Your buddy in the Tampa area is getting married and asked you to be the best man or at least in the wedding party. You are probably flattered and excited and maybe a bit nervous. One of the understood responsibilities for a groomsman is conceiving of, organizing and planning for the bachelor party. Running the bachelor party is not as easy as it looks. You will have to deal with different personalities, budgets, locales and take care of any number of hard-to-anticipate details.
Bachelor parties have evolved through time. What once was commonly referred to as a ‘stag party,’ has changed and is mainly called the more politically correct ‘bachelor party.’
But the name change is only one of the differences between this ritual now and what it was thirty or forty years ago. Today, there are all sorts of variations of bachelor parties, ranging from one extreme of hard-core debauchery and to the other, which can really be downright PG rated.
I have had friends of mine, some of whom I helped plan the party for who have had more than one party. Not necessarily because they thought they simply had to have two or three because each was so much fun (although hopefully that is part of the equation as well), but more because for different groups of guys, different entertainment and activates might be appropriate. This might be due to geography, cost, and awkwardness involved with some traditional bachelor party rituals.
For example, I recently attended a bachelor party for a friend of mine who invited his future father in law, his future grandfather in law and some bosses from work. While this group was not overly conservative or puritanical in their thinking, he really didn’t want to bring along a number of these people to a strip joint. That said, he really wanted to have the chance to bond with them and celebrate his impending nuptials.
So, he actually had two bachelor parties. One involved paintball in the morning, a baseball game in the afternoon and a steak dinner afterwards. It was an all day affair, and typical “guy fun”, but nobody was embarrassed or put in an awkward position.
But a couple of weeks later, my same friend had another bachelor party. Yes, there was some overlap in the people who attended, but this one was kept off the radar of the others and positioned much more as a group of friends going out for a night on the town. As you might expect, this one involved a good deal more of adult entertainment and fun. I went to both and really had the same amount of fun and enjoyment at each one, albeit a different type of fun.
As somebody who has been in a number of weddings and helped plan for at least six bachelor parities, I offer the following guide. Planning for a bachelor party in any area of the country can be a bit difficult. For those lucky enough to live in the greater Tampa area, the good news is that there is absolutely no shortage of great activities for whatever type of bachelor party, or parties, that you have.
I have organized these Tampa bachelor party ideas and classified them as either PG rated or R rated. There is nothing that says, of course, that you can’t have a little of each; sometimes part of the crowd will go for the beginning, but not the nighttime act ivies. And, as you might imagine, the opposite is sometimes true as well as some would rather skip out on the ballgame, but will be sure to show up for the strippers.
In addition to the list of suggested Tampa bachelor party activities, I have included some helpful hints that will help make the day and night most enjoyable.
PG Rated Tampa Bachelor Party Activities
1. Golf
The Tampa area has a good number of golf courses, but they can be hard to get to, difficult to reserve, and expensive to play on. But I have found that those bachelor parties featuring golf end up the most memorable ones.
One of the potential challenges for having golf as part of the bachelor party experience is that it’s quite likely that a number of the bachelor party attendees don’t play golf and/or don’t think they like it. Now, if the groom to be doesn’t golf, then it’s not an option anyway. But if, as I find typical, 50% to 70% of the guys, if not exactly ‘good’, can swing a club reasonably well and would love the chance to get out there, it can be a bit difficult when thinking about the rest who might be apprehensive about playing.
The first and most important step is to make the “tournament” best ball format. Best ball format is the best thing to happen to ‘party golf’ ever. To the extent possible, rank each player according to his skill. If there are, for example, twenty guys playing, then rank each one A, B, C, or D and create five foursomes. Put one of each letter on each team to hopefully even the teams as much as possible.
Secondly, work it out ahead of time with the pro shop and see if you can pre-arrange favorable pricing on rental clubs, or even arrange it, given the best ball format, that guys on the same team without their own clubs could share a rental set.
Golf carts are an absolute must, of course. Guys that don’t like to play, or think they don’t like to play, want to make it comfortable and relaxing. If people like to drink, then see if the course has a beer cart that will come around, or will allow for coolers. One recent bachelor party golf outing I arranged to ‘purchase’ the two foursomes behind and ahead of our group, meaning we would feel like we were by ourselves that day, taking the pressure off the non golfers and also allowing us to hoot and holler a bit more than might be appropriate on an actual golf outing.
The point of all of this is don’t try to make the bachelor party golf outing a big, competitive and intimidating event. The most serious golfer who still wants to work on his game certainly can and yet the guys that don’t play will have plenty of fun, and almost inevitably, the guys that you would never expect to play well will miraculously contribute a meaningful shot for their team. If somebody enters into a bachelor party golf game with the thought that they hate golf, and yet pulls out a memorable couple of shots and ends up having a good time, they will have a great memory of the event.
In selecting a course in the Tampa area, try to find the most reasonably priced course that will work with you to help out on some of the extras needed for a large group.
Below is a list of seven Tampa area public golf courses to check out for a bachelor party. These were selected based on general availability, proximity to downtown Tampa, cost and willingness to work with larger parties.
To read a review of each of the courses listed below, click here.
Rocky Point Golf Course
4151 Dana Shores Drive
Tampa, Florida
Rogers Park Golf Course
7911 North 30th Street
Tampa, Florida
Babe Zaharias Golf Course
11412 North Forest Hills Drive
Tampa, Florida
The Claw at USF
13801 North 46th Street
Tampa, Florida
Northdale Golf and Tennis Club
4417 Northdale Boulevard
Tampa, Florida
Pebble Creek Golf Club
10550 Regents Park Drive
Tampa, Florida
Westchase Golf Club
11602 Westchase Drive
Tampa, Florida
2. Paintball
I realized how pampered my life actually was when playing paintball one time at a bachelor party. The adrenaline rush of having paint balls fly over my head and past my leg and eventually hitting me was borderline scary. Before playing it, I had always thought paintball players looked a little bit silly and childish. But the game combines speed, some strategy, tactics and some athleticism. It’s a rush to play and creates a memorable experience that will create funny stories that will be told again and again (and maybe embellished some, let’s be honest), for years to come.
The thing to keep in mind is that Paintball requires either some ability to run around and think fast, or a great sense of humor; preferably both. You and the others will get hit and there will be little mercy shown to one another. Do not go in thinking that you will go easy on the bride’s dad, for example. Unless he’s elderly or unwell (in which case he shouldn’t be out there anyway), he and everybody else is fair game! It will create a lot of laughs and fun and definite bragging rights for the winning team.
The following is a list of five great paintball facilities in the Tampa area that would make a great addition to your Tampa bachelor party. For a review of each of the Tampa paintball fields listed below, click here.
Blitzkrieg Paintball
15206 Dunwood Street
Tampa, Florida
Orbital Paintball Field
1 Mile North of CR 579 on Highway 301
Thonotosassa, Florida
Grand Prix Paintball Field
14320 North Nebraska Avenue
Tampa, Florida
Jungle Games Paintball
3255 Robertson Trail
Lutz, Florida
Battlezone Paintball
4416 North Cooper Road
Plant Zone, Florida
3. Ballgame
Tampa has a total of three major league sports franchises, with baseball’s Tampa Rays, the NFL’s Tampa Buccaneers and the NHL’s Tampa Lightning. A sporting event is a fantastic component of a Tampa bachelor party. My one suggestion, however, is that you avoid football. While that might even sound sacrilege given the NFL’s status as king of the sports landscape, football is a very big effort and doesn’t really do well with groups. Baseball is enjoying newfound popularity in Tampa due to the Tampa Rays’ incredible run to the World Series. The game tends to be longer, the crowd more sedate and the coming to and going from easier. Leaving early from a baseball game or arriving late to the game is a bit easier than football.
One thing to bear in mind, however, is that the Rays plays indoors; so on a beautiful Tampa day, it might be a bit of a downer to be indoors. Conversely, however, on a scorching hot Florida day, being inside will help the bachelor party conserve energy for nighttime activities.
4. Boat and fishing trip
For those that like to sail, powerboat, and/or fish, a chartered boat or fishing trip can be a great idea for a Tampa bachelor party. Be cognizant of the fact that, like golf, all may not like to fish. So find a boat or charter service that positions itself as a ‘party boat’ as much as anything. That means good service, plenty of good food and drinks, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic.
The following are five charter boat services, along with their websites, that dock in the Tampa area and are good for Tampa bachelor parties.
Offshore Hustler
www.offshorehustler.com
Brilliant Yachting
www.brilliantyachting.com
Dos Amigos Fishing Charters
www.clearwatersportfishing.com
Thunder Party Boat
www.thunderpartyboat.com
Dolphin Deep Sea Fishing
www.twogeorgesdeepseafishing.com
5. Bowling
Bowling is a fun way to spend at least part of your Tampa bachelor party. With some of the fun bowling alleys right in Tampa, you can enjoy a festive atmosphere, with great drinks and food and contemporary music. Bowling used to conjure up images of a rundown alley and down on their luck laborers. No more, though, as bowling is now hip and the alleys and accommodations are well suited for a Tampa bachelor party. Here is a list of the five best bowling alleys in Tampa. For those interested in reviews of each, please click here.
Splitsville
615 Channelside Drive
Tampa, Florida
Pinarama Bowling Center
5008 South Dale Mabry Boulevard
Tampa, Florida
Pin Chasers
4847 North Armenia Avenue
Tampa, Florida
Florida Lanes
10400 Florida Avenue North
Tampa, Florida
Terrace Sports
5311 East Busch Boulevard
Temple Terrace, Florida
R-Rated Tampa Bachelor Party Activities
1. Strip clubs
Strip clubs are undeniably the most popular image of what Tampa bachelor parties are all about. And Tampa certainly doesn’t lack for quality and quantity of strip clubs. Tampa is often known as the strip club capital of the United States. Tampa strip joints are the stuff of legends and many a great bachelor party story.
Below is a list of the four best Tampa strip clubs for bachelor parties. You can reviews for each by clicking here as well.
Mons Venus
2040 North Dale Mabry Highway
Tampa, Florida
2001 Odyssey
2309 North Dale Mabry Highway
Tampa, Florida
Secrets Cabaret
1620 East Adamo Drive
Tampa, Florida
Penthouse Club
1801 North West Shore Boulevard
Tampa, Florida
2. Hotel Strippers
Of course, for a truly personalized Tampa bachelor party, some people will rent a hotel suite for the night, with the main event being a stripper, or strippers, to come and perform. While this might conjure up images of movies from the 1980’s, and/or illegal activity, rest assured that the strippers that come will almost always be escorted by a bodyguard, or bodyguards and any sign of too much rowdiness will be cause for them to leave. But the advantage to this type of arrangement is that for much of the night, your party can eat, play cards, smoke cigars and maybe watch a game on TV. It can ultimately be less expensive as well as the cost of alcohol and food is far less than going to a bar or steak restaurant.
Tampa, Florida is about the best city in the country to throw a bachelor party. Enjoy some or all of these bachelor party options and send the groom to be off in style and fun!
