Before my recent long road trip, I completed a Philadelphia day trip. I traveled about 2 1/2 hours to get there, and it’s a doable day trip. In fact, what I realize is that people in the New York to Washington, DC corridor could legitimately do a day trip to Philadelphia. That’s easily tens of millions of people.
So I’ve decided to provide a guide to places you can go while visiting for a day in the City of Brotherly Love.
I visited the Rocky steps at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, and two Philly cheesesteak establishments. I’ll share my experience with these locations and how best to maximize
I’ll provide some additional possibilities at the end to give you additional options to pick and choose.
The Rocky Steps at Philadelphia Museum of Art
The Philadelphia Museum of Art is the location of the iconic steps where Rocky Balboa of the Rocky film series, played by Sylvester Stallone, notably climbed the steps to train to fight his opponents in the boxing ring.
So I decided to re-enact the steps climb myself! Check it out below!
Totally was worth it! There’s an engraving on the ground noting Rocky’s exact feet placement when he reaches the top platform.
Some people came up to me asking if they could assist with the photo shoot. One person stood at the Rocky footprints as I focused the camera so that I could capture the above picture on a timer.
One helped me out with a picture next to a Rocky statue near the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Here’s one of the pictures below.
I appreciated their help, as doing this on my own would have been substantially harder. Of course you have heard stories of people who take a picture and then run with the camera or charge a high fee. That didn’t happen here, but I thought I’d share this experience because it was a change from the assumed narrative.
The main issue you’ll have to worry about with getting a picture on the Rocky steps is parking. There is a parking lot leading up to the art museum, but it is $15 and cash only. I managed to snag a 1-hour spot on Fairmount Ave., about a 5-minute walk to the art museum.
Now if I had more time, I would have visited the museum, but a day trip means you have to pick wisely where you go. So it was on to the next experience: the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall
Liberty Bell and Independence Hall
Overseen by the National Park Service, the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall represent a symbol and location of American freedom.
The Liberty Bell is housed within a white building near Independence Hall. You’ll find lots of historical information about the Liberty Bell here.
Independence Hall is where both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were signed. There are short tours of the two major wings of Independence Hall. My tour guide gave a wonderful overview of the context of the signing of both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
Here is Independence Hall.
You’ll have to go through security checkpoints for both. When I went, I didn’t need a ticket, but other times of the year, you do. Perfect places to visit to declare your independence.
Note that the security guards do not allow you to cross the street along Independence Hall at any place. You have to cross up at the left side of Independence Hall (looking at the photo) at the crosswalk up there.
Philly Cheesesteaks
I also tasted Philly Cheesesteaks from two Philadelphia establishments: Geno’s Steaks and Pat’s King of Steaks, located diagonally across from each other in South Philadelphia.
Both establishments at night bright up this diagonal intersection with neon lights harkening back to the post-World War II diner era.
There’s also plenty of celebrity pictures and local memorabilia.
Geno’s Steaks 
Pat’s King of Steaks
I tasted Philly cheesesteaks with provolone cheese and onions from both establishments at $11 each. Here are the cheesesteaks below.
Upon taste-testing, I liked the meat in Pat’s King of Steaks, but I enjoyed the ambiance of Geno’s Steaks better. I suggest you try both cheesesteaks and also Jim’s Steaks (so far my favorite cheesesteak).
Additional Options
You can also check out the Philadelphia sports teams, the 76ers, the Flyers, the Eagles and the Phillies, depending on whether they are in town and the time of day of their games.
One additional option is to check out CityPass for Philadelphia. You buy a bundle of experiences at a discounted price.
I also saw on the street the National Liberty Museum, which looked very intriguing and interested me as someone who enjoys learning history.
So that’s my guide to a Philadelphia day trip.