Treasure Island Drum Circle Info Directions & More
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It's a huge open free style community drum circle right on the sandy white gulf coast beaches in St. Petersburg Florida. For some directions 
to get there, videos, photos, news articles, and history of this circle near St. Petersburg, please scroll down. Sometimes it is simply the 
most amazing experience ever, and other times it kinda sucks. Just keeping it real here. But that's part of the fun, you never know what's 
going to happen from week to week. It depends on who shows up, just like at most other open drum circles. Regardless of the musicality 
on a given week, it's always a good time to just be out there on the beach drumming and dancing to the sunset connected with nature.

Bring a chair, towel, & fluids if you like, most everyone does. There are public restrooms near the parking lot. It's a family friendly 
drum circle, but adult beverages were allowed on weekends at this beach up until May 2011. (Apparently the city has just passed a new 
law prohibiting alcoholic beverages on the weekends at TI.) It will take a while until everyone realizes that the laws have changed.


To get there if you have GPS, the circle is located right on the beach in front of a city public parking lot. Next to the lot is the 
Bilmar Beach Resort. The address is 10650 Gulf Blvd. Treasure Island, FL. 33706. A Yahoo map, and more specific directions are 
below. The city got around to installing parking meters in the public parking lot last year. So, no more free parkie. 

If you're visiting us, or in the area, be sure to check out this drum circle. It's pretty well known around here, & very popular. It's probably 
the biggest one around Pinellas County. There is sometimes over 100 drummers and dancers to have a good time with. Plus loads of 
beach going onlookers, & curious tourists. The latest information on the curfew is: Summer daylight savings the stop time is 10pm. 
In the winter it reverts back to the 9pm curfew. There are parking meters now. (Can't we lose this daylight savings time thing someday?) 
  
As far as places to eat, there are a number of good restaraunts nearby. The Bilmar Resort has a Sloppy Joe's beachside patio in it, 
(they has a great grouper sandwich by the way). Here's a little bit of history on how the drum circle began at Treasure Island:

As the story goes, this 12 year old drum circle was started by Christine, & her friend Johanna, two local belly dancers. (Johanna once told 
me that it looks like her little child has grown up!) They invited a few friends out that first Sunday. Then the second week, they promoted 
it a little bit, spread the word around a little, hung a few fliers, it took off and grew up from there. That's how it got started. It has certainly 
had it's problems in the past, but somehow always managed to work through them. A few drummers had to go to city counsel meetings to 
try and save it in 2008. We owe them a big thank you. During that period, the drum circle got some pretty bad press, and nearly got 
shut down in. It was like a media feeding frenzy. Everything seems to be going fine now. Try Googling on it, and check it out.

The fun starts several hours before sunset, and has to end at 10 PM. That, and the clean up of the tourist litter, was the compromise with 
the city that saved the drum circle from being shut down for good. It came very close. Anyway, Come on out and dance and drum!

Directions from the north, or from the south to get the to Treasure Island Beach Drum Circle.

From downtown St. Pete, go west on Central Avenue to the beach. (New info 2011 - no more Toll at the bridge.) When the road ends at Gulf Blvd. 
Turn left (south). It's a couple of blocks south of Central Avenue on Gulf Blvd. at 104th Ave. (You have to look for it because it comes up 
quick.) It's a small public parking lot on beach side across from Treasure Island Fun Center. It's crammed right in between two big hotels. 
You can park in the city parking lot, and walk about 50 yards out to the beach. It a bit of a hike with a heavy drum like a conga. 
You can hear them playing when you park, so just follow the beat.

If you are coming from the northern part of the county, like Clearwater, you go south on Missouri Ave. which turns into Seminole Blvd. 
You continue south past Ulmerton to Park Blvd. Watch for the Beaches exit, and Go west, (right) towards the beach to Gulf Blvd. 
Then south (left) to the public parking lot at 104th Ave. It's 5 or 6 miles until you get to Treasure Island. 
 
For directions on a Yahoo map, current sunset time finder, videos, & etc. please scroll below the photos. Thanks to all who sent them!

Want to hear a few drum circle jams while viewing? Just click on a track from the reverbnation player below.