Free and cheap things to do in the Tampa Bay area: Bucs Beach Bash, fun run

Sharon Kennedy Wynne, Tampa Bay Times
·3 min read

As we navigate higher prices for everything from school supplies to groceries, the cost of entertaining ourselves has also gone up. Each week we will take a look at some of the deals to be found and highlight things happening around the Tampa Bay area that won’t break the bank.

Here are some options this week:

Trail Fun Run: As part of its Healthy St. Pete program, the city joins with the St. Pete Running Company and Boyd Hill Nature Preserve every second Saturday for a free fun run with a fitness instructor. Runners meet at the flagpole in front of the Lake Maggiore Environmental Education Center at the nature preserve to run or walk the trails. Admission to the preserve is free for this event Saturday from 9-10 a.m. 1101 Country Club Way S, St. Petersburg. For more Healthy St. Pete events, see HealthyStPeteFL.com/play.

Dive-In Movie: For a cheap family night, hang out and float around with your family and friends as you watch a screening of “Space Jam: A New Legacy,” starring LeBron James, at Clearwater’s Morningside Recreation Complex, which has a Junior Olympic-size pool with diving boards, a tube slide and a kiddie splash pad. $3, $2 with a city recreation card. 6:30-8:30 p.m. Friday. 2400 Harn Blvd., Clearwater. 727-562-4280. myclearwaterparks.com.

Tampa Museum of Art: Every Thursday from 4 to 8 p.m., the museum offers Art on the House, where the admission price is “pay as you will.” Any donation amount is welcome. Check out 100 years of art in Tampa with exhibitions that emphasize ancient, modern and contemporary art. Current exhibits include a collection of paintings of early Florida artists and a showcase of Dawoud Bey and Carrie Mae Weems, two prolific Black photographers whose work is revealed in more than 120 photographs, as well as video. 120 W Gasparilla Plaza, Tampa. tampamuseum.org.

Bucs Beach Bash: This weekend the TradeWinds Island Resorts is inviting fans of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to party like a pirate with a free concert on Saturday with headlining country duo Maddie & Tae at 6 p.m. and supporting act Pirate Flag Band. There will also be free Bucs Beach Bash activities all weekend including live music on the beach, cornhole tournaments, poolside parties, a Buccaneers game-day watch party and a Kid Zone. The Buccaneer Cheerleaders will make an appearance, as will Captain Fear, pirates and the Buccaneer Street Team. The season opener, which pits the Bucs against the Dallas Cowboys at 8:20 p.m. Sunday, will be shown on the beach on huge outdoor screens. The resort is offering a two-night Beach Bash package, but you don’t have to be a guest to attend the events. Daily on-site parking is $25 and subject to availability. 1-10 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. 5500 Gulf Blvd., St. Pete Beach. 888-345-9930. tradewindsresort.com/offers/beachbash.

Orange County chopper: St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport just added some swagger to its baggage claim area: an original customized Orange County Chopper bike created by Paul Teutul Sr., the entrepreneur and TV celebrity made famous in his bike-building reality series, currently in “Orange County Choppers” on CMT. The bike, which is detailed with iconic images of the Tampa Bay area, will be on display for a year. A welcome message encourages arriving passengers to explore popular area attractions, including Teutul’s OCC Road House & Museum, which opened at 10575 49th St. N in Pinellas Park last year, next to Bert’s Barracuda Harley-Davidson. The restaurant and entertainment venue is stocked with Teutul’s custom motorcycles and memorabilia from his personal collection.