Group of papal pilgrims to camp at Philadelphia Zoo
The search for accommodations during Pope Francis' September visit to Philadelphia led one New Jersey church group straight to the animals.
The search for accommodations during Pope Francis' September visit to Philadelphia led one New Jersey church group straight to the animals.
Instead of scrambling to find hotel rooms, seeking out host families or searching through private rental listings, the 240-person group from North Jersey will be sleeping amid the Philadelphia Zoo's 1,300 animals.
"I was afraid I would never get a hotel," said Cathy Hunt, the religious instruction leader at Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Ridgewood, Bergen County. "So we started trying to think outside the box."
Someone in the group mentioned a Girl Scout overnight trip to the zoo, and the pieces started to fall into place.
"I called them and they said they could do it," Hunt said. "The bus company said they could do it."
The parish, which is staying at the zoo the night of Sept. 26 into Sept. 27, the two days Pope Francis will be in Philadelphia, is the only group lodging at the zoo during the papal visit.
"What a great way to bring together two wonderful opportunities in Philadelphia in a very special time," said Amy Shearer, the zoo's chief marketing officer. "We're delighted that they thought this was a great combination."
For the zoo, it's just another overnight event. The institution, the oldest zoo in the country, regularly hosts overnight programs for teens, adults, scout troops and other groups.
Shearer said the parish is participating in the zoo's standard overnight program.
"Like always, we're excited to have any group here to learn about the animals," she said.
The group is paying $65 per person, Hunt said, in line with the zoo's regular rates for overnight events. They'll spend the night indoors, in sleeping bags or on air mattresses.
"They're beautiful buildings," Hunt said.
The city's 11,500 hotel rooms, along with the about 65,000 suburban rooms, are expected to be fully booked for the papal visit, though there is no word yet on the number of reservations made so far.
While no more room is available at the zoo, other unconventional options are still available. On the website Popedelphia, where people can list and browse available housing, a "martial arts gym with mats for campout" is still up for grabs.
Or, in an atypical housing setting that's fitting for the pontiff's visit, a group looking for "barrack style sleeping" could turn to a church fellowship hall, described in another Popedelphia listing.
The site can accommodate up to 48 people "who don't mind roughing it a little for a chance to celebrate with the World Meeting of Families and Pope Francis."
