Overview
Hillsborough County is in West Central Florida.
1 sights
Updated from Wikivoyage on 1 October 2026 · Something wrong or missing? Improve it on Wikivoyage
Best things about Hillsborough County
Tampa Electric's Manatee Viewing Center
Manatees are attracted to the waters in this area because it is warmed through the hot water released by nearby power plant. There are also viewing towers, devil rays touch tank and education building in this complex.
Plan your trip
Best time to visit & weather
Most comfortable: Oct–May. Summer highs reach about 91°F; winter lows dip to about 53°F. Very hot (Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep) — plan outdoor time for mornings. Wettest: Aug and Jul. (climate data from nearby Tampa)
Blue bars: average daily high and low (°F). Purple columns: average monthly rain and melted snow (inches).
Getting there
- From you: to see whether to drive or fly, and how long it takes.
- TPA Tampa International Airport, Tampa — 12 mi away (major hub). Directions
- PIE St. Petersburg Clearwater International Airport, Pinellas Park — 21 mi away (major hub). Directions
Sample 3-day trip
- Day 1: Tampa — Channel District, Florida Aquarium, Tampa Museum of Art.
- Day 2: Plant City — Bing Rooming House Museum, Robert W. Willaford Railroad Museum, Florida Strawberry Festival.
- Day 3: Brandon — TGH Ice Plex, Alafia River State Park.
Built from the best-covered destinations in this region; open each for its own day plan.
Places in Hillsborough County
Map
Every listing with a location. Tap a pin for its Google Maps link.
Understand
As the most populous of the three counties in the Tampa Bay Area, Hillsborough County is home to one of the state's most important cities, Tampa. This city is a principal city in the third largest important metro area in the state, after Greater Miami and Greater Orlando. The county is in the northeast corner of the Tampa Bay and, having a fairly small land area, is dominated by Tampa and its eastern suburbs. Across the bay, to the west, is Pinellas County and to the south is Manatee County. The county is a little overshadowed in tourism by the other two counties in the region, which both have extensive beach resorts.
The suburbs of Tampa are not marketed toward tourists. Although Brandon and Riverview have decent populations and appear on the map, as part of the Tampa metro area they are little more than this. Most Floridians have hardly heard of these suburbs, particularly Riverview. The points of interest to visit are in Tampa, including commerce, entertainment, a museum and universities.
Cities
- Apollo Beach
- Brandon
- Valrico
- Gibsonton – circus sideshow freak town
- Plant City
- Riverview
- Ruskin
- Sun City Center
- Tampa – the largest city in the county, home to Busch Gardens
- Temple Terrace
Get around
Tampa Electric's Manatee Viewing Center has two L2 charging stations for electric vehicles.
By bus
- Hillsborough Area Transit (HART) Public Transportation in Tampa and in the surrounding areas within Hillsborough County.
See
Go next
- Pasco County - north
- Polk County - east
- Hardee County - southeast corner
- Manatee County - south
- Pinellas County - west
Nearby
Saint Petersburg
City / town · 87 listings · 20 mi away
Land O Lakes
City / town · 19 listings · 21 mi away
Safety Harbor
City / town · 14 listings · 22 mi away
Pinellas Park
City / town · 2 listings · 22 mi away
Mulberry
City / town · 17 listings · 23 mi away
Zephyrhills
City / town · 10 listings · 25 mi away
Lakeland
City / town · 56 listings · 26 mi away
Largo
City / town · 7 listings · 27 mi away
My experience
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