Fun Tours in Fairmount Park

As the largest landscaped urban park in the country, Fairmount Park is more like a backyard to locals boasting a remarkable array of historic landmarks, playing fields, early-American mansions and many 19th-century Victorian buildings. Whether you're yearning for a historic tour or just want to stretch your legs, Fairmount Park is your ideal destination in Philadelphia.

Curious to know what are residents of the Philadelphia area looking forward most each year? That's the Holiday Tours of the Historic Fairmount Park Houses - a unique holiday tradition in Philadelphia. These holiday tours are a great opportunity for us to explore and appreciate the 18th- century houses in Fairmount Park.

These significant architectural examples of 18th century offer us a unique peek into the rich cultural history of Philadelphia. To escape the ills of urban life such as summer heat and yellow fever, many wealthy people in the area had built retreat homes in Fairmount Park during the 18th and early 19th century. Most of the houses are distributed along banks of Schuylkill River with picturesque views.

Houses on display and house themes of 2001 are as follows:

- Cedar Grove, "Scenes from a Woman's Place"

- Mount Pleasant, "Scenes from a Man's World"

- Lemon Hill, "Jewels in the Park"

- Sweetbriar, "The Midas Touch"

- Laurel Hill, "A Victorian Wedding"

- Woodford, "Twelfth Night"

Cedar Grove and Sweetbriar are on the west side of Schuylkill River, while Mount Pleasant, Lemon Hill, Laurel Hill and Woodford are on the east side. The holiday tours will last from December 1st to 5th and 8th to 12th. During the periods, these six gorgeous houses will be decorated with holiday decor. And there will be docents explaining its unique architecture, rich history and etc.

Want to make a reservation? Trolley tours are available from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm during December 3-5 and 10-12. It will cost each visitor $25 for an two-hour trolley tour. You can call 215-389-8687 to make a reservation or reserve online at:

Make a Reservation

http://www.phillytour.com/products-detail.php?id=29

For further info on Holiday Tours of the Historic Fairmount Park Houses, please visit:

Fairmount Park Tours

http://www.fairmountpark.org/tours.asp

Lace your sneakers for a fitness tour at Fairmount Park!

Boasting 6 golf courses, 34 miles of waterway, 139 picnic sites, 215 miles of recreation trails and 368 play fields, Fairmount Park is the natural gym and recreation center for residents of the Philadelphia area. There you can enjoy a picnic with the embrace of nature, perform all kinds of exercise like jogging, golfing, biking fishing and you name it, or just relax. For team sports, Fairmount Park generously offers fields for baseball, softball, soccer, football, basketball, tennis rugby, cricket and even bocce.

Information at your fingertips:

- Belmont Grove is a great picnic site accommodating large gatherings.

- Take advantage of the new 25-mile Schuylkill River Trail.

- Bicycle and roller blade rental are available at Lloyd Hall.

- Make sure you've observed the park rules when you're in the middle of fun.

To enhance you tour, more info are offered at the following links:

Trail Info

http://www.fairmountpark.org/TrailsIntro.asp

Picnic Info

http://www.fairmountpark.org/PicnicSites.asp