Hello!

We are planning a trip to the US. We will be in new york approx 18th dec to 22nd dec and want to go to Washington DC. We were thinking of taking a bus and wondered if it is worth going via philadelphia. We want to see the Liberty Bell and independence hall and anything else you might suggest before continuing on to Washington DC where we plan to spend a few days over xmas. If we left NYC in the morning and were in Philadelphia by lunch time would we have time to see some of the sights before catching a bus to Washington sometime on the next day? Is the bus a good option?

Thanks in advance for your advice!

It depends where the bus terminals are (versus the train stations) and where your hotel in Philadelphia is located. Yes, it's possible to see the two sights in a half-day. It's even possible to see them on your lunch break (which was how I saw them, at my first job, with a bunch of my co-workers. My boss thought it was so cute.) However, keep in mind, that for the most part, they are just something to see. You can see them just as well in a book.

Philadelphia has so many things to experience. There's Elfreth's Alley (the longest continuously inhabited residential street in the U.S.), a plethora of museums, incredible dining, the Reading Terminal Market, some nice antique stores, historical societies, house museums, etc.

I think I would prefer the train if it were me. Amtrak.com will give you information. Your schedule would work and train runs from NYC to Washington, via Philadephia.

Here a suggestion with Philly Stop:
Bus: NYC-Philly ($1-$13)
Amtrak Train: Philly-DC $44
Bus: DC-NYC ($1-$13)

NYC to DC round trip on Bolt Bus or Mega Bus ($3-$28)
NYC to DC round trip on Amtrak ($150)

With only 5 days, I hope you're not talking about making a daytrip to Washington from NYC with a stop in Phil, are you?? With only 5 days in the US, I think you're already pushing it splitting b/w NYC and Washington unless you've already been to one or both. Where are you coming from? Have you allowed for jetlag?

The first time I read it, it sounded like they were splitting the 5 days but I think the 5 days is just NY then onto DC but not positive.

Um, aren't they back now?

Since they posted it today, I assume they are going next December...

In Philly; the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, the Greyhound Station, the Amtrak Station, and all discount bus stops are on or near Market Street. Thus, I'll only mention the cross streets, all of which are numbered. The lower number streets are closer to the Delaware River.

Liberty Bell and Independence Hall are at Fifth. You could "see" them in five minutes. You can enter the building for the LB if you're willing to go through a security scan, which will take ten to fifteen minutes depending on the line. Note that this scan will mean you can NOT be carrying any weapons, including knives. Once through this scan, you can stand within about two to three meters of the actual Bell.
Seeing the inside of IH requires a free, timed ticket -- and you MUST go through the LB security scan to get to the tour. You would probably be able to get a ticket if you just showed up at the ticket desk, but it might not be for a few hours. You can reserve a time for your indoor tour in advance, but you'd have to trust your bus or train to be on time.
www.nps.gov/inde/independence-hall.htm
www.nps.gov/inde/advance-ticket-information.htm

The Greyhound Station is at Twelth Street, as are many "Chinatown" buses. Amtrak is at 30th Street, as is Bolt Bus. MegaBus is at both 30th and Sixth Street
http://www.megabus.com/us/stops/newy...iladelphia.php

You could walk between 12th and Fifth in about ten to fifteen minutes; between 30th and Fifth is a bit of a walk. Fortunately, there is a subway -- called the Market Frankford Line AKA the "Blue Line" -- that stops at 30th, 11th, and Fifth.
www.septa.org/maps/transit/mfl.html
You can buy Septa tokens at vending machines; $2.90 (cash ONLY) for two tokens.

My suggestion is to
1) buy the cheapest fare between NYC and Philly.
2) buy the cheapest fare between Philly and DC, making your departure several hours after your arrival.
3) leave NYC first thing in the morning.
4) buy a IH tour ticket for the tour scheduled two hours after your scheduled arrival in Philly. This will give you the flexibility to not miss the tour. If you arrive early, just wander around Old City.

As note above, however, Philly deserves at least two days minimum for a decent visit.

Hi

To answer some of your questions... Yes we mean Dec 2010. NYC 18th Dec to 22nd dec (am). Bus to Philadelphia 22nd dec (am) to 23rd dec (afternoon), bus or train to washington 23rd dec to 27th dec. These dates are flexible. We will actually be beginning our trip in LA since we have to come via LA from Australia and will be staying in LA for a few days before flying to NYC. Once we leave Washington we are going to Orlando to do a Disney Cruise and then in early Jan Disney World before flying back to Australia.

In addition to Paul's plan, you may want to consider renting a car and driving. This will give you the luxury of driving directly into the historic area, park, and leave at your convenience. Otherwise, you will have to find a place to store your luggage for the day. I don't remember if the bus and train terminals have lockers, and if you took the train in, you'd have to schlep your luggage around the station, buy SEPTA tokens, fumble around the subway, etc. Since all this takes time, and you only have a day, you might be better off taking a taxi across town.

The other thing is, at that time of year, it could be snowing, or worse, frigidly cold. So you might not want to be wandering around town then.

One other thought is to see if you can't book a tourist bus with a long layover in Philadelphia. That way, you could keep your luggage on the bus.

Hi thanks for your reply. We were planning on having an overnight stay in philadelphia before going to washington the next day in the late afternoon

One thing I advise about visiting Philly, after eleven years of living here, is that it is one of those U.S. cities for which a car is not only unnecessary, but a complete nuisance. This is particularly true if you're only going to be visiting Center City, where parking prices are legalized robbery.
30th Street Station has 24 hours of luggage storage for $3
www.taphilly.org/stationfaq.html
That's less than (1) drop-off fees for a car rental between NYC and DC or (2) parking fees in Center City or (3) highway tolls between NYC and DC or (4) just about anything that will add to the cost of a car rental.

It's a five minute walk from the main hall of 30th Street Amtrak Station to the Blue Line stop, fifteen minutes from there to Independence Hall (including the 30 seconds to buy your tokens). Traffic into and around Philly will delay you a LOT more than that. Believe me, you'd fumble around a LOT more in driving in Philly than you would while riding its subway.

I won't even talk about traffic (and confusion) between, in, and around New York City and Washington. As much as I don't like driving in Philly, these cities are WORSE.

Assuming you are pending 5 days in NYC and then going on to Philly and DC it makes sense. If you have only 5 days total you will need to pick just NYC or DC. I know a lot of people swear by the various buses (but NOT Chinatown which have poor safety records) but I think Amtrak is much more comfortable - unless saving a very few $ is super important.

Plus at that time of year you are likely to get lots of traffic and quite possibly bad weather - which won;t affect the trains but could make a bus trip interminable. (Just a couple of inches of snow can turn the 5 hour bus trip into 7 or 8 hours.)

Since you are staying a night in Philly, I can recommend this place:

http://www.comfortinn.com/hotel-phil...i.BQ0Vhg403M.2

It's nice enough, about $90 + tax on quikbook.com, has a free breakfast and free shuttle to anyplace downtown and back. If you want to walk, make sure you head north from the hotel to Race St to pass under the freeway (it's counter-intuitive).

Nice place to eat local food is the Old City Pizza at 3rd and Arch.

I went to NYC, Philly, Williamsburg and DC in the fall of 08. It was a lovely trip over all. I stopped in NJ to see family so had a car for a portion of the trip - I dropped the car off in Philly as someone mentioned you really do not want/need one.

It has been mentioned and worth noting again - it will be REALLY cold. We walked a lot while in Philly - and would have been miserable in the freezing weather waiting outside for all the different sites.

The train from Philly to DC is very easy to take and I would do that before a bus. But that is just a personal preference of trains over buses.

I'd recommend megabus or boltbus to Philly from NY to save money, spend the extra for the train to DC. I'd try to stay at the Latham, walking distance to 30th st, right in the heart of town, usually reasonable rates. Independence Hall is worth the tour. Thought he first Catholic church was surprisingly modest, a reminder that Catholics weren't always liked. Forget the name of the church. The food here is as good and probably better than DC. So yes, it's possible and worthwhile to layover here. While there are 106 buses a day between Philly and NY, there are far fewer to DC and many make intermediate stops and take longer than the train. that said, they aren't terrible and DC's greyhound stop is on the metro so if money is a concern, it isn't too inconvenient.

The Omni Hotel is also a good choice if you want to stay in the Historic District. The hotel is about 200 meters from Independence Hall on the same street. Hotels.com often has very good deals on the Omni and the rooms are large and well appointed. We paid $128/night for a double last year. They will hold your luggage if you arrive before the room is ready.
Valet parking was $30/day.

Yes, you can catch a few things in that amount of time. Depending on your interests I would suggest:

Historical: Liberty Bell & Independence Hall then dinner along Chestnut St.

Art: Phila. Museum of Art or Rodin Museum

Festive: Lightshow and organ recital at Macy's/ Wanamaker building.

There's a site that reviews many Philadelphia Day Trips - www.daytripplans.com that you might find useful

Regarding a bus - don't do it unless it's a comfortable tour bus. Depending on the time of day you'll lose tons of time, plus weather that time of year could do you in.

Amtrak (train) out of 30th Street station is a winner.