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I recently learned about CityPASS and feel like I’ve discovered the greatest affordable family travel hack. We used the Tampa CityPASS to explore the Tampa Bay Area. With a savings of 51%, it’s the most affordable way to explore the family friendly attractions in Tampa. The Tampa Bay CityPASS includes admission to Busch Gardens, Zoo Tampa, The Florida Aquarium, The Clearwater Aquarium, and you can choose between the Museum of Science and Industry or the Chihuly Museum.

How much does the Tampa Bay CityPASS cost?

The cost for the Tampa Bay CityPASS is $107 for adults and $97 for kids 3-9. Children under 3 are free.

Tickets for Busch Gardens alone start at $79.99 at the very cheapest. To get all 5 Tampa Bay attractions for $107 is an absolute steal. Whether you are planning to visit Tampa or you live in the area, the Tampa Bay CityPASS is a great way to explore all the family friendly activities in Tampa without spending a ton of money.

Related Post: The Best Florida Beaches for Families

How the Tampa Bay CityPASS Works:

Buy your pass

Purchase your pass online from the CityPASS website. Head here to purchase: Tampa Bay CityPASS

You can also purchase a Tampa Bay CityPASS from any of the ticket counters at the associated attractions.

You’ll receive a small booklet with all of your tickets.

Use your CityPASS over a 9 day period

You have 9 days to use your CityPASS tickets.

DO NOT take the tickets out of your booklet. They are not valid once removed. Hand your CityPASS over to the person at the ticket counter and they will remove the tickets for you.

Skip lines

The CityPass allows you to skip the ticket counter lines at Busch Gardens, The Florida Aquarium, and The Clearwater Aquarium. If you visit during a busy time, this can save you a ton of time!

What’s included in the Tampa Bay CityPASS?

For $107 you get access to these family friendly activities in Tampa Bay. These attractions are considered the best things to do with kids in Tampa Bay.

Even if you were to buy the pass and only go to Busch Gardens and one other attraction, you would save money on activities in Tampa Bay.

Busch Gardens

Regular Busch Gardens ticket prices start at $89.99.

Expect to spend the entire day at Busch Gardens because there is so much to do. You can choose from riding a rollercoaster, watching a few of the 12,000 animals, catching a show or doing all of it!

We personally enjoyed hanging out in the Sesame Street themed kiddie area. I think my kiddos could have stayed there all day.

The Florida Aquarium

Regular ticket prices start at $26.

Expect to spend at least half a day. There are two large exhibits, a touch tank, animal shows, and a large splash pad.

Our favorite part was looking at all the fish. It’s mesmerizing! I think I stood in front of the aquariums adding boomerangs to my Instagram story for a solid 10 minutes. I couldn’t stop.

Zoo Tampa

Regular ticket prices start at $34.95.

Expect to spend an entire day at Zoo Tampa. This zoo is part zoo, part theme park! Not only can you find animals, you can find a lot of family friendly rides.

Even though my kids love animals, they were most impressed by the kiddie rides in the Children’s Zoo. This was one of the best places to ride rides ever. My kids loved running from ride to ride and then to the splash pad. What a great place to take kids in the summer!

Clearwater Aquarium

Regular ticket prices to Clearwater Aquarium start at $22.95.

Expect to spend half a day at The Clearwater Aquarium, but dedicate an entire day to exploring Clearwater. There is so much to do there. Learn more about family friendly things to do in Clearwater here.

The highlight of visiting the Clearwater Aquarium is seeing Winter, the dolphin that inspired the hit movie, Dolphin Tale. I’m not an emotional person, but every time I see Winter and hear about all she overcame without a tail, I get chills and have even been known to cry. Cry, y’all. It’s well worth the visit.

Museum of Science and Industry OR The Chihuly Exhibit

Regular ticket prices to MOSI start at $12.95 | Regular ticket prices to The Chihuly Exhibit start at $19.95

Expect to spend a couple of hours at either. The Tampa Bay CityPass includes admission to one or the other, not both.

We chose to visit MOSI since it’s more hands on. I was hesitant to take the kids to visit an art exhibit made of glass! My boys loved doing the hands on work such as the LEGO lab.

How much do you save with the Tampa Bay CityPASS?

Use the Tampa Bay CityPASS to explore all the family friendly activities that they offer and save up to $87! Even if you don’t go to all the Tampa Bay destination included in the CityPass, you’ll make your money back on a trip to Busch Gardens and one more activity.

Other CityPASS Destinations

There are 13 CityPASS destinations:

Atlanta
Boston
Chicago
Dallas
Denver
Houston
New York City
Philadelphia
San Francisco
Seattle
Southern California
Tampa Bay
Toronto

Head to the CityPASS website to learn more: CityPASS Official Site

CityPASS is my favorite affordable family travel hack

Now that I know about CityPass, I’ll be buying one for ever destination that has one! I’m especially excited about SoCal CityPASS that includes Disneyland tickets! Pretty cool, huh?

Have you been to Tampa Bay? What’s your favorite place to visit there?

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