The 5 Most Underrated Spots To Visit In Tampa, Florida, According To Travelers

One of the great things about Tampa, Florida is that it's not just another sunny Florida beach destination. While the nearby coastline does boast some of the top-ranked beaches in the U.S., there's so much more to this city than its proximity to stupendous sand. Tampa has an emerging food scene, thrilling attractions like Busch Gardens, and up-and-coming trendy neighborhoods like Ybor City. If you're mapping out your itinerary for a visit, you can certainly stick to the tried-and-true. But you can also venture off the beaten path to discover the area's underrated spots and secret treasures. These are places where you can get away from the crowds (in most cases), breathe a little easier, and maybe even learn something totally new. Locals may know about these places, but when it comes to tourism, the spots on our list still fly under the radar compared to higher-profile ones. 

To compile our list, we consulted a variety of sources — from Tripadvisor and YouTube to Reddit and online magazines — to unearth the most delightful and underrated of all of Tampa's hidden gems. As we studied our seven different sources, certain spots kept showing up. Ultimately, the five that made our list were cited in the greatest number of our reviewed sources and had the highest overall Tripadvisor ratings. In the top spot on our list is the historic Tampa Theater, followed by the alligator-friendly Lettuce Lake Regional Park, the Thai Buddhist temple Wat Mongkolratanaram (and particularly, its Sunday market), the storied Henry B. Plant Museum, and the beguiling Eureka Springs Conservation Park. 

The Tampa Theatre — a historic venue that opened in 1926 — emerged as the top underrated spot to visit in Tampa, mentioned on four of our seven reviewed sources, with an overall Tripadvisor rating of 4.8. The theatre is located right downtown, four blocks north of city hall, and hosts films, live events, and special tours. Walking into this historic movie theatre is like stepping back to the 1920s, when going to the movies was a really big deal. Imagine the excitement the city's early moviegoers must have felt when entering the opulent theatre, designed to resemble a Mediterranean courtyard, complete with gargoyles, Spanish tiles, and Greek and Romanesque statues. The cleverly backlit ceiling simulates a starry night sky. 

Theatergoers of today still feel the magic. One Tripadvisor reviewer exclaimed, "What an absolutely amazing place! From the minute we stepped through the doors we knew we were in for a very special experience ... we practically had the whole place to ourselves. We sat upstairs and the view was fantastic." YouTuber Sunshine State Insider says, "If you love movies, architecture, ghost tours, or just experiencing something really unique, make sure to add this to your list — it's easily one of the most magical places in Tampa and a really cool hidden gem." Visit the theatre website for current showtimes and to learn more about special events. 

Located 17 miles northeast of downtown Tampa, Lettuce Lake Regional Park is in second place on our list. It was also mentioned in four of our reviewed sources but, compared to the Tampa theatre, had a slightly lower overall Tripadvisor rating of 4.6. Despite its name, salad lovers will be disappointed to find that there's not a lot of fresh lettuce lying around this park. Instead, there are walking trails, a 3,500-foot boardwalk that meanders through wooded areas along the Hillsborough River, an observation tower, many kinds of birds, and some slinking alligators. In addition to walking, you can also rent kayaks and canoes and get out on the water, but keep a safe distance from those alligators — one of which is reputed to be around 14 feet long.  

One Tripadvisor reviewer familiar with the Tampa Bay area's extensive natural beauty seemed beyond thrilled to discover this park: "We are well acquainted with the real Florida having stayed on the St John's River many times but found this park to be amazing ... Thank you to the founders with the foresight to protect and preserve this precious resource." YouTuber Sunshine State Insider also raved about this park: "This place is a full-blown nature escape, and it's just 15 minutes from downtown Tampa ... Thousands of people are just driving right past the entrance to this place every day on their daily commute and have never been here and have no idea what they're missing."

The park is open to the public in spring and summer from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., and in fall and winter from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. The entrance fee is $2 per vehicle. Please note that as of early 2026, parts of the boardwalk are undergoing repair. 

Another great thing about Tampa is its vibrant multiculturalism — as evidenced by its hopping international food scene, cultural events, and medley of churches, temples, and mosques. The resplendent Thai Buddhist temple, Wat Mongkolratanaram, is next on our list of Tampa's most underrated places to visit. It was mentioned by four of our sources, with an overall Tripadvisor rating of 4.6. The ornate white, pink, and gold temple with deep scarlet trim is located 5 miles east of downtown, in a peaceful spot along the Palm River dotted with moss-draped oak trees, some cradling bright orchid plants. Visitors are welcome to stroll the temple grounds, attend meditations inside the temple, and partake in cultural festivals and special events. A regular hit is the Charity Sunday Market, which takes place every Sunday from around 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The temple's Charity Sunday Market — a cash-only open-air market with food stalls amidst picnic tables — probably won't appear on your traditional Tampa vacation itinerary. But it's not a secret among locals, which means it's one of the busier items on our list. The market is buzzing with good energy, but get there early to avoid waiting in a long line for your Thai goodies, which include scrumptious bites  of pad thai, papaya salad, curries, noodle soup, spring rolls, mango sticky rice, and more.  

According to travel guru Samantha Brown, who attended the Sunday market in October 2025, temple volunteers cook all dishes onsite. The money raised from each Sunday event is donated back to the temple. Visitors speak highly of their experiences at the temple and, especially, the Sunday market. "This is a hidden gem in Tampa. Just go and enjoy it. The food is great [and] the atmosphere is peaceful and serene," said one Tripadvisor reviewer.

The only museum on our list, the Henry B. Plant Museum, was mentioned in three of our sources, with an overall Tripadvisor rating of 4.5. It's located less than a mile southwest of the city center, on the opposite side of the Hillsborough River from downtown.  Like the Tampa Theatre, the museum is housed in an iconic city building that's a worthwhile destination unto itself  — the former Tampa Bay Hotel, a century-old landmark full of luxuries that welcomed well-heeled guests from 1891 to 1932. The building also served as a miltary headquarters during the 1898 Spanish-American War, and is now a National Historic Landmark. 

By exploring this museum, you can learn about how the Gilded Age unfolded in the state of Florida, shaped by visionaries like railroad and steamship titan Henry B. Plant. Trappings from that era — elegant artwork, sculptures, and ceramics; stately clocks and mirrors; and exotic furnishings from Europe and Asia — are on permanent display in the museum, which also hosts exhibits on historical subjects like the Spanish-American War as well as live theater performances. Museum visitors like this Tripadvisor reviewer express appreciation for this underrated little museum: "What a wonderful hidden gem on the University of Tampa campus! It was fascinating to learn about Henry B. Plant and the beautiful resort he created as the Tampa Bay Hotel. Take a stroll back to the late 19th century and be immersed in the luxury of this remarkable palace and its surroundings."

The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. It's closed on Sunday. Admission is $12 and includes an audio guide.

In fifth place on our list is the tiny but mighty Eureka Springs Conservation Park, mentioned in three of our reviewed sources, with an overall Tripadvisor rating of 4.2.  The park is located 10 miles northeast of downtown —a little jaunt but one that locals and visitors say is well worth it. Tampa's environmental news publication Bay Soundings called out this understated treasure: "At just 31 acres, it is the county's smallest park and also among the least visited. That is a shame, because Eureka Springs is a delightful place for a Sunday stroll." It's also the only true botanic garden in the Hillsborough County park system. 

In 1938, botanist Albert Greenburg founded the garden to house rare and exotic tropical plants. Plant lovers who visit the garden will savor "lovingly tended landscape beds of camellias, gingers, begonias and bromeliads, as well as a stunning greenhouse of orchids and rare tropicals," per Bay Soundings. In addition, the park encompasses Florida's largest publicly owned fern collection, a rose garden, a walking trail, and a boardwalk through a lush forest of maples, cypresses, and tupelo. One Tripadvisor reviewer gushed, "You wouldn't think a place like this would be hidden in Tampa. Lots of plants for sure. I would visit again to go for a nice walk." The park is open every day from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., and the entry fee is $2 per vehicle. During winter cold snaps, park staff may move the more vulnerable plants into the greenhouse for their protection, where they'll be temporarily unavailable for viewing. If you leave hungry for more of Tampa Bay's green spaces, another one to check out is Hillsborough River State Park, a historic park with rapids, wildlife, and more scenic trails. 

For this analysis, we consulted the following sources to assess both local and traveler opinions on Tampa's top underrated things to do: 1. Tripadvisor's Best Tampa Hidden Gem Attractions;  2. Tampa Magazine's Uncovering Tampa Bay's Hidden Treasures; 3. the Reddit thread What are some of the Tampa bay area's hidden gems; 4. Atlas Obscura's 27 Cool and Unusual Things to Do in Tampa, Florida; 5. YouTuber Sunshine State Insider's Five Hidden Gems in Tampa You NEED to See! ; 6. Live Work Play's 24 of Tampa Bay's Hidden Gems: The Best Kept Secrets; and 7. Bay Sounding's Hidden Gems of Tampa Bay.

After identifying the spots that most frequently occurred across our sources, we ranked them according to the number of sources mentioning them. When there was a tie, we looked at their overall rating on Tripdadvisor. In the one case in which a tie nonetheless persisted (between Lettuce Lake Park and the Thai temple), we gave priority to the site with the greater number of Tripadvisor reviews. The Tampa Theatre was mentioned in sources 1, 3, 4, and 5 with a Tripadvisor rating of 4.8 out of 5; Lettuce Lake Park was mentioned in sources 1,3,5, and 6 with an overall Tripadvisor rating of 4.6 across 1,097 reviews; the Wat Mongkolratanaram Temple was mentioned in sources 1,2,3, and 4 with an overall Tripadvisor rating of 4.6 across 340 reviews; the Henry B. Plant Museum was mentioned in sources 1,3, and 4 with an overall Tripadvisor rating of 4.5; and finally, Eureka Springs Park was mentioned in sources 1, 6, and 7 with an overall Tripadvisor rating of 4.2.