A medium-sized city on Florida's Gulf Coast, Tampa has much to recommend it: impressive museums, winning sports teams, rocking nightlife and a wealth of tourist attactions. Whatever your interest, Tampa can probably fulfill it.

Tampa's crown jewel is Ybor City , the historic Cuban neighborhood. It's fun to amble down its shady brick-paved streets, following your nose to bakeries to buy fragrant loaves of Cuban bread or to shops where tabaqueros hand roll fine cigars. The sounds of lively Spanish conversation might lead you to an old-fashioned domino parlor where grandfathers with gnarled hands gather to play in friendly neighborhood matches. Antique shops, boutiques and art galleries beckon. After dark, the nightclubs throw open their doors, and Ybor City metamorphoses into the Tampa hot spot. Stylish young party animals come out to prowl the area's many hip bars.

Tampa also has real animals in abundance: sharks and rays at the Florida Aquarium and the more lovable manatees at the zoo. At Busch Gardens (it predates Walt Disney World), you can ride across re-created African plains in a safari truck, stopping to hand feed roaming giraffes.

Only a 30-minute drive away are St. Petersburg (or St. Pete, as it's known locally) and the gorgeous Gulf Coast beaches. Once primarily a retirement spot, the Tampa-St. Petersburg area now attracts people of all ages.

Sights -- Check out the architecture, shopping and nightlife in Ybor City ; spend a day (at least) at Busch Gardens ; take in a Broadway musical at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center .

Museums -- Museum of Science and Industry; the Alhambra-inspired Henry B. Plant Museum at the University of Tampa; the Salvador Dali Museum in nearby St. Petersburg.

Memorable Meals -- Authentic Spanish and Cuban cuisine (complete with flamenco dancers) at the Columbia Restaurant; a slab of beef at Iavarone's Steakhouse; award-winning Italian specials at Armani's .

Late Night -- A comedy act at The Improv; drinks at The Hub , a Tampa institution; a spin on the rotating dance floor at Amphitheater.

Walks -- Bayshore Boulevard, especially on weekends; Clearwater Beach at sunset; an early-morning stroll through Flatwoods Wilderness Park, watching for wild boar, deer, egrets and sandhill cranes.

Sun, warm temperatures and water are Tampa's selling points. Accompanying the warm weather is high humidity, which can be uncomfortable in the summer. Temperatures generally stay around 82 F/28 C. Be sure to use sunscreen -- the Florida sun is relentless. Winters are mild and generally dry, but with occasional cold snaps. Temperatures hover around 60 F/15 C. Some winter mornings may see near-freezing temperatures, but rest assured that by midday the warmth will return. If you're traveling to Tampa during your summer vacation, you'll find that the heat and humidity are tempered by sea breezes or by afternoon and early-evening thunderstorms.

Tampa is a relatively easy city to navigate. But attractions are spread out, making a car a necessity for most visitors. HARTline, the public bus line, offers multiday passes and serves most of the attractions and major malls in the Tampa area. However, you could have a long walk to the bus stop and a wait of at least 30 minutes between buses.

Whether you feel like walking on white-sand beaches, watching sponge divers, or wandering through upscale shopping districts, you'll find something to your liking in the diverse Tampa Bay area. Bright, modern Tampa is the area's commercial center. Peninsular St. Petersburg lies across the bay. Tarpon Springs, to the northwest, is still Greek in flavor. The Manatee Coast, to the north, is quite rural, with extensive nature preserves. To the south are Bradenton, which has several museums and beaches; Sarasota, a sophisticated resort town; and small, canal-crossed Venice.

In Tampa, the biggest concentration of nightclubs, as well as the widest variety, is found along 7th Avenue in Ybor City. It becomes a little like Bourbon Street and a little like Miami's South Beach after the sun goes down.

On St. Pete Beach, much of the nightlife is of the hotel-bar variety, with bars hosting Jimmy Buffet clones and the inevitable tourist-town karaoke nights. It's best to call ahead, too, since many establishments tend to close early off-season or any time business is slow.

Fresh seafood is plentiful, and raw bars serving oysters, clams, and mussels are everywhere. Tampa's many Cuban and Spanish restaurants serve fresh seafood, perhaps in a spicy paella, along with black beans and rice. Tarpon Springs adds hearty helpings of classic Greek specialties. In Sarasota the emphasis is on fine dining. Many restaurants offer extra-cheap early-bird menus for seatings before 6 PM.

Restaurant prices are per person for a main course at dinner.

Whether your interests run to spicy food, boutique shopping, or Latin music, Ybor City, Tampa's Cuban enclave, has it all. With antique brick streets and wrought-iron balconies, this historic and lively neighborhood is one of only three National Historic Landmark districts in Florida. Cubans brought their cigar-making industry to Ybor (pronounced ee -bore) City in 1866, and the smell of cigars -- hand-rolled by Cuban immigrants -- still drifts through the heart of this east Tampa area. These days the neighborhood is emerging as Tampa's hot spot, as empty cigar factories are transformed into trendy boutiques, art galleries, restaurants, and nightclubs.