Tampa is a part of the urban area most usually referred to as the "Tampa Bay Area". For U.S. Census intentions, Tampa is division of the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Florida MSA. The four-county area is made of about three million residents, making it the second main metropolitan statistical area (MSA) in the state, and the third biggest in the Southeastern United States, following Miami and Atlanta. The "Greater Tampa Bay" region has just more than four million people living there and normally includes the Tampa and Sarasota metro region.

The Tampa Bay Partnership and U.S. Census the collected data recorded that an average twelve-monthly increase of 2.47 percent, or an increase of about 97,000 inhabitants per year. Flanked by 2000 and 2006, the Greater Tampa Bay Market has practiced a combined enlargement rate of 14.8 percent, rising from 3.4 million to 3.9 million and hitting the 4 million people record on April 1, 2007.The Tampa Bay Designated Market Area (DMA) is the biggest media bazaar in the state of Florida and the thirteenth biggest DMA Market in the United States.

The city of Tampa contains more than 165 parks and beaches to entertain the people covering 2,286 acres within city limits; 42 more in nearby border, covering 70,000 acres are kept by Hillsborough County. These areas take in the Hillsborough River State Park, just northeast of the city. Tampa is also house to a large number of attractions and theme parks that most commonly include Busch Gardens Africa, Adventure Island, Lowry Park Zoo, Florida Aquarium, and M.O.S.I.

The partly reinstate Centro Espanola building on Howard Ave., West Tampa. It has been held year on year since 1904. Gasparilla, over and over again referred to as the Mardi Gras of Tampa, is usually held on the very last Saturday of January. The invasion-themed event has a turnout of over 400,000 people and affects over 23 million dollars to the city of Tampa. The Sant'Yago Knight Parade or Gasparilla Night Parade is more often than not held one week to a few weeks after. It is measured more adult-oriented. Other prominent events take in the Outback Bowl, which is held New Year's Day at Raymond James Stadium. The Florida State Fair in mid-February, also fetch in an audience of around 400,000, and Guavaween that is an open street Halloween celebration with Latin flavor and it held in Ybor City.

More than a few large scale malls call Tampa and its surrounding areas home. Very famous well known shopping areas are:

1.    International Plaza and Bay Street

2.    WestShore Plaza
3.    University Mall
4.    Westfield Brandon
5.    Westfield Citrus Park.

Well accepted and well known Hyde Park Village is a fashionable open-air shopping center located in the neighborhood of Hyde Park. Formerly, Tampa had also been residence to the Floriland Mall  that has been transformed now into an office park, Tampa Bay Center (demolished and replaced with the new Tampa Bay Buccaneers training facility, known as "One Buc Place"), and East Lake Square Mall (now an office park). There is also a Tampa’s Florida Aquarium, Henry B. Plant Museum and Tampa Museum of Art that attracts millions of visitors each year. So the place is definitely worth seeing regarding its history, geography and amusement and entertainment place