Philly for $3 Parking
About once a year I take a trip into center city Philly. I always try new ways of parking to enjoy the city on a budget. Yesterday I took a trip with my wife to show her the sights. Hoping to make it an especially enjoyable day, I avoided the all day walking trips I tend to make to save on parking. To my surprise, we only spent $3 parking even though we kept the car with us all day.
Past trips to Philly have taught me a number of available parking options in the city. I learned that I can park for free in the University City district and walk from the 30s down to center. I have also tried the valet parking lots that charge less but make you leave your key. I think these have run me about $15 for all day permission and they get me in the teen or 20 blocks from the time I leave the car. Once or twice I have bought the garage parking on Arch street near the intersection of 10th street. It is pricey but super convenient.
Today we went from South Philly to Reading Terminal Market, sampling some of the crucial stops for $3 parking. We went on a Wednesday, and we started the day with a cheesesteak from Geno’s. I parked at 4th and Reed in free two hour parking and we took a twenty minute stroll to lunch. It would have been super easy, but the sun was very hot yesterday. After the steak, we made our way back to the car. I saw a bit of additional free parking, but not many open spots before mine. The art museum steps and the Rocky statue were my wife’s top hopes for the trip so we went there next. We parked across from 1821 Fairmount Ave, right near the Eastern State Penitentiary. Once again, we had two hour free parking. This gave us time to take the twenty minute walk to the Museum steps, pose with Rocky despite the line, goof around on the steps, and return to the car. We even bought a cold drink on the walk and still had half an hour to spare when we got back to the car. There was even more free parking between my spot and the museum. Directly in front of the Eastern State Penitentiary were 3 hour free parking spots. And right around where 25th or so meets Pennsylvania Ave., there were many free spots for the Art Museum. 4 hour spots that would have allowed a relaxed tour inside or a few quick photos around the city.
We thought about ending the day there because it was quite hot and we were convinced we could return to the city another day. But I was reluctant to miss out and suggested we see two more sights from the car. We drove past City Hall and my wife took a glimpse at the famous massive building. Then we drove right up to the Friendship Archway installed at the entrance to Chinatown. I had Jeni step out and snap a photo while I stayed in the car on the side of the road long enough for her to be there. We were accidentally a few blocks from Reading Terminal Market, one of the only other spots we had hoped to see. We drove the length of the market slowly slowly slowly with the telltale windows and signs out our left window. With eyes peeled for a spot, we found one two blocks past the market very near a bowling alley with a massive pin painting to announce its function. It was $3 an hour with a 1 hour limit until 4pm and a 3 hour limit after. We paid for an hour and shopped the market at a leisurely pace.
I am quite happy with our trip from yesterday. We saw a great sampling of the most popular places in the city. We did miss the Love statue as well as the giant game pieces nearby. I am sure that others would recommend more sights, but this was a fabulous start. I will keep building my knowledge of the city, and in the meantime I am glad for any budget Philly tricks anyone can offer.
robertctimlin@gmail.com
