Philadelphia is the birthplace of American democracy — the city where the Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776 and the Constitution was written in 1787, where Benjamin Franklin lived and invented, and where the Liberty Bell has rung for 250 years. But Philadelphia is also a city of extraordinary cultural institutions (the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Barnes Foundation, the Philadelphia Orchestra), a legendary food culture (the cheesesteak, soft pretzels, water ice, hoagies) and a neighborhood diversity that makes it one of the most interesting cities on the East Coast. Rocky ran up the steps of the Art Museum. The world keeps coming to see why.
Independence Hall (1753) is where the Declaration of Independence was adopted (August 2, 1776) and the Constitution was drafted (1787) — the most important building in American history, and the building that defined the democratic model for the modern world. The Assembly Room (where both documents were signed) has the original furniture and the chair where Washington presided. Timed entry tickets required in summer (free, reserve at recreation.gov).
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuideThe Liberty Bell (cast 1752, cracked by 1846) is one of the most recognizable symbols in American history — the inscription from Leviticus ("Proclaim LIBERTY Throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants Thereof") made it the symbol of the abolition movement and later civil rights. The modern glass pavilion allows viewing the bell with Independence Hall visible behind.
The Reading Terminal Market (1893, under the Reading Railroad train shed) is one of the finest public markets in the United States — Pennsylvania Dutch Amish vendors (scrapple, shoofly pie, chicken pot pie), DiNic's roast pork (voted best sandwich in America by the Food Network), Federal Donuts, the Philly cheesesteak at Rick's (the market stall version), and Carmen's deli for the best hoagie in the city.
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuideElfreth's Alley (established 1702) is the oldest continuously inhabited residential street in the United States — 32 houses built 1728–1836, still occupied. The 8-foot-wide alley gives a sense of colonial Philadelphia that the broad streets of the rest of the city cannot.
The Old City neighbourhood (west of Penn's Landing on the Delaware River) has the highest concentration of art galleries in Philadelphia — First Friday (the first Friday of each month, all galleries open late) is the most active but the galleries are open most evenings.
The Philly cheesesteak (thinly sliced ribeye steak on an Amoroso hoagie roll with Cheez Whiz or provolone and fried onions) was invented in Philadelphia in 1930. Pat's King of Steaks (founded 1930 by Pat Olivieri — the inventor) and Geno's Steaks (across the street) are the original rival shops at 9th Street and Passyunk Avenue in South Philly. Order at the window: "one wit" (with onions) or "one witout."
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuideThe Philadelphia Museum of Art (1928 Greek Revival building on Fairmount Park) has one of the finest art collections in the United States — the Impressionist collection, the armor hall, the entire period rooms transported from Europe. But the most famous thing about the Art Museum is the steps: 72 stone steps up to the portico where Rocky Balboa ran in the 1976 film. The bronze Rocky statue is at the base. Running up the steps and raising your arms is obligatory.
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuideThe Barnes Foundation has the largest collection of Renoir (181 paintings), Cézanne (69) and Matisse (59) outside of France — but the way Albert C. Barnes arranged them (paintings hung salon-style with ironwork and African sculpture, in deliberate non-chronological, non-artist groupings, following his pedagogical theory) makes the Barnes unlike any other museum in existence. No labels, no chronology — just looking.
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuideRittenhouse Square (one of William Penn's original 1682 city squares) is the most elegant neighborhood in Philadelphia — the square is surrounded by upscale restaurants and the mansions of the Victorian-era Philadelphia elite. The afternoon coffee and people-watching is the finest urban ritual in the city.
Ralph's Italian Restaurant (1900, the oldest Italian-American restaurant in the United States) in the South Philadelphia Italian Market area serves the food that Italian immigrants brought to South Philly in the 1880s–1920s — the Sunday gravy (slow-cooked tomato sauce with braciole and meatballs), the linguine with clam sauce, and the chicken parmesan. A living piece of American food history.
Fishtown (the gentrified former Irish-Catholic fishing neighborhood north of Old City) is Philadelphia's most vibrant nightlife area — the bars along Frankford Avenue and the restaurants are the finest in the city. The Barcade (arcade games + craft beer) and the Johnny Brenda's (music venue + bar) are Fishtown's most distinctive spots.
Eastern State Penitentiary (1829) is the most historically significant prison in the world — the first penitentiary to use the Pennsylvania System (solitary confinement, silence, individual cells) that became the model for prisons worldwide. Al Capone was held here (his cell is preserved with period furnishings — he made it comfortable). Now an award-winning historic site, the crumbling cellblocks are hauntingly preserved.
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuideThe Italian Market (9th Street, from Washington Ave to Wharton — the oldest outdoor market in the United States, operating since the 1880s) is still primarily Italian-owned — DiBruno Brothers (the finest cheese shop in Philadelphia), Talluto's (homemade pasta), the fresh fish vendors, the produce stands, and Di Nardo's famous mussels. The area around 9th Street is where the cheesesteak and the hoagie were born.
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuidePhiladelphia has 4,000+ murals — the largest city-wide mural program in the United States. The Mural Arts Program began in 1984 and has turned every neighborhood into a gallery. The murals range from neighborhood heroes to abstract art. A Mural Arts walking tour or the Mural Arts trolley tour covers the most important works.
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuideFairmount Park (at 9,200 acres the largest urban park in the United States) has the Wissahickon Creek gorge within the city — 8 miles of trail through old-growth forest with covered bridges and a 1747 tavern (the Valley Green Inn) serving food and drink in the gorge. A 30-min drive from the Art Museum area.
Philadelphia has become one of the finest restaurant cities in the United States: Zahav (Michael Solomonov's Israeli hummusiya — James Beard Award for Outstanding Restaurant 2019), Vedge (the most celebrated vegan fine dining in the country), or Vernick Food & Drink (Marc Vetri protégé, the finest casual fine dining). Any of these is worth the trip alone.
A Philadelphia soft pretzel (thick, twisted, baked dark, with yellow mustard) and a water ice (Italian ice — the sweetened fruit slush native to South Philly) from a street vendor. The most Philly possible ending to the most American possible trip.