Overview: New Year’s Day is about celebrating, and there’s no better place to fete than at Philadelphia’s Mummers Parade. During the festive, nearly 120-year-old tradition, 10,000 men, women and children dressed in colorfully lavish costumes twirl, sashay, pirouette and strut down one of the city’s main streets. Where to Watch: The 2018 Mummers Parade parade begins at City Hall and continues south to Washington Avenue. While the performers will put on a show throughout the entire shindig, three special performance areas will be designated across Broad Street. Once the Fancy Brigades finish the entire route, they head to the Pennsylvania Convention Center for the Mummers Fancy Brigades Finale performances.
Blue Cross RiverRink Winterfest, Philadelphia’s largest outdoor ice skating rink and winter wonderland, returns for the season on Friday, November 24, 2017 through March 4, 2018. Open seven days a week, including all holidays, this seasonal winter park, includes a beautifully lit landscape featuring a majestic holiday tree, outdoor seating area with fire pits, cozy warming cabins, the Franklin Fountain Confectionary Cabin, the Kids Lodge with arcade games, and a chalet-inspired Lodge with food and beverages from local restaurateurs.
While historical attractions abound in Philly, Independence Hall holds monumental significance to the development of the nation. In 1776, the Founding Fathers signed the Declaration of Independence in the building's Assembly Room. Just 11 years later, representatives from a dozen states met here to lay the framework for the U.S. Constitution. Today, the UNESCO World Heritage Site is the centerpiece of Independence National Historical Park, and guided tours are available year-round.
Today, Reading Terminal Market is once again the gastronomic bazaar that its original planners had envisioned. Many of the historic Market stands survived the reconstruction and are once again filled with local produce, fresh eggs, milk, meats, poultry, seafood, handmade crafts, jewelry, and clothing. The Market is home to more than 80 merchants, two of whom are descendants of the original standholders from a century before. On any given day one can find an eclectic array of fresh baked Amish goods, produce direct from the field, unusual spices, free range meats and poultry, flowers, ethnic foods, and much more.