Press Release

WHAT'S NEWS IN PHILADELPHIA AND ITS COUNTRYSIDE^(tm)?
Winter 2005 And Beyond

Winter 2005-2006 :

Philadelphia Is Party Central For Ben Franklin’s 300th Birthday Bash
During Benjamin Franklin’s 300th birthday year, no one will be feting Franklin quite like Philadelphia, his adopted hometown. Festivities officially kick off in fall 2005, and the centerpiece of the celebration is the Benjamin Franklin: In Search of a Better World exhibition, making its world debut from December 15, 2005 through April 30, 2006 at the National Constitution Center. Historic sites, attractions, restaurants, shops and hotels will get in on the act too with special exhibitions, programs, tours, menus and packages. www.benfranklin300.org

Longwood Gardens

Photo by B. Krist for GPTMC

Longwood Gardens Celebrates A Century In Bloom
In January 2006, Longwood Gardens begins a year-long celebration to commemorate 100 years as the region's horticultural hotspot. Festivities unofficially get underway in October 2005, when the garden unveils one of its largest renovation projects to date. The new East Conservatory will feature a half-acre "Garden Under Glass," complete with Mediterranean and subtropical-climate flora, year-round blooming plants, courtyards and fountains. The Music Room and Ballroom will be restored to their original 1920s splendor, and a new Organ Museum will showcase Longwood's historic 10,010-pipe organ. www.longwoodgardens.com

Body Worlds Makes Its East Coast Debut At The Franklin Institute Science Museum
Gunther von Hagens' Body Worlds: The Anatomical Exhibition of Real Human Bodies, a first-of-its kind exhibition in which visitors learn about anatomy, physiology and health by viewing human bodies preserved through "plastination," makes its East Coast debut at The Franklin Institute Science Museum in October 2005. Approximately 25 human bodies will be on display through April 23, 2006, giving the public a rare opportunity to see up close the relationship between healthy lifestyles and healthy bodies. www.fi.edu

Brandywine Valley Artist's Work On View At Philadelphia Museum Of Art
Fans of Andrew Wyeth can view seven decades of the Pennsylvania artist's work during Andrew Wyeth: Memory and Magic, a retrospective exhibition on display at the Philadelphia Museum of Art from March 29 through July 16, 2006. The show features nearly 100 tempera paintings, watercolors and drawings from Wyeth's personal collection. www.philamuseum.org. Wyeth enthusiasts can enjoy an art lover's perfect weekend by seeing the exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, spending an evening in city and then heading out to the Brandywine Valley, Wyeth's home and often the source of his inspiration. In conjunction with the exhibit, the Brandywine River Museum, regularly displaying three generations of the Wyeth family's work, will host special programming of its own. www.brandywinemuseum.org

Spring 2006 :

New At The Zoo: Big Cat Falls
What's big, cutting edge and coming to the Philadelphia Zoo in spring 2006? Big Cat Falls, a $20 million, 1.7-acre exhibit that will be home to more than a dozen big cats, including African lions, leopards, jaguars, Mountain lions and tigers. Home to five spacious outdoor areas, the exhibit is the first of four major new projects in the works at the zoo designed to showcase the animals in a naturalistic setting, dramatically improve animal care and educate visitors in a compelling manner. www.philadelphiazoo.org. The region's fascination with cats will continue on June 13, 2006, when Disney's The Lion King begins its run at the Academy of Music. The visually stunning, technically astounding production features a spectacle of animals brought to life by a cast of more than 40 actors. www.kimmelcenter.org/broadway

In Tune With The Kimmel Center
The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts celebrates the debut of its new nearly $6.5 million, 7,000-pipe organ with a two-week inaugural festival, May 11-25, 2006. One of the largest of its kind in the world, the 32-ton instrument will be the centerpiece of Verizon Hall, home to the Philadelphia Orchestra and other performing arts groups. Seventeen events will take place over the course of the festival, including orchestral and choral concerts, film screening and special programs for students and families. www.kimmelcenter.org

Summer 2006 :

A New Chapter In The Once Upon A Nation Story Begins In Summer 2006
In May 2005, Once Upon A Nation debuted, giving visitors to Philadelphia's Historic District a chance to hear the nation's greatest untold and undertold tales at 13 storytelling benches in and around Independence Mall. In summer 2006, Once Upon A Nation will begin a new chapter in its story with the re-opening of Franklin Square. In an effort to reclaim green space for Philadelphi a residents and further enliven the Historic District, the newly revitalized Square will open as a legacy to Ben Franklin's year-long 300 th birthday celebration. The space will feature new attractions such as the Liberty Carousel, a Philadelphia-themed miniature golf course, two playgrounds, gardens and improved landscaping, storytelling, craft demonstrations and a renovated Franklin Square Fountain, which will be used for the first time in 30 years. www.onceuponanation.org

2007 :

Last Chance To See King Tut-In Philly
February 2007 is the last chance to see Tutankhamun and The Golden Age of the Pharaohs, a blockbuster exhibition on displayat The Franklin Institute Science Museum from February through September 2007. The exhibit will include 50 major objects excavated from Tut's tomb, including his royal diadem (the gold crown that encircled the head of the king's mummified body), along with more than 70 objects from other royal graves of the 18 th Dynasty. www.fi.edu. The entire Philade lphia region will celebrate Tut's legacy with special exhibits, events and programs. The University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, for example,will host a special exhibit about Tut and the city of Amarna, where the boy king grew up, using artifacts from their expansive Egyptian collection. www.museum.upenn.edu

Also New :

Philly Exclusive: Gifts You'll Find Here And Only Here
Philadelphia offers loads of goodies available exclusively in the region's shops. Abby Kessler and Katie Loftus of Smak Parlour have created their own line of silkscreened tanks and tee-shirts, many printed with photos, embellished with stitching, ribbons, grommets and stones. Jewelry designer-to-the-stars, Keith Scriven may be swamped with high-end custom designs at Scriven, his gallery-like boutique, but he still finds time to fashion his favorite creation, a hand-carved convertible link named "Angela." Each piece embodies nature and craftmanship, with metal and semi-precious or precious stones optional. Graduates of the Transformer and Star Wars figurine crazes can take the next logical step at Ubiq, Philly's street-smart version of Fred Segal. The store's designers have created the first publicly available version of "Penny," a six-inch vinyl ape with an urban attitude.

Dining Do's In The Philadelphia Region
Devoted foodies are eating up the latest dining trends at Philadelphia-area restaurants. Here's a sampling of what's hot now:

• Beef is the Word - Beef is the number one protein in America. Prospering steakhouses in Philadelphia include Barclay Prime, known for its $100 cheesesteak, Capital Grille, Smith & Wollensky and the Prime Rib.
• High Decor Delivers Dining as Theater - Over-the-top ambiance created by powerhouse designers like Karim Rashid at Morimoto, The Rockwell Group and Todd Oldham at Washington Square and DAS Architects at POD sets the stage for dining drama at restaurants throughout the Philadelphia region.
• Now THAT's Italian - South Philadelphia's red gravy emporiums are the real deal. Dig into a plate of lasagna at Ralph's, Villa di Roma, Dante & Luigi's or one of dozens of other spots in this historically Italian neighborhood.
• Courtyard Cache - Discover restaurants hidden in historic courtyards, including Effie's, serving Greek cuisine in a 19 th-century brownstone; and Le Jardin, a French bistro housed inside the Philadelphia Art Alliance on Rittenhouse Square. Also in the works:

Extreme Hotel Makeovers Philly-Style
The Wyndham Philadelphia at Franklin Plaza recently completed an $11 million dollar renovation, making it the first of several area hotels to dramatically upgrade guest rooms and facilities in order to better accommodate the growing number of tourists to the region. Also in the works...In January 2006, the 19 th floor of the Park Hyatt Philadelphia at The Bellevue will be home to two new restaurants, a nightclub/lounge, a chef's " Viewing Island" and "Market Pantry," a wine room and meeting space. The Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia began a six-month $10 million renovation project that includes the transformation of its 364 guest rooms, each of which will be decorated with new furniture, fabrics, wall coverings and Philadelphia-inspired artwork. And, the modern Loews Philadelphia Hotel is in the midst of a $4.8 million upgrade, including window replacements, new bedding, select furniture, wall coverings and carpeting.

Hot On The Trail
Move over Napa Valley - Bucks County, Pennsylvania is fast becoming one of the premier grape growing regions on the East Coast. Wine lovers visiting this picturesque Philadelphia suburb can easily drive the Bucks County Wine Trail, home to the Sand Castle Winery, Buckingham Valley Vineyards and New Hope Winery, among others. During tours, they'll see how wine is produced, talk with the people who make it and tour the chilled wine cellars before making their way to a quaint Bucks County bed and breakfast. www.buckscountywinetrail.com

City Living Is A Strike For Residents And Visitors To Philadelphia
While tourists are flocking to Philadelphia in record numbers, residents are moving here for good. In recent years, 6,500 new residential units went up-that's 9% population growth since 2000. Where people live, they play, and tourists reap the benefits: restaurants are up 206% since 1992 (199 new ones in 2003), outdoor cafes are everywhere (149 of them), and soon residents and visitors will have three new luxe bowling lanes to choose from. That's a strike for everyone!

The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) builds the region's economy and image through destination marketing to increase the number of visitors, the number of nights they stay and the number of things they do in the five-county region. For more information about travel to Philadelphia, visit www.gophila.com or call the Independence Visitor Center, located in Independence National Historical Park, at (800) 537-7676.

Note to Editors: For photos of Greater Philadelphia, visit our Photo Gallery.

CONTACT:

Cara Schneider, GPTMC
(215) 599-0789, cara@gptmc.com