Philadelphia and the Countryside - Press Room

New Year’s Day is about celebrating, and there’s no better place to fete than at the Philadelphia’s Mummers Parade, a 110-year-old tradition in which 10,000 men and women dressed in colorfully lavish costumes twirl, sashay, pirouette and strut up one of the city’s main streets. An unforgettably wild ritual, the parade and subsequent performances are all family friendly, yet exciting enough to entertain everybody. While a carnival-like atmosphere welcomes anyone who decides to stop by at the last minute, a little advance preparation guarantees a clear view. Better still, spending the night in the city ensures an early start to

The Christmas season really is the most wonderful time of the year in Philadelphia and The Countryside®, where families partake in old and new traditions to make happy holiday memories. 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 Please Touch Museum®. Or, they can start a new holiday tradition when they catch The Comcast Holiday Spectacular on the 2,000-square-foot LED screen inside the 57-story Comcast Center. And, of

Consider yourself warned: Dracula is taking over Philadelphia this Halloween season, along with Edgar Allan Poe, a Sphinx and other thrill-ebrities who will wreak delightfully scary havoc with ghoulish events and ghostly attractions throughout the region. Dracula events range from kid-friendly treats at Sesame Place during The Count’s Halloween Spooktacular to a six-hour vampire dance party at Shampoo Nightclub to a Dracula Parade with larger-than-life puppets. Ghost tours, scarecrow festivals, haunted houses and dinner in a cemetery round out the region’s Halloween offerings.

Thrill seekers who book one of the 80 featured hotel packages on gophila.com/withlove will receive a special

It’s the time of year when visitors wander the cobblestone streets of Historic Philadelphia and ask the question, are they or aren’t they…haunted. Halloween offers lots of “Poe-tential” for literary encounters with spooky characters, as well as family-friendly ghosts and goblins who some think still inhabit the centuries-old neighborhood.

Halloween enthusiasts who book one of the 80 featured hotel packages on gophila.com/withlove will receive a special treat at check-in. The giveaway includes a Philadelphia Privileges coupon book, a five-pack of With Love postcards, a With Love pin and Philly Fill-Ins word games, along with other brochures, coupons and maps. After

Art lovers, garden enthusiasts, film connoisseurs and sports fans keep coming back year after year for festivals, sporting events, art shows, parades and cultural events in Philadelphia. Here’s what’s going on in the region in 2010*:

January:

• Thousands of decorative strutters kick off the New Year by marching up Broad Street in the festive day-long Mummers Parade that ends with the Fancy Brigade Finale at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. January 1, 2010. phillymummers.com

February:

• The Pennsylvania Convention Center is the site of the Philadelphia International Flower Show, the oldest and largest indoor show of its kind. The annual

As summer’s high temperatures subside and leaves turn red, orange and yellow, Philadelphia and The Countryside® welcomes autumn with special exhibitions, Halloween haunts and all-ages annual events. Princess Diana, Jim Henson, Henri Matisse, George Washington Carver and Barkley L. Hendricks lead the lineup, which also includes Body Worlds 2 at The Franklin Institute Science Museum, tattoos galore at the Independence Seaport Museum, Eastern State Penitentiary’s Terror Behind the Walls, fall festivals and much more.

Fall Into A Philadelphia Hotel:
As part of the new With Love, Philadelphia XOXO™ campaign, fall-loving visitors who book one of the 80 featured packages

NOTE: Click here for the Sunoco Welcome America! media credential form.

This is a Sunoco Welcome America! press release.

Spirited summer family fun in Philadelphia keeps marching on with the annual Sunoco Welcome America! festival. Visitors to the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection will be treated to two consecutive weekends of free, family-friendly activities to ring in our nation’s birthday in grand style, including the culinary delights of the Taste of Philadelphia June 26 - 28 and the grand finale July 4 concert and fireworks on Benjamin Franklin Parkway.

On Saturday, July 4, platinum-selling, Grammy Award-winning artist Sheryl

This summer, Historic Philadelphia is home to brand-new attractions, activities and events, including the provocative new exhibition at The African American Museum in Philadelphia, Audacious Freedom: African Americans in Philadelphia, 1776-1876. After undergoing an extensive renovation, the city’s premier African-American museum will unveil its stunning permanent display on Juneteenth (June 19).

To discover Audacious Freedom and all of the other affordable—or free—attractions in Historic Philadelphia this summer, visitors will have to spend at least two nights. gophila.com lists dozens of affordable hotel packages, including the popular Philly Overnight® Hotel Package, a two-night offer that comes with free hotel parking.

NOTE: Click here for the Sunoco Welcome America! media credential form.

Two weekends of patriotic summer fun add up to one big party when Philadelphia welcomes residents and visitors for the 17^th annual Sunoco Welcome America! festival, celebrating the nation’s birthday in its birthplace. For two weekends, June 26-28 and July 2-4, participants will be treated to fantastic fireworks displays; concerts by big-name performers; lots of free, all-ages activities and parades; and patriotic ceremonies centered around Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell. And with dozens of affordable hotel packages available on gophila.com, the whole family can enjoy every

Long weekends are the perfect time to discover all the things to Love about Philadelphia. Those looking for a three-day escape this winter can take advantage of the popular Philly Overnight® Hotel Package, which comes with an extra incentive this season thanks to the new Love campaign. As always, the two-night offer, available at more than 30 hotels throughout the region, includes free hotel parking (valued at up to $75), a Philadelphia Privileges coupon book and a Philly’s More Fun® teddy bear. What’s more, 100 lucky hotel package buyers who book and redeem their stay before March 16 will be

It doesn’t take a holly, jolly budget to have a holly, jolly holiday—especially in Philadelphia and The Countryside®, where even Ebenezer Scrooge would be impressed with all the budget-conscious ways to celebrate the season. Here are 25 entertaining reasons to make merry in 2008—all while keeping the tab under $25 per person*. Find these experiences on the interactive map on gophila.com/holidays along with plenty of other reasons to get festive in Philly this year.

*Events are free unless otherwise noted.

Thanksgiving Merriment:

1. Thanksgiving Day Parade – Ring in the season during a grand parade featuring marching bands, performances and

The following itinerary is available on gophila.com/holidays.

LOCATION: Center City, Penn’s Landing, South Philly, Kennett Square

TRANSPORTATION: Foot, taxi or car

DURATION: Two days and two nights

Holiday time is family time, but too often, busy schedules and bustling activities have everyone running in different directions. In 2008, start a new holiday tradition. Head to Philadelphia for a weekend of memory-making, affordable family fun. With the Philly Overnight® Hotel Package available at more than 30 hotels, parking is free so you’re already up to $75 ahead.

NIGHT ONE:
A Show of Lights, Please
5:00 p.m. – After you’ve checked

The following itinerary is available on gophila.com/holidays.

LOCATION: Center City, Penn’s Landing and the Brandywine Valley

TRANSPORTATION: Foot, taxi and car

DURATION: Two days and two nights

Crisp starry skies…cozy firelight dinners…colorful twinkling lights. The holidays are here, and all around Philadelphia, romance is in the air. Time for you and your sweetie to slip away from the holiday hubbub and slip into a romantic getaway. More than 30 area hotels offer two-day packages with free parking, which means you’ll have a little cash left over to splurge on a bottle of champagne and some chocolates.

NIGHT ONE:
Get

Winter may be chillier, but Philadelphia is just getting warmed up with a dozen new reasons to explore the five-county region. This season, visitors can walk through an interactive Chronicles of Narnia exhibition at The Franklin, view Cézanne’s masterful paintings at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and pay homage to iconic historic attractions without the wait. Add the just-reopened Please Touch Museum® in Fairmount Park, swanky new steakhouses, some enticing hotel packages and the season’s long holiday weekends and visitors have the makings of a fun-filled family trip or romantic getaway. Here’s what’s in store for winter 2008-2009:

Museums &

Art lovers, garden enthusiasts, film connoisseurs and sports fans keep coming back year after year for festivals, sporting events, art shows, parades and cultural events in Philadelphia. Here’s what’s going on in the region in 2009:

January 2009:

• Thousands of decorative strutters kick off the New Year by marching up Broad Street in the festive day-long Mummers Parade that ends with the Fancy Brigade Finale at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. January 1, 2009. phillymummers.com
• Making its world debut in Philadelphia, America I AM: The African American Imprint celebrates African-American contributions across 400 years of American history at the National

To mark the 100^th anniversary of Mother’s Day, started by Philadelphia resident and West Virginia native Anna Jarvis to honor her mother Anna Marie, the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) and the Office of the City Representative are organizing the City of Motherly Love" celebration on Saturday, May 10, 2008. The open-to-the-public event will take place at 12:00 noon at the Wanamaker Building, where the first Mother’s Day celebration took place in 1908 thanks to Philadelphia entrepreneur John Wanamaker. (Another Mother’s Day commemoration took place simultaneously in West Virginia.) The building is located at 13th and Market Streets

Really, where better to celebrate America’s birthday than in the city where it all began? New attractions throughout Independence Mall provide visitors with expanded access and unprecedented opportunities to mark the nation’s anniversary. But Sunoco Welcome America!, the week-long citywide birthday bash, is the real reason Philly’s more fun on the Fourth. Check out a dozen of the city’s Independence Day week festivities:

1. Six Days of the Fourth – The Independence Visitor Center celebrates America’s independence with activities before and after the big day. For a behind-the-scenes look at what went on with the Founding Fathers, a Breakfast With