I had a great trip to Philly over the weekend too. We arrived late Friday, stayed at the Hampton at the airport. Nice place, great service. They shuttled us to the train so we left our car at the hotel and toured all day Sat. We started at Independance visitor center with prearranged tickets. It was worth the 1.50 not to stand in the line and the noon tour allowed us to see everything without too much delay. From there we used the Phlash buses to get around town. They are a great way to hop around but got very crowed a few times. The trolley tour looked a little chilly since they are open in one end and it rained just enough to put a chill in the air. Loved the Art Museum and the view from the steps is outstanding. If anyone suggests riding the orange line of the subway to get to South Street, forget it. We ended up 8 or 9 blocks away from the 400 block of South St. We were in an area with no cabs, no buses and few people. The side walks were broken and partly missing and we wasted no time getting down the street. It was not a nice walk and there were no pleasant surroundings at all! The line at Jims was too long and we had to settle for a cheesesteak from a nearby place but it was still tasty.

We took a cab from there to Cirque de Soleil and the show was nothing sort of astounding. It was my first show so I can't compare it to the others but I can't imagine them being better. I cannot wait to see another show. The participants are amazing and the costumes and production defy description. We loved it!

We loved the city, people were friendly and helpful and our experience was a great one. Thanks to everyone for the helpful information and to Fodors for providing this site. I have used it often and have learned so many things in advance of having to find out the hard way.

Thanks for the report. So glad you enjoyed our city.

Linda:

You should sign up for the Cirque Du Soleil website, its there name.com. You can sign up and they send you e-mails every once in awhile to let you know whats going on and when they release their schedules. You can also buy tickets first. Its free and thats how I find out about it before everyone else.
You will want to see every show, I promise. Its so hard to explain to people who havent seen it. The 1st show we saw Dralion, had alot more flying around and things done from the ceiling. Much more acrobatics. The finale in Verakai was by far the best thing we have seen between the 2, it was amazing. But the dancing is nice but I like to feel like i am on the edge of my seat hoping they wont fall.
Check out the site
JK

Hi Julie, I have been a member of the Cirque club for a little while now. I was searching the site last night for videos. Have you purchased any and do they do the show justice? I asked about a video of the show we saw and they told me it was to be released at the end of this month. I know exactly what you mean about not being able to explain it to others. You just find enough superlatives! It looks like Cincinnati Oh is coming up on the schedule and I hope to be able to catch a show there. I am guessing it will be a little while since the dates are not posted yet. My favorite part of Verakei was the Russian swings. When the first guy went flying through the air across the stage, I was just amazed. Was Dralion more of that type of stunts? The entire show was incredible. I loved it and so did my daughter. We would be going to Cleveland this weekend if not for a family birthday. Please let me know about the videos and thanks for the info.

Linda:
The videos arent very good. On the Bravo network, they show them every oncei n awhile. Saltibocca, was on Mon. night and it didnt look the same.
Dralion was alot of Asian influence. The cast was primarily Asian and they did alot more stunts. Not so much dancing or gymnastics. They had these guys who jumped through 8 inch hoops, they balanced on balls, the girls did crazy pyramids while in ballet toe shoes balancing on lighbulbs. There was also this lady that did 2 routines hanging from the ceiling she was amazing. We sat in the front row and she kept coming so close we would duck.
It was a better show in my opinion.
The person who got me started has seen more shows and he said that the O show in Vegas is the best. He thought Dralion was OK, so I can imagine what the rest are like.
I think our plan is to know go and see the different shows in different places. We where 2 minutes from The NY show in Liberty state ark, and now live in Central NJ, so I figure we will try to go to Washington next year or maybe back to Philly.
If you ever need any info my e-mail is [email protected]

I too enjoyed Philly a lot, which leads me to an observation.

I've been to LA several times and Philly three or four times. The hands-down winner for a place to visit: Philly.

A couple of years ago I was in LA and picked up the LA TImes to read a sports columnist's story about what a dump Philly was. It was one of those typical no-creativity pieces. Whatta hoot! Philly has it all over LA.

Linda:

The tour schedule has Dralion in Baltimore Maryland as well. That would be a great place to go for you and your daughter. I am not sure where you call home but there is tons to do there. You have the great aquarium, I have been several times and the science center all within the inner harbor. That would be a great trip too. I have also stayed there too and been able to find reasonable accomodations close by.