Philadelphia and the Countryside - Press Room

Restaurants, Bars & Entertainment:

• 12 Lounge – A full range of appetizers, pizzas, sandwiches, salads, wraps and a complete service bar makes this a pleasant spot to grab some food before a big night out. 4012 Walnut Street, (215) 386-3300
• Abbraccio – This reasonably priced neighborhood restaurant serves southern Italian dishes in its family-friendly dining room and on the outdoor patio. 820 S. 47^th Street, (215) 727-8247, www.abbracciorestaurant.com
• Abyssinia Restaurant & Bar –

New On The Scene
The region’s love affair with Mexican cuisine rages on with newcomer Azul, a 50-seat exposed brick cantina and tequila bar that serves inspired fare like achiote-braised pork enchiladas, chocolate tamales and chili-spiked brunches. Building on the phenomenal success of their Passyunk Cantina Los Caballitos, Dave Frank and Stephen Simons have brought a second location to Northern Liberties. Cantina Dos Segundos boasts a cypress bar lined with premium tequilas, Mexican beer and

People come to Philadelphia year after year to create new holiday memories with the help of the region’s time-tested traditions. Parents who remember standing in awe of the Enchanted Colonial Village at Lit Brother’s department store can take another peek inside the busy bakery, the bustling village store and the seven other restored scenes with their own children at the brand-new Please Touch Museum®. The Holiday Light Show at Macy’s and A Longwood Garden’s Christmas

Southeastern Pennsylvania is continuing to emerge as a major force in the nation’s wine industry. As wineries usher in major changes that promise to significantly enhance their visitors’ experience, Pennsylvania wines as a whole are continuing to make steady gains in quality, quantity and recognition. Over the past eight years, the number of the state’s wineries has doubled, increasing from around 60 in 2000 to 120 today. And, by winning top awards at the prestigious

The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) will join thousands of members of the media at UNITY ‘08: A New Journalism for a Changing World, July 23-27 in Chicago, to promote Philadelphia and The Countryside®. During the five-day convention, GPTMC will host three media receptions in conjunction with the local Philadelphia chapters of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ). Other partners include the National Constitution Center

Wedding bells, the Liberty Bell and a three-day Fourth of July weekend has the hospitality industry still celebrating Independence Day. According to the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) and the Greater Philadelphia Hotel Association (GPHA), Philadelphia hotel occupancy soared to 87% on Friday, July 4, and visitors stayed the weekend with occupancy at 81% on Saturday, July 5. This marks the second year in a row for Fourth of July success for Philadelphia hotels.

IgoUgo travel blog, a partner of Travelocity, named Philadelphia one of  “10 US Cities with Tourism Sites to See” this month. The trip planning Web site called gophila.com, Greater Philadelphia’s official tourism Web site, “undeniably fresh” and “full of multimedia options” and went on to say, “But besides being up-to-date, informative, and easy to use … it’s just plain fun.”

TripAdvisor®, the world’s largest online travel community, recently named Philadelphia’s Independence National Historical Park one of the top three patriotic attractions in the United States. The Web site’s travelers and editors also placed the Statue of Liberty in New York (#1) and the Freedom Trail in Boston (#2) at the head of the list.

In the summer of 2007, Independence National Historical Park welcomed more than
3.7 million visitors, an increase of 19% from the

The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) recently received three awards recognizing the company’s efforts to promote Greater Philadelphia as an incredible, affordable, accessible and desirable destination to leisure tourists. Two of the honors came from local marketing organizations, and one came from Pennsylvania Governor Edward G. Rendell.

• Meryl Levitz, GPTMC’s president & CEO, was inducted into the Keystone Society for Tourism in the leadership category at Destination Pennsylvania: Governor’s Conference on Tourism, taking place

The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) today announced the appointment of Rhonda R. Cohen, Esq. to its Board of Directors, effective immediately. Cohen is a former partner at Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll, LLP, one of the largest law firms in Philadelphia, where she practiced for 20 years before retiring in 2000. Her work focused on federal and state securities laws; mergers and acquisitions; and employee benefit plans, particularly stock-based executive compensation arrangements.

“GPTMC