Thanks very much, Randy. Despite the hurricane damage I still love the Tampa/Clearwater/St.Pete coast. So happy you're back on your turf doing Florida videos.
We've been visiting FL in the areas between TarponSprings and KeyWest for the last 8 years with treks to Orlando, Ocala, Daytona, and Miami thrown in on occasion. The Clearwater and St. Pete areas being homebase..the last two years we've fallen in love with Anna Maria Island and the Sarasota area..thank you so much for these videos!
Happy New Year Randy. The family and I are booked for our annual St. Pete, Clearwater vacation for June 2025. This is my happy place, and my prayers are out for my west coast florida family
Thankyou for the kind words, the Suncoast is ready for you my friend, while it may not be completely back to normal, it will be pretty close to it, certainly much, much better than we had thought back in Oct, its come along ways.
Thank you for these updates. We live in Seminole, close to Madeira and Indian Rocks beaches. We were very fortunate here. 2 miles to the west of us... a different story. We try to get out and patronize places as they reopen.
Thankyou DennisAustin, yea I didn't mention Indian Rocks on the video, but that will be a part of my Treasure Island/Madeira Bch video, I know many places on Indian Rocks Bch were hit very hard, so I'll try to give a update of there as well.
Thankyou Cory, I appreciate that feed back, yea my voice has gone through some adjustments in last 4 years, I like where it is at now, so I appreciate that
We were in Clearwater in November. Went to a seafood bar & grill that still smelled of fresh paint, lots of new glass on buildings and a small beach that used to be a pay to park was free to be in cuz the buildings around were still being rebuilt. But the people were still so kind, showed my kids how to make sand castles for the first time, asking them how they liked the beach for their first time being there. I'm from Okeechobee, I know devastation well. But Florida people are Florida Strong 💜
Literally brought happy tears to my eyes to see my beautiful home again. Nobody else makes videos this perfect! Thank you so much and appreciate you mentioning dog friendly spots also!
Once again Randy, you weave a tapestry of magic and colours. Your narration is superb, never overdone. For me you are the master of travel vids. God bless you and keep doing what you do to perfection.
@TampaAerialMedia I've enjoyed watching and also watching the videos as we plan our trips down there, there is always something we haven't done or a place we haven't eaten at that catches my attention. You're videos are very well done and very informative.
Hi Randy! Love your videos. Thank you for this one especially. I lived in St Pete in my late high school years, all through college and young adulthood in the 1980’s. I consider St Pete my home town though I was not born there. I worked at a grocery store very near the beach (Kash n Karry), during college. I’m always interested in the St Pete Beach, Pass-a-Grille and Treasure Island areas. Those were my hangouts back when. So good to see the recovery on-going. Thank you again for the very informative videos!
Excellent video Randy. Much appreciate your thorough travel reviews & updates. Can't wait to get back home to the area for a visit. Looking forward to all your future videos. Go Bucs! Happy New Year.
Thank you so much for this video. Indian Rocks and Don Cesar are my absolute favorite places to vacation and I've been worried about the businesses and people there.
Thankyou, yea will show alittle of Indian Rocks Beach and give a status on some of the popular restaurants there in the Treasure Island video coming probably this Wednesday....Most of the popular eateries are open in Indian Rocks Beach
What a helpful video, thank you! We have a family vacation planned for April 2025 and are staying at the Tradewinds Island Grand Resort. From your video it looks like it is up and running and in good shape after Helene and Milton.
Hi Everybody. THANK YOU SO MUCH for this wonderful film. We are from Switzerland and visiting Treasure Island since 40 years. Sometimes twice a year. The nicest place on earth! We have many friends there. Some lost everything. So sad. We will be back mid march for 5 weeks. We will support the local businesses as much as we can. Guaranteed! Looking forward to your next movie about Treasure Island, Madeira Beach and John's Pass... When can we see this movie?
Thank you Randy for a very good informative video. I’ll be waiting for the Madeira Beach one. I’ve been spending my winters there for the last 6 years. Sadly this year the condo I stay at won’t be ready. Cant wait to see drone footage of that area.
Great video :) Your drone shots are gorgeous. I really hate to hear about Woodys closing. I grew up on 73rd. My mom & uncle were raised in the beach cottage directly across from Woodys.
Randy, thank you so much for this update. We will be down in April for a family wedding inland, and to then on patronize the businesses that have reopened from Tampa south to Sarasota. So many years of wonderful memories made here. The least we can do is spend some money to help out. We are heartbroken over the closing of Woodys. What a great place it was. I can't wait to walk along the beaches of Ft Desoto again. It is our peaceful, natural, happy place. ❤
Yea, you know dont know about your scedule, but yea in the summer would love to do some NC and/or TN areas with you....I might be late to the game but better late than never
There's a few historic small towns that got hit by Helene and the quaint downtown and museums, hiking parks are open, outside Asheville inland about an hour or more into the mountains. They need tourists and do a big Christmas business in the winter, outdoors adventures in the summer. See John Ward's YT travel channel. Sorry, forgot the name at the moment. Very informative. Now he's doing videos in the hard hit areas talking with survivors and how they are making it and working to bring things back. It's called The Appalachian Channel if I'm correct. When I think of his other channel name, will let you know. Canton, NC was 1 where they are open & didn't get flooded as much. The 1 general store's been there over 100 yrs. Much history there. Families there have been there since the early 1800's and even earlier. Saw a post of one woman in another town much further away whose family has been there since 1689 in those mountains. @@TampaAerialMedia
Great video, thank you so much for all the hard work. This information is very helpful for my upcoming trip. Be there in less than a week! Super excited, here’s to hoping the snow doesn’t follow me! 🤞🏼🤦🏻♀️LOL
Pass--a-Grille updates: Paradise to Go sandwich shop is open and they are serving ice cream from their Paradise Sweets store. Shadracks and Grace are open. 8th Avenue stores are starting to open. Seahorse is going to rebuild. Berkeley Hotel is open but Dewey’s and rooftop are still closed. Shaner’s store is open. I believe Paradise Grille is very close to opening and weekend art/crafts are being held. Corey Avenue Sunday market is open.
Thank you for making this great video of our battered but beloved island! 🏝️ Many of us as residents are unfortunately far behind in our recovery efforts. Maximum flood insurance payouts at $250K for coastal properties (below a set elevation) don’t come close to being enough to rebuild our homes. And many have received “Substantial Damage” letters which force us to build up or demo & build new. Yet many of us are determined to do whatever necessary, however long that may take. Much love and many blessings to all as we work to resurrect our paradise. #FloridaStrong 🌴☀️🐬🦀 🐚🌴
The uncertainty of not knowing whether or not you're gonna get hit year after year is more than what my anxiety can handle. While beautiful, I could never lice there!!
Great video Randy! Thank you for the update on my favorite part of Florida. It’s a shame what a beating it took. Between back to back hurricanes and the Biden administration, things are tough. I hope things get better soon.
Very True Cooper, but good days are a coming. The area has too much natural beauty, and its people are too strong for it not to come back quickly. Looking forward to Jan 20th.
Always very eager to see the new Tampa area videos each year and this year is no different. My wife and I come down to Tampa/st Pete/Clearwater every March for the last 6 years minus 2020. It hurts our hearts to learn the area was hit so hard but we too are excited to return this year. We will be down there end of February this year because of my work schedule. We are very excited and hopeful. We not only hope to have fun but want to reach out to the folks down there, spend our money and meet some locals and express our condolences. When we heard of the storms we wanted to get down there asap. We love it there so much. We brought our kids in March 2023 and they loved it. We stayed in palmetto and went to st Pete, Sarasota and Dunedin. All very beautiful towns! I found Dunedin very fun and relaxing, it’s artsy and chill. We are wondering if that area got affected by the storms?? Hope Tampa grows and thrives and I know it will. It’s a wonderful part of the world. Randy! Hope your holidays were great and can’t wait to see what’s to come from TAM, especially the Tampa area related stuff. Finally, any recommendations on more under the radar areas, beaches, restaurants, gardens or parks? Looking to avoid crowds and feel like we’ve been to the hyped up spots. Been to Berns, riverwalk, Clearwater beach, fort de Soto and looking for some chill spots. Any and all recommendations are welcome. Thanks ! ❤
i was in the eyewall of hurricane Milton. it was first time being in a eyewall hope you do clearwater beach pier60 is still closed due to damage from hurricane Milton. i'm a stormchaser/stormspotter. great video. thanks for the updates on what's closed or open.
Thanks for the update! I’m planning a summer vacation with my family. Not sure where we will go but def the west coast. I’m up in Jacksonville, I’m looking forward to seeing the west coast beaches.
This is nothing new. The problem is now, there's a lot more people here in the way. The beaches here are all sandbars. The fingers that many homes are built on, are man made. Sandbars and fingers go underwater and get rearranged. I was born here 67 years ago. My mom and dad were born here as well. We take the slings and arrows and move on.
thanks Randy for the information. otherwise, I am preparing my trip for the east coast (from Portland (Maine), to Tampa (Florida). I am a little perplexed, because September is hurricane season. the positive point, the month of September is ideal for visiting the east coast.
You are welcome Abdel, yes September is a month for east coast, late September if you can, and for Florida you'll want to be flexible as you never know if there will be a hurricane
Great video as always. Thank you for sharing updates on Helene and Milton. Will you be following it's path North? That would be amazing and bring much needed attention. Thank you much. God bless. Retired Navy and banker
For now covering the areas South, but over the summer, but cover the North Carolina areas affect, have talked alittle bit with Smoky Mtn Family so might do something with him....The MidShipmen looked good this year...Go Navy
Thank you for the great update. We visit from Colorado 2-3 times/year and it's so heartening to see so many places on the road to recovery. Do you know if Willy's Burgers and Booze has reopened? Cheers!
Willys has not, but they are planning on rebuilding think it will be awhiles, I just did a post on that on our community page with pics of Willys www.youtube.com/@TampaAerialMedia/community
extremely well edited. great video. btw, have you noticed the water turned so yellow-brownish after the hurricans? same at sanibel. why is that and what is it?
Well right after a hurricane it is sediment from the ocean floor...in this case I think it was more the colder temperatures cause you'll see in our Treasure Island video the Gulf was looking pretty colorful
Love your videos. You truly have a gift. I was wondering if you think everything will return to normal by May/June in the Siesta Key and Anna Marie Island area. Is the water on the beaches different ? It looks different in the videos.
Good questions....I think it will be close to normal by May/June, in Siesta Key/Anna Maria Island, they are alittle behind the Pinellas Cty Bches, I'll give a better update within the next 30 days on those areas...You are right about the color of the Beaches, the water and sand also has a recovery process, they are not back to its normal look but I wold say about 75% there, and will be by March.
Thank you so much for this video!!!! May I ask you when you do Treasure Island to please not skip Sunset Beach and specifically the very south end of it where Lands End is located? All the videos I've seen so far never go all the way down to the south end. Lands End has been my second home for 17 years. 😢
I am planning on going to pass a grille beach and st Pete the last week in May. Do you think the beaches will be restored back to their crystal clear waters by then? Along with the other places that haven’t fully opened yet?
Oh yes definately, infact I think the only reason the water color isn't as Turquoise and becacuse of the temperatures, not from the hurricanes. On Friday when the temperature warmed up alittle it was already pretty colorful so no doubt in May it will be normal and I think Paradise Grille should easily be opened by then
Not sure if I'll be done there with a couple of weeks, will be close, I do know they are welcoming people back on the Island. Now, like St Pete Bch might be good, cause I don't think it will be as crowded, don't know what percentage of Businesses are open yet but will check as soon as possible Gene
@TampaAerialMedia from what I've been able to find out so far, the places we've planned to check out are operating at some level so we're hopeful about our trip. I purchased a few giftcards in advance that helped put some funds in their accounts as well as donations to a few employees funds to help out their staffs too. Looking forward to being there and enjoy seeing the progress they've made.
@@TampaAerialMedia we follow them on Instagram and have been a guest for 34 years now most of the time we live up north in Missouri, but have an aunt who lives in the villages friends who live in Bradenton and I was out there in October and it was just devastating on Annamarie Island. It looked like snow drifts and I felt like I was on a movie set very quiet except for internal alarms going off in houses that no one was in.
We stayed in Long Boat Key at the Sea Club 1. We hope it survived. We also saw the "Unconditional Surrender" statue in Sarasota.( I'm a nurse, so it was very special to me) Did it survive?
Yes I thing both those did well. I know that Statue is pretty solid, and it did just fine, infact alot of Sarasota did pretty good considering how close it was to the path of Milton.
Thank you so much for this video. My wife and I are anxious on whether Pass a Grille is “open for business”. I have a week long reservation (made before the hurricanes) for mid March in Pass a Grille (first time there). I am hoping to be able to fly down and stay in Pass a Grille. I currently see on Google Maps that 22nd through 9th Ave have road closures. Do you know what that is about? I am told the we are staying at which is on 14th Ave is open on the weekends. But should be full week by mid March. Any thoughts?
I think Google Maps is wrong there. Was just there last week and didn't see any road closures. It all looked pretty good as you can see in the video, and another couple of months, I think Paradise Grille will be open by then, so I don't think you'll have any issues. Pass-a-Grille is far, far better than Treasure Island
Its going to be a year from when 2nd storm came through til it looks back to normal, so looking at early October probably, next busy season should be great, takes forever
I don't know, its not too far from normal now, yea theres still some businesses closed but I'd say 70% are open and I know alot more are planning to open in March so I'd say in March its going to be pretty close to normal.
We were devasted, in Clearwater,, by Debbie AND Milton. We live 5 miles from Indian Rocks beach. We didn't bother leaving for Debbie, no evacuations, and ended up driving up Belcher with water over the hood of our SUV. Our house, shed and my car were flooded. As we were still repairing, we were hit with Milton. We still had 5 inches of rain when we came home the next afternoon. We lost siding on all 4 sides of the house, some of our roof and our hurricane shutters were 4 streets away. We've lost nearly everything. We will be leaving Clearwater and going inland. WE've been trying for over a year and, I hope, we end up moving soon. It's paradise, but way too expensive.
Yes they are, I should have mentioned that on the video. Their GoFundMe has raised $17,000 of a goal of 20,000. www.gofundme.com/f/the-secret-garden-needs-your-help?attribution_id=sl:52e8a421-c692-4f4d-a864-829e7bc8c716&
Pinellas is more interested in a massive land grab - FEMA 59/50 rule. Bulldoze your home - sell it for lot value - City of St.Pete wants available lots for new home builders, Jobs - profits - and once completed 3X the value and 3x the property tax. Who says Hurricanes are not good for the economy?
One of the issues in St Pete Beach, and I should have mentioned this in the video, is the City's regulations. People have been upset over the city's delay in approving building permits. I think though from the other areas I've seen, its seems to me overall to be about the same as alot of other areas other than the building permit situation.
They are planning on rebuilding it, this is their GoFund Me www.gofundme.com/f/the-secret-garden-needs-your-help?attribution_id=sl:52e8a421-c692-4f4d-a864-829e7bc8c716&
Yes they are open, infact Thunderbird Hotel posted on their facebook encouraging people to support the local restaurants that are open, and Gi Gis was one of them
@ love your videos. Your Madeira beach down to st Pete are the best of all where we like to vacation. Your videos remind me that we’ll be there soon and out of the cold up north!
Easily the most comprehensive report on the status of the St. Petersburg area I've seen. Thanks for your good work.
Thankyou, glad I could give you a good overview.
Thanks very much, Randy. Despite the hurricane damage I still love the Tampa/Clearwater/St.Pete coast. So happy you're back on your turf doing Florida videos.
Thankyou Dustin, yea Me too, especially this time of year
We've been visiting FL in the areas between TarponSprings and KeyWest for the last 8 years with treks to Orlando, Ocala, Daytona, and Miami thrown in on occasion. The Clearwater and St. Pete areas being homebase..the last two years we've fallen in love with Anna Maria Island and the Sarasota area..thank you so much for these videos!
Thankyou Gene, Yea I'll try to update those areas for you, Those certain got hit harder by Milton, but not as much damage from Helene.
Randy, another great video! Thanks for the video, I love St. Pete, my favorite beach, and the best sunsets!!!
Thankyou Billy, you are welcome, yes they are some of the best sunsets
Happy New Year Randy! Wishing you peace, blessings, and safe travels!
Thankyou Zen, and you as well, may you have a great start for 2025
Thank you for taking us through what is open now. Will be heading that way but not for couple of months. Love your videos.
Thankyou Edward, yea in a couple of months should be even better
It's one of my favorite areas. It's sad to see the results after the hurricane 😢. Thanks for sharing ❤
You are welcome Maria, thanks for the comment
Happy New Year Randy. The family and I are booked for our annual St. Pete, Clearwater vacation for
June 2025. This is my happy place, and my prayers are out for my west coast florida family
Thankyou for the kind words, the Suncoast is ready for you my friend, while it may not be completely back to normal, it will be pretty close to it, certainly much, much better than we had thought back in Oct, its come along ways.
Thank you for these updates. We live in Seminole, close to Madeira and Indian Rocks beaches. We were very fortunate here. 2 miles to the west of us... a different story. We try to get out and patronize places as they reopen.
Thankyou DennisAustin, yea I didn't mention Indian Rocks on the video, but that will be a part of my Treasure Island/Madeira Bch video, I know many places on Indian Rocks Bch were hit very hard, so I'll try to give a update of there as well.
Thank you Randy and Bailey. It was a wonderful trip.
Thankyou Rephael, always appreciate your support
Thanks!
Aw, thankyou Chris, that is very nice of you, very much appreciated.
Love your videos. Wishing you & that perfect radio voice of yours a very Happy/safe New Year 😊
Thankyou Cory, I appreciate that feed back, yea my voice has gone through some adjustments in last 4 years, I like where it is at now, so I appreciate that
We were in Clearwater in November. Went to a seafood bar & grill that still smelled of fresh paint, lots of new glass on buildings and a small beach that used to be a pay to park was free to be in cuz the buildings around were still being rebuilt. But the people were still so kind, showed my kids how to make sand castles for the first time, asking them how they liked the beach for their first time being there. I'm from Okeechobee, I know devastation well. But Florida people are Florida Strong 💜
Literally brought happy tears to my eyes to see my beautiful home again. Nobody else makes videos this perfect! Thank you so much and appreciate you mentioning dog friendly spots also!
Thankyou Mingo for that feedback, great to hear you were moved by the video
Your video provides such a positive and uplifting perspective. Thanks for sharing this content!
Thank you Rose, for the kind words, I appreciate it!
@@TampaAerialMedia You're welcome! i'm looking forward for more good videos from you 🙂
Thanks as always, Randy, for the great videos! You really bring our area to life with your videos.
Thankyou, I appreciate the kind words.
Once again Randy, you weave a tapestry of magic and colours. Your narration is superb, never overdone. For me you are the master of travel vids. God bless you and keep doing what you do to perfection.
Thankyou David, I appreciate that feedback, always trying to improve
Welcome back and Happy New Year to you!
Can't wait for the treasure island video! Thanks for the updates
Yep was filming some of it today
Great video. Thanks for the update. Looking forward to the sarasota update video
Thanks for chiming it, yea, probably need to do Sarasota very soon.
Thanks for the very helpful info. It will definetly come in handy. Nice to see recovery efforts going well.
Thankyou Pam, you are welcome
Looking forward to all your new FL videos coming up in '25...thank you for covering these areas as they've all had a rough go recently.
Thanks Gene, yea going to do alot more of FL this year than the last 2 years
@TampaAerialMedia I've enjoyed watching and also watching the videos as we plan our trips down there, there is always something we haven't done or a place we haven't eaten at that catches my attention. You're videos are very well done and very informative.
Hi Randy! Love your videos. Thank you for this one especially. I lived in St Pete in my late high school years, all through college and young adulthood in the 1980’s. I consider St Pete my home town though I was not born there. I worked at a grocery store very near the beach (Kash n Karry), during college. I’m always interested in the St Pete Beach, Pass-a-Grille and Treasure Island areas. Those were my hangouts back when. So good to see the recovery on-going. Thank you again for the very informative videos!
Thankyou Adam, yea I remember Kash n Karry, don't think they are around anymore
@@TampaAerialMedia You are correct. Kash n Karry went bye bye a long time ago.
Great work Randy.
Thankyou Mike
Excellent video Randy. Much appreciate your thorough travel reviews & updates. Can't wait to get back home to the area for a visit. Looking forward to all your future videos. Go Bucs! Happy New Year.
Thankyou Gloria, yep it's going to be a pretty happening place these next few months
Thank you so much for this video. Indian Rocks and Don Cesar are my absolute favorite places to vacation and I've been worried about the businesses and people there.
Thankyou, yea will show alittle of Indian Rocks Beach and give a status on some of the popular restaurants there in the Treasure Island video coming probably this Wednesday....Most of the popular eateries are open in Indian Rocks Beach
What a helpful video, thank you! We have a family vacation planned for April 2025 and are staying at the Tradewinds Island Grand Resort. From your video it looks like it is up and running and in good shape after Helene and Milton.
Yes it is, the Tradewinds was one of the first resorts to open, they are completely fine, you should have a great time.
The Dolphin resort is my favorite.
I live in Tampa and love St Pete Beach. Good job, Randy. Only problem, no sign of Bailey. 🐾🐾
Yea, I actually made a mistake, The Dolphin Bch Resort is not open... Bailey will be in the Treasure Island video
Hi Everybody. THANK YOU SO MUCH for this wonderful film. We are from Switzerland and visiting Treasure Island since 40 years. Sometimes twice a year. The nicest place on earth! We have many friends there. Some lost everything. So sad. We will be back mid march for 5 weeks. We will support the local businesses as much as we can. Guaranteed! Looking forward to your next movie about Treasure Island, Madeira Beach and John's Pass... When can we see this movie?
Thankyou, it should premiere Wednesday evening....March, should be a great time to come, weather will be good and more businesses will be open
Shrimpy’s on Blind Pass is open with great Cajun food and…Beignets!
Thats good to know, I will have to mention that, thankyou
Much love from Charlotte Harbor ✌🏽💕
Thank you 💖
Thankyou, yea I want to do the Charlotte Harbor area soon too
Thank you Randy for a very good informative video. I’ll be waiting for the Madeira Beach one. I’ve been spending my winters there for the last 6 years. Sadly this year the condo I stay at won’t be ready. Cant wait to see drone footage of that area.
Thankyou Judith, yea I'll try and get you some good drone shots. I know the Sunset Beach area was some of the most damaged areas in Tampa Bay
Well done
Great video :) Your drone shots are gorgeous. I really hate to hear about Woodys closing. I grew up on 73rd. My mom & uncle were raised in the beach cottage directly across from Woodys.
Thankyou, yea Woodys just announced a couple of days ago, the property has been sold, hopefully the new owners will put a nice bar and grill there
Randy, thank you so much for this update. We will be down in April for a family wedding inland, and to then on patronize the businesses that have reopened from Tampa south to Sarasota. So many years of wonderful memories made here. The least we can do is spend some money to help out. We are heartbroken over the closing of Woodys. What a great place it was. I can't wait to walk along the beaches of Ft Desoto again. It is our peaceful, natural, happy place. ❤
You are welcome. April is great timing because things should be pretty close to normal in most areas, yet the weather is still cool
Don Caesar open by mid March will be a big marker for the area but at least another 6 months after that til things look normal
Yea they do look like they have alot of work to do in that courtyard
Loving this. I'm thinking an East Coast tour of all areas impacted by last year's storms would be a great series!!!!
Yea, you know dont know about your scedule, but yea in the summer would love to do some NC and/or TN areas with you....I might be late to the game but better late than never
There's a few historic small towns that got hit by Helene and the quaint downtown and museums, hiking parks are open, outside Asheville inland about an hour or more into the mountains. They need tourists and do a big Christmas business in the winter, outdoors adventures in the summer. See John Ward's YT travel channel. Sorry, forgot the name at the moment. Very informative. Now he's doing videos in the hard hit areas talking with survivors and how they are making it and working to bring things back. It's called The Appalachian Channel if I'm correct. When I think of his other channel name, will let you know. Canton, NC was 1 where they are open & didn't get flooded as much. The 1 general store's been there over 100 yrs. Much history there. Families there have been there since the early 1800's and even earlier. Saw a post of one woman in another town much further away whose family has been there since 1689 in those mountains. @@TampaAerialMedia
@@TampaAerialMedia That's a plan!
Great video, thank you so much for all the hard work. This information is very helpful for my upcoming trip. Be there in less than a week! Super excited, here’s to hoping the snow doesn’t follow me! 🤞🏼🤦🏻♀️LOL
yea they say theres a slight possibility it could snow in Tampa, but should warm up quick, hope you enjoy your stay
Pass--a-Grille updates: Paradise to Go sandwich shop is open and they are serving ice cream from their Paradise Sweets store. Shadracks and Grace are open. 8th Avenue stores are starting to open. Seahorse is going to rebuild. Berkeley Hotel is open but Dewey’s and rooftop are still closed. Shaner’s store is open. I believe Paradise Grille is very close to opening and weekend art/crafts are being held. Corey Avenue Sunday market is open.
Thankyou for that update much appreciated...Will be showing Corey Ave in the Treasure Island video.
Happy New Year Randy! We should have a better year from this point, I hope.
Yes I think so
THANK YOU! my airbnb cancelled on me in reddington so now i need to research for a new place on the beach
I did show a couple in Redington Bch in this video I just posted ruclips.net/video/AciMNnxo6aw/видео.html, I think you'll be able to find one
Hey Randy. Great video as usual. Looking forward to Anna Maria Island and Siesta Key. They both took the brunt of the hurricane.
Yea will be interesting to see all that area closer to the landfall of Milton
A heartfelt Thank You for doing these videos.
Thankyou for the feedback
Welcome back to the best tourist state in the world.
Thankyou, yep very true, and the best place to live too
Thank you for making this great video of our battered but beloved island! 🏝️ Many of us as residents are unfortunately far behind in our recovery efforts. Maximum flood insurance payouts at $250K for coastal properties (below a set elevation) don’t come close to being enough to rebuild our homes. And many have received “Substantial Damage” letters which force us to build up or demo & build new. Yet many of us are determined to do whatever necessary, however long that may take. Much love and many blessings to all as we work to resurrect our paradise.
#FloridaStrong 🌴☀️🐬🦀 🐚🌴
Thankyou for sharing that, yea didn't know the max payout was 250k...My heart is with you all, blessings to you in the recovery.
The uncertainty of not knowing whether or not you're gonna get hit year after year is more than what my anxiety can handle. While beautiful, I could never lice there!!
Yep it is stressful to deal with and many are deciding it's not worth it.
Tuttorosso on Blind Pass Road is also open 😊
Good to know thanks for sharing
Bravo!!!! 🎬🍿👏👏👏🏖 Your videos are so fun to watch! Thank You!
Thankyou for the feedback, I appreciate that
Great video Randy! Thank you for the update on my favorite part of Florida. It’s a shame what a beating it took. Between back to back hurricanes and the Biden administration, things are tough.
I hope things get better soon.
Very True Cooper, but good days are a coming. The area has too much natural beauty, and its people are too strong for it not to come back quickly. Looking forward to Jan 20th.
Hey Randy thank you so much for the video! Looks great! Hoping to be there 1 night next week if KCI is open back up by tomorrow!!🙏😍
Well welcome to Florida, now is a good time, not overly crowded yet..Go Chiefs (unless they play the Bucs in the Superbowl).
Always very eager to see the new Tampa area videos each year and this year is no different. My wife and I come down to Tampa/st Pete/Clearwater every March for the last 6 years minus 2020. It hurts our hearts to learn the area was hit so hard but we too are excited to return this year. We will be down there end of February this year because of my work schedule. We are very excited and hopeful. We not only hope to have fun but want to reach out to the folks down there, spend our money and meet some locals and express our condolences. When we heard of the storms we wanted to get down there asap. We love it there so much. We brought our kids in March 2023 and they loved it. We stayed in palmetto and went to st Pete, Sarasota and Dunedin. All very beautiful towns! I found Dunedin very fun and relaxing, it’s artsy and chill. We are wondering if that area got affected by the storms??
Hope Tampa grows and thrives and I know it will. It’s a wonderful part of the world.
Randy! Hope your holidays were great and can’t wait to see what’s to come from TAM, especially the Tampa area related stuff.
Finally, any recommendations on more under the radar areas, beaches, restaurants, gardens or parks? Looking to avoid crowds and feel like we’ve been to the hyped up spots. Been to Berns, riverwalk, Clearwater beach, fort de Soto and looking for some chill spots. Any and all recommendations are welcome.
Thanks ! ❤
February shoud be a great time. I've seen such a change in the mood of the locals from November to now so another month will be even better.
i was in the eyewall of hurricane Milton. it was first time being in a eyewall hope you do clearwater beach pier60 is still closed due to damage from hurricane Milton. i'm a stormchaser/stormspotter. great video. thanks for the updates on what's closed or open.
Wow, that had to be Erie.. probably not doing Cwtr BCH cause I think most of it is open other than Pier 60
So is it all fixed up now in St petersburg and st pete as we were there in may 2024 before the hurricane and it was beautiful.
Yea St Petersburg did pretty good other than Tropicana Field
Thanks for the update! I’m planning a summer vacation with my family. Not sure where we will go but def the west coast. I’m up in Jacksonville, I’m looking forward to seeing the west coast beaches.
Yea by the Summer Id say these places will be about 90,% back to normal
I went to east beach last week . Stayed maybe 10 minutes and left . I’ll wait to go back when north beach is open .
Yep North Beach is definately better
Great video
Thankyou for the nice words
Red tide along all the beaches around us right now, Sarasota county and just below I think...
Thanks for the update in Sarasota
Just noticed that the resort you showed for Coral Reef Resort was actually Tradewinds next door.
This is nothing new. The problem is now, there's a lot more people here in the way. The beaches here are all sandbars. The fingers that many homes are built on, are man made. Sandbars and fingers go underwater and get rearranged. I was born here 67 years ago. My mom and dad were born here as well. We take the slings and arrows and move on.
thanks Randy for the information.
otherwise, I am preparing my trip for the east coast (from Portland (Maine), to Tampa (Florida). I am a little perplexed, because September is hurricane season.
the positive point, the month of September is ideal for visiting the east coast.
You are welcome Abdel, yes September is a month for east coast, late September if you can, and for Florida you'll want to be flexible as you never know if there will be a hurricane
❤this video please keep us updated on ft desoto can you get to shell key by kayak?
Yes you can get to shell key by Kayak, from the Ft DeSoto Boat ramp
Great video as always. Thank you for sharing updates on Helene and Milton. Will you be following it's path North? That would be amazing and bring much needed attention. Thank you much. God bless. Retired Navy and banker
For now covering the areas South, but over the summer, but cover the North Carolina areas affect, have talked alittle bit with Smoky Mtn Family so might do something with him....The MidShipmen looked good this year...Go Navy
Thank you for the great update. We visit from Colorado 2-3 times/year and it's so heartening to see so many places on the road to recovery. Do you know if Willy's Burgers and Booze has reopened? Cheers!
Willys has not, but they are planning on rebuilding think it will be awhiles, I just did a post on that on our community page with pics of Willys www.youtube.com/@TampaAerialMedia/community
Can you make video on Pine Island Florida Bokeelia, jug creek, st James and Matlacha? Thank you
Might do that when I do Ft Myers
extremely well edited. great video.
btw, have you noticed the water turned so yellow-brownish after the hurricans? same at sanibel. why is that and what is it?
Well right after a hurricane it is sediment from the ocean floor...in this case I think it was more the colder temperatures cause you'll see in our Treasure Island video the Gulf was looking pretty colorful
Love your videos. You truly have a gift. I was wondering if you think everything will return to normal by May/June in the Siesta Key and Anna Marie Island area. Is the water on the beaches different ? It looks different in the videos.
Good questions....I think it will be close to normal by May/June, in Siesta Key/Anna Maria Island, they are alittle behind the Pinellas Cty Bches, I'll give a better update within the next 30 days on those areas...You are right about the color of the Beaches, the water and sand also has a recovery process, they are not back to its normal look but I wold say about 75% there, and will be by March.
I lived there 1995 I have friends down there
Nice job though Tampa Ariel Media
Thankyou for the nice words as well as the feedback
Thank you so much for this video!!!! May I ask you when you do Treasure Island to please not skip Sunset Beach and specifically the very south end of it where Lands End is located? All the videos I've seen so far never go all the way down to the south end. Lands End has been my second home for 17 years. 😢
Yes I most definately will. I know Sunset Beach was the hardest hit, I have lots of News Footage from that area, so yes that will be a priority.
On johns pass boardwalk is the store the 3 coconuts open
yes they are. Johns Pass has done an amazing job coming back so quickly. Some of their major restaurants closed, but most everything else is open
Hi, Great video! do you have update on the Frog Pond?
Sadly it is permanently closed, but La Croisette across the street is open
Is VIP Mexican Restaurant and Shrimpys Waterfront open???
Yes both those places are open, I'll try to film both of them Friday
Thank you for these! How is Clearwater and Lido Key and St Armands circle?
Clearwater BCH is fine other Pier 60 is closed temporarily, I will cover Lido Key when we do Sarasota in early February
I am planning on going to pass a grille beach and st Pete the last week in May. Do you think the beaches will be restored back to their crystal clear waters by then? Along with the other places that haven’t fully opened yet?
Oh yes definately, infact I think the only reason the water color isn't as Turquoise and becacuse of the temperatures, not from the hurricanes. On Friday when the temperature warmed up alittle it was already pretty colorful so no doubt in May it will be normal and I think Paradise Grille should easily be opened by then
Still leaving Tampa for Knoxville in 1 month 🙏🙏
Go Vols...Rockytop Country
We'll be in Siesta Key in a couple of weeks..can you give me a pre-video quick update..it's our first visit to the island.
Not sure if I'll be done there with a couple of weeks, will be close, I do know they are welcoming people back on the Island. Now, like St Pete Bch might be good, cause I don't think it will be as crowded, don't know what percentage of Businesses are open yet but will check as soon as possible Gene
@TampaAerialMedia from what I've been able to find out so far, the places we've planned to check out are operating at some level so we're hopeful about our trip.
I purchased a few giftcards in advance that helped put some funds in their accounts as well as donations to a few employees funds to help out their staffs too.
Looking forward to being there and enjoy seeing the progress they've made.
What is the status of Honey moon Island state park? Thanks for this video since I'm moving there very soon
I know it is atleast partially opened, don't know much more than that
I would love to see Plaza Beach resort and how the Publix looks across the street
Publixs fine, Plaza beach is working on bottom floor, upstairs is mostly locals on Fema vouchers
Thankyou for that. Yea I saw the 3 Publix's on both St Pete Beach & Treasue Island seemed to be open.
Thanks yep I should have covered Plaza Bch Resort
@@TampaAerialMedia we follow them on Instagram and have been a guest for 34 years now most of the time we live up north in Missouri, but have an aunt who lives in the villages friends who live in Bradenton and I was out there in October and it was just devastating on Annamarie Island. It looked like snow drifts and I felt like I was on a movie set very quiet except for internal alarms going off in houses that no one was in.
How’s the Twister Treat on SPB ?
Good question, I'll check on it Thursday
We stayed in Long Boat Key at the Sea Club 1. We hope it survived. We also saw the "Unconditional Surrender" statue in Sarasota.( I'm a nurse, so it was very special to me) Did it survive?
Yes I thing both those did well. I know that Statue is pretty solid, and it did just fine, infact alot of Sarasota did pretty good considering how close it was to the path of Milton.
Any plans to visit Siesta Key or Longboat Key? Would love to see current recovery efforts.
Yes that's will be in February
@@TampaAerialMediaoh that’s awesome! We’ll be there in April. Looking forward to your video!
Thankyou Tony
Thank you so much for this video. My wife and I are anxious on whether Pass a Grille is “open for business”.
I have a week long reservation (made before the hurricanes) for mid March in Pass a Grille (first time there). I am hoping to be able to fly down and stay in Pass a Grille. I currently see on Google Maps that 22nd through 9th Ave have road closures. Do you know what that is about? I am told the we are staying at which is on 14th Ave is open on the weekends. But should be full week by mid March. Any thoughts?
I think Google Maps is wrong there. Was just there last week and didn't see any road closures. It all looked pretty good as you can see in the video, and another couple of months, I think Paradise Grille will be open by then, so I don't think you'll have any issues. Pass-a-Grille is far, far better than Treasure Island
@ Thank you for following up. Your response is helpful.
We plan on going down to Tampa in March for spring break. We normally visit Maderia beach and Johns Pass. Are they ok?
Johns Pass is pretty good, I will show it in our Treasure Island Madeira Bch video on Friday
Last I heard, Pinellas county is not letting any of the damaged resorts make repairs (not issuing building permits). Any change on that?
I think they are issuing them, it is just very slow
Its going to be a year from when 2nd storm came through til it looks back to normal, so looking at early October probably, next busy season should be great, takes forever
I don't know, its not too far from normal now, yea theres still some businesses closed but I'd say 70% are open and I know alot more are planning to open in March so I'd say in March its going to be pretty close to normal.
@TampaAerialMedia that's great as you were there and saw everything first hand, maybe the spring break through memorial day crowds will be good
@TampaAerialMedia johns pass village/hubbards marina should be interesting, big tourist attraction
Almost back to normal already….most everything is open and beautiful! Was just there last week.
We were devasted, in Clearwater,, by Debbie AND Milton. We live 5 miles from Indian Rocks beach. We didn't bother leaving for Debbie, no evacuations, and ended up driving up Belcher with water over the hood of our SUV. Our house, shed and my car were flooded. As we were still repairing, we were hit with Milton. We still had 5 inches of rain when we came home the next afternoon. We lost siding on all 4 sides of the house, some of our roof and our hurricane shutters were 4 streets away. We've lost nearly everything. We will be leaving Clearwater and going inland. WE've been trying for over a year and, I hope, we end up moving soon. It's paradise, but way too expensive.
I can certainly understand, yea moving inland is probably a good idea. I live in Brandon and we did ok
Paused the video for a second to ask if you know if they're going to rebuild the Secret Garden on Upham Beach?
Yes they are, I should have mentioned that on the video. Their GoFundMe has raised $17,000 of a goal of 20,000. www.gofundme.com/f/the-secret-garden-needs-your-help?attribution_id=sl:52e8a421-c692-4f4d-a864-829e7bc8c716&
@TampaAerialMedia that's great to hear, thanks for the link!
What is the update on Willy's Burger Bar in St Pete Beach?
They are closed but they will rebuild, I will show it in the Treasure Island Madeira Bch video
My daughter went to Ringling school of art in Sarasota and had 1 hurricane in 4 years and not 4 in 1 year?
Pinellas is more interested in a massive land grab - FEMA 59/50 rule. Bulldoze your home - sell it for lot value - City of St.Pete wants available lots for new home builders, Jobs - profits - and once completed 3X the value and 3x the property tax. Who says Hurricanes are not good for the economy?
Kind of seems like it since the city is so slow approving building permits for the average person
Needing a new, more responsive Mayor in tune with the residents.
What about Caddy's On The Beach?
Was just there yesterday, yet it is in bad shape, I think it will be a year before it come back. Caddys Madeira Bch possible sooner.
will Thunderbird in Treasure Island ever get fixed i wonder
Yea they have alot of work to do, I'll try to get a update on them
why do you think its take so long for the beaches to recover? Other florida locations seems to act faster
One of the issues in St Pete Beach, and I should have mentioned this in the video, is the City's regulations. People have been upset over the city's delay in approving building permits. I think though from the other areas I've seen, its seems to me overall to be about the same as alot of other areas other than the building permit situation.
How about Willy's Burgers there in StPete Beach, they're near Woody's
Nope demolished
They are planning on rebuilding it, this is their GoFund Me www.gofundme.com/f/the-secret-garden-needs-your-help?attribution_id=sl:52e8a421-c692-4f4d-a864-829e7bc8c716&
Is the water still brown? Tampa bay is so bad. Beaches have been struggling here. Afraid they won’t go back to normal.
Red tide along all the beaches around us right now, Sarasota county and just below I think...
@ man I hope it washes out. Honeymoon island shoreline is awful!!!
No, but it's not clear yet either, it will get back to normal, I think around March
How is GiGi's on Treasure Island?
Yes they are open, infact Thunderbird Hotel posted on their facebook encouraging people to support the local restaurants that are open, and Gi Gis was one of them
What about Willys?
Yea, I should have mentioned them in the video they are a huge spot there....They are closed but I have heard that they are rebuilding.
Never heard of Palm Beach Resort by Upham? Anyone?
Did I say Palm Beach Resort?
Palm coast maybe then you said?
Looks like boulevard burger is still closed
Looking at their website, seems like they are open....I'll try to stop by there in the Treasure Island video
@ love your videos. Your Madeira beach down to st Pete are the best of all where we like to vacation. Your videos remind me that we’ll be there soon and out of the cold up north!
Boulevard Burger is open.
Anyone know about the Drunken Clam? Open?
Yes it is open, I should have covered them
@ I love that place! 😄