Don’t forget the (relatively) brand-new Constitution museum (is that the name? can’t remember) Just a few blocks away from Independence Hall/Liberty Bell pavilion. Got to visit it a couple of years ago when visiting family. Very nice.
That’s the National Constitution Center. They had an awesome Lincoln exhibit showing when I was there.
A third vote here for the Mütter Museum. I have very little interest in medicine, but when an institution can successfully combine that subject with what is practically a freakshow, yet not make it look or feel like one, well, that takes talent.
When I took my now ex-wife (a nurse) from Louisiana on her first visit to Philly, it was the only thing in the city that she wanted to see.
Here is Roadside America’s take on this incredible museum.
If you’re into food and drink, Philly has a great restaurant and bar scene covering the whole range from street carts and dive bars to fancy clubs and fine dining. My wife and I are beer and food fans, so two of our favorites in the city are Monks (Belgian food and beer) and Standard Tap (gastro-pub with all local beers on tap.)
If you rent a car, it’s only about an hour and a half over to Lancaster County and the PA Dutch Country. Yeah, pretty touristy in spots but still worth a visit.
tarragon918 mentioned the old Wanamaker’s store; it is now a Macy’s, and the eagle and the organ are still there. It is just across the street from City Hall (another great building), and a couple of blocks from Reading Terminal Market, THE place that I take any out-of-town friends.
Philly also has a great chain of arthouse theaters called the Ritz, with 10 screens in Center City and another 16 in south Jersey.
Tack another half-hour onto that and you can see Hershey, home of the best chocolate in the world (no matter what the Europeans say! :D), and its accompanying kickass amusement park. Plus, Harrisburg (a few miles from Hershey), has the fantastic National Civil War Museum, which opened for business just a few years ago.
Not in jest. But I agree with the rest of you that his response was bizarre. This is the guy who told me a week before we flew to Hawaii that he didn’t know why we were going and it sounded horrible. (he now considers it one of the best places to vacation he’s ever gone to.) He’s goofy sometimes, but I still love him.
I had the same response as the rest of you: “Philadelphia? Isn’t that like, sooper dooper historical nifty neato town?” But hey, he’s my husband, had to give him the benefit of the doubt. Or at least, appear to.
Thanks for the responses everyone! I wanted to see that King Tut exhibit in Chicago, but couldn’t get my schedule to cooperate. Now I’m psyched to go see it in Philly. And to prove once again that Mr. Athena is wrong when it comes to travel destinations.