World City Guide

Tours of the City

A host of tours covering Philadelphia and the surrounding region are listed in the Visitors Guide, available from the tourist office or at www.gophila.com/itineraries.

Walking Tours
See the sites at your own pace and rent a tour CD from Audio Walk & Tour of Historic Philadelphia (tel: (215) 272 5886; website: www.ushistory.org/audiowalk), which is available at Independence Visitor Center, 6th and Market Streets, and Lights of Liberty, 6th and Chestnut Streets. For reasonably-priced, private tours of anything in the area, contact All About Philadelphia Tours (tel: (215) 389 2510). Mural Arts Tours (tel: (215) 685 0754; website: www.muralarts.org/tours) examines the city’s plentiful wall art. From April to October, Ghost Tour (tel: (215) 413 1997; website: www.ghosttour.com) explores haunted sites, while other special interest tours include a Chinatown Tour (tel: (215) 772 0739), and an Italian Market Tour (tel: (215) 334 6008).

Poor Richard’s Walking Tours (tel: (215) 206 1682; website: www.phillywalks.com) covers four centuries of literary, cultural, religious and political history, on its enlightening tours of the city’s main sights – summer only (group tours only in winter). Departure points vary and tours last two to three hours.

Bus and Trolley Tours
Philadelphia Trolley Works (tel: (215) 925 TOUR or 8687; website: www.phillytour.com) gives 90-minute city tours, plus a 40-minute excursion through Fairmount Park, with an all-day hop-on hop-off pass covering 20 stops. The company also offers horse-drawn carriage tours.

Great American Trolley Company (tel: (800) 4 TROLLY (487 6559); website: www.gatrolley.com/pages/phila.html) tours Philadelphia sights.

Bike Tours
Trophy Bikes, 3131 Walnut Street (tel: (215) 222 2020; website: www.trophybikes.com), offers cycle tours of historic Philadelphia areas and Fairmount Park, on Saturday and Sunday morning, April-October. The two and three-quarter hour excursions set off from the shop and include a bike, helmet and guide. Advance booking is necessary. Trophy also offers standard bike hire (see Bicycle Hire section in Getting Around).