3 Days in Philadelphia
Philadelphia. The City of Love, cheesesteaks, pretzels, and the liberty bell. And Ben Franklin. Gosh the stories we heard about that man. They’re mostly PG-13 or I would include them here.
Anyway, May means graduation season, so we spent this last weekend in Philadelphia cheering for a friend who earned her master’s degree! I’m telling you, I’ll take any excuse to travel, even if only for a couple of days.
If you find yourself with a long weekend in the City of Love, here’s what I recommend!
Things to do in Philadelphia
Visit Eastern State Penitentiary. Built in the 1800s, this was the first prison of it’s kind. You can walk through hallways and cells built to keep inmates in solitary confinement and listen to an audio guide explaining different sections of the penitentiary. Plus, there’s some super relevant information about our current prison system in the US.
See the Liberty Bell and Tour Independence Hall. While you’re in our nation’s first capital, go see the bell that has inspired countless movements for freedom. There’s a great free tour available and you can see our founding documents. While you’re at it, stop by the Declaration House, the building where the Declaration of Independence was signed.
Eat all the pretzels and cheesesteaks at Reading Terminal Market. It’s crowded, so be prepared, but for good reason. There were so many booths with different kinds of food and it was all delicious.
Take a Walking Tour. Or a hop on hop off bus tour. I prefer to walk, but either way, you get a comprehensive view of the city from someone who knows all the things.
Run up the Rocky Steps and pose for a picture. But don’t just stop at the top. Go into the Philadelphia Museum of Art and spend some time looking at works from all around the world, from ancient times until the modern era.
Do a Ghost Tour. (I’m pretty sure we did this one) I love to find a ghost tour in every city I visit, and Philadelphia’s did not disappoint. There is so much history in this town and I couldn’t get enough of the ghost stories about old taverns, hotels, and the well-known people who visited them.
Ride the Subway and Go up in a Skyscraper. We were with friends from a small, South Central PA town, and their kids had never been to the city before. Any city at all. So they wanted to see what was underground and what was up in the sky. And if you’ve never ridden the subway or been on the 22nd floor of a building with a child from a tiny town, it’ll surprisingly bring you so much joy.
What to Eat and Drink in Philadelphia
Ummm cheesesteaks? Obviously. But here are some other restaurants to check out.
For coffee and a quick breakfast bite, stop into Lombard Cafe or the Green Line Cafe. Both are small cafes with fancy drinks and yummy snacks. And they’re veggie-friendly.
Pizzeria Stella had fresh, flavorful Italian food. Pastas are made in-house daily and the pizza specials are seasonal based on ingredient availability. But please please please save room for dessert. The gelato is also a house recipe and paired with the Italian donuts with Nutella was amazing. Seriously, it’s the only thing I want to eat ever again. Plus, the service there was superb, so that’s always a win.
For a late-night slice, try Lorenzo and Sons Pizza on South Street. They were $6 a slice, which seemed steep, but it turns out the pizza is as big as your face and actually tastes good.
There are about a million places to get a cheesesteak. And wars have probably been fought about which is the best place to eat one at. We stopped in Sonny’s this time, (they had a grilled cheese option for my non-meat-eating friends) and all the carnivores with me were very happy. We were also told by locals that Geno’s and Oh Brother are both excellent.
Where to stay
We stayed at the Hilton Philadelphia at Penn’s Landing. We stayed here for free by booking with points that my husband earned traveling for work. (Teacher friends - sign up for ALL the hotel and airlines rewards clubs. They’re free to join and are partly how we travel so much with this girl’s teacher salary. At the very least, you’ll get a free breakfast out of it sometimes.) The location was great, so I would definitely recommend any hotel at Penn’s Landing. The hotel itself had beautiful views of the Delaware River and New Jersey. It was, however, in need of renovation and severely lacking in service.
How we got around
Like any big city, be prepared to walk or take public transportation. The subway/train was easy to navigate, as were walking directions. Most things we wanted to see were within 2 miles of our location.
Our friends with us had a car, but we avoided using it unless we had to. Navigating unfamiliar city streets and finding parking is always tricky, but it was nice to have when we needed to get somewhere a little further.
We also used Uber and Lyft to get to and from the airport, both of which were responsive and easy to arrange.
Classroom impact
Oh my, the history lessons that can be taught after visiting a place like Philadelphia. It was one of those moments I wished I was a homeschool mom so I could take my kids to learn from the experts on the tours.
Ben Franklin. The Declaration of Independence. Rocky. The Fresh Prince. The Constitution. The Liberty Bell. Eastern State Penitentiary. So many important moments in our country’s history, many of which affect our country’s future and can lead to important discussions about what it means and how to apply it to our lives, more than 200 years since it all began.
What iconic part of Philly would you most like to visit? If you’re a teacher, what would you most want to teach about? Let me know in the comments!
