4 mistakes people make when visiting Philadelphia

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Avoid these four common mistakes and guarantee yourself an amazing Philly experience.

4 mistakes people make when visiting Philadelphia

  1. Not riding public transportation (septa)
  2.  Only exploring one area of the city
  3. Going to Pat’s or Geno’s for anything other than a photo-op
  4. Underestimating Philly’s food/art/music scene 

1. Not riding Public Transportation

Septa isn’t perfect but with a little planning and help from the internet it is a great way to see multiple neighborhoods during your visit. In our opinion, it easily beats out the alternative, which is spending your precious vacation time looking for parking and/or spending your precious vacation money on parking tickets/rideshares. The Real-Time Septa site is our absolute go to when navigating the city via Septa. It allows you to pick the routes you need and see the real time positions of all Septa vehicles. We use this in conjunction with google maps but overall Real-Time Septa has proven to be more accurate. Septa is a relatively easy system to navigate and in conjunction with walking you will able to explore all over Philly like a local.

Take the trolley out to West Philly and visit Abyssinia, The Ethiopian Chicken House, Fuwah and The Ice Cave. Take the Market Frankford Line (MFL) up to Northern Liberties and visit Bourbon and Branch, Urban Village Brewing, Standard Tap, Punch Buggy Brewing and North Bowl then continue to Fishtown to visit Four Humours, Pizzeria Beddia, Murph’s, Middle Child Clubhouse and Barcade. Take the 17 bus all the way from 2nd and Market (Old City) down to Brewery ARS, or take the Broad Street Line (BSL) south to the stadiums for a game or north to South for some live Jazz and tasty food. There are so many wonderful options along various Septa routes, do yourself a favor and explore our wonderful city! We are so much more than just Rocky and the Liberty Bell.

2. Exploring only one neighborhood

Philly is a city of neighborhoods and no one neighborhood can provide the full Philly experience. Even locals fall into the trap of only exploring/enjoying one neighborhood. Philly isn’t all that large but people find their comfort zone and forget that they can travel 4 miles or less and experience a completely different side of Philly. I think we had a great advantage moving up from Atlanta. Atlanta is sprawling and you drive 25 miles just to get somewhere you didn’t even really want to go. So, when we got to Philly and you didn’t need a car and  a ton of amazing experiences were only 4 miles away, we saw it as ridiculously close and jumped at the opportunity to explore. All our Philly friends thought we were wild for choosing to travel from West Philly to Frankford for dinner, a coffee shop or a bar but we did and we were rewarded with amazing treats and fantastic memories.

Pro-Tip: Stay in a neighborhood outside the touristy area(s). This allows you to explore the neighborhood your accommodations are in for a morning stroll, coffee stop, or breakfast and then again for a nightcap.

3. Going to Pat’s or Geno’s for anythiing other than a photo-op

Pat’s and Geno’s is nothing more than a tourist trap that is only worth the picture, if you must go and see it. (Say it again for the people in the back!!!) Don’t waste your money on these sandwiches. There are so many amazing options for an absolutely delicious cheesesteak and while all Philadelphians have their personal favorite, we all agree on one thing- it’s NOT Pat’s or Geno’s!! Below you can see our list in the order of our personal favorites and we tried to name a place in most neighborhoods you might find yourself in while exploring Philly.

  1. Cosmi’s- close to Pats and Geno’s
  2. Saad’s
  3. John’s Roast Pork
  4. Joe’s Steaks + Soda Shop- has delicious veggie options too
  5. Angelo’s Pizzeria
  6. Woodrow’s Sandwich Shop
  7. Oregon Steaks-24hrs
  8. Oh Brother
  9. Jaxx Steaks Taproom
  10. Pizza Plus- favorite veggie cheesesteak- make sure to get real cheese if you aren’t vegan

4. Underestimating the food/art/music scene

Don’t think you have to wait for NYC to be wowed by the food/art/music scene. Philly is incredible and holds its own against any US city. One big advantage is that it is a compact city and therefore it is easy to hit up several top-rated spots in one night. We love visiting NYC but depending on where you live it can take people living NYC longer to get to a spot across the city than it takes us to get from Philly to NYC (1.5hr Amtrak). One of my favorite parts of the Philly food/art/Music scene is that you can find exceptional options at every price point. You don’t have to drop $500 for an unforgettable meal but you certainly can if you so desire. In that same vein, you can buy tickets to go to one of our many impressive art museums or you can download a mural mile route and enjoy a free self guided walking tour of the murals around the city. Bottomline -Philly provides unforgettable experiences at every price point without the crowds and travel time of NYC!

Pro-Tip: Always, Always, ALWAYS check for reservations at HerPlace when you are planning a trip to Philly. They are hard to come by but it is a dining experience you don’t want to miss. Reservations open at 6pm on Sundays (via Tock) and they have walk-ins Mondays only from 5pm-9pm.

 

 

 

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