The Franklin Institute

222 N 20th St, Philadelphia, PA 19103, USA

Related:	mainplace mall movies
Address:	222 N 20th St, Philadelphia, PA 19103, USA
Phone:	+1 215-448-1200
Site:	fi.edu
Rating:	4.6
Working:	9:30AM–5PM 9:30AM–5PM 9:30AM–5PM 9:30AM–5PM 9:30AM–5PM 9:30AM–5PM 9:30AM–5PM

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 4

Chelsea Madren

Since I was here for a medical device conference, it was only fitting that I visit this museum. As a plus, the Franklin Museum is part of the Philadelphia CityPASS. The transportation, The Big Bus Company and Philadelphia Trolley Works, is also included as well. We arrived at the Franklin Institute around lunch time and the exterior of the museum was regal as it was illuminated by the high noon sunshine. The six pillars at the top of the stairway to the entrance were so elegant and part of an architects dream. To beat the lunch crowd, we headed straight to the Franklin Foodworks. It is a cafeteria-style eatery with an array of choices. I grabbed a pre-made Cobb Salad. I wanted something light as we were doing a lot of walking and hopping on and off of the buses and trolleys. The lettuce was fresh and crisp. The chicken, bacon, and bleu cheese were a little light in portion, but the cupcake made up for it. The fresh-baked carrot cake cupcake was fluffy and not too heavy. The cream cheese icing was perfectly creamy and not too sweet. Overall food rating: 4/5 After lunch, we walked over to the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial. A 20-foot high marble statue of Benjamin Franklin is the centerpiece of the rotunda. It was sculpted by James Earle Fraser and weighs 30 tons. The statue sits upon a 92-ton pedestal made of white Seravezza marble. The rotunda was designed by architect John T. Windrim and modeled after the Pantheon in Rome. The marble in the rotuna are made of rare marbles imported from Portugal, Italy, and France. The Giant Heart exhibit is the main place I wanted to check out at the Franklin Institute. The Giant Heart has been here for over 50 years. Fun fact: The Giant Heart is the right size for the Statue of Liberty if she ever needed a heart transplant. A surgical suite of current medical devices for cardiothoracic surgery was on display. The former company I worked for made a laser for Transmyocardial Revascularization (TMR), a therapy procedure to relieve chronic angina and it was on display. It was really neat to see our device in a museum. Pendulum Staircase is a show in itself as you watch the pendulum swing constantly in the same direction as the Earth rotates beneath. In doing so, the pendulum will eventually knock down pegs as the Earth rotates on its axis. The pendulum ball is shiny; like a giant "steely" from childhood marble-playing days. We stayed there for a good 15 minutes just watching it. It was quite hypnotic. There are many more exhibits to at the Franklin Institute and activities for children to play and learn.

Richard Legendre

My family has visited a few science centers in the past year, Baltimore, Hampton, Newark and Philly. Of the ones Ive visited so far, this is the best! Parking is easy, they have their own garage in the building and an elevator that takes you to the ticket lobby. Its also on the Ben Franklin Parkway, so lots of museums in the area. The walk-in entrance has a huge three story statue is Ben sitting down in a chair. Its impressive and grabs the kids attention. The exhibits are whats great here. Where the other science centers have exhibits that have seen better days, here everything looks fresh. I dont know if its a recent renovation out if they just keep things up to date, but its write impressive compared to other centers. The environment area is quite awesome, as in the giant heart you can walk through, the brain area is out of this world. It also has its own train exhibit. Youll also love the flight area. The place can keep you there all day and you and the kids engaged all day. For extra costs they do have the an IMAX, I didnt see a movie there, but it was clearly popular based on the crowds. The place can also have three rotating exhibits at a time. When I went it was the last weekend of "The Art of the Brick" exhibit, which was amazing models and art made of Legos. Everything from the Liberty Bell, Michelangelos David, dinosaur skeletons and more. The "Vatican Splendors" exhibit that brought amazing art and artifacts from Vatican museums. This included amazing Christian art, statues, relics of saints, vestments and other items used be previous saints and Popes. They even tried the two together with a St. Peters Basilica made out of Legos! If that isnt enough, they had a Genghis Khan exhibit, with an awesome history lesson and artifacts. All three exhibits took an hour or longer of your time and were much larger than youd anticipate. Although temporary, they were well laid out and decorated, they certainly looked permanent and not temporary. The only downside is that each exhibit carries its own additional price on top of admission. So, it can be an expensive outing if you add these. Overall, its a great shipping center and if you have kids, its worth a drive for a day trip. And being in Center City Philly, there is so much more to do in the area.

Ritesh Shah

Loved this place! So many interactive activities - great for kids and kids at heart alike. This has been on my Philadelphia bucket list for so long, glad I finally made it hereI went here during a community night and it was worth the trek during the middle of the week. The museum gives access to patrons after hours during the evening, allowing for lots of different groups to enjoy this Philadelphia institution. I was extra pleased that I found nearby parking (need to get there early evening to snag this accommodation, but luck does favor the prepared =P) Theres a bunch of seasonal exhibitions available (such as the mirror maze), as well as staples (need to check out the big heart exhibition!) In addition, the museum is starting to do escape rooms - how fun! The flow of the museum is also well organized and I was able to go from one exhibition to the next seamlessly, its nice not to have to find your way back after finishing one thing before starting the next item. Everything is really interactive and also educational - really cant beat that! Some things in the exhibitions were closed (like the planetarium) or broken which was a bummer. Really want to make it back here in hopes of gaining access to the things I missed. Go when you have some time, as it is a fairly large space with multiple floors. Theres food available indoors, and be sure to bring your camera - great for picture taking (the pendulum staircase is awesome!) Happy exploring!

Liz L

Overall, the Franklin Institute is Kid friendly and adults were also intrigued by all exhibits and attractions...IMax theater Extreme Weather kept everyone glued to their seats the special effects were amazing...and there were so many fun things to learn and do...The heart, the human body, train factory, the science command, space n aviation, and so much more...Enjoy Science Gift Shop prices varied high end prices to lower price items that most of students purchased atleast one item like Stuffed Sea Turtle for $20 and others got candy under $5 or lego robot for $10 so there something pretty much for everyone. There were food items that varied in price some were higher than average however, they had a wide selection to choose. The bathrooms were atmost part clean and stocked there were some papers on floor but a cleaning person came n cleaned...surprisingly considering the volume of people. The children and chaperones and counselors genuinely had a good time and we look forward to coming next summer. Next year our summer camp CYS APG, MD; we would like to learn more about virtual reality and mirror maze exhibits...Thank you. LL