As a New Yorker who lived in Philadelphia and is now a Bostonian, I strongly urge you to spend extra time in Philadelphia. I don’t know your preferences, nevertheless it’s obtained a few of the finest museums, outside actions, water actions, historic websites, and quirky actions round. Some private favorites:
1. The Franklin Institute – not fairly as good because it was once, however nonetheless one of many two finest science museums (I’ve been to >40; the opposite one is the Ontario Science Heart in Toronto).
2. Penns Touchdown – parkland on waterways, historic ship excursions, maritime museum
3. Franklin Courtroom – Benjamin Franklin’s dwelling coupled with the primary submit workplace, an outdated time printing store, and a superb underground museum
4. Philadelphia Zoo – oldest zoo in US and one of many nicest
5. College of Pennsylvania Museum – an archaeology and anthropology museum bar none
6. ENIAC – if you happen to’re already at or round Penn, dip into the EE constructing at thirty third and Walnut to see ENIAC
And a complete bunch extra, and much more if you happen to’re keen to go exterior town to close by locations (Longwood Gardens and the Brandywine River Museum, to not point out Brandywine Battlefield Park can, on their very own, make a terrific weekend -and the Hagley Museum simply over the border in Delaware is fabulous too).
I second Baltimore – I’ve spent a complete week with out leaving the inside harbor, however there are a ton of different cool and attention-grabbing issues to do too. I’ll focus primarily on the harbor because it’s unlikely you’ll go very far afield if you happen to’re simply spending a day or two:
1. Nationwide Aquarium – it’s one of many nicer aquariums round, and one of many largest
2. Maryland Science Heart – it’s fairly good for a mid-size science museum
3. Baltimore Museum of Trade – proper on the water however not within the inside harbor, it’ll make you understand how a lot brief shrift the business half will get in most science and business museums (and I say this as somebody who’s all concerning the science)
4. Fort McHenry – not on the harbor, however you possibly can take a ferry from the inside harbor. One of many nicer historic nationwide parks, extremely advocate.
5. Virtually the rest within the inside harbor (ship excursions, Baltimore World Commerce Heart, and so forth)
6. McCormick and Schmicks – excessive finish chain seafood restaurant that’s proper on the water and has outside seating overlooking a lot of the inside harbor. Good, not nice, meals however probably the most stress-free and pleasant meal.
Let me additionally put my voice into the group cautioning towards doing DC and Boston on the identical journey. I might even advocate not foing it if flying, however positively not by prepare. I don’t assume you perceive how terrible prepare journey is within the US. The northeast hall has one of the best prepare service within the US, however that’s actually damning with faint reward.
Washington-Baltimore-Philadelphia is okay. Philadelphia-NYC is first rate, though it will get backed up and isn’t as good because it was once. As quickly as you hit New England it’s a catastrophe. The tracks are historical and have extreme pace limits. The tracks cross lots of actual roads and have visitors jams. It’s a multitude. The final time I took the prepare from Baltimore to Boston it took simply over 12 hours. The final time I took it in any respect it took nearly 3 hours from Mystic/New London Connecticut to Boston.
