A pod of life-size fiberglass dolphins greet visitors in Clearwater Beach.
Sunset over the Gulf of Mexico from Clearwater Beach.
Street performers and artists entertain nightly at Pier 60, but sunsets are the real draw.
Visitor Julian Runschke, 21 months, soaks up some rays on the Beach Walk.
A children's play area is part of the draw at Clearwater's Pier 60.
Beach Walk, a half-mile, $30 million pedestrian walkway, was completed in 2008.
Clearwater resident Hulk Hogan opened a store on Mandalay Avenue in Clearwater Beach.
Taking a bite out of tourists' wallets is part of the game at Clearwater Marina.
Clearwater Beach, which beat out nine other nominees to win a recent USA TODAY reader poll as Florida's best beach town. Waiting for customers at the Palm Pavilion, a local institution on Clearwater Beach.
The Clearwater Jolley Trolley runs throughout Clearwater, hitting each stop every 30 minutes.
Sand Key, just south of Clearwater Beach across Clearwater Pass, offers a quieter alternative.
The Clearwater Community Sailing Center on Sand Key offers public rentals.
Brooke and Emily Kearney get up close and personal with Hope, a resident dolphin at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium.
A free boat shuttle takes visitors between the Clearwater Marine Aquarium's main facility on Island Estates and its new downtown facility.
A view of the marina from the rooftop bar at Pier 60, a new hotel in Clearwater Beach.
Clearwater's historic Fort Harrison Hotel is the flagship building for the Church of Scientology's spiritual headquarters.
A sign in downtown Clearwater gives a history of the Fort Harrison Hotel. Now owned by the Church of Scientology, it opened in 1926.
The recently renovated, 'retro boutique' Frenchy's Oasis Motel overlooks Clearwater Harbor.
Volleyball games and tournaments are staple attractions on three-mile-long Clearwater Beach.
Locally owned Sandpearl Resort occupies a prime spot on Clearwater Beach.
The original Frenchy's, one of four in Clearwater Beach, is famous for its grouper sandwiches.
A view of Clearwater Harbor and Island Estates from the Hyatt Regency, one of several new hotels along Clearwater Beach.
Sandpearl Resort guests Ben, Jack and Abbie Schoen, snowbirds from Toledo, dig into the soft white sand of Clearwater Beach.
Adam Viens and his dog Chopper take in the passing scene at Frenchy's Rockaway Grill on Clearwater Beach.
Captain Memo's Pirate Cruise offers daily sailings from the Clearwater Beach marina.
Clearwater Beach was voted "Florida's best beach town" in a USA TODAY online reader survey.