HISTORIC GETTYSBURG
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
HIGHLIGHTS ➤ Immersion into the battle through the restored
1884 Cyclorama Painting ➤ A tour of the historic Gettysburg Battlefield ➤ Dinner with a historic figure ➤ Historic and haunted town tours ➤ Backstage theater tours
DAY-TO-DAY ITINERARY © Donnie Thompson
DAY 1: Rise and shine after a restful night at the Country Inn & Suites By Carlson, complete with indoor pool, fitness center, and just minutes from all the historic attractions. Enjoy a free deluxe continental breakfast and prepare for a day of history!
Haunted Gettysburg book series, guides in period attire will lead you to sites of hauntings and eerie sightings.
Your first stop will be the Gettysburg Diorama. Experience the entire battlefield in 3-D miniature. Over 20,000 pieces set the stage of the three-day battle as a light and sound show bring the tragedy to life.
After breakfast, meet American Stories Historic Walking Tours for a tour of historic Downtown Gettysburg. Recount the experiences of the Gettysburg civilians in 1863 as the famous battle rages around them, or take a Civil War Fact or Fiction tour and try to determine which tales of the battle are true. You will be sure to remember this interactive history tour.
Visit the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum & Visitor Center for an immersion into the Battle of Gettysburg. A New Birth of Freedom film orients you to the Battle and the American Civil War. After the film, ascend the escalator to see the massive Battle of Gettysburg Cyclorama painting, circa 1884, and feel as though you are on the fields of Pickett’s Charge. Spend time exploring the museum where the story of the Battle and the war is told through artifacts, interactive exhibits and short films. Enjoy a lunch at one of our many group-friendly restaurants including buffet, served and boxed-lunch options. Tour the Battlefields to see where our nation was saved in July 1863 and the site of Abraham Lincoln’s immortal Gettysburg Address.
DAY 2:
Gather for lunch and a backstage tour at the Majestic Theater, built in 1925. Now celebrating its fifth season, the Majestic keeps audiences applauding with live performances from August through May, as well as Classic Movies Wednesdays during summer. Explore Gettysburg on your own. With the help of Freedom Transit, you can experience a variety of locations at your own pace aboard a new public trolley system. And, since it runs late from May-November, you can have a full evening to explore.
DAY 3: Your dinner will be at the Dobbin House historic tavern, located in one of the oldest buildings in Gettysburg. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, this colonial restaurant offers candlelit elegance, gracious service and superb food. Invite a historical character, such as President Lincoln, to join you for this special dinner in Gettysburg. Following dinner Haunted Gettysburg Candlelight Walking Tours leads you through the streets for a hauntingly entertaining evening. Based upon documented stories collected for Bob and Bonnie Wasel’s
As you depart Gettysburg, take a scenic drive through the battlefield. Spend a few extra moments capturing photos for scrapbooks. From Gettysburg, head west for a guided tour of the H. Ric Luhrs Performing Arts Center, which offers Broadway performances, musical groups, dance troupes and youth programs. Tours include the history of the Center, architectural, construction and audio and visual equipment highlights, and a behind-the-scenes tour of the theater.
CONTACT: Gettysburg Convention & Visitors Bureau
OTHER ITINERARIES AVAILABLE:
➤ Jennifer Racey • www.gettysburggrouptours.travel 571 W. Middle St., Gettysburg, PA 17325 Phone: 800-337-5015 • Email: jracey@gettysburg.travel
➤ A Different Side of Gettysburg ➤ Living History at Gettysburg
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EXPERIENCE PHILADELPHIA LIKE NEVER BEFORE
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
HIGHLIGHTS ➤ Visit the birthplace of our nation ➤ 117 year-old public food and vendor market –
Reading Terminal Market ➤ World-renowned art and cultural museums ➤ Tax-free shopping on clothing and shoes ➤ Experiential and voluntourism tour options
DAY-TO-DAY ITINERARY DAY 1: Morning: Load your group on board a double-decker bus, historic trolley, or land-and-sea “duck” for a 90-minute tour of Center City Philadelphia. Professional guides will provide a wealth of facts about the city’s history, attractions and architecture. Unload at Independence National Historical Park for a walking tour of “America’s most historic square mile,” including the Liberty Bell Center, Independence Hall, and soon, the President’s House commemorative site. Don’t miss the oldest street in America, Elfreth’s Alley, or famous flag-maker Betsy Ross’ House. Lunch: Fill your groups’ appetites with delicious food from more than 80 merchants at Reading Terminal Market, an authentic farmers market in the heart of Center City. Your groups can select from Pennsylvania Dutch specialties, Philadelphia cheesesteaks, world-famous mac ’n cheese and cuisine from around the globe. Afternoon: Continue your tour of the Historic District with a visit to the National Liberty Museum or the Independence Seaport Museum on the waterfront. Build some of the 25 free historical sites into your afternoon, including Christ Church and Franklin Court, home to America’s first post office and print shop. End your afternoon at the National Constitution Center, where you can view the U.S. Constitution. Dinner: Enjoy dinner at a Colonial-style tavern, City Tavern or pub in the Historic District.
DAY 2: Morning: Visit the city’s most renowned cultural museums along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, including the Philadelphia Museum of Art, whose steps were made famous in the Rocky films. Other options include the sculptures at the Rodin Museum or American paintings at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Lunch: Dine at the Water Works Restaurant overlooking Boathouse Row along the Schuylkill River.
Afternoon: Explore the world’s largest urban landscaped park via I-Glide, Philadelphia’s version of a Segway® Tour. A short distance away is Eastern State Penitentiary located in the Fairmount neighborhood, where your group can tour Philadelphia’s famous prison that once housed Al Capone. (During September and October, the Penitentiary hosts a frighteningly wonderful haunted tour that welcomes groups.) Dinner/Dancing: View the city skyline from the Delaware River as your group departs from Penn’s Landing on a Spirit of Philadelphia dinner cruise.
DAY 3: Morning: The day starts before the sun rises in the Italian Market. With more than 125 years of history and tradition, you won’t want to miss the place film character Rocky Balboa made famous. Enjoy some free time to shop for produce, cheeses and breads. Or take a behind-the-scenes tour of Termini Brothers Bakery. Whether you take the tour or not, enjoy the famous cannoli and coffee in their cafe. Lunch: Sample the selection of cuisine along famous South Street. Choose from dozens of restaurants, then shop the eclectic boutiques, listen to live music, or just sit back and take in the bustling street at an outdoor cafe. Afternoon: Head west through Antique Row to the Avenue of the Arts, where you can record yourself singing one of Gamble and Huff’s famous songs at The Sound of Philadelphia souvenir shop. Take a tour of City Hall – the tallest municipal building in the world – and then head across the street to Macy’s for tax-free shopping on clothing and shoes. Dinner: Wear your new Philadelphia outfit for a group dinner at one of the world-class restaurants along the Avenue of the Arts or in the trendy Rittenhouse Square neighborhood.
CONTACT: Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau
OTHER ITINERARIES AVAILABLE:
➤ Ryan O’Connor, Tourism Sales Manager • www.philadelphiausa.travel/group-tour-planners 1700 Market Street, Suite 3000, Philadelphia, PA 19103 Phone: 215-636-3312 • Fax: 267-479-6312 • Email: RyanO@pcvb.org
➤ Philadelphia Culinary Tour ➤ Philadelphia for Students ➤ Philadelphia Free Attractions
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Hudson River Valley, New York & Pennsylvania
SLEEPY HOLLOW’S LEGEND NIGHT HIGHLIGHTS ➤ Peddlers Village Scarecrow Festival &
Scarecrow Make & Take Workshop ➤ The Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze at Van Cortlandt Manor ➤ Sightseeing in Sleepy Hollow Country and
a Hudson River Autumn Cruise ➤ Philipsburg Manor October Celebration and
Legends Night in Sleepy Hollow ➤ Four Nights Lodging, Four Breakfasts and Two Dinners
DAY-TO-DAY ITINERARY DAY 1: Travel to New Hope, PA and check into the Golden Plough Inn for an overnight stay. Tonight dinner is at the Cock n’ Bull Restaurant serving a traditional meal in a colonial setting. You will also enjoy a glass of wine with dinner. (This tour is available the 2nd and 3rd week of October.)
Sleepy Hollow" to life! It is a haunted landscape filled with goblins and ghosts from Hudson Valley folklore.
DAY 2: Start with a Guided Tour of the Peddlers Village Scarecrow Festival with time for shopping in the Village. Tour includes a Scarecrow Make & Take Workshop. Next, travel to the Hudson Valley for a two-night stay. Dinner tonight will be on own. Tonight features the most exciting Halloween event in the Hudson Valley, The Great Jack O'Lantern Blaze at Van Cortlandt Manor, featuring more than 4,000 individually hand-carved, illuminated jack o'lanterns. Enhanced by professional lighting and steeped in spooky music and sound effects, this must-see event is a delight for all senses!
DAY 3: Enjoy a morning of Sightseeing in Sleepy Hollow Country including a cruise on the Hudson River. This afternoon you will enjoy a rustic October Celebration at Philipsburg Manor with pumpkin carving, spooky storytelling, open-hearth cooking and colonial games for children. Visit the water-powered gristmill, 18th century barn and newly restored manor house. Dinner is on your own at the festival grounds. This evening experience Legends Night at Philipsburg Manor. Lit by candle lanterns and bonfires, this event truly brings "The Legend of
DAY 4: Take a morning Tour of Kykuit, home to four generations of the Rockefeller family, beginning with the philanthropist John D. Rockefeller, founder of Standard Oil. This is the preeminent Hudson Valley landmark for architecture, remarkable gardens, art, history and spectacular scenery. The home is simply amazing. This afternoon travel to Wilkes Barre, PA and check into your hotel for an overnight stay. Tour The Houdini Museum followed by a supernatural evening experience. Dinner included at a local restaurant. Next is the evening show at the Psychic Theater, titled "Haunted! Mind Mysteries & THE Beyond." Not for the weak of heart, you learn about mentalism, mind reading, telekinesis and sightless vision. Hear about the story of the murder/suicide/electrocution in this 100-plus-year-old historic building. Attend a seance in the dark, which is part of this highly acclaimed three-hourplus paranormal event!
DAY 5: Depart for home.
CONTACT: US TOURS
OTHER ITINERARIES AVAILABLE:
➤ Bob Cline • www.ustours.biz 2819 Murdoch Ave., Parkersburg, WV 26101 Phone: 888-393-8687 • Email: bob@ustours.biz
➤ Colorado’s High Mountain Railroads ➤ Almost Heaven West Virginia
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