This winter, visitors to the US World Heritage City of Philadelphia can meander through the open-air Christmas Village at the city’s famous Love Park or ice skate with a view at the Blue Cross RiverRink Winterfest on the banks of the Delaware River. Travellers with a love for beer can also join a two-hour ‘Tippler’s Tour’ of Philadelphia’s modern-day and Colonial watering holes and those with a quirky side can enjoy the annual Mummers Parade, where thousands of people decked out in unique and colourful costumers will take to the streets of Philadelphia on New Year’s Day.
Events and attractions in Philadelphia this festive season include:
Christmas Village in Philadelphia at Love Park
Christmas Village in Philadelphia has transformed the city’s famous Love Park into an authentic German Christmas market, playing host to more than 80 vendors from across the world until Christmas Eve. From the wooden booths, local and international merchants will sell traditional gifts and treats, including ornaments, toys, jewellery and artwork. Following a browse of the stalls, holidaymakers are invited to warm up with a glass of mulled wine or hot chocolate under twinkling lights, while enjoying the festively-themed and mouth-watering food. Admission to the Christmas Village in Philadelphia is free, with food, drink and shopping available to purchase.
Ice Skate with a View at the Blue Cross RiverRink Winterfest
Since 1994, Philadelphia’s locals and visitors alike have enjoyed the annual Blue Cross RiverRink Winterfest that opens each year at the city’s waterfront district at Delaware River at Penn’s Landing. Open seven days a week from 29th November 2019 until 8th March 2020, visitors to the Winterfest can ice skate on Philadelphia’s largest ice rink or enjoy food and beverages around festively decorated fire-pits or warming cabins stocked with warm blankets, fireplaces and games. On New Year’s Eve, Philadelphia will also welcome 2020 in style with two sets of firework displays at 6pm and midnight over the Delaware River. Launched from barges in the river, the fireworks are choreographed to unique soundtracks that can be heard from Great Plaza at Penn’s Landing and Wiggins Park in Camden, New Jersey.
Tippler’s Tour: Yuletide Cheers & Beers
Renowned as one of the best beer drinking cities in the United States, Philadelphia will celebrate its Colonial pub culture and beer history this festive season during a weekly tour throughout December titled ‘Tippler’s Tour: Colonial Pub Crawl’. The two-hour walking tour, which is hosted by Historic Philadelphia, will take beer connoisseurs on an adventure into the heart of Colonial Philadelphia’s past with stops at modern-day watering holes and the historic City Tavern, where costumed wait staff serve Colonial-era drinks and desserts. The tour will take place on 5th, 12th, 19th and 26th December at 5:30pm.
Mummers Parade on New Year’s Day
Every New Year’s Day in Philadelphia, thousands of people decked out in colourful costumes strut down the city’s Broad Street for the annual Mummers Parade, which is the oldest continuous folk parade in the United States. Mummers belong to one of 40 clubs that participate in the Philadelphia New Year’s Day parade: some clubs play music, others play for laughs and a few seek to dazzle with elaborate costumes and dance routines. The term “mummer” goes back to medieval times and refers to wearing costumes and pulling pranks. The parade will begin at 9:00am at City Hall and will travel down Broad Street to Washington Avenue, after which the fun will continue during two ticketed shows at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.
