For the uninitiated, Pennsylvania’s largest city is a first-visit delight: endless history, incredible and plentiful art, a rousing bar scene, trendy restaurants, and plenty of good-looking guys who know how to show a visitor around town. This is, after all, the City of Brotherly Love. And after a long weekend in Philly, you’ll likely come to love it as well.
Boys in the Hood
As walkable as Boston, with the brisk pace and edge of New York City (witness the cabbies and street vendors) and, like Washington D.C., rich in the arts and culture, Philadelphia manages to combine an East Coast attitude with a distinct gay sensibility, (notably in the “Gayborhood,” a swatch of downtown (a.k.a., Center City) bounded roughly by Broad and 12th and from Pine over to Walnut).
Pine Street, nicknamed Antique Row, has lately skewed more to upscale home furnishings, with shops like Matthew Izzo (928 Pine St.) and Metro Living (218 South 12th St.) offering everything from lighting and scented candles to groovy chairs and stemware. Happy hour kicks off the bar scene, which stays hot until closing time (2 a.m.). The crowds are friendly, the bartenders generous, and fortunately, most of the popular stops lie within a pub crawl of each other.
Art, History and Shopping Aplenty!
The big draw for most folks remains the revamped Independence Mall, home to the Liberty Bell, National Constitution Center and Independence Hall, and site of some of the first gay rights demonstrations back in the mid-1960s. The user-friendly setup steers visitors through key moments in the city’s (and U.S.) history–signing the Declaration of Independence, ratifying the constitution–via a smart, well-paced format, with a chance to gawk at (but don’t dare touch) the world’s most famous ding-dong.
Art aficionados, need to make a list and plan ahead. For the much sought-after Barnes Foundation (610-667-0290) in nearby Merion and its dazzling collection of Impressionist treasures, reserve tickets and a few hours visiting time well in advance. 
The Rodin Museum (215-763-8101), with some
120 indoor/outside works by the master sculptor, is also a must-see. Eastern State Penitentiary (215-236-3300), dating back to 1829, offers insight into the Quakers’ vision of B&D, while the mesmerizing Mutter Museum (215-563-3737) delivers a David Cronenberg-like trip down medical-oddity lane.
Culture of a shopping sort can be found in various locales. For high-end fashion and accessories, try the shops and boutiques lining Chestnut Street and Rittenhouse Square. For a slice of hoi-polloi and Philly’s famous cheesesteak, South Street rules, with Geno’s Steaks (at 219 S. 9th) and an endless number of tattoo, leather, music and art stores to get lost in.
BASICS
Access
Philadelphia International Airport, eight miles from downtown, offers numerous flights from 30 airlines. Cab fare to Center City is $25, with mass transit (buses and rail) available. AMTRAK also stops across the Schuylkill River in University City, A five-minute ride from Center City by subway or cab. Airport rental cars are plentiful, but taxes and fees can add 30 percent, while downtown hotels can charge $20-$30 a night for parking above their room rate.
Scenes:
Bump, 1234 Locust Street (at 13th); (215) 732-1800. Glows with cool lighting, hip house tunes, and the slightly stubbled 25-35 crowd. Happy hours are memorable for the cute suits sipping martinis and cosmos.
12th Air Command, 254 South 12th Street (between Locust and Spruce); (215) 545-8088. Three levels and a broad welcome mat: leather, tats, karaoke, muscle, dancing, pool, pinball, and Sandy Beach’s USO-inspired drag show.
Woody’s, 202 South 13th Street; (215) 545-1893. Philly’s gay Grand Dame: three floors of Cheers-style hangout space for all ages, with videos and a top-floor dance room.
Stays
Sofitel Philadelphia, 120 South 17th Street; (215) 569-8300. Philly’s former Stock Exchange, converted to a snazzy, Euro-elegant boutique hotel. The metrosexy lounge sports floor-to-ceiling windows, ideal for eyeing the passing eye-candy.
The Alexander Inn, 301 South 12th Street (at Spruce); (215) 265-2590.
