Passenger Trains > Day trip to Philadelphia from Washington DC feasible?

I’m going to be in Washington DC for 4 days (CZ to Chicago,  Capitol Limited to WAS).    Is a day trip to Philadephia from DC feasible in order to see just a few sites (Independence Hall,  Liberty Bell, the location where Jefferson wrote his draft of the Declaration of Independence..)?   I might also like to experience this via an Acela at least in one direction.    I would also like to avoid the worst commuter times if possible.    Am I trying to fit too much into too few hours?    I am used to riding Amtrak and public transit in general
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It's easy.  I live in South Jersey and do day trips from Philly to DC and Alexandria.

Yes, it's feasible, depending how early you want to get up and how much time you wish to spend in Philadelphia.  Check Amtrak's Northeast Corridor schedules.

Are you returning on the Capitol Limited and Zephyr?  If yes, you may want to consider staying overnight in Philadelphia and taking a train the next day back to Washington to catch the Capitol.

Philadelphia is an amazing city for anyone interested in American History.

 

It's doable.  WAS to PHL      depart  8:10 AM  arr 9:58AM  $56      Return  Acela  4:18  arr  6:04  $131     You will take SEPTA from 3oth St station to Center City and walk 5-6 blocks to Independence Mall.   6 hours should be sufficient to get the flavor.  And time enough for a good cheesesteak.  Enjoy and let us know how you make out. 

There's far more to food in Philadelphia than cheesesteaks.  For a great lunch experience, go to Reading Terminal Market which is located beneath what was the actual Reading Terminal (now part of the Pennsylvania Convention Center).

You can also ride a sure ‘nuf streetcar that mixes with auto traffic on city streets (none of these wimpy “light rail” operations). 😀

Gordon

Thank you all for the encouragement and suggestions.  I think I'll try it. This is my fourth trip to DC and although that doesn't mean I've seen it all there,  it's time for a side trip.
 

We visited Philadelphia in 1990, just as the "Iron Curtain" was rusting away.  The guide at the Liberty Bell told us that they had been seeing many visitors from eastern Europe that year, and it was a very emotional experience for them.  It was for me (California native) as well.

RuleG Wrote:
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> There's far more to food in Philadelphia than
> cheesesteaks.  For a great lunch experience, go
> to Reading Terminal Market which is located
> beneath what was the actual Reading Terminal (now
> part of the Pennsylvania Convention Center).

I second that on the Reading Terminal Market.  So many awesome options, I can't remember the last time I had a cheesesteak there.  

Also, depending on your timing, and if you are interested, there is a real nice walking trail across the river from 30th Street the runs alongside the river and the CSX (ex-B&O) line. 

If you haven’t booked everything yet the other thing you could do is go to DC, then Philly and take the Pennsylvanian back to Pittsburgh to connect with the Capitol. The Pennsylvanian recently began running with a baggage car, so I’m assuming you can check bags thru to 29. That way you could enjoy some nice scenery on the PRR and a nice brief layover evening in Pgh.

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bridge22-0196 Wrote:
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> This is my fourth trip to DC and although that doesn't mean I've seen it all there,  it's time for a side trip.

My wife and I just finished our fourth trip to DC (spread over 11 years). This year we added a side trip to Baltimore for the B&O Museum. I'm not sure when our next trip will be, but in the past we have done revisits plus adding on things we missed before. (We will probably wait until after the rest of the Silver Line opens next year.)

Philaelphia sounds like fun. Maybe next year. NY City is also on our future list. We have visited Pittsburgh and Buffalo and have made two trips to Niagra Falls (one to each side) and two to Toronto. In most cities the second or third trip is used to catch the things we missed on the first or second trip - and add nearby destinations if we run out of things to do in the "big" city (although in later years we enjoy national and state parks).

There are plenty of rail options between WAS and PHL that would enable you to make a daytrip between the two cities and be able to see a lot of Center City and even get some railfanning done in the immediate area of Center City and even into the suburbs a little. There are, in fact, many cities in the greater NYC area that you could make a daytrip to from DC. I have done plenty of Amtrak NEC daytrips from NWK to various cities. I even have been to Boston a few times for the day.