The Ultimate Two-Day Philly Itinerary

Philadelphia (also known as Philly) is well-known for its rich history, culture, art scene, scenic public parks, vibrant neighbourhoods, and world-class museums. There were so many fun things to do in Philly! We also had a good time indulging in the delicious Philly food, and our favourite was definitely the famous Philly cheesesteaks. And of course, being a Rocky fan I had to take a picture with the legendary Rocky Statue. Below is our two-day itinerary for Philly, where we share our favourite attractions and food. You can refer to the maps to see the rough locations of our recommendations.

#Day 1

Morning

Federal Donuts

We woke up early on our first day in Philly, because we had booked a morning tour (9.15am) of the Independence Hall. Still feeling a little groggy, we walked from our hotel (Hotel Sofitel Philadelphia) to Federal Donuts along Sansom Street. This is a very famous donut shop in Philly. I ordered a Cookies and Cream donut ($1.75) which perked me up with its delicious taste.

Historic District

After that we took the SEPTA train to reach Independence Hall in the Historic District. This historic architecture is commonly known as the birthplace of the U.S, because both the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution were signed here. It is listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site. Since I am a history buff, I bought tickets for the guided tour of the building. Since this was such a significant historical site, Raevian begrudgingly joined was happy to join me on the tour too! The tour gave us access to the The Assembly Room. It was quite surreal to be in the room where both the U.S. Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution were adopted. And the Sun Chair here was actually used by George Washington himself.

After the interesting tour, we went to the Liberty Bell Center, home to the famous Liberty Bell. Legend has it that the bell was rung on 4th July 1776 to announce the signing of the Declaration of Independence (though this story is disputed). After entering the center, I managed to squeeze past a small crowd of people to take a decent picture with the bell, before being quickly ushered out by a ranger.

Next, we took a very quick tour of a few more places in the Historic District. First, we went to the Christ Church Burial Ground, where Benjamin Franklin (one of the Founding Fathers of the U.S.) and his wife are buried. We also saw famous institutions and museums like the Benjamin Franklin Museum, US Mint, Federal Reserval Bank, National Constitution Center, African American Museum, National Museum of American Jewish History, and more. We passed by these landmarks but did not go in to explore.

Afternoon

Old City

After an enriching morning learning about U.S. history, we proceeded to the adjacent Old City, a hip neighbourhood known for its great eateries, art galleries, theaters and bustling nightlife. The district exudes an old-world charm with its cobblestone streets and 18th century architecture.

We were famished after our tour of the historic district, so we went to High Street on Market, a cozy American bistro located near the Liberty Bell. It offers American-style sandwiches, pastries, salad, pastas, and alcohol. Food here was pretty good, especially for two hungry tourists. (Located just down the street is the popular Sonny’s Famous Steaks, but we did not have time to check out the cheesesteak here.)

Our tummies satisfied, we went to Elfreth’s Alley. This short alley is famous for being the oldest residential street in the USA, dating back to 1702! It is lined with 18th-century working class houses. It is now a National Historic Landmark. With its quaint Federal-style houses and classic cobblestone pavement, this alley was the perfect Instagram spot. We took many nice OOTD pictures here.

After that, we made our way to Penn’s Landing, a scenic waterfront area along Delaware River. This beautiful area hosts many events and activities against the river backdrop. However, when we visited in April there were no festivities at all. I found out later that most of the fun stuff happen during Summer and Winter. Therefore, make sure you check out the Penn’s Landing event schedule before going down!

South Street

From Penn’s Landing, we took a Lyft ride to South Street. This vibrant area is known for its edgy culture and colourful variety of shops, bars and eateries. Our first stop was Jim’s Steaks, which many people have claimed to sell the best authentic cheesesteaks in Philly! Indeed, the juicy beef paired with savoury cheese and warm soft bread had me finishing the entire sandwich in a matter of minutes. After that, we walked around South Street for a short while to experience the vibe of the place and check out the interesting boutiques and galleries. For our last stop in South Street, we took a Lyft ride to Pat’s King of Steaks, a famous cheesesteak joint known for its rivalry with opposite Geno’s Steaks. I loved the cheesesteak here as well, with the flavours of the beef, onions, cheese and ketchup blending together nicely.

Evening

Philadelphia City Hall

From South Street, we took another Lyft ride to visit the Philadelphia City Hall, a majestic and beautiful Government building built in the Baroque architectural style. This National Historic Landmark was completed in 1901. Just nearby is the Masonic Temple, which serves as the headquarters for a Philly Masonic fraternity. Built in medieval Europe architectural style, it has been called one of the great “wonders” of the Masonic world.

Logan Circle

We walked for about 15 minutes to Logan Circle, a traffic circle with a popular open-space park in the center. We saw the iconic Swann Memorial Fountain, as well as surrounding famous buildings such as the the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter & Paul, the Academy of Natural Sciences and the Franklin Institute.

Rittenhouse Square

Finally, we walked about 10 minutes down to Rittenhouse Square, a small public park surrounded by chic restaurants and elegant boutiques. To end our day, we had made reservations for an al fresco dinner at Parc, a casual french-style bistro. We had the Pommes Frites (french fries), Shrimp Cocktails, and King Crab Leg. We simply loved the fresh juicy shrimps and crabs! And it felt wonderful to dine outdoors in the cool night air. This was one of our most pleasant experiences in Philly. After the meal, it was already quite late and we didn’t want to hang out on the streets for too long. Therefore, we quickly went back to our hotel with satisfied tummies but tired legs.

#Day 2

Morning

Reading Terminal Market

The next day, we woke up excited to continue exploring the rest of Philly. For breakfast, we went to Reading Terminal Market, a large indoor market that Philadelphians visit to buy local produce, poultry, fresh meat, pastries and housewares. There are plenty of awesome eateries here, and our favourite was the Roast Pork Sandwich from Tommy DiNic’s. You can check out our list of five best places to eat in Reading Terminal Market.

Rodin Museum

The Rodin Museum houses the world’s largest collection of Auguste Rodin’s art works outside of Paris. I had taken an elective of Rodin’s works in college, therefore I was pretty excited to visit the museum.

Afternoon

Eastern State Penitentiary

The Eastern State Penitentiary is a former American prison that was operational from 1829 until 1971. It is now a National Historic Landmark. It is famous for being the prison where American gangster Al Capone was held. Nowadays, the prison conducts daily public tours.

Philadelphia Museum of Art

The Philadelphia Museum of Art is a huge art museum that contains over 240,000 art pieces. However, we came here because we wanted to see the famous Rocky Statue and Rocky Steps. The Rocky Steps are the 72 steps leading up to Philadelphia Museum of Art. It was made famous from an iconic scene in the “Rocky” movie, where Rocky ascends the steep steps during his strenuous training. Sadly, the steps were closed when we visited due to the NFL draft taking place here; I guess I was really “lucky” as this was the first time the NFL draft was being held in Philly in more than 50 years. Fortunately, I still managed to see the famous Rocky Statue, located at the bottom right of the steps. I posed with Rocky for several photos, with both my arms held up in victory (like Rocky).

Evening

Fairmount Water Works

From the Rocky Statue, we took a short 10-minute walk to the iconic Fairmount Water Works. This was once Philadelphia’s public water supply center but has ceased operation since 1909. Today, this neo-classical architecture is a popular tourist attraction that houses a restaurant and a museum. We saw many locals having their evening strolls and runs in the surrounding park.

Federal Donuts / Cleavers

We decided to have a pre-dinner snack at Federal Donuts, which we actually visited on our first day to get donuts for breakfast. This time round however, we came back to check out the popular fried chicken, which only starts selling from 11am onwards. We ordered the Half Fried Chicken ($10), which was marinated nicely and had a great savoury flavour. The meat was really succulent too. If you prefer to have cheesesteaks, you can check out the popular Cleavers nearby, a favourite cheesesteak joint of many Philly locals.

Pietro’s Coal Oven Pizzeria

Pietro’s Coal Oven Pizzeria is a classy pizza joint in Philadelphia that has been around since the 1930s. It is located near Rittenhouse Square. We really enjoyed our Margherita Pizza ($14.50), which tasted great with its crispy thin crust and rich flavours of tomatoes and mozzarella. Service and ambience here were wonderful. After the dinner, we went back to our hotel promptly because we needed to catch our early Amtrak train to New York City the next morning. And that was the end of our two fun days in Philly!

Summary

Time	Day 1	Day 2
Morning	Federal Donuts	Reading Terminal Market
Morning	Historic District	Rodin Museum
Afternoon	Old City	Eastern State Penitentiary
Afternoon	South Street	Philadelphia Museum of Art
Evening	Philadelphia City Hall	Fairmount Water Works
Evening	Logan Circle	Federal Donuts / Cleavers
Evening	Rittenhouse Square	Pietro’s Coal Oven Pizzeria

Conclusion

We hope you have enjoyed reading our two-day itinerary of Philadelphia. It should be useful if you are a tourist visiting Philly for the first time. Feel free to ask any questions in the comments section below, and have fun exploring this interesting city!

This article is part of our completely free and fantastic Ultimate Philadelphia Travel Guide for First Timers. Why spend days researching when all your holiday information is simply a click away?