Sandpearl Resort
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Photos: Photo: ajay_suresh, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Our take
By Matt Spaulding, Founder and writer
The Sandpearl is what Clearwater Beach sounds like with the volume turned down: a genuinely upscale independent resort at the quiet north end of Mandalay Avenue, a ten-minute walk from the Pier 60 crowds. Every one of its 253 rooms and suites was gutted and redone in early 2024, months before the hurricanes, so you're sleeping in some of the freshest rooms on the beach. (The elevated main building also shrugged off the storm surge that flooded its lower-slung neighbors.) The zero-entry lagoon pool is the postcard, Caretta on the Gulf is a genuinely good restaurant, and the spa is full service. Budget for the fees, because they stack: valet-only parking around $40 a night, a resort fee near $40 more, beach chair setups extra, and $100 a night per dog if you bring one. Call it $80-plus per night on top of a rate that already sits near the top of the beach. In season the pool deck gets crowded and loud, and a north- or street-facing room buys you a view of rooftops and A/C units. It suits couples and families who want the premium Gulf-front experience in brand-new rooms and are ready to pay the full stack. Catch it on a soft weeknight, when the rate dips, and it's the best luxury buy on this stretch of sand.
Quick facts
- Beach access
- Direct beachfront, private-feel setup
- Parking
- Valet only, ~$40/night plus tax
- Resort fee
- ~$40/night with tax; beach chairs extra
- Pets
- Up to 2 dogs, $100/night per dog
- Check-in
- 4:00 PM
- Rooms
- All 253 renovated early 2024
Where you are
📍 500 Mandalay Ave, Clearwater Beach, FL 33767Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
Open in Maps →The quiet north end of Mandalay Avenue, directly on the sand, about a half-mile, ten-minute flat walk south to Pier 60 and Beach Walk, with the marina district a mile down.
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Is the Sandpearl worth it over the other Clearwater Beach resorts?
If you want the newest rooms, yes: the full 2024 renovation puts its rooms ahead of the Hilton's and on par with Opal Sands, with a quieter location than either. Just budget for the fee stack, since valet plus the resort fee adds roughly $80 a night before the rate.
Did the Sandpearl get hurricane damage in 2024?
It came through Helene and Milton better than most of the beach. The elevated main building avoided the catastrophic ground-floor flooding, it closed only briefly around the storms, and its renovation had already finished months earlier.
Can you self-park at the Sandpearl?
No, it's valet-only, around $40 a night plus tax, and that applies to restaurant guests too. If free parking matters, the small family-run places on the north beach are the alternative.
How much does it cost to bring a dog to the Sandpearl?
$100 a night per dog, with up to two dogs allowed. That is more per night than the valet parking and the resort fee combined, so price it out before you decide to bring the dog rather than board it.
How far is the Sandpearl from Pier 60?
About half a mile, a flat ten-minute walk south, and the marina district is roughly a mile out. Sitting at the quiet north end of Mandalay Avenue is the point of this place: the beach without the Pier 60 crowd at your doorstep.
Which room should I book at the Sandpearl?
A Gulf-front one. All 253 rooms and suites were gutted and redone in early 2024, so the finish is consistent across the property and what you are paying up for is mostly the view. North- and street-facing rooms look out at rooftops and air conditioning units, and in season the pool deck gets crowded and loud.
Things to do nearby
All Tampa Bay things to do →
Museum & funHenry B. Plant MuseumTampaThe inside of Tampa's silver minarets, and it is one wing of one floor.See tickets →
Tour & cruiseShell Key Preserve Clear Kayak TourTierra VerdeA guided paddle into a preserve with no road, in kayaks you can see through.See tickets →
Theme parkBusch Gardens Tampa Bay AdmissionTampaFive headline coasters and a 12,000-animal zoo on one 300-acre map, 85 miles west of Orlando in Tampa.See tickets →
Wildlife & natureClearwater Marine AquariumClearwaterA working marine rescue hospital you can walk through, where every animal on site has been judged non-releasable.See tickets →
Featured in our guides
- Orlando to Clearwater Beach: The Drive Is Free, the Parking Is NotThere are no tolls on the standard route — the cost of this day trip is $3.50 an hour at the other end, with no daily cap, and one lot that will only sell you two hours.Read the guide →
- How Long Do You Need in Tampa Bay?Not one of the big attractions publishes a suggested visit length. What they do publish is their opening hours, and those answer the question better — starting with the theme park that shuts at five.Read the guide →
- The Tampa Bay Parks No Ticket Site Sells, and What They Cost at the GateFort De Soto, Honeymoon Island, Caladesi, Shell Key and John's Pass are missing from every activities marketplace, because they only take money at the gate. The cost is parking, a toll or a ferry, and often it cannot be cash.Read the guide →
- Is the Busch Gardens Fun Card Worth It? The Parking DecidesA Fun Card costs about two discounted day tickets and covers sixteen months. Parking is what turns that from a bargain into a slow drip.Read the guide →
- Clearwater Beach When It Rains: What to Do, and When to Just WaitJuly brings Clearwater about 20 days with rain, and most of them cost you an hour rather than an afternoon. How to tell a passing storm from a washout.Read the guide →
- The Best Hotel Pools on the Gulf Coast, Ranked by What They're Actually ForFrom the TradeWinds' five-pool sprawl to a tiny heated gem behind a 1950s motel: the Gulf Coast hotel pools actually worth planning a stay around.Read the guide →