Skip to content
Link copied to clipboard
Link copied to clipboard

A new visitor center at the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, right in time for Philly’s spring tourists

The center will guide tourists to nearby historic sites and offer Philly-themed souvenirs.

Renderings of a new tourism center, located between the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Rocky statue, that will open this spring.
Renderings of a new tourism center, located between the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Rocky statue, that will open this spring.Read moreCourtesy of the Philadelphia Visitor Center Corporation

A new tourism hub and retail shop will open at the base of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway to welcome an inflow of spring tourists looking to explore Philadelphia’s biggest attractions.

The Parkway Outpost was installed between the Philadelphia Museum of Art steps and Rocky statue on Tuesday and will guide the more than 2 million annual visitors who scour the city’s landmarks. The Philadelphia Visitor Center Corp. plans to have a soft opening of the center by the end of the month, and an official grand opening for the installation later in the spring, officials said.

The visitor center was anchored by the Philadelphia Visitor Center, which oversees three other tourism hubs across the city. The Parkway Outpost will be the corporation’s fourth visitor center, after the Independence Visitor Center and its outposts at LOVE Park Visitor Center and the temporarily closed City Hall Visitor Center.

“It’s an opportunity to capture an audience we know is venturing to this area,” said Jennifer Nagle, interim president and CEO of the Philadelphia Visitor Center Corporation. “This is a place where you can stop, get directions, and we can help you explore the entire city. And for locals that utilize the space of the apron, we’re there for them as well.”

Nagle said the center’s installation was a three-year project born from a partnership among the Philadelphia Parks & Recreation Department, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Parkway Council, Logan Square Neighborhood Association, and other key stakeholders. The hope, she said, is to draw more tourists to Philly and recover from the financial losses incurred during the pandemic.

The center, which costs $500,000, will provide visitor information, sell tickets to nearby attractions, and help tourists navigate the city’s museums and cultural institutions, from the Parkway to Kelly Drive and the Boathouse Row.

The 600-square-foot space, which was made from recycled cargo containers by the local design firm FKB, will also offer Philly-themed merchandise and souvenirs inside a gift shop. There will be retail items from nearly 10 Black and brown-owned small businesses from the region, and Nagle said there are plans to add more over time.

For more information, visit phlvisitorcenter.com.