Is Tampa fl and Tampa Bay fl the same places?

Answer 1

No, Tampa Bay is not a city ----

Tampa Bay is the waterway (or estuary) that surrounds the city of Tampa, as well as it surrounding suburb cities of St. Petersburg, Clearwater and Sarasota.

So, for mathematical minded people:

Tampa Bay = waterway that surrounds the city of Tampa and surrounding suburbs

Tampa = actually city itself

Think of it this way.

San Francisco has a bay too, right? Right, and the actual city's name is San Francisco.

So,

San Francisco Bay + Tampa Bay = two cities that have bays that are named after themselves. :)