NYC to Philadelphia drive: Distance, drive time & best stops
The distance from New York City to Philadelphia by car is 98 miles, with a 1h33m driving time. The best road trip stops on the NYC to Philadelphia drive are Freshkills Park, the Thomas Edison Center at Menlo Park and Six Flags Great Adventure.
Finding the best things to do between New York City and Philadelphia
The New York City to Philadelphia drive connects two of the USA’s former capitals in New York and Pennsylvania.
Highlights of New York City include the Empire State Building, the 9/11 Memorial Museum, the Museum of Modern Art and the American Museum of Natural History.
For great New York tours, try the boat trip to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, a night time city lights helicopter flight and a Greenwich village food tour.
More unusual options include catacombs tours, a round-Manhattan architecture cruise and a guided exploration of Grand Central Station’s secrets.
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Historic Philadelphia has a series of absolutely stellar attractions. Independence Hall, the Eastern State Penitentiary and the National Constitution Center are all utterly engrossing.
Other key attractions in Philadelphia include the Museum of the American Revolution, the Independence Seaport Museum and the Penn Museum. For great Philadelphia tour options, try the Old City historic walking tour, a night tour exploring the city’s dark side or an It’s Always Sunny-themed tour of South Philadelphia.
If looking for Philadelphia accommodation, the Club Quarters Rittenhouse Square is often great value, while the Kimpton Hotel Monaco has style and personality.
NYC to Philadelphia distance and driving time
By car, the distance from New York City to Philadelphia is 98 miles. If traffic is kind, that makes for driving time of around one hour and 33 minutes. The quickest route is down the I-95.
The best stops to add to a New York City to Philadelphia road trip itinerary are Freshkills Park, the Thomas Edison Center at Menlo Park and Six Flags Great Adventure.
NYC to Philadelphia road trip attractions: Freshkills Park
Is Freshkills Park on Staten Island the most beautiful park in the world? No. But it does have an extraordinary backstory. Until 2001, this was the world’s largest landfill site. Since then, it has been undergoing a painstaking transformation into a public space that will be three times the size of Manhattan’s Central Park.
Only a few sections of the park are currently open, with the North Park swathe opened in October 2023. This is next to the wildlife refuge, where you can sometimes spot ospreys.
Best stops between New York City and Philadelphia: Thomas Edison Center at Menlo Park
Menlo Park in New Jersey was where prodigious inventor Thomas Edison and his team churned out innovation after innovation. The former lab site is now in Edison State Park, and the Thomas Edison Center’s museum is crammed with artefacts, including original phonograph recordings. Tours of the museum also include entry to the Edison Memorial Tower, built in 1838.
NYC to Philadelphia drive: Six Flags Great Adventure
Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson Township, New Jersey, is one of the top theme parks on the east coast. There are plenty of retro rides, such as the carousel and flying elephants, but the star attraction is the Jersey Devil Coaster. This is the world’s tallest, fastest and longest single rail rollercoaster.
There’s also a Hurricane Harbor water park on the site, plus a drive-through safari-style wildlife park.
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