4 of us are coming to Philadelphia for the Red Sox series (cancelled our planned Cleveland trip from previous posts). We are meeting up with my friends sister and 6 year old niece who will be there for that weekend plus a few days.

We will be driving from Hartford on Friday morning (leaving here 5:00 or so that morning).

I figure we will get there around 10:00 that morning.

Here is our proposed itinerary. We will probably go to the Saturday and Sunday games but not Friday. Our hotel is going to be in Camden, NJ at the Days Inn. My friends sister has already paid for her room there so we cannot change. I wouldnt have done it this way but have stayed at the hotel and it is convenient into the city.

How feasible is Saturday? We have obviously chosen activities based around my friends niece that we will also enjoy. We have been to Philadelphia in the past and have done Independence Hall, etc. plus my friend's niece will be doing that prior to us getting there.


Friday
Drive to Philly (anticipate a 10:00 arrival - maybe earlier)
Adventure Aquarium
NJ Battleship
Phillies Game (probably a Sports Bar in the city) Any recommendations?

Saturday (seems that the ESP and Zoo are not far apart)
Eastern State Penitentiary Tour. How long does this take?
Philadelphia Zoo
Phillies Game

Sunday
Probably do something downtown before the game. Viewpoint from City Hall?
Phillies Game
Drive home after the game.

Eastern State Penitentiary Tour

There are several tours listed on the website. Some 1 hour; some 30 minutes

I cannot get into the website at work so couldn't find that info.

It is kind of confusing but it looks like their winter tour (which is over now) is 1 hour and their special guided tours (March 15 through November) are about thirty minutes each and are meant to supplement the “Voices of Eastern State” Audio Tour. The special tours are:

Escape!
Mon, Wed & Fri at 4:15 pm
Sat & Sun at 10:15 am and 2:15 pm

Life Behind the Walls
Tue & Thur at 4:15 pm
Sat & Sun at 4:15 pm

Prison Inside a Prison
Mon through Fri at 3:15 pm
Sat & Sun at 12:15 pm and 3:15 pm

142 Years of Architecture
Monday through Friday at 2:15

So I guess you have a choice of just walking around with or without the headset or also taking a special tour

This looks very reasonable as an itinerary.

The Aquarium and Battleship can easily take a couple hours each depending on how thorough you want to be. If you find that you have more time on Friday, consider going across the river to the Independence Seaport Museum. I think it's too early in the season for the water shuttle that runs between here and the Camden waterfront, however, otherwise I'd suggest taking it.

City Hall doesn't appear to be open on the weekend, unfortunately -- and neither is the nearby Masonic Temple. The Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts is close by City Hall, is very good, and open Sundays (at 11 am).

I wonder if you are staying at the Days Inn in Cherry Hill NJ. I don't think there is one in Camden.

Yes, its Cherry Hill. Just realized that.

You're driving from Hartford, then either through or around New York City, then down I-95, and into Cherry Hill, on a weekday morning -- and you think you can do that in five hours?

Possible? Sure -- I've done it myself (more or less). But be prepared for traffic along any part of this journey, and be willing (and ready!) to drive an alternate route if that happens. Fifteen kilometer jam-ups on the New Jersey Turnpike are possible at any time, so you may be forced to take another route just to arrive in Cherry Hill by mid-day.

As for a sports bar in Philly, you can choose either Chickie's & Pete's (note the two apostrophes, and that there are more than one) or the Fox and Hound. The former is more local, so TV crews covering local sports hang out there.

Paul, I definitely agree that it could take longer. Trying to be optimistic.

Will be going around NYC for sure.

Now, we are looking at tacking a day or 2 on the end to go back to DC to finish what we didn't see last year (Arlington Cemetery, Wash. Monument and the National Archives). Probably will take a bus / Amtrak from Philly. May just do a whirlwind day and take a early AM bus down and late bus back on Sunday. Spend that night in Philly then finish what we intended on Sunday on Monday.

If we discussed driving from Philly to DC on a very early Sunday morning (7am or so), is traffic horrific? or is it manageable? What about the return on late Sunday night?

Early Sunday morning heading south probably won't be too bad.
Sunday night from DC to Philly can be a pain

I make the opposite trip sometimes, so I am telling what I see across the highway

I agree that Sunday night north on I-95 can be a trial. I have thus copied these words directly from a tip of mine on another internet travel site:

When I go north from Baltimore or Washington towards Philly on I-95, I always take Exit 77 north on Hiway 24, then US Hiway 1 north towards Philly. You can then take I-476 back to I-95, then continue north to PHL. I have NEVER been stuck on traffic on this detour, and always saved $7 on tolls. If there are no jams, staying on I-95 will save you time. If there ARE jam-ups, it's a no-brainer.

Be sure to fill up before you cross the MD-PA border -- gas becomes scarce and more expensive when you cross into Pennsylvania.

When the bridge over the Susquehanna is jammed, there is no reason to pay $4 to stay in a moving parking lot. Just go around it.

A couple of thoughts - the zoo can get very crowded on a Saturday, especially if the weather is nice. Reading Terminal Market is a good place to visit for lunch, but it also can get crowded on Saturday. The coffee shop Mugshots is right across the street from ESP. It is great for breakfast, but I have never been there for lunch.

On Sunday, the Art Museum is free, and is worth a visit - it is not snobby, and has some pretty cool stuff. I think it opens at 10. You could also do the Art Museum on Saturday and pay the entrance fee. This could be a good alternative to the zoo if it rains.

If you are driving from Hartford on Friday, I think the additional drive to DC on Sunday, although not long, may prove a little tiring.

Good luck and enjoy your trip.

> On Sunday, the Art Museum is free

Unfortunately, according to its internet site

www.philamuseum.org/visit/12-270.html

that is only true on the first Sunday of the month.