Wow. What a unique, random gem and historic property. What is Fonthill and why is there a castle in…read moreDoylestown, Pennsylvania? Fonthill Castle was the home of archeologist and tile maker Henry Chapman Mercer. (Also in Doylestown are two more Mercer buildings you can tour - the Mercer Museum and the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works building, the business Mercer ran and where most of the tiles in the castle were produced.) Henry Mercer seems like he was an interesting guy, and you can see that in his home - 44 rooms, 18 fireplaces, 200 windows, who knows how many staircases...! And designed and decorated in a way I've never seen anywhere else. The castle is an early example of poured-in-place concrete building and is a mix of Medieval, Gothic, and Byzantine architectural styles. And there are, of course, Moravia tiles (and some historic and international tiles that he collected during his life) throughout the house - almost more than you could imagine. We visited last Saturday to experience their "Fonthill Castle Holiday Lights Meander Experience," which allows you to visit the castle through a self-guided experience (there were staff in various rooms who were happy to answer questions) and enjoy a series of Christmas trees on display throughout the home. I definitely enjoyed the experience but am definitely planning a return visit to see the castle in better light (not at night in the dark - which was perfect for the Christmas tree experience) - they offer 60-minute guided tours though the house for most of the year! The castle is pretty wild, and I look forward to visiting it again and experiencing it in a new way. If you are interested in architecture, art, crafts, the Arts and Crafts design movement, or just quirky, unusual places, definitely add Fonthill to your list and check it out!

Amazing property, it is a hidden gem. Went with my family for the tour and everyone enjoyed it!read more

This review is for the docent-led tour not the museum- which we thought was included in the $15 per…read moreperson fee. Our guide was a very sincere former employee of Bethlehem Steel who started our tour asking if we all were up for an hour and a half walk. We said yes. He started his presentation outside the door of the museum. An hour later we had walked maybe a block up a nondescript driveway as we listened to his stories of mismanagement, nepotism and greed within the company. He also showed pictures and told stories of some of the people who worked there over the years as well as some of the products produced. Some of the stories were interesting but an hours worth standing in the road? I finally asked if we were going to be able to go into some of the deserted fantastic looking buildings - he said no. We left the group and headed off by ourselves and found, across from the Arts Center, a stairway that headed up to the rusted gigantic steel stacks and accompanying infrastructure. Although it was fenced off, it was amazing walking along looking up, down, and around the place, almost close enough to touch. This is what we thought we were going to be learning about on the tour. Did we need to know what each gigantic piece did - not really - Did we waste $30 for the tour - sadly yes. Did we go back to see the museum - no. Will we, most likely not. Should you go? Take a look at the pictures and decide - you don't see this kind of scenery very often.

If you want to learn about industrial history, particularly that of the Lehigh Valley and Bethlehem…read moreSteel, this is the place. I love industry, building, construction, machinery, engineering, etc., so I loved this museum. It's a Smithsonian affiliate, which is great, and they are expanding to a second level. It's across from the old Bethlehem Steel mill, so if you are looking for milltown vibes, this is it. We started with a ~30 minute overview/history of industry in the U.S., which was helpful for context. The docent provides this overview for the lobby exhibits/pre-exhibits. Our docent was fantastic. After that, you are free to move into the main room, which is full of machinery. There was a section on silk-making, which was interesting, as well as about early hot air balloons. You can also go across the street to an elevator, to get great views of the mill and area, but we didn't have time for that. I really appreciated that the learning starts outside, with information plaques and exhibits before you enter. Also, there is a parking lot next to the museum, and the museum is (currently) one level, with a few ramps, so is very accessible, though more seating in the lobby might be helpful. I'm looking forward to returning when the addition is complete.

Climbing the famous "Rocky Steps" in Philly's 93-degree heat made me feel I'd really accomplished…read moresomething when I reached the top. My reward -- a leisurely browse through the air-conditioned Philadelphia Art Museum. Augustus Saint-Gaudens' towering "Diana" sculpture welcomed me, then I gravitated towards familiar favorites: "Little Dancer, Aged Fourteen" by Degas, & Impressionist paintings; Rothko's "Orange, Red, Yellow"; & Diego Rivera murals. During my visit, Van Gogh's "Sunflowers" were temporarily on display, which are a treat to behold, as well as "Rising Up," an exhibit dedicated to boxing in the US & our fascination with the Rocky statue & steps here at the museum. Though the front of the building is iconic, there's a rideshare pick-up/drop-off point at the back West Entrance that's less congested with traffic & requires less walking for those not keen on a 72-step climb.

Nice museum to see a bunch of paintings and history. The prices are $30 for an adult, $28 for a…read moresenior (65+ years old), $14 for a student with valid ID, and $0 for those 18 years old and younger. The fountain out front was turned off. Inside is a ton of American history. Also, Japanese art, European art, and well pretty much art all around the world. Oh, and I love all of the Japanese samurai stuff. It's so cool seeing the armor warriors wore way back in the day when going into battle. Claude Monet, Picasso, Andy Warhol, Salvador Dali, amongst plenty of other famous artists have paintings here. We probably spent 90 minutes to 2 hours in here. That was enough for us. A fun way to start your morning.

What a cool hidden gem in Valley Forge National Park! I took a tour of this museum in November…read more2025. Our tour guide was knowledgeable and intriguing as he guided us around the property and inside the home/studio. Esherick was extremely talented and it was incredible to see his stunning creations. Tips: The tour is inside and outside so dress accordingly. There are steps inside the building. Booking ahead is required and tour group counts are limited.

Visiting the Wharton Esherick Museum in Malvern had been on my to do list for a while, but the…read moretours sell out, and I've missed out on visiting a couple of times! Last week, I planned a last minute day trip to the Philadelphia area and noticed that they had exactly four tickets still open on tours for the rest of the month and they were for the upcoming Saturday at 11am. It was a sign, and I jumped on buying those tickets. How to explain the Wharton Esherick Museum?! Wharton Esherick was an American artist and designer (he's best known for his modernist wood furniture), and - while not a trained architect - he designed this house and studio compound (of four separate buildings) in Malvern to live and work in. By the time he was adding a workshop to the compound in 1955, building codes had made their way into law and Esherick got help from none other than Louis Kahn to help design that building. So what will you see if you visit? Just an incredible home and studio. Esherick was not into straight lines or right angles or wasting perfectly good wood, so the house and studio is an amazing sight: that staircase! the wood floor in the dining room! the concrete extension painted in colors that blend into the natural surroundings! the art and furniture pieces of Esherick's shown throughout the house! It's a hard place to describe, but our tour guide did a marvelous job of teaching us about Esherick and the buildings during our tour, while sharing some woodworking facts and passion, too! Reservations for the tours are required, and they do sell out. Regularly. There's an exhibit on Esherick at the Brandywine right now, and that might be generating more interest than usual in seeing his home and studio - or maybe tours of this amazing place are always this popular?! We did the Experiencing Esherick Tour, which takes you into the home and studio building and lasts about an hour. They offer some specialized tours of more limited days as well - I will definitely be visiting again for the architecture tour which takes you into at least one additional building you don't see on the general tour! The house? Fascinating. Our tour guide? Lovely. The grounds? Beautiful even in December. And a lovely little gift shop in Esherick's old garage where you can do some holiday shopping? Bonus. What's not to love about the Wharton Esherick Museum? I know I'll be returning to bring friends and family to this wonderful place in the future.

Take a guided tour of the Doan Gang: Outlaws of the Revolution immersive exhibit. The time will…read morefly by and you'll learn more about what life was really like during the Revolutionary War than you could possibly imagine!

VERY INTERESTING!!! While visiting my daughter in PA from CA we checked out the Mercer Museum and…read moretruly enjoyed the experience. Plenty of free parking available and Admission @ $20 for adults and $ 17 for Seniors was fair. So much to see and learn, you literally had to look everywhere, no space was left unused! The staff was helpful and insightful and we learned a lot and were impressed with the collection. Down side was elevators we not working which was OK for us but might have been an issue for others. #2 issue was lack of air conditioning in parts of the building. I highly recommend you take the time to see this!

This place feels less like a traditional museum and more like a really cool collection of cars from…read moredifferent eras. There are plenty of photo opportunities, and the plaques give you a lot of interesting information about each vehicle. The old-time cars are fun to see, especially when you start calculating what they would cost today and realize cars ain't cheap no matter what era you at. You can comfortably see everything in about an hour. The staff is friendly, and there is plenty of parking along the side of the building. A fun stop for car fans or anyone who enjoys a quick trip through automotive history.

Great value and gem of a museum! What a wonderful blend of history, mechanics, extremely friendly…read morecar-enthusiast attendants, and diverse amount of hands-on activities for the kids!

Museums are one of my passions. As far as this one goes, it's spectacular…read more Small in stature but packed with a multitude of original works, a few reproductions and personal mementos of the artist, Frank Frazetta. If you're not familiar with his name you've certainly seen some of his art. He was an illustrator and painter whose themes included fantasy and science fiction. His works can be seen on paperback covers, in comic books, album covers and posters. He has worked with Presidents and the Hollywood elite. The museum is run by his son Frank Frazetta Jr and Frank Jr's family. The tour was given by Laura, Frank Sr's daughter in law. His grandchildren work the gift shop counter. The grounds surrounding the museum are private property where Frank lived with his wife, Eleanor. As far as museum experiences go, this was one of my absolute favorites! Having the family telling the history of his life and works was an added bonus you rarely get. As Laura was speaking of her father in law, you got a sense of his humility and love for his family. What a gem, located in the picturesque Pocono Mountain area! Stop by, you won't be disappointed.

Interesting family run museum. Not very big but well curated and full of Frazetta original art and…read morehistory. Definitely take the tour from one of his relatives. Not often that you can get this close to multi-million dollar art and observe so much about one artist.

I came here once in high school and again recently for its community day where it was free…read moreadmission (normally $20 for a ticket). The mutter museum used to be a collection for private medical education at The College of Physicians of Philadelphia. Their main exhibit is the area with red carpet where you can go downstairs and look at all of the displays of human remains, replicas, and health information. They definitely break it down for non health professions to understand. There's a lot of fascinating things that they have preserved and displayed. They also have the Franklin garden, art therapy room, and legionnaires "Philly killer" exhibit. They do have a mini gift store at the front if you want to pop in. Because it is a small museum, I think you could go through the entire museum in about 1.5 hours if you read everything and looked at every exhibit.

Philadelphia was the first hub of modern medicine in the US. It's incredible to just take a few…read moreminutes to really appreciate the magnitude of this. The staff was really nice as we arrived a few minutes after our allotted time on our purchased tickets. I struggled with the tightness of the space. Many specimens required me to squat which may not be possible for other guests. There is so much to see but it's in such a tight space, specifically the first floor. Many of the glass cases were also warped which was not easy on the eyes. The museum has great potential if everything was spaced out more. Given that the space is tight, one felt rushed to read everything because there were other guests shoulder to shoulder trying to experience the space. If you were ever into Ripley's Believe It or Not, check the Mutter Museum out, plenty of unique cases! I felt queasy at times seeing real specimens floating in jars. The pharmaceutical marketing room was intriguing, I love seeing ads from the past!

I have been waiting for this place to reopen since its renovations. They truly did an amazing job…read moreon their redo. From the minute you walk in and see that huge mural on the wall by the entrance , it truly stands out with its vibrant colors, and tiles to the beautiful framed artwork that stands out from room to room, and from artist to artist. If you're handicapped this can be somewhat of a hike, unless you got a spot on the street right across from the entrance like we did. I also recommend if a person can't walk well they use a wheelchair or skip it. There are some areas with stairs while walking so be prepared. If you have small children, a stroller is a must. They do have elevators to get you from floor to floor once you're in the building. It's located on the beautiful campus of Princeton University and it's completely FREE of charge which is unusual nowadays. This is a nonprofit so you can make a donation.It's open from 10-5p every day except Sunday 12-5pm and Friday when they are open 10-8pm. Double check when it's a Holiday, Princeton Art Museum offers over 80,000 ancient and contemporary works. It's a great way to see some amazing art, walk around the campus and take in some amazingly beautiful old building's on the campus. You can walk through town. There are tons of restaurants to choose from and a wonderful artisan ice cream shop. When you arrive at the museum, they have a concierge's desk that you can get a FREE map and ask questions. They have nice bathrooms too.There is also a small gift shop.that sell books, and memorabilia. There's security everywhere. All the guards were very polite and friendly. I got a late start so I didn't see everything, which is ok. I'll definitely be back. Parking is difficult. I suggest parking in a lot a block off Nassau street.. It was only $6.50 for a few hours. If you're lucky enough to get parking spot on the street across from the entrance, it really makes life easier. There is also limited handicapped spots in the lot and on the street.. I highly recommend going on a beautiful sunny day. The campus itself is beautiful. You can take your time and stroll the campus and the Art Museum. There are benches and places to sit in the museum. This is a wonderful place to see and learn about art, culture and history. When you're done you can check out the local bar and restaurant called Dinky's right on the campus. They make all kinds of cool cocktails and serve up some interesting foods.

What a gem hiding on the campus! Can we talk about the artwork in the entranceway. That alone is a…read moreshowstopper. It's like two stories high and just beyond fabulous. If you go into the art museum and go upstairs, you can actually view it from the second floor as well, which is pretty cool and get a closer view of what's up higher. No, we showed up after closing. So we didn't actually get to see the whole collection, but they do have a number of pieces that are out and under a protective glass plane. We saw pieces from Andy Warhol, Singer Sergeant, Rothko, Lichtenstein just to name a few. I cannot even imagine what's in the main collection. If you are visiting Princeton or in the area, you owe yourself a visit to this museum.

VAMPA exceeded our expectations…read more The exhibits are immersive, thought-provoking, and often genuinely eerie, with an impressive collection that explores the line between faith, folklore, and the paranormal. We loved it... VAMPA was my wife's suggestion to check this out, though she was ready to leave before the museum was finished with us. There is an unexpected presence there. Not to be taken lightly. ‍

It's ok, a lot of alleged vampire killing kits and art, not sure how much is historically accurate,…read moreit was cute but not worth $20. In the gift store there are some nice antiques though.