grantop

I am considering bidding on Priceline for a Hotel in Philadelphia for a quick stay in late May. I am not familiar with the city AT ALL, and I'm not sure what PL area to bid, but I have bid many times for SF and NYC so I am familiar with the pros/cons of the service. We will be going to the art museum to see the Manet exhibit, and from what I read in the Fodor's destination guide I think we might like to shop/eat in Rittenhouse Square or Old City areas. So, I have 2 questions 1) What area/zone to bid in on Priceline and 2) If we want to go to small artsy boutique type shops (i.e. not large chain stores or a traditional shopping mall) are Rittenhouse Square or Old City areas where we should be headed? Or should we go to Manayunk? Thank you for your help.

Abi

1. You would want to bid for the Downtown or Center City area.

2. Rittenhouse Square area (along Walnut, Chestnut, and Locust Streets from Broad St. to 19th St. have many small shops. Some are chain types (Talbots, Brooks Brothers, etc.) Another nice area is Antique Row on Pine Street from 10th - 13th Streets. The Old City area is reminiscient of NYC's SoHo. From Center City you could take the R6 train from Suburban Station to Manayunk. Main Street is where the shops and restaurants are located. Another nice area to check out is Germantown Avenue Chestnut Hill. To get thee from Center City take the R8 train from Suburban Station to the end of the line (Chestnut Hill West).

Dan

Ever notice how many San Jose residents also "happen" to visit Philadelphia?

Scarlett

Hi grantop!
We loved Philadelphia and I look forward to going back this year. We stayed at the
Penn's View Hotel
14 N. Front St.
800-331-7634
It was a perfect location, we walked everywhere. Christ Church is about a block and a half away, the Bell is a couple,three blocks and we walked to Rittenhouse Sq. It is a lovely city, easy to walk everywhere and so many good restaurants!
We went to the Art Museum and saw Degas-all those ballerinas! do see the Rodin, I am sorry to say, we saw it in passing but ran out of time to visit.
Great shopping too~
Have fun!

grantop

Thank you for the information, I do appreciate it. Interesting comment Dan, and I will also ad that a person who spends mega amounts of time bashing a city/area probably has a credibility problem, and it makes me skeptical of their "expertise".

Scarlett, this is going to be a quick stop for us too, but I thought that at least we could get to the Museum and do some shopping. I hope we like the city as much as you did, and glad to hear it's very walkable.

elle

Yes, it's definitely a walkable city.

If you're shopping in the Walnut Street/Rittenhouse Square area, be sure to include 20th Street, which has some cute shops. Daffy's, the big discount store on the corner of 17th and Chestnut can also be fun to check out, if you have the patience. I've found some amazing things there.

Another option would be the Antiques Row area, Pine Street from about 10th to Broad. There are some cute stores nestled in with all the antiques dealers.

Old City is a good bet, too, but I'm not so crazy about Manayunk shopping anymore--with Banana Republic, Pottery Barn, Restoration Hardware, Chicos,etc.--it's starting to resemble a mall.

FWIW, Shirley MacLaine, who was/is just in Philadelphia pronounced it one of the best places for shoe shopping. I suspect she was talking about the two stores that border Sansom Street, Stiletto (at 20th) and I-forget-the-name at 17th, across from Sofitel.

Also across from Sofitel on 17th is the American Institute of Architects shope, which sells a lot of really cool stuff, in addition to books on architecture and design.

pb_and_j

I'll agree that Rittenhouse/Walnut St. is a great area for shopping.
I like Manayunk but it doesn't rival what you can find downtown. Best left for a 3rd trip or so.
If you like funky housewares and furniture, check out old city north of Market St.

grantop

Very helpful information; thanks for the old city tip & the advice about Manayunk, we'll save that for a future visit! American Institute of Architects shop & antiques row sound great, I think I'll be frustrated that we don't have too much time in Phila.!

pat

I am going to philadelphia also. I just bid $50 on a 3 star hotel in Philly, and got the Sheraton Society Hill and am pleased with that. I would have been just as happy with a hotel near Rittenhouse Square or something close to the Reading terminal market, but with priceline you get what you get. I think you can pretty much get to anywhere you want to go with the Phillyflash, and so much you can just walk to anyway. Since you have used priceline before, I`m sure you have checked out www.biddingfortravel.com. Good luck! We are going to Pat`s and jeno`s for a Philly cheese steak sandwich. Want to eat breakfast at the Down Home Diner in the Reading Terminal market too. Good to hear about the Manet exhibit, and we will do that too.

Scarlett

grantop, my favorite places to eat in Philadelphia were :
Fork,
Friday Saturday and Sunday,
a pub called the Plough and Star,
and lunch at the Continental.
I would love to go back, thinking we will in the fall. You can use the computers at the Barnes and Noble in Rittenhouse Sq to let us know how much you are liking it

Guarto

Rittenhouse Square is the best area for shopping and dining in town. Just bid for a downtown hotel. THe cente city area is very walkable and public transportation is excellent. SInce you only have a small amount of time, I would suggest a trolley or Big Bus tour for an overview of the city.

http://www.phillytour.com/

http://www.bigbus.co.uk/phila/html/phila_home.html

yk

Hi grantop-

For PL, bid for Downtown Philadelphia.
If you bid for a 4*, it includes the Hyatt at Penns Landing (which has won many bids recently). Be sure you check out its location before you decide to bid. I personally do not like that Hyatt's location, which is quite far from most sites.
For the 3*, all of them are within walking distances. I got the 3* Hilton Garden Inn (next to the Convention center) for $40/n for Mem Day weekend. Check out biddingfortravel.com before you bid.

Also, apart from the tour bus companies that are listed here, check out the "Phlash" bus. It is a great deal for getting around the major sites of the city without commentary. Only $1 per ride or $4 a day. For more info:
http://www.gophila.com/phlash/

For small boutique shops, go south of Rittenhouse Sq and just walk around. There's a nice boutique on Locust btw 17th & 18th (I forgot the name), and around that area.

Some great places to eat (if you check out chowhound) are: D'jango (6th st & South). I called 1 month in advance to get a dinner reservation for mem day w/e. Also the newly-opened Matyson (19th btw Chestnut & Market) is getting lots of buzz. It opened last fall and I've eaten there 4 times already. Great food, and don't miss the wild mushroom polenta appertizer.

Hope you'll have a good time!

shepardspie

I love Philly and would agree with almost everyone: Rittenhouse, Olde City (look for cameras, it's where the Real World begins filming soon), and ESPECIALLY MANYUNK are all fabulous - Manyunk being my favorite.

I would also recommend the restaurant "Kristian's" on 11th and Federal. It's South Philly, but not deep South Philly, closer to center city. It's family owned, and was named the Best Place to Take Out-of-Towners a couple of years ago in the Best of Philly magazine. It's well known to us locals - I almost hate to get the secret out!

Have a great time.