Looking for fun things to do in Philly this weekend? We have you covered.
Halloween Nights at Eastern State Penitentiary
Every year before Halloween, spooky season officially kicks off in Philadelphia with the opening of Halloween Nights at Eastern State Penitentiary.
Halloween Nights in 2023 will ultimately feature three new reimagined experiences, on top of all of the fan favorites coming back from last year. A huge part of the activation is the haunted houses—five to be exact—plus historic tours, museum experiences and seasonal activations in the form of a s’mores lounge, themed bars and performances.
When inside of the ESP, those brave enough to participate can make their way through the Big Top Terror, Nightmares, The Crypt, Machine Shop and Delirium. With Big Top, which was new last year, Philadelphians will find themselves behind the scenes at a sinister carnival, and for Nightmares, also new last year, the scares come in the form of sleep paralysis demons and The Sandman.
However, as a release states, Halloween Nights has also expanded several scare zones throughout the festival for the 2023 season, including a courtyard in the northwest corner of the Penitentiary complex that now allows two paths for visitors to choose from with scary, or less scary as choices.
The Bizarre Bar features some off-the-clock performers from the Big Top, while also sporting carnival-themed food and drinks. At The Bloodline Lounge on the other hand, guests can indulge in vampire-themed food and drinks in this darkly styled watering hole. There’s also the Fair Chance Beer Garden, and it features interactive/educational programs, Detroit-styled pizza from Down North, beer from Triple Bottom Brewery and soft drinks.
Philadelphia True Crime Trolley Tour
Back for another spooky season in Philadelphia, Founding Footsteps is once again launching its fourth season of “The Philadelphia True Crime Tour”—which features live music and storytelling performances on their signature haunted BYOB trolley. As a release states, topics covered range from our nation’s first serial killer, H.H. Holmes, whose misdeeds began and ended in Philly, to an alarming number of serial killers that once called our city home.
Less dark topics include the debate over the city’s famed Barnes Foundation and more. The tour runs Thursdays through Saturdays throughout October. Tickets are $55 and the tour starts and ends at 601 Walnut Street.
Camden Adventure Aquarium Fintastic Fall Days
This activation at the CAA runs through Nov. 5. Fintastic Fall Days features aquatically-themed displays of lit-up gourds showcased throughout the Aquarium, both floating on the surface and sunken deep below among sharks, rays, and other aquatic animals, a release states.
Additionally, Philadelphians can also find hands-on activities for kids like pumpkin slime and other hands-on sensory experiences included with admission, plus a $5 option to paint and take home their own pumpkin masterpieces. The activation will also feature some new food on the menu including sweet potato tots, a smoked maple sausage pizza, a pumpkin fish cone (aka a pumpkin-flavored waffle cone served with vanilla or chocolate soft serve), plus some new pumpkin drinks options served at the Flying Fish beer garden among some of the options.
1 Riverside Drive, Camden, New Jersey, adventureaquarium.com
Philly Magic Tours
If you’re looking for something unique for things to do in Philly, this might be it. The Philly Magic Walking Tours comes from a local award-winning magician, Robert Malissa. This experience is described as combining historic and offbeat locations, theatrical presentations, audience participation, comedy, and jaw-dropping magic tricks performed just a few feet away from participants, according to a release.
The trek will feature eight presentations, and tickets run for $30. A full schedule of available tours can be found online.
Chestnut Hill’s Night of Lights
Now through Saturday, Oct. 14, Philadelphians can head to Germantown Avenue for the spectacle that is the Night of Lights streetscape exhibition.
The annual event from Chestnut Hill Conservancy lets visitors learn about architecture, archives, and local history along Germantown Avenue between Willow Grove Avenue and Bethlehem Pike.
Night of Lights will ultimately transform Chestnut Hill’s main street into a vibrant nightly streetscape exhibition of local histories and illuminated architecture, projecting archival images from the Conservancy’s and other archives through eight storefront windows a release states. Also, colorful lights will highlight often overlooked architectural features of neighboring historic buildings. During the event, each of the eight illuminated windows will present themed slideshows comprising historical images and educational content, which will be projected through storefront windows.
Themes for 2023 span ‘Antique Postcards from the Wissahickon’ from the collections of David Bower and Friends of the Wissahickon, ‘Inspiration by Design’ from the architects who created Chestnut Hill, ‘Lots to Offer’ covering the origins of the Business District parking lots, ‘The Olmsted Legacy in Chestnut Hill’ covering what’s been lost, what survives, plus what might have been, and much more.
