Activities in West Philadelphia for the Entire Family
This brief blog post recapping our favorite family-oriented attractions is sponsored by our team of experimented slip and fall injury lawyers in West Philly.
An expansive and culturally varied residential region, West Philadelphia is jam-packed with more than its fair share of exciting dining places and family-friendly attractions. Below, we share some of the most recommended ones when swinging by this lesser-known corner of Philadelphia.
Shofuso Japanese House and Garden
Designed by architect Junzo Yoshimura, Shofuso was built in Japan in 1953 using traditional techniques and materials. It was shipped to New York and exhibited in the courtyard of the Museum of Modern Art in New York before moving to West Fairmount Park in 1958.
In 2007, international artist Hiroshi Senju, inspired by the garden’s waterfall, donated 20 contemporary murals to Shofuso, which are permanently displayed inside the house.
This historic site and museum includes a hill and pond garden with a tiered waterfall, island, and koi fish, a tea garden featuring a traditional tea house, and a courtyard garden leading to a bathhouse. The Shofuso Japanese House & Garden can be visited March through October, Wed-Fri 10AM to 4PM and Sat-Sun 11AM to 5PM.
The Philly Zoo
The Philly Zoo, located in the Centennial District on the west bank of the Schuylkill River, was the first true zoo in the entire country. The charter establishing the Zoological Society of Philadelphia was approved and signed on March 21, 1859. Due to the Civil War, however, it was another 15 years before America’s first zoo was ready to open on July 1, 1874.
In the modern day, it is one of the premier zoos in the world for breeding animals that are notoriously difficult to breed in captivity, and is consistently ranked as one of the top zoological destinations in the USA. The West Philly Zoo is home to nearly 1,300 animals and each year, more than 1.2 million visitors are educated about animal and environmental conservation via a first-in-the-world animal travel trail system, Zoo360, and KidZooU — a children’s zoo and education center that serves as a model for children’s zoos nationwide.
The Please Touch Children’s Museum
The Please Touch Museum’s mission, as stated on their website, is to “Change a child’s life as they discover the power of learning through play.” They aim to fulfill this goal with an truly expansive selection of interactive exhibits, programs and special events which have been designed to focus on fostering creativity, collaboration, communication and critical thinking in young minds. Through these activities children of varying ages can discover, learn and play and, as a result, develop the intellectual, social and emotional skills they need to succeed not only in school, but also in life.
Kids and their grown-ups will also delight in riding the meticulously restored 1908 Woodside Park Dentzel Carousel, originally built in Philadelphia and after more than 40 years in storage, returned to its hometown in its own 9,000 square-foot glass pavilion on the east side of Memorial Hall.
The slip and fall injury lawyers in West Philly that form part of the Philly Slip and Fall Guys team hope you’ve found this article informative – make sure to check out our other local content for more top picks!
