What's the must-see thing in St. Petersburg?

St. Petersburg's identity shifted when the Dalí Museum moved into its current Bayshore Drive building in January 2011. The original museum, open since 1982 in a converted marine warehouse, had no climate control worth mentioning. The replacement cost $36 million and it shows. Architect Yann Weymouth designed a 75-foot geodesic glass structure he called the "enigma" that wraps the building's south face. Morning light pours through it and throws warped shadows across the polished concrete, which feels appropriate given what hangs on the walls inside. The large-scale oil gallery stays around 20°C, a relief when it's 33°C and dripping outside. Stand in front of the Hallucinogenic Toreador for 10 minutes and hidden forms start surfacing from the 4-metre canvas. Adult admission is $29, students $10 with valid ID. The café downstairs sells a decent Cuban sandwich for about $14, and the back terrace faces Tampa Bay toward MacDill Air Force Base.

The Morean Arts Center on Central Avenue has operated since 1917, which makes it older than most of the city's current buildings. The main gallery rotates local and regional shows, but the real draw sits one block south. The Chihuly Collection fills a 10,000-square-foot space with permanent Dale Chihuly glass installations. Colored light spills across dark walls in every direction. The Ruby Red Icicle chandelier hangs low enough that you instinctively duck, and the Persian Ceiling room puts you flat on a bench looking up through a glass shelf at hundreds of translucent shell-shaped forms. Tickets for the Chihuly Collection are $20 for adults. The glass-blowing demonstrations at the Morean's hot shop across the street run on a set afternoon schedule, and the heat from the 1,090°C furnace hits you from 3 metres out. The smell of heated silica and the roar of the gas burners make the space feel less like a gallery and more like a shipyard. Combined tickets for the Chihuly and a hot shop demo run about $35.

Egmont Key State Park occupies a small island at the mouth of Tampa Bay, reachable only by boat. The ferry from Fort De Soto Park's Bay Pier takes about 30 minutes and costs around $25 round-trip. The island served as a military post from 1849, gained its lighthouse in 1858, and became a state park in 1974. Fort Dade's brick walls still stand along the north shore, half-consumed by sea grapes and salt air. The beaches on the gulf side are fine white sand, and because there's no bridge access, you might share them with 30 or 40 people on a Saturday. Gopher tortoises wander the overgrown paths at their own speed. Mind you, there's no shade infrastructure, no drinking water, and no concessions on the island. Bring at least 2 litres per person and real sun protection. June humidity can push the feels-like temperature past 35°C. The last ferry back typically leaves around 3pm, and missing it means calling a water taxi from the marina at roughly $150.

A few things that trip up first-time visitors to St. Pete. Tropicana Field, home of the Tampa Bay Rays since 1998, sits west of downtown and looks like it should be a landmark. It's a 1990 indoor dome with limited sightlines that the team has been trying to replace for over a decade. Skip it unless you have game tickets. The Beach Drive strip along the downtown waterfront has the best restaurant concentration within walking distance of the Dalí, but prices run 30-40% higher than equivalent spots 3 blocks inland on Central Avenue. The Grand Central District between 25th and 31st Streets on Central has better food at lower prices. The pulled pork tacos at Red Mesa Cantina on 4th Street have a smoky char that earns the 15-minute walk from the waterfront. St. Pete is flat and the downtown core fits within a 15-block walkable grid. The SunRunner bus connects downtown to St. Pete Beach for $2.25 each way and runs every 15 minutes on weekdays.