I grew up in Pinellas County -- of which Clearwater Beach is a part -- so I was excited about taking my daughter there for vacation. Unfortunately, none of the hoteliers in the area will mention that major construction is underway this summer. I am sure when it is completed, it will help this beach community transition into a first class destination, but in the meantime, it is a major inconvenience. The things you might have heard about this beach are true: the sunsets are spectacular; the pier is hopping every night; and it IS the best beach on the Pinellas county barrier islands. If you are determined to go this year, be sure to get a beachfront hotel on the NORTH beach. Many south beach hotels are a block away (with much traffic and construction to navigate). If you find a South Beach hotel that claims to be beach front, you should ask pointed questions about the type of beach they offer. As you go further south on the island, you will find tiny beaches outlined with coral rock jetties and little wave action. These hotels are too close to the channel, so you will see more boats than waves.
This beach does have many plusses, like a diverse population of international visitors and residents. Our hotel proprieters were Swiss, and we met lovely people from Canada, England, Italy, and Africa who were guests there. The marina offers several types of boat tours (from high speed jet propelled rides and an exciting pirate ship to more serene sunset cruises and dolphin watching). The Clearwater Marine Aquarium is small but makes for an interesting outing if you pay a little extra for a behind the scenes tour. As for restaurants, be sure to find one of the four Frenchy's establishments. Frenchy's Southbeach offers an ideal location to have a drink or a slice of fairly good Key Lime pie while watching the sun go down. Their sunset festival on the pier is a pale imitation of what you will experience at Key West, but I must admit, Clearwater Beach has better sunsets than Key West (you watch it sink into the water rather than set over an island). Overall, it was a nice destination, but I think I'll let them finish the construction of their Ocean Walk (retail shops & condos) before returning.

We went this year for the 4th of July. We had a great time! There’s Great food at Frenchy's Rockaway Grill right on the beach. Also check out Kelly’s beach bar on the strip just north of the Hilton.
Please be aware of the tourist traps out there like Kai Lani Sailing stay away from them they‘re predators . They are the biggest crooks on the beach. They will do anything to steal your money!! They stole mine. : ( But all in all a magnificent and beautiful beach Great fireworks up and down the Beach "A" plus Clearwater! The only disappointment was that during our visit the beach is undergoing renovations and Parking is a nightmare. So if you’re driving to Clearwater park the car at the hotel and leave it and use the Jolly Trolley. Good Times!

We just returned from Clearwater Beach, and did not want to leave at all! It was a lovely 4 day vacation. I would strongly recommend the Hilton, which is right by Pier 60. We stayed after being at Disney for 4 days, and found Clearwater exactly what we'd hoped it would be. Very low key, beautiful white sand beaches, boat excursions, great drinks on the beach while watching beautiful sunsets! We did head further south to eat the seafood buffet at Shepards, and we did not care for the enviroment down on that end at all. Beach was too small and the only view was of rocks across the way.
The vendors and street artists on the Pier were great and all handmade. We saw someone new there each night, although, many of the same do return each night. There is hairbraiding, temporary tattoos, bungee jumping on the trampolines for kids, blow up jumping toys for kids, caricature artists, all kinds of jewelry, live music, etc... It is really quite nice for a family. We had some great meals at Crabby Bills and Frenchy's Rockaway Grill, which incidently, you can walk to dinner via the beach and eat outside while watching the sunset! The Pirate Ship cruise is great for any kids 10 or under, I would say. There should be some type of water excursion for everyone, from renting waverunners, parasailing, banana boat rides, turbo style jet boat rides, katamaran rides, pontoon rides that stop to look for seashells, and fabulous yacht dinner excursions that are very affordable. I would recommend anyone go to Clearwater Beach at least once, but I really don't know if I could've said that if I'd stayed down toward the Best Western Sea Wake or Shephards. Please use google earth to look at the hotel locations, it will show you the beach size of the hotel you choose, which I feel is really important. The Hilton rents you umbrellas and chairs, well worth the $18/day charge.

I'm not a beach bum, but, I visited my sister and brother-in-law in New Port Ritchie, and we took a trip to Clearwater for the sunset and the nighttime celebration with local musicians and artisans selling crafts on the boardwalk.

It was okay, and not really my thing. You have to pay to go out further along the boardwalk, so we stood by the pay area and watched the sunset. There is no open container law, so people were walking around with drinks in hand, watching the sunset, looking at what craft sellers had to barter and listening to street musicians and watching breakdancers.

If you're into surf and sand, this is a great place for it, and the sunset was quite lovely, but anti-climatic for myself!

Not my idea of a "quiet and romantic" beach or atmosphere.