NEIGHBORHOODS
Philadelphia is a city of neighborhoods...or so I'm told.  New York is a city of neighborhoods.  Chicago is a city of neighborhoods.  Philadelphia?  I'm not sure because unlike these other "neighborhood" cities Philadelphia's core is more compact and walkable meaning the neighborhoods weave into one another and blend compared to a New York or Chicago. 

Says downtown - more of a New York term - i.e. Philadelphia doesn't have a Mid-Town or Up-Town so what exactly is Down-Town, downtown from?

Visit Philly Neighborhood Link  
Once the weather gets warmer I'll put together a few self guided walks.

CENTER CITY

For all intents and purposes Center City is Philadelphia.  Narrowly defining this here.
​CITY HALL / CENTER CITY EAST
Philadelphia has a gorgeous city hall...unfortunately the government isn't quite as gorgeous.
CHINATOWN
A younger generation has been reinventing the neighborhood into a Go-To destination.
​OLD CITY
America starts here.  And evenings end here.
​SOCIETY HILL
High society in both a literal and figurative sense.
WASHINGTON SQUARE
So many great restaurants in this area I take it for granted.
​RITTENHOUSE
Still a great residential area but I think it's lost its mojo a bit in the past couple of years.
THE PARKWAY / LOGAN CIRCLE
​A museum lined parkway.  Still waiting to hit it's commercial stride.

CENTER  CITY  RING

The Center City Ring is my own term.  For years Philadelphia meant Center City.  Other neighborhoods were decent but lacked the restaurants and coffee shops to serve as stops on a neighborhood tour.  That's changed.  Dramatically.
CALLOWHILL / NORTH BROAD
Rugged.  After years of slowly gentrifying this area is finally starting to reach its potential.
​NORTHERN LIBERTIES
A nice residential area although it's lost some of its cache to Fishtown, the neighborhood to the north.
​SOUTH STREET
A street that reinvents itself.  Reinvents itself.  And reinvents itself again.
QUEEN VILLAGE
A great residential area but not as much to see and do as Bella Vista.
​BELLA VISTA
The Italian Market is great but there's a lot more here. 
PASSYUNK SQUARE
The current "it" neighborhood.
​GRADUATE HOSPITAL
A residential area.
FAIRMOUNT / SPRING GARDEN
A great combination of residential, restaurants, and attractions - plus it's close to the Schuylkill.
BREWERYTOWN
NORTH PHILLY

...AND  BEYOND

Beyond the core.  University gets some love.  The rest of these places don't.  I've lived in Center City.  I've lived along South Street.  I'll take Manayunk most days of the week.
UNIVERSITY CITY
Home to the University of Pennsylvania and its sprawling campus.  And Drexel.
SPRUCE HILL / CEDAR PARK
A hidden gem, under the radar, neighborhood with enough places to make for an afternoon or more.
​FISHTOWN / PORT RICHMOND / KENSINGTON
It's been booming...I think it's jumping the shark.
FAIRMOUNT / WISSAHICKON
Philly's great park.
​MANAYUNK
Put on a blindfold.  Take it off.  Manayunk is distinct enough that you know immediately where you are.
​ROXBOROUGH
Up the hill from Manayunk.  A great blue collar neighborhood.
​EAST FALLS
Do people know about East Falls?  They should.
CHESTNUT HILL
Philadelphia's nicest neighborhood.  Everyone else is fighting for second.
MT. AIRY / GERMANTOWN
Big difference between the West and East versions of these neighborhoods.
​THE STADIUMS
A bit of an island.  Years worth of missed opportunities.
THE GREAT NORTHEAST
​A city unto itself.