Expert recommendations of the top events—with tips on how to best experience these celebrations.
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Mummers Parade
9 a.m. New Year’s Day, weather permitting. A tradition since 1901; wildly entertaining, frequently boozy extravaganza on Broad Street features 10,000 Mummers who spend all year building ornate floats and sewing sequined and feathered costumes for a mass strut. Tip: Dress warmly; the parade lasts eight hours.
Philadelphia Flower Show
March 2-9. One of the world’s largest indoor flower shows, this event is a spectacular bouquet of gardens, flower arrangements, and miniatures. Tip: Visit during the dinner hour to avoid stroller gridlock. Pennsylvania Convention Center, 12th and Arch streets; tel. +1 215 988 8899; fee. www.theflowershow.com
Philadelphia Film Festival
April 3-15. Rapidly growing event with nearly 70,000 attendees; as many as 300 films and videos from more than 40 countries, ranging from star-studded studio flicks to daring student shorts. Screenings, workshops, and parties. Tip: Parties are often hosted by celebs, including Susan Sarandon and Laurence Fishburne. Tickets from $10. Tel. +1 267 765 9700. www.phillyfests.com
Philadelphia Antiques Show
April 12-15. A tradition since 1962; centerpiece of three major sales attracting top dealers from across the country and Europe. Tel. +1 215 387 3500; fee. www.philaantiques.com
Dad Vail Regatta
May 9-10. Aka “Big Daddy,” the largest collegiate rowing event in North America has been afloat since 1934, thanks partly to shuttle buses that transport fans through Fairmount Park to a grandstand on the Schuylkill River. Buses pick up at three locations on Kelly Drive; tel. +1 610 623 8590. www.dadvail.org
Bloomsday
June 16. The Rosenbach Museum & Library, home of the handwritten manuscript of James Joyce’s Ulysses, commemorates the day on which novel’s hero Leopold Bloom made his odyssey through Dublin with readings from the library steps by noted Philadelphians. 2008-2010 Delancey Place; tel. +1 215 732 1600. www.rosenbach.org
Philadelphia Folk Festival
Aug. 15-17. This weekend of music, crafts, and camping, now in its 47th year, is actually in rural Schwenksville Tel. +1 215 242 0150; fee. www.pfs.org
