PHL to Independence Hall? (Philadelphia, Reading: storage, airport, train station)

[orbaya]

Hi all!

I have a trip planned for later in the month to go to Washington DC for 7 days. I have been thinking about changing my incoming flight to Philadelphia and checking out Independence Hall, Liberty Bell, etc. Is it possible to get an Uber from PHL to that area? I'm looking into luggage storage apps for the day. Ideally, we'd then take a train to D.C. that evening. Is this something practical to do without a car? We'd land around 7:30AM so we'd have the majority of the day to explore.

According to Google Maps it appears the train ride would be about 3 hours (double the time it takes to fly into PHL!

Is it easy to get to a train station from Independence Hall to travel to D.C.?

Thank you!

[selhars]

Yes. That is very doable. I don't know about the luggage storage part.
But the getting around by a driving service or public transit should be no issue at all.

[mphilly]

Yes, that seems very realistic. If you are taking the train down to dc then my guess is the easiest option is to take an Uber from the airport to 30th street station, leave the bags there (I’m sure they have some type of luggage storage for customers) and then either walk, Uber or take public transit to center city/old city depending on your preference.

[NewtownBucks]

Originally Posted by orbaya

Hi all!

I have a trip planned for later in the month to go to Washington DC for 7 days. I have been thinking about changing my incoming flight to Philadelphia and checking out Independence Hall, Liberty Bell, etc. Is it possible to get an Uber from PHL to that area? I'm looking into luggage storage apps for the day. Ideally, we'd then take a train to D.C. that evening. Is this something practical to do without a car? We'd land around 7:30AM so we'd have the majority of the day to explore.

According to Google Maps it appears the train ride would be about 3 hours (double the time it takes to fly into PHL!

Is it easy to get to a train station from Independence Hall to travel to D.C.?

Thank you!

For a train from DC to Philly (i.e. Amtrak), you'll arrive at 30th Street Station. It's a short & easy ride on the Market-Frankford line from 30th Street to the 5th St/Independence Hall station.

[PHL10]

Originally Posted by mphilly

Yes, that seems very realistic. If you are taking the train down to dc then my guess is the easiest option is to take an Uber from the airport to 30th street station, leave the bags there (I’m sure they have some type of luggage storage for customers) and then either walk, Uber or take public transit to center city/old city depending on your preference.

+1.

Further, if they chose to do so, take Regional Rail from the airport directly to 30th Station and save a few bucks.

[skintreesnail]

Regional rail from PHL is pretty convenient every time I've taken it. There's a stop at each airport terminal. You could take it to Jefferson station and walk a few blocks to the liberty bell. Not sure about luggage though; i wonder if they have lockers at 30th Street and Jefferson station or something; then you could just pick it up later when you head to DC. Looks like they have some service at 30th Street at least:
https://www.amtrak.com/baggage-services

[MarketStEl]

Amtrak does offer luggage storage at William H. Gray 30th Street Station*, so I too would recommend hopping the Airport line there from PHL.

Since the OP will then have to get off the train to check their bags, it might be just as well that they switch to the Market-Frankford Line there, but they could also go back up to the suburban train level and catch any eastbound Regional Rail train to Jefferson Station. It's a slightly longer walk to Independence Hall from there, but they'll have time, and besides, if they'd like to see another famous Philadelphia landmark, Jefferson Station sits right under the Reading Terminal Market, where they could get a bite to eat from any of several prepared-food vendors.

*This is probably the only time you will see me refer to 30th Street Station by its new full formal name. However, both Amtrak and SEPTA will refer to this station as "Gray 30th Street" going forward.

[orbaya]

Thanks everyone! I really appreciate your help!