Planning a quick trip to Philly

My family (husband and 2 boys - 9 and 11) will be in town early afternoon on Sunday and leave late morning on Tuesday. We are staying at the Courtyard Marriott on Juniper and are looking to focus on the historic area this trip. I thought we would start our visit at the Independence Visitor Center on Sunday afternoon but I was wondering how much time we should allow for each attraction we%26#39;d like to visit. Our list of attractions include Independence Hall, Liberty Bell, Franklin Square, Betsy Ross House, National Constitution Ctr, Franklin Court and the US Mint. I%26#39;m also wondering if the hotel is walking distance to the historical area. If not, I thought we would use the Phlash. Can anyone tell me where we would pick that up?

If you have any family-friendly,economical restaurant recommendations, I would appreciate those too.

Thanks for the help! The information on this forum has been great!

Planning a quick trip to Philly

The Visitors%26#39; Center is only 8 blocks from your hotel, so it is walkable. If you wish to take the Phlash, there is a stop right by your hotel at Juniper and Market, but it will be going westward toward the Art Museum at that point. To catch it going east toward Independence Park, the closest stop will be at Chestnut and Broad.

Planning a quick trip to Philly

For breakfast/lunch near your hotel Reading Terminal Market would be relatively inexpensive http://www.readingterminalmarket.org/

Also, consider Chinatown for family friendly dining. Everyone has their own favorites. I like Vietnam and Sang Kee Peking Duck...but sometimes it is fun just to walk around and make your choice on the spot

http://www.eatatvietnam.com/welcome.cfm

http://www.phillychinatown.com/sangkee.htm

Pietro%26#39;s is a good place for pizza (and they have other Italian dishes)in a fun atmosphere. Walk west on Walnut St about 3 1/2 blocks from Broad. Afterwards walk another couple of blocks to Rittenhouse Square for people-watching.

http://www.pietrospizza.com/

Eight blocks from the hotel to the Visitor%26#39;s Center is ';walkable'; on a Sunday afternoon, but I doubt that you%26#39;ll want to do it more than once. There are several SEPTA bus routes that stop in front of Macy%26#39;s and go straight down Market St. The bus stop at Macy%26#39;s is closer to the Courtyard than the eastbound Philly Phlash stop, and you%26#39;ll have more bus options to ride.

From your list, I think you%26#39;ll probably spend the most time (maybe 90 minutes) at the National Constitution Center-- a great place!! The other places will vary, depending on crowds and your personal interest. I%26#39;ve heard mixed reviews about the U.S. Mint-- limited access, and not very tourist-friendly.

I STRONGLY URGE YOU TO VISIT the National Liberty Museum at 321 Chestnut St. It%26#39;s one of the most poignant and interesting exhibits I%26#39;ve seen in Philly or elsewhere. Great place for your boys, too.

Although its not in the historic district, the Civil War Museum at 18th %26amp; Pine St. is a well-kept secret and a gold mine of historic war memorabilia. It%26#39;s an old 3-story brownstone house that does private tours, hosts school groups and features period actors. Call ahead and check their schedule.

regarding meals:

For breakfast: I think Courtyard offers a free continental breakfast. But if not, you can get food and snacks at the Reading Terminal Market. If you really want to budget, then buy some lunch meat and make cold-cut sandwiches for lunch later.

For lunch: There%26#39;s an indoor food court located in the Bourse Building at 5th %26amp; Market. And at 435 Chestnut St. there%26#39;s diner restaurant called ';Benny%26#39;s Place';. The menu is simple and definitely cheaper than most of the other nearby restaurants in that area.

For dinner: Try Moriarty%26#39;s at 11th %26amp; Walnut St-- great buffalo wings, and enough menu variety for the kids and very reasonably priced. Across the street from Moriarty%26#39;s is a Chinese restaurant called ';New Heaven';. There%26#39;s also ';Wendy%26#39;s'; and ';Subway'; fast food places on the same block.

';Maggiano%26#39;s'; at 12th %26amp; Filbert is closest to your hotel-- a great family style Italian restaurant, but not cheap. ';Chili%26#39;s';, ';Marathon Grill'; and ';The Hard Rock Cafe'; are very close to your hotel, too. And further up at 18th and Ben Franklin Parkway, there%26#39;s a ';Friday%26#39;s';-- next to the Embassy Suites Hotel.

Just did a three day trip in Philly after 50 years last week and loved it. The Phlash can be picked up right in the Independence Hall area which is where most of your venues are, as well as other places - see here: gophila.com/C/…1303.html.

Do need to tell you that they don%26#39;t allow cameras or cell phones in the U.S. Mint; they%26#39;re are a bit finicky about it and don%26#39;t have temporary storage facilities for them- I thought it was a great site, though. Independence Hall is free, but you need to get tickets at the visitor%26#39;s center. I bypassed the National Constitution Center because I thought the entrance fee was a little steep. I think Betsy Ross is something like $3 a throw and the others are free.

Many of the venues have at least minimal security screenings and/or metal detectors, so keep any large handbags at the hotel unless you don%26#39;t mind them being repeatedly them checked.

Thank you all for the great suggestions and advice. We really appreciate it and are looking forward to the trip even more.