Every gardener should experience the Philadelphia Flower Show. The show is so eclectic – including landscapes, talks, educational exhibits, plants, flower arranging, front door and balcony vignettes, botanical illustrations, miniature landscapes, plus an abundance of vendors selling plants, garden supplies, flower arranging supplies, books, jewelry, home decor and more.

We visited the Philadelphia Flower Show in 2018, and that year there were three snowstorms during the show. One delayed us a day in the airport, one was 17” that left us stranded for a day in our Doubletree Princeton hotel room, where we went after Philly. No complaints – we needed the rest after so much walking around the show and Philly and we had the best hotel staff ever, including the poor person who went outside to clear snow every time wi-fi went down. The show was wonderful and I would take that trip again in a heartbeat.

My top four tips for a visit to the Philadelphia Flower Show:

1 – Plan for a couple days – it takes at least two visits to see it and our flight delay could have left us with not enough time.

2 – Pay for one of the preview parties in the first few nights – not the super pricey one, but the one with a band and bars. What I saw were 1/3 there for the dancing and partying, 1/3 there on dates and would see the show and dance a bit, and 1/3 of us totally focused on the show, with plenty of room for photography, seeing details, and really absorbing the majesty of the displays while they are very fresh. The people watching, live music, drinks and party atmosphere added energy to the evening.

3 – Stay in a hotel within a few blocks. With the cold and snow, that was a blessing. As soon as we started talking about this trip, I booked a hotel room that would be easy to cancel. Ours was across the street from both the show and the Reading Terminal Market.

4 – See Philadelphia. It is a fantastic city and there is so much to see within walking distance of the show.