10 day trip in December

We are coming to Philadelphia for 11 days over Christmas, have booked the Hampton Inn. however having read some comments I am a little concerned about the area as there will be just myself and my daughter, is it okay to walk to places like the Reading Terminal Market or should we go everywhere by taxi ?

Thanks to the kind folks on here I have got list of lots of things to see and do but wondered if there is a craft type shop where I can buy stuff to scrapbook my trip - any advice would be much appreciated.

Finally, for now !!, we are arriving at the Hampton Inn around 11 p.m. is there anywhere really near we can get something to eat ? - a sandwich would be fine - we have a long flight with 3 changes and will be tired !!

Any advice or help on the above would be great - many thanks.

10 day trip in December

Well, the Jhampton Inn is about a block from the Reading Terminal market, so a taxi would be ill advised :) Yes, you can walk everywhere. You just need to be a little more observant after dark. You can go to the Hard Rock Cafe- I think they are still serving food at that time. It%26#39;s about a block or two from the hotel. Chinatown is open late. It%26#39;s about a block or two (okay, maybe 3) from the hotel.

10 day trip in December

The area around the Hampton Inn is quite safe, subject to the normal guidelines about travelling through any big city at night. That area is known as the Center City Special District and features extra security and cleaning. The biggest issue you will encounter in December is thats its gonna be COLD :)

As far as food that late, right near the Hampton is the Marriott hotel, depending on demand, the sports bar in there is usually open later (call to check hours closer to when you come). Don;t let the term sports bar fool you, the food is quite good and fairly reasonable. A lot of options will depend on if you are arriving on a weekday or weekend.

Many thanks for your help and reassurance - we will be arriving on a Sunday around 11p.m.

We are both so looking forward to our trip and can%26#39;t wait to try a ';Philly'; cheesesteak !

One more question if I may, are the shops open later around Christmas time ?

Thanks again.

The stores in town tend to not be open later during the Christmas season (safety concerns, I suspect). Some are, some aren%26#39;t. Most close by 9 except for the independent stores on South Street and a few others scattered around. The stores in the suburbs are open till 10 or 11 PM.

I believe a lot of stores that usually close around 5 or 6 are open late on Wednesday night during the Christmas season. Also, be sure to not miss the Light Show and the Christmas Carol display at Macy%26#39;s.

Sunday around 11PM Might actually be the toughest for food. Worst case, there is a Wawa (24 hour convience store with sandwiches, etc - I worked for them for 13 years you can trust their food) at 11th and Arch.

The stores are open %26#39;later%26#39; that season, but later is relative, probably 9 at most for most of Market and Walnut street stores.

Almost forgot- when you are in the area, try a breakfast treat called ';scrapple';. Tastes like haggis, but is fried, so the texture is different. No wee drams needed, either, just coffee.

owlyn - trying to get them to never come back? :)

Then again, if ya can handle Haggis :)

Loonbeam,

Before I became a vegetarian, I loved scrapple.

I think the two of those might be related :)

Best description of scrapple I ever heard was during the 93 world series... ';Scrapple is the stuff that didn%26#39;t make it into sausage';