This was a fun tour. when we were in Washington DC we learn how the money was made. When we were in New York we learn how the money was being destroyed. All that was left were how the coins were made. This is a self guided tour so you got your own pace, but you get a chance to look above a window down below to the factory flooring and see the coins being produced. Then you can purchase coin that never been to used or touched by anyone read more

Not many places you can see money being made, and luckily in summer they are open Saturdays in addition to weekdays. If they are actually running any coins when you come in is luck of the draw. But it's free and a unique place to check out. There's a small exhibit and a film about the history of the mint that's pretty interesting. No photos allowed in the actual factory. Really big gift shop. Overall, it's worth popping in after you've done the American Revolution type stuff. read more

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Yelp Review 2025 #255: A free activity while in Philly. If you like money (well, coins) and you're curious how it's made, come check this out. When we went here, there was construction happening in front and the entrance but we didn't let that deter us from walking in. You have to go through security and their metal detector is quite sensitive. My boots set it off but I can't really blame them for the right security measures. Although, I don't think it would be the smartest thing to try and steal COINS - just imagine how heavy it would be, and how easily you'd get caught over what? $500 worth of coins?! LOL. There are signs posted to not take pictures - only certain areas. When we visited, they still had the templates for the penny which shortly got discontinued. It's an interesting process making coins. From designing, creating the templates, to actually minting the coins and cooling them down. The glass is thick enough so you don't hear the noise down below as they make the coins. There are special commemorative coins which were cool to see. The gift shop sells a collection of state quarters, special coins, shirts, bags, mugs, magnets, pens, etc. There are restrooms. At the higher floor, you can see a view of the city. read more

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The tour was self-guided and offered an in depth look at how coins are manufactured, as well as the history of the process. A brief, 10-20 minute video was available for viewing and provided valuable insight. The site also included a gift shop. Note that photography is prohibited beyond this point. read more

The United States Mint - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

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We had been warned that this was not the best attraction in town though it is free and doesn't require a ticket or a reservation. Yes it is self guided and entails reading many plaques on the history of producing coins. There are some videos when you are viewing the factory floor that explain what is going on. Even when they are producing coins it is difficult to see what is happening but we still found it mildly interesting and educational. We were there less than 45 minutes. read more

Fun stop if you are in the area. Cool to see how coins are made but they are not always in production so you might just see the machines. Unfortunately you can not take any photos inside. Fun gift shop with collectors coins or trinkets. read more

The United States Mint - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

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I had an amazing time at the U.S. Mint. Located at 151 N. Independence Mall East. This is the site of our nations 1st Mint. It is free to tour. You can't take photos inside the mint. Only in the gift shop. There's high security upon entering. You take a self guided tour learning about the craftsmanship required at all stages of the minting process. We learned how that design the coins, medals and sculptures. How the actual striking details of the coins. It is so much easier today with machinery than back in the day when you had to unroll the silver coin sheets. They were super heavy and sharp. The intricate detail of cutting and designing details. They made coins and medals of each president and humanitarians. Male and Female. We watched gold medal being made from start to finish. We'll definitely bring the grandkids back in the summer. read more

The United States Mint - Wow Presidential 3 inch Bronze Medals $160 - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

It's been a long time since I first visited this US Mint in Philadelphia. It was located across the street from the National Constitution Center. The outside itself was not much to look at. There also was some construction going on around the entrance. Inside had to go through the metal detector and xray of my backpack. Jackets had to be removed as well as Apple watches (unlike the airport). The gift shop was right there and sold quite an assortment of items including gold and platinum coins (a couple to few thousand $$), bags of rolled coins and even collections of old coins like Eisenhower dollars. The second floor was a little dark and covered the succession of US Mints in Philly (the current one was the 4th), information about Fort Knox, gold boom, and coins. The best part was on the third floor where one can walk through the entire coin design review and approval, die making and manufacturing process as well as see the area where medals and other commemorative coins were made. Unfortunately no photos allowed but it was a great view of the entire floor and all the equipment and activities were well documented along with some audio. I toured on a Tuesday morning so there was a lot of activity and workers on the floor. At the end of the third floor, where the windows overlooking the Christ Church Burial Grounds, was an exhibit on how defective or damaged coins were handled, defaced and then recycled. read more

The United States Mint - Entrance and exit to the US Mint's factory tour. - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

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It's time to update the tour here. There's a lot of walking and not a lot of seeing money being made. And they are very strict about not taking pictures inside the building. That being said, it's still a cool place to check out. read more

The United States Mint - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

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I did the mint tour last week and when I was there the facility was not in production for most of the plant. The only thing I could see was a section where they were making large presidential medals. Which was cool to watch. I also enjoyed the short movie about the coin making history. But today I went back bc my little nephew has started a coin collection since I took him to the mint last week. They have a gift shop where you can trade bills for specialty coins and he specifically wanted me to get him coins from the women's series. They had 6 diff coins in 2 coin machines and I only had a $5 and a $10 bill and I didn't want to get tons of coins. I very wrongly assumed that the workers there would not want to assist me. But these women went above and beyond for me. Not only did they change my larger bills for ones so I could get the women coins out of the machine, they also traded me for half dollar coins and a presidential series $1 gold coin. These women were awesome! Thank you, mint workers, for being amazing people and making me an even cooler auntie to one of my favorite kids! read more

Couldn't resist visiting the US Mint in Philadelphia, and learned a lot along the way as we walked through the self-guided tour. Unfortunately, no production was happening on the day we visited, but we could still get a feel for the process by looking at the machinery and exploring the signs that guided the tour along the way. read more

Really unexpected fun activity to take your fellow visitors! It's free, educational, and easy! I came in expecting it to be boring but left finding it interesting. Would definitely recommend to tourists or any Philly locals who haven't yet been! read more

Very cool self guided tour to see how coins are produced. This was great for all ages, kids and adults.

My wife and I brought our 6-year-old daughter here for the first time. She's been very interested in money. If you get there between 9 and 9:50 in the morning you don't need a reservation. We got there a few minutes early and were the first in line. After the short movie, we went up to see the manufacturing floor below. Unfortunately, the nickel and penny lines were off, but it was fun to see coins scattered all over the place. Theer were interesting displays, some interactive like creating your own coin design. You can also see where they make special medals. read more

Cool place if you have a little time. Worth it by far. Learned a lot there. Will miss pennies though.

Let me preface my review by saying I love to see how things work. When I was a kid I disassembled my "Close N Play" record player (to my parents' dismay). I'm a big fan of the TV show "How It's Made". You get the idea. Even though I'm a "native" Philadelphian, was on the required school trips to the nearby Independence Hall, Liberty Bell, Betsy Ross House, etc., and am a huge History Nerd, I somehow never made it to the free tour of the US Mint until this year. Yes, really. I was at the nearby Constitution Center in March for the National HistoryDay Philadelphia region competition. I had free time afterwards, it was a gorgeous day, so I decided to take a walk. I saw the sign for a free tour of the US Mint. Oh, cool. Security consist of metal detectors and X-ray of pocket items. Photographs are not allowed, however I asked the security officers who said anywhere was fine except the factory floor. Cool. First stop was a display in the lobby, which included the only mosaics made by Louis Comfort Tiffany (yes, THE Tiffany of stained glass fame). Up a narrow escalator to the mezzanine, where a nicely done history of the Mint exhibit is. Philadelphia is the site of the very first Mint, by the way. Then up another narrow escalator to learn through exhibits how coins (and things like military medals & such) are made, followed by corridors with glass windows that look out to the manufacturing floor below. It's super cool. Each area is labeled and there are also interactive screens describing the different locations and machines. The workers may even wave to you as you watch. The tour returns you first to the mezzanine so you can view exhibits if you like (or skip them at the beginning), then down another level to the gift shop. All in all it's an informative and entertaining tour. I highly recommend it. read more

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Great free museum in the touristy Old City of Philadelphia! The main attraction is the 3rd floor where you can see the actual coins made to be used by the US Treasury in circulation. The place is quite small but there was very low foot traffic when I went. I went on a weekday at around 3pm and the machines were still running but the factory workers were preparing to leave work, so plan your trip accordingly! The gift shop had some interesting and rare coins for sale that I think would be popular with coin collectors. There is also a coin change exchange machine that gives you new special quarters that just got manufactured for a commemorative event. Great souvenir without spending any money as your bills just get exchanged! So cool! read more

You can't beat a free tour. Lots of really interesting information on the history of the U.S. Mint and how the coins are made. You see the entire process from start to finish, you see people working the floor...it's super neat. They even have lots of older coins on display, going back to the inception of the U.S. Mint. There are no bells & whistles on this tour. If you have kids, they might find it a little boring. But if you're a history nerd and just like to see how things work, then this is a cool one to visit. read more

The United States Mint - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

The United States Mint in Philadelphia was a pretty good tour that was informative, historic and free! This is a self-guided tour that takes you through some small exhibits focused on American currency before the tour then takes you past the working floor of the US Mint. The day we toured it was pretty hot outside so there was a decent crowd of folks partaking in the self-guided tour as a means to cool off but it never felt overly crowded while at the Mint. For someone who enjoys American history and Americana, this tour checked the boxes of being worth doing and I'd recommend checking it out sometime you are in Philly! read more

We were down the street exploring and saw this place and decided to come here. It's completely free and you can't beat that. You do go through a metal detector. It's pretty cool to see how cons are made. My youngest son who's 5 didn't like it much but my teenager loved it. It's not too big so maybe 30 to an hour. It's very educational you learn cool facts. You actually see the belts that have coins. There's a computer where you can design your own coin. Definitely worth checking out! read more

The United States Mint - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

My hubs is a coin collector so of course we had to do a stop here. It's a free tour open to everyone (no reservations needed) and very informative. I am not big into to this subject but even I learned a few things on my visit. If you visit on a day they are doing production you will really be fascinated. There is a gift shop full of all things coins as well. You can't take pictures inside but highly recommend if you need something to do in Philly. read more

Not allowed to take photos inside the mint! But very cool and informative venue. The "museum" here is awesome. It explains things we take for granted--it takes you through a step by step process of how coins are made. There are multiple examples you can touch along the way that clearly illustrate each step of the process. You also get to walk above the mint, behind windows, and see coins being made at every step. This is a free activity, but you must go through security, which is easy and hassle-free. Located near other historical sites, so easy to access by foot if you're doing the tourist thing. Please check the website before going, as city COVID infection rates affect whether or not the mint is open for tours. read more

The United States Mint - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

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Really interesting experience! Got to see how coins are made and everything. It's free and open all day which is great. Only downside was the gift shop staff who weren't very friendly, which was surprising since they sell such cool coins and souvenirs. read more

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Cool place to visit if they have production. Keep in mind that most is automated. They made pennies the day I was there. A bit disappointed you couldn't take photos, but I do feel I learned a lot during my visit. read more

This was one of the best stops. I have made here in Philadelphia. Lots of information on our coins. I have a new appreciation for our coins. I was there on a Saturday at around closing time so I had to rush through. I would love to come back during the week to see all the machines in production read more

The United States Mint - Front of the building! - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

One of currently four mints that the US government has (Philadelphia, West Point, San Francisco, and Denver). Only Philadelphia and Denver currently offer in-person tours of the facilities. If you are already downtown soaking up history why not stop by and see where some of our money is made? The tour is self-guided and lasts about 45 minutes with no reservations required. Open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Entrance closes at 4:15 p.m. Closed federal holidays. Here is link to guide: https://www.usmint.gov/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Philly_MintTour_VERSION1.pdf They also have a little gift shop and if you are interested in buying coins online they have a website. https://catalog.usmint.gov/ Note: all adults will be asked for government issues identification. read more

Visited 2/24/23. If you are interested in numismatics, this is THE place to go in Philadelphia, but you would have already known that and have all the details and wouldn't be reading a Yelp review. Went with someone who is fascinated by the process of minting and so we arrived when it opened. This free self-guided tour is actually relatively educational if you are interested in coins, how coins are made, coin collecting, etc., and takes less than an hour. It's all coins and not paper money, and it's kind of cool to see how coins are designed and then made. In the lobby are several small Tiffany mosaics that are not particularly well lit but I liked seeing them. If you're interested in coins and coin manufacture, or if your kids might be interested in it, it's a worthwhile short stop on a Philadelphia tour. read more

Super cool to see behind the scenes how coins are produced. The self guided tour starts a bit slow I admit. But one you see all the machinery it'll kick up a bunch. Super cool. Very informative! read more

My first museum stop in Philly was the US Mint, one of the two or three in the country where coins are still made. I enjoyed seeing the actually factory with the coin presses, the 1600 degree furnace, etc. There were no photos allowed, so I couldn't record anything. But it was a fun free hour of my time. I did get stuck behind an elementary school field trip, that delayed security a little bit, but hey, it happens. read more

Great time very informative and nice staff to get you into the visiting area . Definitely worth stopping by in Philadelphia.

Went yesterday. It's currently closed (either renovations, or Covid). I would check before going there. PS, they could use a revamp on the self guided tour. read more

Great experience! Free self-guided tour with a great amount of information to walk through some history but more the actual process of making the coins. You also can see the coins being made on the factory floor and there's a gift shop for those looking for different US and coin based gifts. No photography once on the tour. read more

This was the big surprise of the day. We walked in not knowing what to expect and found friendly though thorough police officers greetings us on arrival, a stellar gift shop, and an actual production line view of the minting of the coins. Interesting, fun and informative and close enough to come in en route or returning from a tour of the old city. Highly recommend. read more

Call me a geek, but I get a kick out of looking at how money is made..........after all, the company I work for is in the business of handling money! I was lucky enough to have visited (2) Mints, the first mint I ever went to was in Washington D.C. (back in 1995), as one of my childhood friends hooked me up with a tour, as that time he was living in D.C. and working for the late senator Daniel Akaka. In 2011, my old boss (he's retired now) sent me up to the east coast for work, and I found myself working in New Jersey, & Philadelphia during the summer...........a fun & great experience, and that is how I ended up visiting the United States Mint in Philly............ Honestly, I knew there was a mint in Philadelphia, but I wasn't planning on actually visiting this place, but over the weekend while exploring the beautiful city of Philadelphia, I just so happen to run into this place, so I said to myself - "why not? I'm here already!". Of course since I am in the business of money, you know very well that I had to check out this place! No reservations were needed, as I just walked into the joint. The entire tour is self guided...........and no, you cannot just walk around freely where they make the actual money folks...........otherwise folks will be trying to stuff their pockets full of money! Lol! The tour of the mint itself is in an elevated glass enclosed gallery area, and as you walk, you look down, and you can see the things going on with the process of making money. Don't worry folks, there are signs along the tour, and the signs will explain what's going on in the various areas of the building. While you take the tour, there was a "walkman" like type of thing, where you could wear on your head while taking the tour, as the device gives you a "voice tour" while you walk along the tour............ i'm not sure if there was a charge for the device, but when I took the tour I elected to not to wear this, as the last thing I need is to catch some ookus (head lice) on my head! Lol! The self guided tours are Monday through Friday, 9:00 AM to 4:30 PM, there is no admission fee (Dealages Yo! Free Baby!!!) For Weekends, please call at (215) 408-0114 to see availability. Like I said before, I came here on a weekend (Saturday)............so I guess I just lucked out when I just so happen to run into this place while visiting the city. Also, I just wanted to let you folks know.............once you go inside of the Mint (to take the tour), they DO NOT ALLOW PHOTOS! I swear when I went to the Mint in Washington D.C. back in 1995, I thought they allowed photos, but my memory may be fading.......if it was allowed back then, it was before 9/11, and by the time I saw the Mint in Philadelphia, it was way after 9/11. Posible "no photo" rule due to security??? On the brochure I picked up from the Philadelphia Mint, let me share with you a little about the Mint Story - George Washington was president and Philadelphia was the nation's capital. It was April 2, 1792, and an act of Congress provided for a national coinage and the establishment of the U.S. Mint. The first Mint was erected at 7th and Arch Streets. As the young nation grew, larger Mint buildings were needed. The present Mint, which opened on August 14, 1969 is the fourth in Philadelphia. The Philadelphia Mint is part of a nationwide Treasury agency. From headquarter in Washington D.C., the Director oversees the Mints in Philadelphia, Denver, San Francisco, West Point, and the Bullion Depository at Fort Knox. They said that the huge machines at the Mint can work 24 hours of the day, 5 days a week making coins. There is a process of making a coin, they are - 1. Blanking 2. Annealing, Washing and Drying 3. Riddling 4. Upsetting 5. Striking 6. Inspecting And last of all.............. 7. Counting and Bagging of the coins. A pretty cool place to visit, and I would say a "must see" if you're ever in Philadelphia! Check 'em out gang! No can go wrong! read more

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If your like me... and like factories... and like coins... then the mint is a great place to visit. Today there were very few other visitors so gettin in was easy and I could take all the time I wanted (plus more) to look at the displays and the factory floor. So what was most interesting to me, you ask? Almost everything. The static displays show how coins are designed and how the dies are made. I should have known, but didn't, that even coin design and die making has progressed from a hand-crafted art to computer aided design and CNC. Fascinating. The biographical info on the designers... fascinating. And then there was the factory: Watching a giant crane moving pallets of material... fascinating. Watching rolls of metal getting cut up into little circles... fascinating. Watching the furnaces that annuals the blanks, and machines that plush and upset the blanks... fascinating Watching the conveyors carrying little circles of metal to the minting machines... fascinating. Watching little circles of copper getting smashed into cents... fascinating. Watching the very few employees doing QC checks on the newly minted cents... fascinating. But best of all... in the medallion area they were minting large medallions... one-by-one, by hand. Could see it all: dies, planchets, half-stuck and fully-struck medallions, etc etc. FASCINATING. The gift shop had nice stuff but didn't do much more than browse. Not as fascinating. read more

The United States Mint - Pictures not allowed so this is what was in my pocket at the end of the day - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Currently, there are only 6 US Mints left in the states (San Francisco, Washington DC, Denver, West Point, Fort Knox and Philadelphia). With the other mints, at least half of the nation's circulating coins are struck in this location. To tell if your change was made here, the trademark "P" on your coin will indicate that it was made here in Philadelphia. Free to attend, visitors will be required to go through a brief TSA like security check in which you will need to put your belongings on the belt and walk through the metal detector. My husband and I came here on a Thursday around 1 pm. Please note that this is a self guided tour, with 3 floors (there are escalators and elevators). The gift shop and restrooms are located here (I don't think there are restrooms on the other floors). You will eventually end your tour back down on the first floor. On this first floor and on the second floor, you will see different coin currency that were used in different time periods. There is a short film on the second floor that shows a reenactment of a discussion with Jefferson regarding the system of currency. There is a timeline of significant historical events on the second floor to remind you of the different time periods. Then up to the 3rd floor is where you may spend most of your time, as this is where you get to see how coins are made at this place. The first step starts with creating the design that will go on the coin.Then making the specific die cut to create the actual coin. Then the next step would be blanking, in which coins will be punched out of metal sheets. During the annealing and upsetting stage, the blank coins that were punched out will get prepared to be strike with the design. The blank coins will need to be heated to soften and then are washed and dried. Then the new shiny black coins will roll through the upsetting mill to create a rim around the coin. Then of course the next step would be striking the blank coin with the design. After that, each coin batch of coins will need to be inspected and approved. If not, then rejected coins will be removed and recycled to make new coins. And then lastly, bagging is the last step in which large bags of coins will be filled and prepared to be sent out to the Federal Reserve. On this floor, visitors will be able to get a bird's eye view of the operations floor, behind protective glass in each step. There are videos to help identify each step in the coin making process so you can identify how coins are made down below. Also on this floor are a few interactive displays that include creating a coin's design. If you read everything and watch all of the videos on this floor, it may take 30 minutes. Then once you are done, you can take the stairs back down to the gift shop and exit through there. We spent more time here than we expected and ended up enjoying the process of coin making. Worth a visit if you are in the area. read more

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One of the staples of not only Philly but America, holistically. Being a typical America I have coins and spend them or throw them in my coin jar and don't think twice. The Mint highlights the history of coins and takes visitors down a journey that highlights what is involved in the life cycle and background of coins. The star of the show is the staff member that monitors the tour areas, cleaning the windows and exhibits. I apologize for not knowing his name but he would randomly pop up and quickly strike up a conversation. He was a wealth of knowledge and offered much more than a visitor would learn through the self guided tour. read more

We just so happened to be in the area after seeing the Liberty Bell, so in we went. PARKING: No idea. We were staying in the area so we walked from our hotel. I didn't see any street parking so they must have a private lot. TICKETS: It wasn't busy at all so advanced reservations aren't needed, if they even offer them. Admission is free, and it's a self-guided tour. I for one can't stand using communal equipment (yuck) and listening to audio guides while herding along like cattle, so we stuck to visual aides. I'm sure we would've been better informed but that's the chance we took. THE TOUR: The entire tour was a stroll in an enclosed catwalk that spans the length of the building and overlooks the manufacturing areas, with information signs & displays along the way. Even though we went on a Tuesday, absolutely nothing was going on downstairs in the production areas. We saw lots of dormant machines and thingamabobs, and a few workers walking around. The rest was left up to our imaginations. It was so droll. Allow yourself about an hour to get through. No photos allowed inside. GIFT SHOP: The gift shop sold all kinds of unique items, including untouched coins which my spouse bought a set of that are nicely encased in plastic containers and. that are still sitting in the shopping bag it came in, in the corner of our closet. Also when we were here, they were just winding down on the 50 State Quarters Program, and I was missing the Alaska & Hawaii quarters, so I knew for sure I'd be able to snag some. Wrong! Huh? Are we not at the Mint where they're made? LOL. The worker was nice enough to "check her drawer" for some, but none were found. Oh well, the excitement was fun while it lasted. OVERALL: Free tour! You take your chances on whether you'll see production activity though, even on weekdays. read more

The United States Mint - The place - VN - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

A FREE self-guided mint tour is available ...while you can learn about the process of minting coins there is not a lot of "activity" to see in the mint. It's mainly poster boards of information and while you can look into the mint printing rooms, there's really not much to see (only coins are minted here). No cameras/video are allowed inside the mint just be advised. read more

The same as our last visit three years ago, The Mint is still an awesome place to experience something that very few people actually get to experience, the making of US currency specifically, coinage. The deal is the same: 1. Outside you will be met by security who will do a cursory check of all adult ID's. 2. Go inside and thru the metal detector. (FYI to parents who have kids in strollers, you're going to have to get your kids out as no, you cannot push them + the stroller thru the detector (SMH!). 3. 1st floor has some literature about what goes on here and the ubiquitous gift shop full of overpriced tourist items and Chinese plastic. 4. Up to the 2nd floor which has the small museum area with artifacts from the other three Mint buildings (the current building is #4) along with some neat displays about Fort Knox and a short movie. 5. Up to the 3rd floor which is where all the displays are regarding the actual current coin making process and the large windows looking down on the production floor. We were lucky in that a few minutes after we got there they started up making pennies and of course that's awesome because that's what you're coming here for, right? After that it's back down the escalators which eventually deposit you in the gift shop then back out on the street. One note worthy thing that I'm surprised no one has mentioned yet. If you a Philly sports fan or just a fan of great announcing voices make sure when your up on the 3rd floor by the windows to the production floor you fool around with the video screens that explain the processes that are happening because the guy doing the commentary is none other than the late great Harry Kalas. It would have been awesome if there could be a way to watch the coins somehow leave the floor or building so that he could have thrown in a "That bag's outta here!" When you go: Tour hours are normally Monday-Friday from 9-4:30 although during the summer The Mint is open on Saturdays (just don't go on Saturday expecting to see anything happening because nothing will be) and they really frown on the whole picture thing. For complete information it's still 215-408-0112 or www.usmint.gov/mint_tours/?action=philadelphia read more

The United States Mint - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania