Guides · United States
Philadelphia tickets
Ticket and booking rules for Philadelphia: timed entries, closing days and official links, checked September 2026.
Checked September 2026 against official sources
Philadelphia
Bookings and opening rules
Follow the official link before you buy. Full walking days: Philadelphia itinerary.
Tickets and opening days
- Independence Hall has an open house without tickets from 9:00 to 9:50, ticketed tours every 20 minutes from 10:00 to 16:00 and an expanded ticketed tour at 16:20 (not wheelchair accessible); the Liberty Bell Center is open daily 9:00 to 17:00 with security screening closing at least 5 minutes before, and the Independence Visitor Center daily 9:00 to 18:00 with the National Park Service desk closing at 17:00.Source: National Park Service, Independence NHP operating hours · checked Sep 2026
- Tickets to Independence Hall are free but carry a $1.00 per-ticket administrative fee, reserved through Recreation.gov or by phone up to 30 days in advance, with unbooked tickets released for same-day use and next-day tickets released at 17:00 the evening before; interagency passes do not cover the fee and there are no refunds. Admission to the Liberty Bell Center is free and no tickets are required.Source: National Park Service, Independence Hall tickets and Liberty Bell Center · checked Sep 2026
- The Philadelphia Museum of Art at 2600 Benjamin Franklin Parkway is open Monday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday 10:00 to 17:00 and Friday 10:00 to 20:45, closed Tuesday and Wednesday, with Pay What You Wish Friday Nights extended through spring 2027.Source: Philadelphia Museum of Art, visit · checked Sep 2026
- The Barnes Foundation at 2025 Benjamin Franklin Parkway is open Thursday to Monday 11:00 to 17:00 (10:00 to 11:00 members only), closed July 4, Thanksgiving and Christmas; admission is $30 for adults, $28 for seniors, $5 for college students and for ages 13 to 18, and free for children 12 and under.Source: Barnes Foundation, plan your visit · checked Sep 2026
- Eastern State Penitentiary is open daily 10:00 to 17:00, subject to change; online admission is $21 for adults, $19 for seniors and $17 for college students and youth aged 7 to 17, with door prices $2 higher, and the main audio tour of ten stops lasts about 40 minutes.Source: Eastern State Penitentiary, visit · checked Sep 2026
- Philadelphia's Magic Gardens at 1020 South Street is open Wednesday to Monday 11:00 to 18:00 and closed on Tuesdays, with last admission 15 minutes before closing; timed self-guided general admission is $15 for adults, $12 for students and seniors, $8 for children 6 to 12 and free under 6, and tickets frequently sell out.Source: Philadelphia's Magic Gardens, hours and admission · checked Sep 2026
- Reading Terminal Market at 1136 Arch Street is open daily 8:00 to 18:00.Source: Reading Terminal Market · checked Sep 2026
- The Mütter Museum at 19 South 22nd Street is open Wednesday to Monday 10:00 to 17:00, closed Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year's Day; admission is $25 for adults, $23 for seniors over 65, $20 for students with ID and $20 for youth aged 6 to 17.Source: Mütter Museum, hours and admission · checked Sep 2026
- SEPTA's bus and metro fare is $2.90 per trip with SEPTA Key, contactless or cash; a one-day Convenience Pass is $7.50 and a three-day pass $19.00, and the Airport Line from Center City stations is $8.75.Source: SEPTA, fares · checked Sep 2026
On the day
What to watch at each stop
Independence Hall
- Daily; open house 9:00–9:50 without tickets, tours every 20 minutes 10:00–16:00 with tickets; free, $1 reservation fee on Recreation.gov, tickets required Mar–Dec
Liberty Bell Center
- Daily 9:00–17:00, free, no tickets; security screening closes 5 minutes before
Spruce Street Harbor Park and Penn's Landing
- Free; harbor park open May–Sep, evenings until about 23:00; winterfest with skating Nov–Feb; the Seaport Museum next door is ticketed
Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Rocky steps
- Thu, Sat–Mon 10:00–17:00, Fri 10:00–20:45, closed Tue–Wed; about $30 adults, free under 18, pay what you wish Friday evenings and first Sundays; ticket valid two days and includes the Rodin
Rodin Museum
- Fri–Mon 10:00–17:00, closed Tue–Thu; garden free, museum pay what you wish (suggested about $12) or included with the Museum of Art ticket
Barnes Foundation
- Thu–Mon 11:00–17:00, closed Tue–Wed, July 4, Thanksgiving and Christmas; $30 adults, $28 seniors, $5 students and ages 13–18, free under 13; timed entry, book ahead
Philadelphia's Magic Gardens
- Wed–Mon 11:00–18:00, closed Tue; $15 adults, $12 students and seniors, $8 ages 6–12, free under 6; timed tickets, book ahead; 1020 South Street
Philadelphia City Hall
- Tower tours weekdays from the visitor centre, room 121, timed and a few dollars; courtyard open daily; the interior tour at 12:30 on weekdays
Questions
Quick answers
Which days should I plan around?
Independence Hall is open daily with an open house 9:00 to 9:50 and ticketed tours every 20 minutes from 10:00 to 16:00; tickets are required from March to December and are free with a $1 reservation fee. The Liberty Bell Center is open daily 9:00 to 17:00 without tickets. The Museum of Art is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and open until 20:45 on Fridays with pay-what-you-wish evenings. The Barnes is open Thursday to Monday 11:00 to 17:00. Eastern State is open daily 10:00 to 17:00. The Magic Gardens is closed on Tuesdays. The Mütter is open Wednesday to Monday 10:00 to 17:00. Reading Terminal Market is open daily 8:00 to 18:00. So put the Parkway day on a Thursday to Monday and the South Philly day on any day but Tuesday.
How much do the tickets cost?
Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell are free, the hall's reservation costing $1 a ticket. The Museum of Art is about $30 for adults and free under 18, pay what you wish on Friday nights and the first Sunday of the month, with the Rodin included; the Barnes is $30, $28 for seniors, $5 for students and ages 13 to 18, free under 13; Eastern State is $21 online, $19 seniors, $17 students and children 7 to 17, $2 more at the door; the Museum of the American Revolution about $25 to 27, $14 for ages 6 to 17; the Magic Gardens $15, $12 for students and seniors, $8 for children 6 to 12; the Mütter $25, $23 seniors, $20 students and youth; the City Hall tower a few dollars. Reading Terminal Market, the Italian Market, Elfreth's Alley, Boathouse Row, the parks and the waterfront are free.
How do I get around?
On foot: each day is a 5-to-7-kilometre walk on a flat grid. SEPTA's Market–Frankford and Broad Street subway lines and the buses cost $2.90 a ride, tapped with a contactless bank card or a SEPTA Key card, and a one-day pass is $7.50, a three-day pass $19; the Airport Line train from the airport to Center City is $8.75 and takes 25 minutes. The PHLASH bus loops the sights in season. Indego bikes are everywhere along the river paths. Taxis and the apps work; a car is a parking problem.
The days these rules belong to
3 days in Philadelphia
Philadelphia is a grid, and the three days are three walks. Day one is Old City, where everything sits within a kilometre of Independence Hall; the hall itself needs a timed ticket from March to December, reserved on Recreation.gov for a dollar or picked up at the visitor centre on the morning, and the first hour of the day is an open house without tickets. Day two is the Parkway, 2 km from City Hall to the museum, and the Barnes and the Museum of Art both close on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, so it is a Thursday-to-Monday day; the Magic Gardens closes on Tuesdays and the Mütter on Tuesdays too. Day three is South Street, the Italian Market and back into Center City on foot. SEPTA's buses and subway cost $2.90 a ride with a contactless card and the airport train about $8.75. In 2026 the city is the centre of the 250th-anniversary celebrations and the historic district will be busier than usual, with the FIFA World Cup matches in June and July; book Independence Hall and the Barnes ahead.
