Henry B. Plant Museum

About

Six silver minarets crowned with crescent moons rise over Tampa's riverfront, the unmistakable signature of the 1891 Tampa Bay Hotel that railroad man Henry Plant built to lure Gilded Age travelers south. Inside the south wing, restored guest rooms and parlors hold the actual furnishings Plant shipped back from Europe and Asia, alongside the original electric lights and the elevator that still runs. Theodore Roosevelt and his Rough Riders camped on these grounds before sailing for Cuba, and a walk under the horseshoe arches and along the long veranda makes it easy to picture why.

Highlights

Getting there

401 W. Kennedy Boulevard, Tampa, FL 33606

The museum is one wing of one floor of Plant Hall, and most people finish inside 90 minutes. Tickets include a 45-minute audio tour and a 14-minute film, and strollers are not allowed inside.