343. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA
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Why Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA
Note: I originally wrote this post and then asked Suzanne from Boomeresque for some photos. She came back with photos and some great suggestions. So what you see here is a collaboration. All photos are from Suzanne a resident expert of Philly.
Well, it is the home of Liberty Bell. It’s also one of the characters in the Rocky movies and also the hometown of the songstress, Patti Labelle. Plus it has a ton of history as well as being the capital of the nation at one point.
In addition, Suzanne says: Philadelphia is the USA’s 5th largest city and has the most historic square mile in the country. Both the Declaration of Independence (1776) and the United States Constitution (1787) were debated and adopted in Philadelphia. The city was laid out by William Penn in 1683 between the Delaware and Schuylkill Rivers and Center City and is very walkable with several pleasant parks in case you need to rest. It is also a city with world class museums and you can channel your inner Rocky by running up the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s front steps.
She’s more of a historian than I am. So what are you waiting for? Let’s go visit.
Where
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is located south of Trenton and north of Wilmington, Delaware.
How To Get Here
By Bus
Bolt, Greyhound and Megabus serve the city.
By Train
Train service is provided by Amtrak.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA – 30th Street Station
By Plane
The nearest airport is Philadelphia International Airport (PHL), one of American Airlines’ (AA) hubs. Once here you can take the train into the city.
The following airlines serve the Philadelphia International Airport (PHL):
Aer Lingus (EI), Air Canada (AC), Alaska Airlines (AS), American Airlines (AA), British Airways (BA), Delta Air Lines (DL), Frontier Airlines (F9), Icelandair (FI), JetBlue Airways (B6), Lufthansa German Airlines (LH), Qatar Airways (QR), Southwest Airlines (WN), Spirit Airlines (NK), TAM (JJ), United Airlines (UA) and Virgin America (VX).
By Car
If you are already in the region you can take the drive. Just use a service like Google Maps for directions.
Where To Stay
This city does not have a shortage of hotels. All the major brands are represented. If you stay in any of the Center City neighborhoods you will be within walking distance of the major tourist attractions. There are hotels, Bed and Breakfasts and several hostels in all 3 Center City tourist areas:
- Old City: the colonial Philadelphia historic area along the Delaware River
- Center City West: Rittenhouse Square area–nice brownstone streets and Center City’s equivalent of Rodeo Drive (only less expensive) for shopping along Walnut Street.
- Hotels on Benjamin Franklin Parkway which is the main museum area.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA – Rittenhouse Square in the spring
==>> You can find a list of hotels from TripAdvisor here.
Where To Eat
Lots of great food can be found all over Philadelphia. Of course you must have a Philly Cheesesteak. It’s an amazing greasy sandwich that’s worth every bite.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA – Philly Cheesesteak
Here are some tips from Suzanne:
- Have lunch at the Reading Terminal Market (you can get a Cheesesteak there, if you must)
- Visit the City Tavern in Old City for lunch or dinner with colonial era recipes
- Have lunch or dinner at one of the Rittenhouse Square restaurants: Parc, Rouge, Devon Seafood, La Croix in the Rittenhouse Hotel, Barclay Prime (steakhouse)
==>> You can find a list of restaurants from TripAdvisor here.
What To Do

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA – Liberty Bell
- Start at the Visitors’ Center for Independence National Historical Park where you can plan your visits to Independence Hall (with a Park Ranger-led tour only), and the Liberty Bell & Museum https://www.nps.gov/
inde/planyourvisit/ independencevisitorcenter.htm - Do a guided Mural Arts tour starting from the Visitors’ Center and other city locations. Info available at the Independence National Historical Park Visitors’ Center
- National Constitution Center https://constitutioncenter.
org/ - Museum of the American Revolution (just opened in April 2017) http://www.amrevmuseum.
org/ - Get info about other specialty museums at the Visitors’ Center
Benjamin Franklin Parkway Museums
- Philadelphia Museum of Art (with the Rocky steps)
- Rodin Museum
- Barnes Foundation Museum (requires timed tickets)
- Franklin Institute Science Museum
- Museum of Natural History
Shop on Walnut Street from Rittenhouse Square towards Broad Street
Quirky Philadelphia Museums worth Visiting
- Philadelphia Magic Gardens http://www.
boomeresque.com/philadephias- magic-gardens/ - Mutter Museum http://muttermuseum.
org/

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA – Magic Gardens

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA – Museum of Art
==>> Check out some tours from Viator.
==>> Lonely Planet has some additional information.
Additional Information
Language: English
Currency: United States Dollar (USD)
Suzanne’s blog Boomeresque has a lot of information on Philly as well. Ensure you check it out.