Photo by J. Fusco for VISIT PHILADELPHIA®

 

Well, it’s nearly upon us now—time to ring in a new year. 2023! What to do with your final night of 2022? The city offers loads of New Year’s Eve activities. There are events for foodies, for people with kids, for music fans … so many options, in fact, for fun New Year’s Eve ideas in Philly that it’s hard to know where to start. Let us help! Here, a snapshot of some best bets for a fun, memorable night!

 

Photo of the Alice Suite at Guild House Hotel — a boutique historic hotel in Philadelphia — by Jason Varney

 

Spend the Night (or Weekend!) at Guild House

Well, obviously this was going to be our favorite pick. Whether your plans revolve around a big night out or a cozy night in, our historic boutique hotel makes for a perfect place to hang for or to land after a New Year’s celebration. Outside, you have the busy, bustling heart of Center City — Washington Square West and the gayborhood are right outside our door; Rittenhouse, Old City, Society Hill and South Street are all within easy walking distance. Inside? You have 12 unique rooms and suites (some of which, like our Alice double suite, are perfect for hosting a little cocktail party), a lounge (lovely for midnight toasts), in-room drinks, snacks, coffee, plasma screens … you get the idea. Spend your New Year’s with us!

 

Photo of Rivers Casino New Year’s Eve Fireworks on the Delaware River Waterfront by G. Widman for VISIT PHILADELPHIA®

 

Take in the Fireworks

You really have your pick of spots (and times) to watch New Year’s fireworks in Philadelphia: Catch ’em on the Delaware River at 6 p.m. and midnight, from any number of comfortable spots along the river. There’s Race Street Pier as well as Pier 68 and Washington Avenue Pier … all right on the water, and perfect for a BYO picnic and blanket. Also great? Penn’s Landing offers a crystal clear view and (FREE) popular gathering space. There’s also nearby Winterfest, which offers tickets to two different rounds of New Year’s Eve parties on Ice, and Cherry Street Pier, which is also throwing two different parties—one geared toward families; the other toward adults. There’s also La Peg (make a reservation for dinner, and you’ll have a front-seat view to the action); the Moshulu (you can reserve a spot on the boat to enjoy their three-course prix fixe menu, or reserve a spot for the Fireworks Boat Bash later that night); Keating’s Rope & Anchor, the restaurant inside the Hilton at Penn’s Landing, which hosts a dinner and fireworks special; Liberty Point restaurant, the massive waterfront spot that offers both a kids countdown and celebration early and an adults countdown and celebration later in the evening; the Battleship New Jersey which sells inexpensive tickets for a space on the boat; the Ben Franklin Yacht’s fireworks dinner cruise; and the Spirit of Philadelphia, which offers two separate dinner cruises (with DJs), including one early iteration to catch the 6 p.m. fireworks.

 

Photo courtesy of Forsythia

 

Enjoy your Final Feast of 2022 

Of course, any number of great Philly restaurants are open on New Year’s Eve – and many feature prix fixe menus* or other specials for the occasion. A few of note to consider?

  • The lovely Good King Tavern (just under a mile from Guild House Hotel!), is offering the Saint Sylvestre NYE Prix Fixe menu, which is $99 per person with optional $45 wine pairing.
  • River Twice (1.6 miles from Guild House) is featuring a spectacular eight-course tasting menu (with a Champagne toast at midnight, and optional extra beverage pairings). $175 for the chef’s table dinner; $150 indoor or (heated) outdoor tables.
  • Fiorella (1 mile from Guild House Hotel) is serving a chef-selected, multi-course menu at $125 per person (with an optional wine pairing from the sommelier for another $75 per person). Indoor seating is sold out but outdoor seating is still available.
  • Forsythia’s (1.1 miles from Guild House) five-course tasting menu for NYE is $120 a person, and sounds amazing.
  • At La Croix inside The Rittenhouse Hotel, you’ll enjoy the chef’s tasting menu, a Champagne toast, and a dessert buffet in the Mary Cassat Tea Room and Garden, for $195 per person.
  • The Moshulu (1.7 miles from Guild House), as noted above, is serving a three-course prix fixe dinner for $125 a person — with the added bonus of a front-row seat to fireworks.
  • At Chris’s Jazz Cafe, you can catch any one of three shows (7, 9 and 11 p.m.); each show—featuring Chelsea Reed & the FairWeather Five—includes a three-course chef’s tasting dinner (and VIP tickets reserve stage-front seats).

 

Photo of the Philadelphia Orchestra by J. Griffin for VISIT PHILADELPHIA®

 

Get Musical 

Here’s something a little special for New Year’s — the world-renowned Philadelphia Orchestra is celebrating the evening with a fantastic lineup including Gershwin, Ellington, Loewe, Josef Strauss and J. Strauss, Jr., and more. (Bonus: the show begins at 7 p.m., so there’s still plenty of time to make it home—or, better, back to your suite in our little boutique hotel! —for midnight.) Hoping for dancing music instead? Try the aforementioned shindig at Cherry Street Pier … or amp it way up at the Crystal Tea Room atop the classic old Wannamaker building, where revelers get serious about celebrating this holiday: Expect a dinner buffet, open bar, dance floor, DJ … the whole shebang.

 

Want to book a room or suite at Guild House, a historic Philadelphia hotel in the heart of the city? Click here to plan your stay!