Pennsylvania Convention Center

Frommer's Review

With the July 1993 opening of the Pennsylvania Convention Center (PCC), Philadelphia made it clear that the future of the area depends on its ability to accommodate tens of thousands of visitors weekly. Though the 440,000-square-foot, $522-million building is enormous, it's going to get bigger, and soon. The new center will go where old office buildings, a historic firehouse, and artists' studios stood as of press time. It will have 1 million square feet of saleable space, the largest contiguous exhibit space (541,000 sq. ft.) in the Northeast, and the largest convention center ballroom on the East Coast. (Let's hope it's worked out its many operational kinks by then.)

Unless you're one of the millions the PCC hopes to lure in for a meeting, you'll need to access the center via the Philadelphia Marriott's walkway, to an overlook of the Grand Hall. This cavernous, chilly, marble-covered space stars Judy Pfaff's vast kaleidoscopic Cirque, a network of airy steel and aluminum tubes over 70,000 square feet of space. Esplanades and corridors contain a veritable museum of 52 living artists (35 from Philadelphia).

This neighborhood is rife with chain restaurants. If you'd like to dine in a true Philly setting nearby, have breakfast, lunch, or an early supper at the Reading Terminal Market.

Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip.

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