Named for a European capital and just north of Clearwater, Dunedin is a small town that has a lot of personality. With a very walkable downtown area, peaceful beaches, and plenty to explore, it makes a nice day trip for anyone visiting Tampa or St. Petersburg.
Connections to Scotland
Gaelic for Edinburgh (the capital of Scotland), Dunedin embraces its Scottish heritage. The city’s high school band is known as the Scottish Highlander Band, and there’s a volunteer pipe and drum band that competes internationally and acts as ambassadors for the city. Another Scottish connection is the Dunedin Highland Games & Festival, which takes place in the town every April. With a pipe band parade, highland dancing, Scottish athletic games, and entertainment, it’s a fun way to get a feel of Dunedin and embrace the city’s heritage.
Art and Museums
Dunedin has a very artistic flair. In addition to outdoor art festivals that take place throughout the year, there are also plenty of shops in the downtown area where local artist showcase their stained glass, paintings, and sculptures. Dunedin has a working artist studio in the Stirling Art Studios & Gallery. Open to the public, visitors can walk around the gallery, interact with artists as they work, and purchase art. The Stirling Art Studios & Gallery also is home to two small permanent museums, The Miniature Art Society of Florida and Penny Lane, Beatles Museum. The Miniature Art Society of Florida’s collection has miniature sculptures and paintings on display, each with magnifying glasses for those who need a little assistance seeing those tiny details. Penny Lane is a collection of memorabilia from The Beatles band members, including clothing, instruments, photos, posters, and even strands of their hair.
Beaches
One of the area’s best-kept secrets is that some of the best beaches in the county are state parks located in Dunedin. Honeymoon Island State Park and Caladesi Island State Park are undeveloped white sand beaches that have often been voted some of the best in Florida. With four miles of undisturbed beaches, Honeymoon Island lets you enjoy the clear blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico without crowds. Honeymoon Island also has a pet beach available, one of the few in the area. Ready for even more unspoiled nature? Take a trip to Caladesi Island. Only accessible by boat, Caladesi Island is a quiet beach that is even more secluded than Honeymoon Island. With spectacular views, Caladesi Island also has excellent shelling opportunities. If you don’t own a boat, you can catch the water ferry to Caladesi Island that launches from Honeymoon Island.
Baseball
If you enjoy baseball, then Dunedin is the city for you. The spring training home for the Toronto Blue Jays since 1977, TD Ballpark is a short walk from downtown. Seating only about 6,500 fans, the stadium makes it simple to get close access to a Major League Baseball team. If you can’t make it for Spring Training, the Blue Jay’s minor league team, the Dunedin Blue Jays, play at the stadium for much of the rest of the year, so there are plenty of opportunities to catch a game.
Food & Drinks
Dunedin is a great place to grab a drink or bite to eat. There are plenty of coffee shops, snack shops or sit-down restaurants to get something to eat any time of the day. The city is also a hotbed of craft beer brewing. With no less than ten local breweries within 1.5 miles of each other, many of which are walkable to each other, there is style to enjoy for every beer lover. Not into beer? Many of the breweries also serve wine and non-alcoholic drinks. There are also wine shops, bars and other places to stop and sip a drink while you watch the sunset.
