checked against the Pier’s and the operators’ own published information on the dates below. The Pier is a city-owned public space whose tenants, art and events change, so treat restaurant details and opening arrangements as current to the date checked.
- The St. Pete Pier (stpetepier.org) — district layout and attractions, public art and the Bending Arc’s temporary closure, the free tram, the accessible route and restrooms. Checked 19 September 2026.
- The St. Pete Pier, Getting Here & Parking — Dolphin and Pelican lot rates, weekday and weekend periods, payment methods and ParkMobile zone, street-meter rates and hours, and the Downtown Looper. Checked 1 October 2026.
- The St. Pete Pier, Restaurants — the seven food and drink outlets, their locations and notes, including Pier Teaki’s age rule. Checked 1 October 2026.
- Tampa Bay Watch Discovery Center — hours and admission as published on the Pier’s listing. Checked 1 October 2026.
- St. Petersburg Museum of History — hours and admission from the regional tourism office’s listing; not confirmed on the museum’s own site. Checked 1 October 2026.
- Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (myfwc.com) — saltwater licence prices and the pier-licence and under-16 exemptions. Checked 19 September 2026.
- Tampa International Airport — the published 20-mile distance to St. Petersburg and the flat-rate taxi destinations. Checked 19 September 2026.
- Cross-Bay Ferry — the end of the seasonal service on 30 April 2025 and the status of the planned replacement. Checked 19 September 2026.
- Museums — the Museum of Fine Arts, the Dalí Museum and the James Museum, each from its own site. Checked 19 September 2026.
Not verified, and therefore not stated as fact: the Pier’s overall opening hours, its dog policy, whether the Fishing Deck holds a saltwater pier licence, and lifeguard cover at Spa Beach. We have not visited the Pier for this guide. It is built from the operators’ published information.
Photo credits
The St. Pete Pier head structure, July 2020: photo by Adog, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
The deck of the St. Pete Pier toward Pier Point: photo by Myotus, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Spa Beach Bistro, February 2024: photo by Eden, Janine and Jim, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Pier Point on the St. Pete Pier, 2021: photo by Beyond My Ken, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
The Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg: photo by Ebyabe, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.