Historical Tours
For more information, check out our Experiential Brochure.
University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology
Dinner and a MummyHave you ever wondered what hidden artifacts lie behind the locked doors of museums? Now is the time to find out! Be one of the select few to see a rare mummy the Penn Museum has kept locked away for safe keeping. This program includes a special museum dinner, an exclusive “mummy talk,” a behind-the-scenes viewing of mummies, and an introduction to select galleries of the museum. On top of everything else, you can touch the mummy!
Ages: All ages
Tour Length: 90-120 minutes
Tour Price: $40 Adults, $35 Student
Price without Dinner: $20 Adults, $17 Student
Group Size: 30 minimum – no maximum
(Adult and Student menu options differ.)
Uncorking the Past
The history of human civilization is, in many ways, the history of wine, beer, and other alcoholic beverages. Penn Museum‘s Biomolecular Archaeology Laboratory has made international headlines with its discoveries of ancient fermented beverages: from the delectable elixir served at the “King Midas’ Funerary Feast,” to the earliest chemically confirmed alcoholic beverage in the world – a 9,000-year-old rice “wine” from China! The tour concludes with a gallery reception featuring light refreshments, and special tastings of several award-winning Dogfish Head Brewery recreations of some of the ancient brews that Penn Museum archaeochemists have discovered!
Ages: Adults only
Tour Length: 45-60 minutes
Tour Price: $35 (price varies depending upon time and refreshments)
Group Size: 30 minimum
P: 215-746-8183
E: Grouptickets@museum.upenn.edu
W: www.museum.upenn.edu
The Academy of Natural Sciences
Highlights ToursFrom enormous lumbering dinosaurs to tiny delicate butterflies, The Academy (the U.S.’s first natural history museum) contains more than 17 million fossils, birds, insects, plants, fish, shells and dinosaur skeletons. On this private gallery tour, your docent will inform the group on all of the "inside stories" about where their dinosaurs came from, how their dioramas were built, and so much more!
Tour Length: 40 minutes
Tour Price: $75 per person (maximum 20 participants per tour)
Library Tours
Discover some of the most treasured early works of natural history, including an original and complete folio of The Birds of America, which the Academy purchased from John James Audubon himself.
Tour Length: 40 minutes
Tour Price: $75 per person (maximum 20 participants per tour)
Behind-the-Scenes Tours
Explore the Academy's rarely seen collections and current science research areas with a member of their scientific staff on subjects such as Paleontology, Entomolgy, Ornithology, and Malacology. Talk to real scientists about their research and studies that help us understand water quality, biogeochemistry, phycology, fisheries and much more.
Tour Length: 1 hour
Tour Price: $250 per group (maximum 20 participants per tour)
P: 215-299-1153
E: visitorservices@ansp.org
W: www.ansp.org
The Constitutional Walking Tour
The Constitutional Walking Tour & Historical Treasure Hunt ExperienceAfter an informative historic Philadelphia orientation via The Constitutional Walking Tour, groups will participate in an interactive Historical Treasure Hunt hosted by a trained History Hunter. The Treasure Hunt is a great team building and social activity to explore and learn about America's Birthplace. Your experience can also be customized with a "Historic Toast" at City Tavern, a reconstruction of the tavern where delegates of the First and Second Continental Congresses met.
Tour Length: 3 hours
Tour Price: Starting at $30 per person for groups of 25 or more (students $20 per person for groups of 25 or more)
Group Size: 25 people minimum for group rates
Spirits of '76 VIP Ghost Hunt Experience
For groups that are ready to get up close and personal with some ghosts and ghouls, this unique tour takes them on a private expedition of “Haunted Philadelphia,” using ghost hunting equipment such as EMF Detectors, infrared thermometers and other paranormal detection equipment and processes.
Tour Length: 90 minutes
Tour Price: $45 per person (6-24 people); $35 per person (groups of 25-50)
Group Size: 6 - 50 people
Black History Tour and African American Museum Combo Experience
In this immersive experience, groups will become acquainted with Philadelphia’s Black history by visiting 15 historic sites including: the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, Declaration House, President’s House Commemorative Site, Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, and Washington (Congo) Square. Groups will walk to these destinations and stop to explore the African American Museum in Philadelphia. The museum's new core exhibit, Audacious Freedom: African Americans in Philadelphia 1776-1876, recounts the stories and contributions made by people of African descent in Philadelphia.
Tour Length: 2.5 Hours (African American Museum closed Mondays)
Tour Price: Student groups $13.50 per student, $15.50 per adult (add $2.00 per person if out-of-state). Adult groups, $19.50 per person.
Group Size: 25 people minimum for group rates
P: (215) 525-1776
E: leslie@theconstitutional.com
W: www.theconstitutional.com
Once Upon A Nation
Independence After HoursTake a sneak peek into Independence Hall after hours! Start with a delicious, three-course dinner at the historic City Tavern before heading out on an evening of adventure, where you’ll eavesdrop on the goings-on at the Pennsylvania State House on July evening in 1776.
Tour Length: 3 Hours
Tour Price: $75 per person (groups of 20 or less); $65 per person (groups of 20 or more)
Tippler’s Tour
Get your history stirred, not shaken. Wind your way through the streets of Old City sipping drinks and soaking up history in 18th-century and modern-day watering holes. Clad in Colonial garb, your guide shares stories of tavern life in Philadelphia and introduces you to some traditional drinks from the era.
Age: Must be 21 years or older and have proper ID
Tour Length: 2 Hours
Tour Price (Regular Show): $35 per person (groups of 20 or more) $30 per person
P: (215) 629-5801
E: amy@historicphiladelphia.org
W: www.historicphiladelphia.org
National Constitution Center
We, the JuryALL RISE! The honorable judge...YOU presiding! Throughout this engaging day of activities about our judicial system, students act as the judge and jury. Knowledgeable staff takes your students on an educational adventure through the main exhibition as they learn about courts and the rule of law. Students then participate in trials as the staff dramatizes landmark cases. Whether they find the accused innocent or guilty, they will definitely find the whole experience fun!
Pass the Citizenship Test
Do your students know what it means to be an American citizen? Do they have what it takes? Here is their chance to prove it! On this fun-filled day, students will learn about the rights and responsibilities of being a citizen and gain knowledge of our country and its freedoms. They will take part in an educational workshop and participate in an array of activities to help the class comprehend America’s freedoms and the ongoing struggles to secure them. The Citizen Test Show puts their knowledge to the test to discover if they have what it takes to be informed and active citizens.
Growing Up, American Style
Find out what it was like to grow up in different eras of American history. Students participate in a costume runway show featuring traditional-style dress from historical periods while describing what home, school, and work life was like. Students will then explore the main exhibit with a guided tour to learn more about kids in America, including how often kids bathed, how they spent their days, what freedoms they had, and more.
Tour Length: 2 hours
Tour Price: $14 per person
Includes admission to the award-winning production “Freedom Rising,” exploration of the National Constitution Center’s core exhibition, a themed live-theatre presentation, and a staff-guided themed exhibit tour or workshop.
P: (215) 409-6695
E: gromanelli@constitutioncenter.org
W: www.constitutioncenter.org
