Day Trip to Caliente Tampa

We spent a pleasant Sunday afternoon at Caliente Tampa. Weather was great...80 and light breeze. We arrived about 1030a to find out there was a Classic Car Show on property so parking was very tight. On the plus side, our day pass was only $20/couple (normally $100). We had no problem finding lounge chairs at the main pool area as it was only a quarter full. However by noon the main pool and conversation pool were packed. The pool bar was busy but staff was friendly and accommodating. Drinks are strong but pricey ($7 for Gin/Tonic) but food was another issue. All food comes from the main sports bar in clubhouse and it was obvious they were not staffed for the demand this day...almost 40 minutes for two appetizers. Food was OK. At 1pm they opened the small bandstand area and started a nice mix of music. As we were right in front we moved to the upper level conversation pool and spa area. This area is much smaller and quieter then main pool and there were more couples and small groups interacting in the conversation pool. Everyone was friendly and open.

Pros
Large, clean pools and deck area nicely laid out
Plenty of space and loungers
Day beds
Excellent strong drinks
Nice clubhouse w/fitness center and small boutique shops
Friendly pool bar staff
Free popcorn in pool bar...ask for Tom to get yours

Cons
Day beds $40/day
Drinks a bit pricey
Loungers are older strap style and showing some wear
No towels for day passers...bring your own
Food overpriced and slow in coming

The pool and spa/hot tub areas are open 24 hours and we were told the upper area spa and pool does get lively in the after hours. We will be going back in June for a longer stay and will do a follow up review.

rkd2013,

Thanks for the review! We'll be looking forward to your June update.
Is this an 18 & up resort? Is the pool area mostly nude, or mixed nude & swimsuits?

KnD

Though we did a bit of people-watching...after all...almost everyone is naked...we did not see any very young people or children. I do believe Caliente requires 21 and older. They do allow single females/males. There were some single females in the mid 20 range (a group of three sat in front of us) but for the most part the crowd were 40ish and up. Even for just a day visit the resort is pricey considering pass cost and drinks/food hence an older crowd. However we were told the people mix is younger on the weekends then weekdays.

Most everyone walks in with some swimwear on but sheds it pretty quickly...took my wife 30sec to rip hers off. Caliente states they are c/o and we did see some females that were topless only. It didn't really seem to matter what the state of dress was as everyone seem to be enjoying themselves and soaking up the sun.

The main pool area does have more of a resort feel to it while the upper pool/spa was definitely more couples intimate. We will be very interested in checking this area out in the evening hours on our next visit.

Thanks for the reports. Please keep them coming. We have done Caliente Caribe, but we were wondering if we could just head to FL. Please let us know the age mix on the weekends if you ever get there then. Thanks again.

We read that they started charging fees for first row of lounge chairs by the pool and a lot of complaints dealing with time share sales staff. We were there on a Friday about 3 years ago. Then chairs were free but daybeds were $100. It wasn't crowded and no pdas. Thought about doing a time share promo but heard horror stories about people asked to leave when didn't purchase. Definitely would try again on a Sunday when discounted or a weekend special event but otherwise will pass.

I am heading to central Florida on business in April...just wondering if anyone is heading to caliente the day????? If I go, it will be my 1st time...