Phenomenal Philadelphia

Claire Summers on 28 September 2015
We arrived into Philadelphia on the Amtrak Train from Boston. The journey took 5 hours on a direct service and actually went quite quickly. Business class seats give you a bit more space and a slight recline and the key is to book early to get the best prices.

The Amtrak states basic free wifi but be warned, it is not that great, you cant stream videos so cant watch movies and it does cut in and out along the way, so download a couple before you depart.

We stayed at the Doubletree by Hilton on South Broad Street, otherwise known as the Avenue of the Arts, it was in the heart of everything and everywhere was within walking distance but they also have a great bus and train or trolley service if you don't fancy the walk some days.

We were given a corner room which gave us great views along each side of the avenue and especially up to the City Hall Monument which had the statue of William Penn on top, one of the best city views I have ever had (room 1603). Because it was a corner room, it was large and had all the usual amenities.

The beds were comfortable (2 queen beds) and there were coffee and tea making facilities. The hotel has no free wifi but there is a business centre that gives you access to a computer and printer and also a computer on the front desk so you can look things up should you need to.

The hotel is surrounded by shops, restaurants, bars and cafes, so you don't have too walk far for anything. There are designer shops plus the usual Macy's, Walgreens, etc plus a Market Square full of takeaway food outlets, retailers selling local produce and sweets galore!

There is a lot to do in Philadelphia and plus if your timings are right you can take in an Ice Hockey game, American Football or Baseball, all the stadiums are at the Sports Complex, which is a direct train from right outside the hotel. We saw the Philadelphia Flyers ice hockey team at the Wells Fargo Centre and it is a great family atmosphere and tickets can start from as little as $20 each.

One of the highlights for me was running up the steps from the film Rocky and seeing the Rocky statue, such an iconic moment from the film and doing it myself was just fantastic.

This is at the end of Benjamin Franklin Parkway which also links Fairmont Park, The Boat House (which is quiet and a lovely walk if the weather is kind), the Museum of Arts and the Franklin Institute. We arrived one day after the Pope's visit so there was a lot of traffic control measures still in place whilst the city was getting back to normality.

I would highly recommend a visit to the Benjamin Franklin Institute, the Museum is so interactive but definitely allow a good 5-6 hours to get round it all.

We took a cruise on the Delaware River in the evening, we were the only 2 on it and that actually made our trip as we were in with the Captain as he gave us a private narrated tour along the way. To be honest, Philadelphia doesn't have much of a view from the River at night and there isn't much to see apart from the Benjamin Franklin bridge which looked lovely lit up and some huge navy boats aircraft hanger, so I would recommend doing this during the day.

Another highlight of the trip was being able to see the Liberty Bell. We had learnt a lot about the history of the Declaration of Independence in Boston, so to finish the story off by being able to see the Bell up close (at ground level) was amazing.

Also going into Independence Hall and having a narrated tour where you get to visit the different rooms and chambers of how the Constitution was drawn up was fascinating.

We also visited the Constitution Centre, which holds the Bill of Rights and also how the Constitution evolved to include ALL people, so there are sections on LGBT rights, women's rights, how slavery was abolished.

There is a lot to visit which covers every aspect of this time in history and it is really interesting how they broke away from British Rule and the British Monarchy to form their own Independence.

If you like Mexican food there is a great restaurant called El Vez which is on the corner of 13th and Sansom Street, (one block from the hotel) they do great tacos with top quality ingredients.

We loved Philadelphia, it has a relaxed feel to it, there are lots of young people around as there are so many Art Academy's in the vicinity, everyone is helpful and friendly. I would say 3 or 4 nights is enough to do the main attractions but another night or two would slow the pace down a little plus there are a few more Museums and the US Mint to visit if this is of interest.

It was great to do Boston and Philadelphia in one trip as both cities completed the full history of America's Independence and I thoroughly enjoyed being there. Loved it!