Washington DC vs Philadelphia Mint
Batman23
Posts: 4,999 ✭✭✭✭✭
I am going to make a trip to the DC area. I have always been a west coast guy but seeing the museums and the monuments has been on my want list for a while. I will be headed there soon with my two teenage sons. We have never been to this area before and therefore these questions to those that have.
I will not have wheels and the Metro is going to be our transportation. I have wanted to see the US mint and I see they have tours. Is it worth an all day expense to see this general tour? Are there better and worse days to show up? To make this happen it would look like a Metro trip to Union Station then a train trip to Philly and a cab (or walk??) to the mint?
Is the tour more like a museum presentation like their website video makes it seem, do you get to watch coin production in action?
With a 6 hour round trip travel time, this might be more than I want to spend (time) in travel. Cost for three is another aspect! What are your opinions? Is the train ride alone worth a scenic trip?
If you were to visit the mint, where would you eat lunch?
Thanks in advance for any insight, tips or suggestions.
Comments
The Philadelphia Mint tour is not much for a coin collector. You are so far away and the equipment is largely covered by protective shields for safety, that you don't get to see much. Washington offers more than a family can do in a week - and almost everything is free.
(You do not want to take the time to walk to the Mint from 30th Street Station in Philadelphia. The Federal reserve Bank tour is better than the Mint tour, but neither, in my opinion, is worth the train ride, taxi and time. Better to spend less money in Washington and go to the SI Annex (Udvar Hazy Air and Space Museum) near Dulles Airport. Imagine the scale of a real SR 71 Blackbird, space shuttle, or WW-II fighter aircraft.
You don't say how much time you actually have out East.
It's not worth traveling from DC to Philly for a day trip. What might be worth your time is to spend half of it in DC, and half in Philly.
I think I was actually more impressed with the Philadelphia historical district than DC. (I've been to DC once, Philadelphia three times.) Yeah, if you're an American, it's probably worth it to see DC. But the history of the country is in Philadelphia.
Across 5th street from the Mint is the National Constitution Center, (across Arch Street is where Ben Franklin is buried if you want to pay your respect to the man), and just down the block is the Independence National Historical Park. (Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, the (Ben) Franklin Museum, etc.) It's all within walking distance.
And the one thing I do remember from my DC trip was the walking. Nothing is close together. It was rough in the August heat...
Thanks guys. That was my concern about the mint, not really showing what I am hoping to see. I could see it being a big disappointment for the time that would be involved. The space and Air museum is on the list of must sees.
I have the hotel paid up in DC so that is our home base for this trip. I actually have about 1.5 weeks so we have a little time to check things out. Everyone has warned me about the walking! I am sure I will get my exercise this trip.
There is no production at the US Mint HQ in DC, only Admin offices (I believe).
If you visit the District, and don't have time to tour the BUREAU OF ENGRAVING AND PRINTING bep.gov you will regret missing it. Then there is of couse the Smithsonian visit.
(l8-)>>
Spend your time in Washington. There's so many amazing things to see.
Great transactions with oih82w8, JasonGaming, Moose1913.
I live just outside of Philly. Just beware the lines to enter the mint are usually very long once school gets out.
I know I stopped going to the mint after mid June.
The good news is there is a lot of things to see all in walking distance.
INYNWHWeTrust-TexasNationals,ajaan,blu62vette
coinJP, Outhaul ,illini420,MICHAELDIXON, Fade to Black,epcjimi1,19Lyds,SNMAN,JerseyJoe, bigjpst, DMWJR , lordmarcovan, Weiss,Mfriday4962,UtahCoin,Downtown1974,pitboss,RichieURich,Bullsitter,JDsCoins,toyz4geo,jshaulis, mustanggt, SNMAN
BEP is however in DC. Philly is IMO a nasty and unpleasant city with only a few redeeming qualities. Many more museums in DC and don't forget Alexandria and Annapolis, which have a great bit of history and their share of quaintness as well as being again IMO much more pleasant.
Well, just Love coins, period.
Lots of walking. Might be worth renting bikes if you're looking to cover a large area and catch a lot of sights in one day. Much faster than cars in a lot of places.
I agree with Roger about the mint tour. It does not amount to much, but the Philadelphia Federal Reserve exhibit is well worth while if you happen to be in the city. It's not worth a special train ride, but I'd go to see if if you can.
At any rate there is a lot to see in Philadelphai, and you should go there, just as you have planned to tour Washington, DC.
I would recommend you spend all your time in DC, then a separate trip to Philadelphia. DC has many worthwhile sites, Capitol, Washington Monument, Jefferson and Lincoln Memorials, The Wall, Smithsonian (this alone would take a few days)....It is a great place to visit. Philadelphia sites are mainly concentrated in one area... this too is worth visiting, but can be done in a much shorter time. Cheers, RickO
With the exception of a few feet on one side, there's a place you can stand at the wall and there will always be a flag reflection in the background. I'm not sure if this was done by design or if it's just that one small area.
Philly makes a nice day trip and the historic area is a $2,50 subway ride from Amtrak's 30th Street station (get off at 8th or 5th street). We have a new Museum of the American Revolution (2nd and Chestnut) that is much more impressive than the self guided tour of the mint. August 14-18th if the ANA World's Fair of Money at the Philadelphia convention center. Like anywhere, touring the historic area is best on a sunny, comfortable day. There is also some kind of loop bus where you pay $5 and you can get on and off all day. The Philadelphia Mint Archives used to be in center city around 9th Street but has been relocated to the northeast part of the city.