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    Emlen Physick Estate

    4.0 (35 reviews)
    Closed 9:00 am - 5:00 pm

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    Emma G.

    Last Saturday, our crew scheduled a dose of spooky history goodness to break up the winery-related debauchery of the weekend. The initial purchase included a tour of the estate (which, based on other reviews and a website description, was supposed to be about 45 minutes in duration), followed by a trolley tour of the historic areas of Cape May right around sundown. I'm a cagey veteran of quite a few ghost tours up and down the Eastern Seaboard, so I was looking forward to the trolley especially. Unfortunately, the trolley part was cancelled I think about a day or so before we were set to go over there due to lack of conductor (driver? not sure what you call them) availability, so we had to settle for just the house tour. It wasn't terrible, but we definitely left feeling vaguely unsatisfied - the lack of the trolley loomed large. The atmosphere was top-notch. We coincidentally ended up over there during some gail/tornado warnings in the area, so the sky looked super ominous and actually opened up about 30 seconds after we left the building. Regardless of the actual weather, the tour was timed so it was pretty dark when it started. Appropriate vibes, in my opinion. We met up with the group outside on the porch, and the tour started shortly thereafter, breaking the pack up into two (about 10 people in each) so we could easily navigate around the first and second floors without too much congestion. The house itself is awesome. I grew up in homes that were built between 1770 and 1860, so I can appreciate the attention to detail and overall character that you just don't get from an 80s bi-level. I'm not an expert on Victorian architecture, but the interior of the house seemed very well-preserved and respected. Some of it looked a little stagey (I have trouble believing, for instance, that the original inhabitants carefully propped their Ouija board on a chair when they weren't using it) but I think that's pretty par for the course and not something I would take points off for. We were also fortunate that it was a little nippy (early April) so the lack of ventilation that you often encounter with these types of homes wasn't a factor. The tour guide was nice but seemed a little unprepared. For instance, at one point I believe in the context of a child passing away in the house, she mentioned that the specific percentage of infant mortality was high and then paused - she didn't remember the number and excused it by saying, "I haven't done this tour in a while," admitting that she hadn't given the tour since last year and couldn't remember all of her notes. Isn't that enough of a reason for a refresher prior to actually handling the tour? Beyond that, I wasn't crazy about the heavy emphasis placed on discussing a ghost hunter that the house hired to look around the premises a few years ago. Regardless of how strongly you believe or don't believe in the paranormal, I'd like to hear more confirmed facts about the history of the house and its inhabitants, not unfounded speculation from a guy who was paid to roam around and locate spirits. I wouldn't have minded just some anecdotal observations from him, but to devote almost half the tour to it seemed excessive. That said, there were a few creepy moments, like when one of my chums was told about a ghost supposedly hanging out in the chair that she was standing near, causing her to slightly hop away from it. The tour itself literally lasted maybe 25 minutes, so I didn't feel like we really got our money's worth (about $15 or so, taking into account the trolley refund), especially since the only reason it technically expanded to 30 minutes was because the host opened the floor up to the group to share ghostly anecdotes. I wasn't anti the anecdotes - in fact, we were all enormously impressed by an adolescent girl who figured out a way to not only drag her dad and sister to Cape May for the sole purpose of ghost hunting, but also got them to get up in the middle of the night with some glowy cat ball things to perform some recon in her hotel ballroom - but I think they should have been a bonus add-on, not officially a way to bloat the tour to a still meager 30 minutes. In hindsight, I wouldn't recommend proceeding with the tour unless the trolley is involved, or the adolescent girl is hired as the guide. I feel like the most important fact I learned on the tour was that cat toys are used to hunt ghosts.

    Jennifer D.

    Beautifully restored estate not to be missed if you're in the Cape May area and appreciate history and architecture. $12 gets you a guided tour of the estate. They also offer a self-guided tour for $10 but the guided tour is the way to go. Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and friendly. The guided tour lasts about 90 minutes and you walk through the 1st and 2nd floor of the estate. Due to fire regulations the 3rd floor is off limits to tours. Many of the furniture pieces are not original to the condition the house was purchased in but they have recreated the period perfectly. Parking is free in the gravel lot. There is also a tea room in the old stables if you're hungry after your tour. All proceeds from the tours go to restoration and maintenance of the property, so it's $12 well spent.

    Stained glass window
    Doug D.

    I can't believe that I had visited Cape May so many times but hadn't come here. This is especially given the fact that I love old houses. Cape May is a touristy town. I think most helpers probably wouldn't want to eat out at restaurants or visit attractions there, albeit with some exceptions. However, the Emlen Physick estate is worthwhile, and it is not touristy. It's actually run by a foundation and volunteers, and its purpose is not to make money. It's to preserve and showcase an estate worth saving. You get a personalized tour of the inside. It's a Victorian mansion, and the richest family in Cape May of the era lived there. Our tour guide was so excited to be giving tours again after the coronavirus shut down. There was just so much to learn about this Victorian mansion in the family that live there. Highly recommend to visit!

    Sheila R.

    We were lucky enough to see the Physick estate during the Christmas holiday season. The house and gift shop were decorated beautifully. The gift shop has an amazing train set through a spectacular old village. Wow! To start off, Dr. Physick's grandfather gave his grandson the family fortune after he graduated from medical school. The grandfather was an amazing doctor who operated on a few of our presidents and their families. He was considered the father of surgery. Fast forward to the entitled Emlyn, who never practiced a day once he received his inheritance. The Physick estate is truly a lavish home of the rich. Very fascinating to see what the best of the best looked like years ago. It is an amazing part of history that is owned by Cape may, but has to be supported through the money it earns from tours and donations. The group in charge of this also cares for the lighthouse and the WWII lookout tower. All great things to see in Cape may.

    Donna P.

    Girls week, why not go on the haunted trolley tour. Cold October night and they had the trolley sides open we were beyond freezing so dress warm and you will be fine. Extremely interesting tour of haunted places in Cape May. They stop briefly at each house or hotel and the guide tells some interesting history of hauntings. I totally enjoyed it more than I thought I would. Best time is to do at Halloween and get In the spirit. Go early enough and do the haunted estate tour and follow with the trolley ride. Drink some wine before too to get you in a silly mood. We had lots of fun.

    The house
    Juliane L.

    Very cool activity to do while in Cape May. It is suited for all ages, you will learn a lot about Doctor Physick, his life and the life of the middle upper class back in the 1880s', without being bored or overwhelmed. I loved the time spent on relating the architecture and the decorating details to what it meant for people then. For example, the entryway of the house was always very lusciously decorated for show off wealth for visitors, but the rooms and the family areas were a lot more simple and light. I was stunned to learn that women had to learn to play an instrument just to keep their home quiet and that they were considered to be the cool thing in town when they knew taxidermy. Ha! We learned a lot of cool facts from the life of our peers from over a 100 years ago. It's your turn to find out about the quirky objects in the house and about the customs of our (not too far away) ancestors. The MAC society in charge of preserving the historical landmarks of the town is doing an amazing job.

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    8 months ago

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    2 years ago

    Great tour led by informative and very interesting tour guides. They made the tour so much fun!

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    8 years ago

    The tour was amazing. Ginger portrayed Emlen's mother and she was great. I highly recommend this tour.

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    15 years ago

    While the tour was interesting, I did not really learn that much. Beautiful stuff without much context.

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    Ask the Community - Emlen Physick Estate

    Review Highlights - Emlen Physick Estate

    Did not tour the mansion but came to see it - amazing architecture & the gift shop & attached tearoom are fantastic.

    Mentioned in 3 reviews

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    Cape May MAC

    Cape May MAC

    (21 reviews)

    We were extremely disappointed with the Christmas walking tour. We were told to come anytime after…read more530 and that it was a walking tour. We got there at 630 to find out we only had until 730pm to do the tour. Furthermore, we were told only 5 homes were open on the night of our tour, and that only *2* of them were actually walking distance, in opposite directions. We had driven around for 20 minutes looking for parking for our group with 2 cars and 3 strollers, so there was no chance we were going to be able to load up to drive to another home, because the starting point was in Cape May Proper on the Washington Mall. The first house we went to was not Victorian, it was very very modern and newly redone, and decorated for the NBA because the owner became an NBA player, which was great- but not festive in the least. At that point we didn't have time to trek the opposite direction for house #2. The entire trip was a bust. We came to town for this tour which was advertised as walking tour of Cape May *Victorian* homes decorated for Christmas. We got none of the things advertised and paid $350 for the 8 tickets. The worst part is when I called to explain the chain of unfortunate events, saying 4 of us will definitely try another tour in the future but that this was not what we paid for, the director of MAC events, Janice, argued on the phone with me for 5 minutes over and over again. I kept explaining our experience above and she just kept arguing about what the tour is supposed to be- not what we received. I said we need a refund in order to give future tours a try. She finally relented and agreed to a refund, and when I thanked her she hung up on me- clearly a reflection of how they value the customer experience at MAC. Regardless of her unprofessional behavior, we will give a different tour another try. We will definitely be cautious in trying future tours but would never recommend the Christmas walking tour one to anyone.

    We decided to devote one day to being 'touristy' in CM & spent a Sunday in July checking out all…read morethe local places. This trolley tour did not disappoint at all! The guide was extremely knowledgeable & kudos to the driver, CM is rich in history & there were plenty of great stories told. We took the basic show us all around CM tour & tell us about the homes & characters that lived here many moons ago. The homes are really gorgeous to look at & since this was only day 2 of our vaca we could appreciate it all the more later on during the week while walking. A thoroughly enjoyable way to learn the history of CM, highly recommend & reasonable price per ticket.

    Cape May Point Science Center

    Cape May Point Science Center

    (1 review)

    Considering they've only bern open for one month at the time of this review (July 2023), they've…read moredone a nice job creating this public tour. The Cape May Point Science Center is located in the former St. Mary's Retreat, run for a century by the Sisters of St. Joseph. The Sisters are a quiet Roman Catholic group, and they reject any display of material wealth. As a result, the 38,000 square foot building is largely as it was at the turn of the 20th century, with modest improvements and careful maintenance. I admit half the reason I signed up for a tour was to get a look inside. The Sisters did not give tours, run layperson retreats or welcome outside visitors. The Science Center is now working to use the space for environmental study and education. Cape May is a key area for migratory bird traffic as well as being in a location that has both bay and ocean marine environments. During the tour they talked about how these are connected- for example, each spring, horseshoe crabs come ashore to lay eggs, which migrating birds stop and eat. The tour consists first of the history of the building, (before it was a retreat it was a home for aged and I'll former slaves, and, before that a hotel) then to the ecological and scientific studies ongoing. They host different community events from yoga and nature journaling to night sky viewing. I'm looking forward to their adding curation as they grow. It was an interesting tour where I learned a good bit, seeing part of the interior and the tranquil courtyard was also quite cool.

    From the owner: The Cape May Point Science Center is dedicated to providing unique opportunities and funding for…read moreenvironmental advocacy, education, and research.

    Emlen Physick Estate - museums - Updated May 2026

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