Busch Gardens
It's come a long way after 54 years, from a beer factory and bird show to an internationally regarded theme park. It's constantly refreshing its mix of rides and animal displays as part of the company SeaWorld Entertainment.
Clearwater Beach
If the Pinellas beaches can't make the icon list, what will? Clearwater is the mecca for spring breakers and major tourism events.
Columbia Restaurant
It claims to be Florida's' oldest restaurant and epitomizes regional Spanish cuisine.
Dalí Museum
The St. Petersburg waterfront site not only houses one of the biggest collections of Salvador Dalí's works, but the building itself is an architectural home run.
Derek Jeter
The 30,000-square-foot home of the New York Yankees captain, Hall of Fame shoo-in and one of Major League Baseball's top ambassadors is on the Davis Islands waterfront, not far from the team's Tampa training complex. As he nears retirement (and starts Jeter Publishing), will he become more of a local personality?
Gasparilla
Tampa's annual midwinter pirate invasion is a mischievous celebration that the city adopted as one of the events unique to Tampa Bay and its history.
Hulk Hogan
Nobody epitomizes local pop fame and infamy more than the larger-than-life, cartoon-styled Hulkster and family.
MacDill Air Force Base
It's no ordinary military base but the home of CentCom, central command for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, as well as SOCom, where special operations of the combined Army, Navy and Air Force are based. Still, defense cuts and the winding down in the Middle East will lower its profile.
Scientology
Controversial? You bet. But the spiritual headquarters of this IRS-approved religion is now part of the cultural and economic core of downtown Clearwater. Just this weekend, the Church of Scientology opens its 300,000-square-foot Flag Building and will make its "Super Power" program available to its members.
Tampa Bay Bucs
The good news is this metro area's NFL franchise is no longer winless this season. The better news is there are no plans to resurrect those Creamsicle-colored uniforms again. How long will it take to become a competitive franchise again?
Tampa Bay Lightning
The NHL hockey team already boasts a Stanley Cup title. And relocated owner Jeff Vinik may yet prove a rising star of economic development — depending on the future direction of Tampa's Channelside district.
Tampa Bay Rays
The competitive major-league baseball team already is famous for squeezing lots of wins out of small payrolls. While it may not attract crowds to its aging St. Petersburg stadium, its games get plenty of TV viewers. The Rays' long-term relocation — within Tampa Bay or perhaps in some other aspiring market — remains unclear. But the controversy keeps the team high-profile.
University of South Florida
Tampa's major state university has come a long way as both an educational institution and a key economic foundation for this region. Want to strengthen Tampa Bay's profile as a competitive metro area? Keep improving USF. And fix those weak graduation rates.
Winter the Dolphin
The tailless dolphin may appear last on this list, but Winter has proved to be a marketing juggernaut to Clearwater tourism thanks to the popular 2011 movie Dolphin Tale and its coming sequel. Winter alone pushed through this month's voter referendum supporting the building of a new aquarium in downtown Clearwater. Winter, stay healthy.
Tampa Bay area: wat is er te doen?
Antwoord met Citaat
