We will be in Philly for one full day at the end of August. I was wondering if it's possible to visit the Liberty Bell Center, Independence Hall, Eastern State and Fort Mifflin all in one day if we go on a Wed. when Eastern State is open till 8 pm? Anything else you think we could squeeze in? Any help will be greatly appreciated!!

Get your tickets for Independence Hall when the Visitor Center opens--8:30AM. http://www.independencevisitorcenter.com/ If you need to wait for a later tour, you can spend the morning visiting Elfreth's Alley, Fire Museum, Christ's Church, Arch St. Friends' Meeting House, Franklin Court, the Liberty Museum, Carpenter's Hall, and so forth. (Pick and choose, obviously! ) Your morning will be filled with the historic district; maybe have lunch at the Reading Terminal Market.

Fort Mifflin is open until 4PM; it shouldn't take too long to tour the fort, and you can (I assume you're driving?) get right on South I95 and be there pretty quickly from Center City. From there, you'll be back-tracking a bit to Eastern State, but as it's open later of course that would be your best bet.

What age are your kids and what are their primary interests? We could help you plot this out a little more thoroughly perhaps...there really is a lot to see and do.

Yes we will be driving

Our kids are 18 & 10 and our nephew may be going with us also, he is 13. There isn't much we don't enjoy doing, that's why it's been so hard to figure out what we should do!! It may sound crazy but we all really enjoy visiting "haunted" places. We watch Ghost Hunters and find it amusing to visit the places they have investigated. I love the history of places, just to be in the midst of places where so many interesting things have taken place.

Here's what we are planning... 3 days in Gettysburg, moving on to Hershey for 4 days (one day trip to Philly included in the 4). The length of our vacation is open, I just want to make sure I have enough time at each destination. I want the kids to experience as much of the history of Philly as possible. Should we set aside two days for Philadelphia and maybe get a hotel room there also instead of driving in for the day from Hershey?

I love the idea of lunch at the Reading Terminal Market. I checked out their website, want to go there for sure.

Anything you think we should NOT miss, no matter what?

I really appreciate your help

Well, my vote would be a definite yes on changing to two days in Philly, rather than a day trip in from Hershey. That way you'll have time to do all the things you mentioned in your first post, plus add on some of Amy's suggestions. And on a second day, if the kids like to be "grossed out" (a term I haven't thought of in more than 30 years and for something different, you could go to the Mutter Museum. As well as consider possibilities like the Italian Market, the steps to the Art Museum with the Rocky statue (if not the museum itself), the Franklin Institute, walking around Rittenhouse Square, etc. (again, not all!).

My absolute "don't misses" for visitors are Liberty Bell/Independence Hall/Elfreth's Alley and Reading Terminal Market. After that, there's lots to choose from and it really depends on your interests....you could have the kids research and each get one pick!

Another vote for two days in Philly, staying overnight. You can reserve your Independence Hall tour on the NPS website, choosing the time you want. We had a 10 a.m. slot and there was time before that to see the Liberty Bell without any lines. If you wanted to stay in the historical district and visit other sites, Campo's deli is a good place for lunch (great cheesesteaks). Another really fun thing is the Duck Tour which leaves right from the Visitor's Center. Have fun!

Definitely at least two days in Philadelphia; if you're giving three each to Gettysburg and Hershey, you can most assuredly fill three days in Philadelphia.

There's a "Franklin Walking Tour" here http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...iladelphia.cfm which takes in much of the historic district; combine this with your Independence Hall/Liberty Bell visit, and that would be a full day. if you go up Market Street towards Reading Terminal you could also stop at Graff House (where the Declaration was written.)

The Parkway has Franklin Institute, Academy of Natural Sciences, and the Rodin Museum as well as the Art Museum; be sure to start out at "Love Park" for some great photo ops--and you can also tour City Hall in the same area (including a trip to William Penn's statue overlooking the city.) Mutter Museum with its medical curiosities is not that far away. Behind the Art Museum is the lovely Kelly Drive with the Waterworks as its crown jewel. Parts of Fairmount Park and Laurel Hill cemetery are also worth a visit.

I also love the U of PA museum of Archaelogy and Anthropology, but it depends on the boys' interests, of course.

I'm sure you've been checking out the haunted bits, but there are "ghost tours" available if you google and of course there's the Poe house. There are a few claims for Philadelphia being the nation's most haunted city, actually!

Happy planning, and for some eating suggestions you could check here: http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...iladelphia.cfm

Wow, such good suggestions from everyone!!! Thanks so much I'm sure we will have a great time and lots to keep us busy!!