Northwest Airlines Flights from Minneapolis (MSP) to Philadelphia (PHL)
Orbitz is pleased to offer airline tickets on Northwest Airlines, which operates 2 regularly scheduled daily non-stop flights from Minneapolis (MSP) to Philadelphia (PHL), departing between 1:00pm and 7:22pm, and 3 additional non-stop flights, departing between 7:10am and 4:05pm on select days of the week. The average travel time from Minneapolis, MN to Philadelphia, PA is 2 hours and 30 minutes.
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During your Philadelphia vacation, don't miss these great establishments and attractions:
Christ Church
The most beautiful Colonial building north of Market Street has to be Christ Church (1727-54). Its spire gleams white from anywhere in the neighborhood, now that a grassy park and a subway stop have replaced the buildings to the south. The churchyard has benches, tucked under trees or beside brick walls.Christ Church, dating from the apex of English Palladianism, follows the proud and graceful tradition of Christopher Wren's churches in London. As in many of them, the interior spans one large arch, with galleries above the sides as demanded by the Anglican church. Behind the altar, the massive Palladian window -- a central columned arch flanked by proportional rectangles of glass -- was the wonder of worshipers and probably the model for the one in Independence Hall. The main chandelier was brought over from England in 1744. As in King's Chapel in Boston, seating is by pew instead of on open benches -- Washington's seat is marked with a plaque.With all the stones, memorials, and plaques, it's impossible to ignore history here. William Penn was baptized at the font, sent over from All Hallows' Church in London. Penn left the Anglican church at age 23 (he spent most of his 20s in English jails because of it), but his charter included a clause that an Anglican church could be founded if 20 residents requested it, which they did. Socially conscious Philadelphians of the next generations adopted Anglicanism, then switched to Episcopalianism after the Revolution.
Gloria Dei (Old Swedes' Church)
The National Park Service administers this church, the oldest in Pennsylvania (1700). Inside the enclosing walls, you'll think you're in the 18th century, with a miniature parish hall, a rectory, and a graveyard amid the greenery. The one-room museum directly across from the church has a map of the good old days. The simple church interior has plenty of wonderful details. Everybody loves the ship models suspended from the ceiling: The Key of Kalmar and Flying Griffin carried the first Swedish settlers to these shores in 1638. And note the silver crown in the vestry; any woman married here wears it during the ceremony.
Franklin Institute Science Museum
The Franklin Institute Science Museum isn't just kid stuff. All ages love it because it's a thoroughly imaginative trip through the worlds of science that demonstrates the influence of science in our lives. The complex has four parts. The first is the home of the Franklin National Memorial, with a 30-ton statue of its namesake and a collection of authentic Franklin artifacts and possessions.The second part is a collection of science- and technology-oriented exhibition areas, with innovative hands-on displays such as the recent "Titanic" show, from a gigantic walk-through heart (beloved by Philadelphians, and just restored after years of climbing and exploration by curious children) to the Train Factory, an interactive setting where you can play engineer for a 350-ton locomotive. For a hair-raising experience, plug into a Van de Graaff generator at the lightning gallery. On the third floor, an energy hall bursts with Rube Goldberg contraptions, noisemakers, and light shows. The nearby Discovery Theater gives afternoon shows featuring liquid air and other oddities. The fourth floor specializes in astronomy and mathematical puzzles. The basement Fels Planetarium (tel. 215/563-1363), just renovated and accompanied by the new "space station" on the first floor, rounds out the offering here.The third part of the Franklin Institute is the result of an ambitious 1991 campaign, funded by $22 million from the city and state, and $36 million from private donors, to construct the Mandell Futures Center addition. Just past the Franklin National Memorial on the second floor, you'll enter an atrium with cafes, ticket counters, and ramps and stairs leading to the new exhibits. Just beyond is a separate-admission IMAX arena, showing films ranging from undersea explorations to the Rolling Stones in spectacular 70mm format. Eight permanent interactive exhibits, including space, earth, computers, chemistry, and health, take you into the 21st century with Disney World-style pizazz. My personal favorites are "The Sports Challenge," a full body exploration of the science behind popular sports like surfing and rock climbing, a video driving exercise in "Future Vision," "The Jamming Room" of musical synthesizers, and the "See Yourself Age" computer program in "Future and You." The texts throughout are witty and disarming. Quite thrilling is the Skybike, which you can ride along a 1[dp] cable three stories above the Bartol Atrium floor and its huge new sci-store.The fourth section is the 1995 CoreStates Science Park, a collaboration with the Please Touch Museum. It uses the 38,000-square-foot lawn between the two museums -- it's free with admission to the museum. The imaginative urban garden is filled with high-tech play structures, including a high-wire tandem bicycle, 12-foot tire, step-on organ, maze, and optical illusions.Of course, you'll eventually get hungry -- with a family, the institute is a full afternoon. Your choices are excellent: a vending-machine space in the Wawa Lunchroom on the first floor, open only to museum-goers; the all-American-with-a-nutritional-twist Ben's Garden Cafe on the second floor, accessible without museum admission, and open Monday through Friday from 8:30am to 2:30pm and Saturday and Sunday from 9am to 3:30pm; and the Snack-A-Rama in the Mandell Center lobby, open daily from 11am to shortly before museum closing, serving beer and wine. Vendors outside sell Philadelphia soft pretzels with plenty of mustard.Note: Watch for special events at the Franklin Institute on and around Ben Franklin's 300th birthday, Jan 17, 2006. Citywide events are still in the works as we go to print. See www.benfranklin300.org for details.
Comfort Inn Downtown/Historic Area
Comfort Inn at Penn's Landing is the area's only moderately priced waterfront hotel (sometimes offering specials from $69), in a corner of the Old City between I-95 and the Delaware River. It tends to attract a lot of student or senior groups. There is a courtesy shuttle van to Center City, and the cross-town subway line is 2 blocks away. Comfort Inn has been built to airport-area noise specifications, with insulated windows and other features to lessen the din of traffic. The eastern views of the river from the upper floors are stupendous. A complimentary continental breakfast is served in the cocktail lounge. There's a coin laundry on the second floor, and half the rooms are designated for nonsmokers. The fitness room stocks weights and has cardio-fitness machines.
Philadelphia Airport Marriott Hotel
Opened in 1995 and renovated throughout in 2004, this is the only hotel linked by skywalk to Philadelphia International Airport, and the best of the airport options. The facility caters to business travelers with voice mail, speakerphone, free incoming faxes, and two dataport jacks. However, it's not a bad choice for families, since the soundproof rooms are mostly angled away from the runways, and it's very convenient to I-95. When you throw in the very complete fitness center and pool, the pleasant Riverbend restaurant, easy train or bus shuttle into Center City, and frequent weekend packages, it's well worth considering.
Rittenhouse Square Bed and Breakfast
Steps from chic Rittenhouse Square, the pristine park ringed by million-dollar apartments and historic mansions, Rittenhouse Square Bed and Breakfast is the city's best incarnation of a small, European-style luxury hotel. The inn is located at the heart of Center City, a 10-minute walk to the Convention Center, the Franklin Institute, and City Hall, but feels private on its tiny, leafy street a block from Walnut Street's shopping corridor. Set in a large mansion built around 1911, the lobby exudes haute-British style, and wine is served at 5pm. Upstairs, burrow under Frette linens and revel in cream-colored Berber carpets, antiques, and reproductions of Louis XIV and Chippendale furniture in one of 10 surprisingly large guest rooms and suites. Or check e-mail -- the inn is equipped with DSL lines and workstations. All guest rooms have new marble bathrooms, and pastries and fruit are served in the morning from the city's best bakery, Metropolitan, to round out the sophisticated experience -- so much so that children under 12 are not welcome.
