Philly suggestions?

[abmitch01]

DD and I are visiting friends in Philly over Memorial Day. We have tickets to the Barnes and plan on doing the Constitution Center. I've been there once but was in a rush, I loved it. Any other suggestions that aren't to be missed?

of course on the drive down we have to hit the Vera Bradley outlet or there will be a mutiny in my car.

 

[Redwitch]

You could spend a month and not do everything and you are also a day trip away from Lancaster, Hershey, Gettysburg.... From you plans, it looks like you are interested in arts and history. Liberty Bell? Carpenter's Hall? Tons of museums. It will be a busy weekend in Philly, but have fun!
http://www.historicphiladelphia.org/
http://www.visitphilly.com/historic-philadelphia/

 

[vikster1]

http://www.phillytour.com/76-carria...urs-depart-daily-from-5th-chestnut-streets/p6

Take a carriage ride. It was fun and educational. I did it for the first time in December.

The terminal market near the convention station is a great place for good food.

There are also many theaters with great off broadway shows.

Where are you staying? Center city?

 

[Hannathy]

The Liberty Bell and Independence Hall
both separate tickets, tours. Check on line for availability.

You can't be at Constitution center and not go see the bell Or take the Independence hall tour. Why see reproductions when you can see and be in the original.

Christ Church is very interesting and short walking distance from the Bell, Hall and center.

Betsy Ross's house is also in the area. Interesting if you haven't seen a lot of that era houses but not a HAVE to do like the bell and ind. Hall.

Benjamin Franklin's printing shop is a short walk up Market street. The Park Rangers explain printing in Franklin's time

http://www.visitphilly.com/ has a lot of ideas.

 

[dissupermom]

I am a proud Philadelphian! make sure you get to Reading Terminal Market, grab a cheesesteak (DO NOT ask for a "PHILLY CHEESESTEAK"-we already know what you want). get a pretzel and a water ice!! take a trip on our main arteries to see why we are a city of neighborhoods (broad st north to south; market st east and west; Germantown ave). take a mural tour.
see if you have time to get to New Hope and Lahaska in Bucks County. the jersey shoreline is too crowded that particular weekend- but that's always an option! two of the largest malls east of the Mississippi in our area, King of Prussia in Montgomery County and Cherry Hill Mall in South New Jersey. so if shopping is your thing, it's here!! oh, the Philadelphia area boasts more college students in our area that most (Temple <yay>, University of Penn, Drexel, St Joseph's) the biggies inside the city. then if you hit the mainline (Haverford, Villanova, Swarthmore, Bryn Mawr). great educational history here!
I love my city so much, I work for the city!
am I missing anything?

 

[Karenj2]

I am a proud Philadelphian! make sure you get to Reading Terminal Market, grab a cheesesteak (DO NOT ask for a "PHILLY CHEESESTEAK"-we already know what you want). get a pretzel and a water ice!! take a trip on our main arteries to see why we are a city of neighborhoods (broad st north to south; market st east and west; Germantown ave). take a mural tour.
see if you have time to get to New Hope and Lahaska in Bucks County. the jersey shoreline is too crowded that particular weekend- but that's always an option! two of the largest malls east of the Mississippi in our area, King of Prussia in Montgomery County and Cherry Hill Mall in South New Jersey. so if shopping is your thing, it's here!! oh, the Philadelphia area boasts more college students in our area that most (Temple <yay>, University of Penn, Drexel, St Joseph's) the biggies inside the city. then if you hit the mainline (Haverford, Villanova, Swarthmore, Bryn Mawr). great educational history here!
I love my city so much, I work for the city!
am I missing anything?

All good stuff! I live about an hour south west of the city, in Chester County - home of the Brandywine Battlefield, the Brandywine River Museum (home to Wyeth paintings) and Longwood Gardens, a public garden on the old DuPont property.

 

[abmitch01]

great suggestions! thank you

 

[Fly me with Balloons]

Go to a Phillies game. It's a great stadium, & the Dodgers are in town!

 

[cousinbb]

There's always the Art Museum where you can take Rockys run up the steps or take a picture with his statue near the bottom.of the steps. Boathouse row, which just finished hosting the skull races(boats), are neat to look at as well.

 

[BrerJustin]

Eastern State Penitentiary
Mutter Museum

 

[puffkin]

We always enjoyed the Philadephia Mint and the Franklin Institute. Not sure if there is a special exhibit in town there right now, but those are usually really good. The Philadelphia Zoo is really nice and they still have the Zoo Balloon which a great look at the city.

I second doing a game at Citizens Bank Park. Awesome stadium, not a bad seat in the house. They also offer ball park tours there. Definitely head over to Chickie and Petes before or after the game. Love the crab fries!

King of Prussia is a great mall, Cherry Hill mall is close too and pretty big.

Of course the obvious Historic District. Many great attractions to see there.

If colleges are your thing, tons of campuses to walk around. I went to Philadelphia University and it is a beautiful and interesting campus.

 

[abmitch01]

the zoo would be good because my BFF has two little ones

we're going to walk around University of Pennsylvania, BFF went there and DD wants to go there (gulp).

anon heard of the Langhorn Gardens or something like that about an hour away?

 

[abmitch01]

for malls I think we're just going to do Woodbury Commons outlets on the way down. Struck a deal with DD that we'll do this since we're staying off property in Disney and won't have a car to go to the Florida outlets.

 

[uromac]

FYI - Just another thing about shopping in the PA/NJ - NO TAX on clothing vs. NY!! BTW, if you do a quick stop in Delaware not far at all - No state tax at all on purchases!!

On the tourist front - Second going to Reading Terminal for a foodie experience, also there's so much history and many museums in our area (one not yet mentioned here is the Barnes museum). Longwood Gardens is a beautiful side trip - if you go there it's just a short distance to Delaware!

Have fun!!

 

[abmitch01]

we have an appt at the Barnes

 

[UptheHill]

the zoo would be good because my BFF has two little ones

we're going to walk around University of Pennsylvania, BFF went there and DD wants to go there (gulp).

anon heard of the Langhorn Gardens or something like that about an hour away?

Another Philly area resident here (we lived in University City for years and are now in an inner ring suburb). I second many of the suggestions already given. The Museum of Archeology at Penn is fantastic. If you are traveling with younger children, look into The Please Touch Museum. We also love taking out of town guests to Philadelphia's Magic Garden on South Street.

Franklin Square is another slightly hidden treasure with a lovely fountain, a beautiful playground, and a carousel. If you go to Longwood Gardens (which is breathtaking), check to see if their Fireworks & Fountains season has started. If your group is into horses, you'd be here at the time of the Devon Horse Show. Philadelphia also loves its outdoor concerts and neighborhood festivals once the weather turns warm, so be sure to check into what's happening once you arrive. Safe travels and enjoy your visit! It's an amazing city.

 

[JandJ]

My niece and I spent a few days in Philly a couple of years ago and I fell in love with the city! Everything everyone has said is great, but one of my favorite places was the Betsy Ross House. I thought it was going to be cheesy (they have a Betsy Ross impersonator) but it was great! We had a lot of fun learning all about Betsy Ross and going through the house. It was empty except for an older couple, so we had time to wander around and see and read everything. I would go back there if I'm ever in Philly again.

 

[abmitch01]

thank you all!

 

[DCbride]

We walked by Reading Terminal last night on our way to the Melting Pot...I would have much rather gone to RT! So many choices!

The zoo was the first zoo in US and just opened a new 360 experience so it will be packed!

 

[Ladygoldenhair]

Eastern State Penitentiary
Mutter Museum

These are something different. I could miss the Franklin Institue, although maybe I've been there too many times. I do recommend the double decker bus ride. You can get off at the stops, and get a tour all in one. The zoo is a winner with my dgs, Besty Ross House, Liberty Bell. Try to get tickets before your trip for Independance Hall, you can't just buy them at the door, limited amount each day. That is about the only thing dgs hasn't seen.

Philly pretzels, they make them on market Street, fresh from the oven. The museum at University of Penn is magnificent! They have the second largest Spinx in the world there, and tons of ancient artifacts and mummy's.

Remember, the sites close early. Buy 5:00 or 6:00 PM everything is done. I'm not sure but I think they may have a night historic walk.
Have fun!