By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times
The 2026 Greek Festival at the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church
Late spring and early autumn have become the prime seasons for ethnic festivals.
These are events which feature food, beverages, entertainment and other bits of culture from different countries. And they are not usually affected by the weather because most of them are indoor/outdoor events.
The most important thing to remember is that when Egyptians, Germans, Lebanese, Italians or Greeks have plans to party, they’re going to party with gusto.
If it’s Greek food and music you’re looking for, you’re definitely in luck right now.
The Grecian Food Festival at St. Sophia Church Grecian Festival (900 South Trooper Road, Jeffersonville, 610-650-8960, www.saintsophiachurch.org) is running now through May 31.
The 2026 Greek Festival at the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church (808 North Broom Street, Wilmington, 302-654-4446, www.holytrinitywilmington.org) opens on June 1 and runs through June 6.
The list of main dish items at St. Sophia’s festival has a wide variety of meat and vegetable items. Chicken Oreganato is Grecian-style chicken roasted with a mixture of lemon, oil and oregano, while souvlaki is grilled pork tenderloin marinated with special herbs.
Gyros are pita sandwiches featuring a spice-infused ground beef-and-lamb mixture that is grilled, sliced fresh and served with tzatziki (cucumber and yogurt sauce), tomatoes, onions and olives.
Pastitsio is a macaroni dish with braised ground lamb and beef that is topped with béchamel sauce and baked. A similar entrée is mousaka, which features layers of eggplant, potato, ground lamb and beef, which is then baked and topped with a light béchamel sauce.
Saganaki is a dish with seared vlahotiri cheese that is flamed with brandy and lemon and served fresh. Greek Salad, which is always a favorite, includes lettuce, feta cheese, tomatoes, Greek olives, oregano, salt, onion, cucumbers tossed in a light olive oil dressing.
Other selections that can either be a main meal or a side dish are tyropita, which is a Greek-style cheese pie in a crispy phyllo crust; spanakopita, which is a tyropita that has spinach added; and Dolmades, which are rice and meat wrapped in grape leaves.
The menu at St. Sophia’s also includes a fried calamari dish with fresh lemon, and patates tiganitres, which are deep-fried potatoes that have been lightly seasoned with Greek herbs and spices and topped with feta cheese.
For dessert, it’s impossible to go wrong with any of the traditional Greek pastries. The most well-known Greek dessert is baklava, which is made with multiple layers of thin buttered phyllo dough cooked with walnuts, spices and honey syrup. Kataifi features shredded wheat with chopped nuts and honey syrup.
Loukoumades, the Greek version of doughnuts, are deep-fried and dipped in honey with a dash of cinnamon. Floyeres is a baked dessert prepared with thin layers of buttered pastry sheets, almonds, spices, and honey syrup. Galaktoboureko is a custard dessert baked between carefully placed pastry sheets and covered in syrup.
Karidopita is a moist walnut cake with spices and syrup. Kok, which is the Greek version of Boston cream pie, is a chocolate-covered cake that is filled with custard. Diples are crunchy treats featuring crisp folds of thin rolled pastry dough that are deep fried and topped with syrup, cinnamon and nuts.
Greek cuisine also includes a variety of mouth-watering cookies including melomakarona (oval cookie dipped in honey and rolled in nuts), kourabiedes (butter cookie served with confectioner’s sugar), paximadia (zwieback-type cookie that is baked then sliced and toasted in the oven), koulourakia (butter cookie that is twisted, basted with egg yolk and baked.)
Greek American groups from the Delaware Valley will play popular Greek songs and standards and theer will be performances of traditional Greek folk dances. The festival also features a taverna – a bistro-style site for dancing and drinking.
Other attractions are Greek grocery stores and sales booths with items such as Greek music, icons, custom-made jewelry, leather goods and fabric. There will also be a variety of children’s activities.
The Greek Festival at the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church runs through June 6 and is free and open to the public.
The list of main dish items at Holy Trinity has a wide variety of meat and vegetable items. The menu is almost identical to St. Sophia’s.
Greek American groups will play traditional and modern Greek songs and there will be performances of traditional Greek folk dances. The festival also features an outdoor taverna, Greek grocery stores, and sales booths with items such as Greek music, icons, custom-made jewelry, leather goods and fabric. There will also be a variety of children’s activities.
Greek Festival in Philly at St. George Cathedral
There will also be a Greek Festival in Philly at St. George Cathedral (256 South Eighth Street, Philadelphia, saintgeorgecathedral.org).
The festival is running now through May 31 — 11 a.m.-11 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday and noon-6 p.m. on Sunday.
The event is described as “where philoxenia exists.”
The word philoxenia comes from two Greek roots – “philos,” meaning love or friendship, and “xenos,” meaning stranger or guest. Literally, it translates as “friend to the stranger” or “love for strangers.”
The popular annual Philly Greek Fest features traditional Greek food dishes, live music, vendors and church tours at the free festival.
This is the time of the year when there are ethnic food festivals almost every weekend.
This weekend’s schedule has another interesting option — St. Maron’s Lebanese and Middle East Cultural Festival (10th and Ellsworth streets, Philadelphia, http://www.saintmaron.org).
St. Maron’s Lebanese Festival, which runs now through May 31, is celebrating its golden anniversary.For 50 years, the festival has offered a wide array of tantalizing Middle Eastern dishes such as kibbe (bulghur, minced onions and finely ground lean beef or lamb), baba ghanoush (eggplant mixed with onions, tomatoes, olive oil and various seasonings) and tabbouleh (vegetarian dish with bulgur, tomatoes, finely chopped parsley, mint, and onion).
There will also be hummus (food dip made from cooked, mashed chickpeas blended with tahini, olive oil, lemon juice and garlic) and freshly cooked shish kabobs and chicken kabobs. A kabob is a Middle Eastern dish featuring pieces of meat, fish, onions and peppers grilled on a skewer).
Other attractions at St. Maron’s free festival will be folkloric exhibits, arts and crafts booths, hookahs, children’s games, a performance by St. Maron’s Dabke Troop, cash prize raffles and live music by Eddie Mousama and Meesha.
You still have a few days left to catch one of the area’s top festival events — the Devon Horse Show (Lancaster Avenue,Devon, 610-688-2554, www.devonhorseshow.org), which is one of the oldest events of any kind in the state.
The Devon Horse Show is and always has been special.
More than just another annual equestrian event, it is a family event that spans generations and traditionally marks the start of summer. It is a place where attendees go as much to see and be seen as to watch horses compete — a sporting event and a tradition-based social event.
No one on earth right now is old enough to have attended every edition of the Devon Horse Show.
The 2026 show, which is running now through May 31, is the 130th Annual Devon Horse Show and Country Fair.
The Devon Horse Show began in 1896 as a one-day show with 28 classes. By 1914, it had grown immensely and had become the largest outdoor horse show in the country — a distinction it still holds.
In 1919, it was decided that a “Country Fair” should be held in conjunction with the horse show and that the event should benefit Bryn Mawr Hospital.
In 2010, the Devon Horse Show became just the fourth American horse show to be honored with the designation as a USEF Heritage Competition.
More than 3,000 horses are entered in the Devon Horse Show in over 30 divisions and more than 200 classes with prize money totaling over a quarter of a million dollars. The equestrian competition reaches its peak the final few days with the Devon Grand Prix and the Idle Dice Open Jumper Stake.
The Country Fair offers concessions featuring lemon sticks, cotton candy and buckets of fudge. Other main attractions at the fair are the garden café, sales booths featuring antiques, toys, hand-crafted items, Devon Horse Show souvenirs and over 30 other shops with jewelry, art, clothes and equestrian-related items.
Another popular family attraction is the Midway with its huge Ferris wheel, old-time carousel and wide array of amusement rides and games — plus kid-favorite goodies such as popcorn, cotton candy and funnel cake.
A special attraction will be appearances by the Budweiser Clydesdales. A great American tradition celebrating their 91st Anniversary, the world-famous Budweiser Clydesdales are scheduled to appear again here at Devon on May 31.
Admission is $20 for adults and $10 for children (under 12) and seniors (over 65).
On May 31, the Upper Main Line Memorial Association will sponsor the 158th Annual Memorial Parade (www.malvernmemorialparade.com) in the Borough of Malvern. The parade, which is held every year on the Sunday after Memorial Day, will start at 1:30 p.m.
Recognized as among the oldest Memorial Commemoration in America, the Parade in 2026 will continue the tradition of honoring the men and women who have served our country and especially those who gave their lives in defense of our freedom.
The Parade route will again follow King Street from the Malvern Fire Station west to Warren Avenue, south to Monument Avenue then west to the Memorial Park. The Parade will feature military bands, color guards and vehicles, floats and specialty units, military re-enactors, fire trucks and antique cars, bands, youth groups, sports groups, local dignitaries and community police vehicles. The full line up is available here.
The Parade will be followed by a memorial ceremony and the Malvern Community Cake Walk. The 210th Memorial Ceremony will take a moment to remember and pay tribute to those who have defended our freedom.
Food will be available for purchase.
All of the events take place in Memorial Park, on Monument Avenue in Malvern. In the unlikely event of rain, there is no rain date for the parade or any of the activities.
In the event of rain, there is no rain date for the parade or any of the activities.
The Paoli-Berwyn-Malvern Chapter of the Lions Club will be in the park collecting used eyeglasses and hearing aids. Visitors can drop off their unused glasses at the Lion’s Club stand.
In 2026, America turns 250, and Philadelphia is throwing the ultimate yearlong celebration.
After all, we’ve been first in freedom, first in innovation and first in fun for 250 years.
52 Weeks of Firsts (www.visitphilly.com/52-weeks-of-firsts) is a yearlong, citywide celebration honoring Philadelphia’s legacy of innovation produced by the Philadelphia Historic District 250th Committee.
Not only was Philadelphia the birthplace of the country, but it was also the backdrop for many other marvels.
To honor these groundbreaking inventions and firsts, the Philadelphia Historic District is holding a year’s worth of free events to celebrate the country’s 250th birthday.
52 Weeks of Firsts shines a light on different Philly-born Firsts each week through a series of free public events called Saturday Firstivals — held every Saturday of 2026, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in more than a dozen neighborhoods.
Firstival: Saturday May 30 will present “First Steamboat for Passengers and Freight: 1787.”
The first American steamboat to carry both passengers and cargo set sail from Philadelphia — charting a new course for travel and trade.
This exhibit looks at that maritime era – a time when it was smooth sailing, revolutionary style.
The event will be held May 30 from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. at Cherry Street Pier, which is located at 121 North Christopher Columbus Boulevard in Philadelphia.
On May 30, Hope Lodge (553 South Bethlehem Pike, Fort Washington, 215-343-0965, http://www.ushistory.org/hope/) will be hosting the “Ambler Symphony Concert on the Lawn.”
The popular annual concert will start at 5 p.m. on the front lawn of the historic mansion.
Under the musical direction of conductor Jack Moore, it promises to be an enjoyable evening of music for all ages.
Visitors are invited to bring the family, chairs and a picnic. Craft beers from Round Guys brewery will be available for purchase to people aged 21 and over with valid ID.
Admissions is $5 for adults with children aged 12 and under admitted free.
Hope Lodge was built between 1743 and 1748 by Samuel Morris, a prosperous Quaker entrepreneur. Morris acted as a farmer, shipowner, miller, iron master, shop owner, and owner of the mill now known as Mather Mill.
Hope Lodge is an excellent example of early Georgian architecture, and it is possible that Edmund Woolley, architect of Independence Hall, offered advice in building. Samuel Morris owned the estate until his death in 1770.
It’s time once again for the Ladybug Music Festival (Market Street, Wilmington, Delaware, https://theladybugfestival.com) – a free festival held on Market Street in downtown Wilmington.
The popular annual event will be staged on May 30 from noon-9 p.m. p.m.
The 2026 festival will feature more than 40 different female-fronted bands, duos, and singer-songwriters performing at venues along Market Street.
The Clover Market (600 South Broad Street, Kennett Square, theclovermarket.com) will run from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on May 31.
The “Market,” which welcomes dogs, kids and friendly pets, will feature more than 100 curated vendors with antique, handmade and vintage goods.
The free event also features food and drink trucks, live music and free family-friendly crafting activities.
Reusable shopping bags are encouraged.
New for this Market — we are accepting donations to support our neighbors at the food cupboard at Kennett Area Community Service (KACS). Please consider bringing a donation of their most needed items. We will have a drop box at the entrance.
Most needed items are white rice (1 and 2 lb.), dried pinto or black beans (1 and 2 lb.); small-shaped pasta; and canned fruit, vegetables and tomatoes.
Chaddsford Winery (632 Baltimore Pike, Chadds Ford, 610-388-6221, http://www.chaddsford.com) is presenting “Live on the Lawn” now through September 27 and “Friday Night Wine Down” now through September 25.
“Live on the Lawn” is a brand-new outdoor music series featuring local talent, great wine, and relaxed vibes every summer weekend afternoon.
“Friday Night Wine Down” offers fun games, drink specials, and extended hours on Friday evenings.
The laid-back, laugh-filled series features Quizzo trivia with fun themes and great prizes; seasonal wine slushies, PA craft beer, fresh mocktails, and the venue’s newest wine releases; and delicious bites from the winery’s new, in-house food menu including specialty weekly pizzas.
Penns Woods Winery (124 Beaver Valley Road, Chadds Ford, http://www.pennswoodswinery.com) will present “Live
Music on the Lawn” every weekend in May and June.
Joe Vandetty will perform on May 30 from 1-4 p.m.
Greg Jones will perform on May 31 from 1-4 p.m.
June concerts will start on June 5 with Chris Despo from 5-7:30 p.m. followed by Brooke DiCaro from 2-5 p.m. on June 6 and West Chester’s Nicole Zell from 1-4 p.m. on June 7.
Sesame Place (100 Sesame Road, Langhorne, www.sesameplace.com) will be presenting “Elmo’s Springtacular” every weekend now through June 16.
“Elmo’s Springtacular” at Sesame Place is filled with furry fun and exciting events – including an exciting line up of meet & greets, music, magic, pirate adventures, and fireworks.
This weekend will feature “Pete the Cat Meet & Greet” and “Grumpy Monkey Meet & Greet” on May 30 and 31.
Kids can have all kinds of groovy fun at “Pete the Cat Meet & Greet.”
They will be able to meet Pete the Cat, star of the best-selling Pete the Cat book series by James Dean.
This is a special opportunity to meet and get a photo with one of the coolest cats around, Pete the Cat!
At “Grumpy Monkey Meet & Greet,” participants can swing into Abby’s Backyard BBQ for a wild time.
And they will be able to meet the grumpy monkey himself — Jim Panzee, from the best-selling book series by Suzanne Lang.
Kids can get a photo with Jim the Chimpanzee and try to cheer him up during his visit to Sesame Place.
Brandywine Valley has quite a few museums and tourist sites that provide both residents and tourists with diverse ways to spend leisure time.
You can take advantage of these options with the 2025 Brandywine Treasure Trail Passport (www.visitwilmingtonde.com/passport/).
The cost is $49 for an individual pass and $99 for a family pass (for up to five family members).
The Brandywine Treasure Trail Passport is good for one-time admission to Wilmington and Brandywine Valley’s top attractions now through October 31.
A family pass, which includes one-day admission to each of 12 sites, can bring a savings of over $200 for the holders — especially since many of the participating institutions have regular admission fees in double figures.
The list of locations covered by the Brandywine Treasure Trail Passport includes Longwood Gardens, Delaware Museum of Nature and Science, Brandywine Museum of Art, Delaware Art Museum, Delaware History Museum, Hagley Museum and Library, Delaware Center for Contemporary Arts, Nemours Mansion & Gardens, Read House and Garden, Mt. Cuba Center, Rockwood Museum and Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library.
A sure sign that summer is just around the corner is the opening of the “Festival of Fountains” at Longwood Gardens (Route 1, Kennett Square, www.longwoodgardens.org).
The “Festival of Fountains” opened for the season on May 9 and will run until September 28.
Longwood Gardens’ Open Air Theatre and Italian Water Garden fountains will spring to life, as will the Square Fountain, Round Fountain (Flower Garden Walk), Sylvan Fountain (Peirce’s Park), and Children’s Corner fountains.
The season of renewal and growth has started. Millions of tiny geophytes begin the season, blanketing Longwood’s vistas with sweeps of spring-has-sprung color.
Dancing fountains, performances under the stars, and beautiful gardens make the Festival of Fountains at Longwood Gardens magical. The spectacular celebration of music, light, water, and nature includes distinctive garden experiences indoors and out.
Before the fountain performances, guests can sit under the stars and enjoy live music and refreshing brews and pub fare in Longwood’s Beer Garden. Other dining options at Longwood are 1906 Fine Dining and The Café.
As the season unfolds, flowering trees delightfully punctuate the landscape, radiant tulips stretch toward the sun, and the delicious fragrance of wisteria floats along the breeze.
Visitors can celebrate the fleeting beauty and refined artistry of Satsuki azalea bonsai with Longwood’s exhibition that brings together rare cultivars, master growers, and centuries of horticultural tradition.
Visitors can also enjoy special exhibits at the Orchid House.
Admission to Longwood Gardens is $35 for adults, $31 for seniors and college students, $26 for active military and $20 for youth.
Hagley Museum and Library (Buck Road East entrance via Route 100, Wilmington, Delaware, 302-658-2400, www.hagley.org), a 230-acre historical village on the site of the original du Pont Company gunpowder mills in northern Delaware, has a popular ongoing attraction – “Nation of Inventors.”
A popular annual event is the “Walking Tour.”
With the “Walking Tour,” participants can walk through history during an in-depth, 90-minute guided tour each Monday morning from March through December.
Starting this weekend, there will be a special walking tour – “Hagley History Tour: America250 Edition.”
The tour will be held on Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays –Memorial Day Weekend through Labor Day Weekend at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
Participants can enjoy a guided outdoor walking tour exploring Hagley’s role in shaping American and Delaware history. This tour, held twice daily, lasts approximately one hour, involves walking on uneven ground, and costs $5 in addition to regular daily admission.
“Nation of Inventors” celebrates the American spirit of ingenuity by taking visitors on a journey from the early years of the patent system, in the 1790s, through the “golden age” of American invention, in the late 1800s.
The exhibit features more than 120 patent models from Hagley’s unique collection highlighting the diverse stories of inventors from all walks of life.
Patent models are scaled representations of inventions and were part of the patent application process for nearly 100 years. “Nation of Inventors” showcases patent models representing innovations in a variety of industries from transportation and manufacturing to food preservation and medical devices.
In the exhibition, visitors will enjoy engaging experiences around every corner, testing their knowledge of innovation and hearing personal accounts from inventors.
“Nation of Inventors” is located on the first two floors of Hagley’s Visitor Center. Visitors can plan to spend about 30 minutes on their self-guided tour of the exhibition.
Admission to Hagley is $20 for adults, $16 for students and seniors (62+) and $10 for children (6-14).
The 2026 season is underway at Nemours Estate (1600 Rockland Road, Wilmington, Delaware, nemoursestate.org). The entrance is located on the campus of Nemours Children’s Health, follow signs for Nemours Estate.
One of the site’s popular spring events will be held this weekend.
On May 30, Nemours will present a “Guided Mansion Tour.”
Enjoy an hour-long guide-led tour of Nemours Estate’s Mansion. The tours gets underway at 9:30 a.m. Tour group will be shuttled from the entrance to the Mansion.
Nemours was the estate of Alfred I. duPont.
Originally constructed in 1910, Nemours Estate is one of Delaware’s grandest buildings and includes the largest formal French garden in North America.
Nemours Estate comprises an exquisite, 77-room mansion, the largest formal French gardens in North America, a Chauffeur’s Garage housing a collection of vintage automobiles, and 200 acres of scenic woodlands, meadows and lawns.
The Gardens are one of the estate’s prime attractions.
Admission to Nemours is $23 for adults, $21 for seniors and $10 for children.
On Fridays and Saturdays, Rockwood Park & Museum (4671 Washington Street Ext, Wilmington, Delaware, 4671 Washington Street Ext, Wilmington, www.newcastlede.gov/431/Rockwood-Park-Museum) is presenting “Self-Guided Museum Tours.”
Visitors will be able to explore the grandeur, history and beauty of Rockwood Mansion, home of the Shipley, Bringhurst and Hargraves families for 120 years. This tour emphasizes the magnificent mansion interiors and stories of the families that lived there.
Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library (Route 52, Wilmington, Delaware, 800-448-3883, www.winterthur.org) has attractions both indoors and outdoors going on right now.
There seems to be no end to what’s in bloom — and in almost every corner of the garden.
White flowers of kousa dogwoods, deutzias, and mock oranges invite you to visit Sycamore Hill. Visitors can wander the garden paths to discover the delicate beauty of pink mountain laurels and pale Pink Leda roses at the Bristol Summerhouse.
In Azalea Woods and Enchanted Woods, look for the flowers of martagon hybrid lilies opening. A few late-flowering peonies can be found in the Lower Peony Garden, while ferns cover the shady March Bank.
Admission to Winterthur is $27 for adults, $25 for seniors and students and $10 for children.
The Delaware Art Museum (2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, Delaware, www.delart.org) is currently featuring several new exhibitions.
“Living Indigenous,” which runs through August 23, celebrates the creative contributions of Indigenous artists living in and connected to Delaware, developed in partnership with the Nanticoke Indian Museum.
“Citizen Artist,” which is on display through July 19, coincides with the Semiquincentennial in 2026.
The “Citizen Artist” will meet a moment of national reflection with a celebration of artist workers in America.
“The People’s Gallery,” which runs August 7 through September 6, amplifies Delaware 250 by inviting up to 600 Delaware residents or DelArt Members to submit one work of art for exhibition in the Museum.
The Museum is open from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday and will be closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.
Admission is $18 for adults, $16 for seniors and $6 for youth.
Historic Odessa (Main Street, Odessa, Delaware, 302-378-4119, www.historicodessa.org) is both a scenic and an historic site in Delaware.
Historic Odessa just reopened for spring tours and celebrated the beginning of its 2026 season.
Known in the 18th-century as Cantwell’s Bridge, Odessa played a vital role in commercial life along the Delaware River as a busy grain shipping port.
Today, visitors can stroll along tree-lined streets and admire examples of 18th- and 19th-century architecture in one of the best-preserved towns in Delaware. They can also tour a remarkable collection of antiques and Americana preserved in period room settings and quaint exhibits.
Historic Odessa is open to the public from March through December, Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. and Sunday from 1-4 p.m. The site is also open on Monday by reservation.
The 2026 season is in full swing at Chanticleer (786 Church Street, Wayne, www.chanticleergarden.org).
The Chanticleer estate dates from the early 20th-century, when land along the Main Line of the Pennsylvania Railroad was developed for summer homes to escape the heat of Philadelphia.
Adolph Rosengarten, Sr., and his wife Christine chose the Wayne-St. Davids area to build their country retreat. The family’s pharmaceutical firm would become part of Merck & Company in the 1920s.
The Rosengartens hired architect and former classmate Charles L. Borie to design the house, which was completed in 1913. Landscape architect Thomas Sears designed the terraces as extensions of the house. A 1924 addition converted the summer home into a year-round residence and the family moved here permanently.
Admission to Chanticleer is $15 for adults and free for pre-teen children (12 years and under).
Andalusia Historic House, Gardens and Arboretum (1237 State Road, Andalusia, www.andalusiapa.org) is located on a wooded promontory overlooking the Delaware River.
It has been a stately presence on this stretch of water, just north of Philadelphia, for more than 200 years. The ancestral home of the Biddle family, Andalusia is also a natural paradise of native woodlands and spectacular gardens that have evolved over time.
Placed on the National Register of Historic Landmarks in 1966, the Big House — one of the finest examples of Greek Revival architecture in the United States — provides an unparalleled look into our nation’s past, while also offering a glimpse into the life of a family that helped to shape its future.
Its surrounding gardens delight the senses all through the year, from the tumbling, brightly colored leaves of fall to the floral extravaganza of spring and the abundance and scent of summer.
Self-Guided Garden Tours will be available Mondays through Wednesdays through November 4 (excluding holidays) at 10 a.m. or 1 p.m.
A serene venue where you can enjoy flowers up close is Tyler Arboretum (515 Painter Road, Media, 610-566-9134, www.tylerarboretum.org).
This weekend, Tyler is presenting a “Saturday Wildflower Walk” on May 30 at 1 p.m.
Participants will be able to explore the Arboretum with wildflower expert Dick Cloud. They can slow down and look closely at what’s growing along meadows, wooded paths, and occasional streamside spots.
They can enjoy the simple pleasure of seeing the landscape in detail and notice the Arboretum with fresh eyes. In May and June, walkers will be able to spot wildflowers of late spring and early summer.
Admission fee is $18 per adult, $15 per senior and $10 per child (ages 12-17).
A comfortable way to sit back and enjoy the colors of spring is to take a ride on a tourist rail line train.
The Strasburg Rail Road (Route 741, Strasburg, 717-687-7522, www.strasburgrailroad.com) is running a special train on May 30 and 31 — the “Wine & Cheese Train.”
Passengers can enjoy the luxurious, climate-controlled first-class accommodations and a tasting of select wine, cheese, and crackers as they travel in style down the tracks from Strasburg to Paradise and back. The train departs at 6 p.m. and the total trip time is 45 minutes.
“Wine & Cheese Train” boarding is 30 minutes before the scheduled departure. Riders must be 21 or older and have their photo ID ready when they board.
Featured wines are carefully selected from Waltz Vineyards, and cheeses are paired accordingly. Beer and select non-alcoholic beverages are also available for purchase upon request. Riders can purchase a souvenir wine glass on board the train if desired. Glasses are $7 each.
In accordance with Pennsylvania law, alcohol is only served during the train ride. The rail line is not permitted to serve alcoholic beverages while the train is berthed in the station.
Tickets are $79.
If you enjoy walking around garden displays or if you like to look at model railroad layouts, then you should definitely check out the Garden Railway Display at the Morris Arboretum & Garden (100 Northwestern Avenue, Chestnut Hill, www.morrisarboretum.org).
The ultra-popular Garden Railway Display has become a major summer attraction at The Gardens at Morris Arboretum. The 27th annual edition of the display opened in May 23 and will remain open until September 30.
This summer, Morris Arboretum will unveil a brand-new exhibition in its popular Garden Railway – “Garden Railway: World Pollinators,” part of its new summer-long exhibition, “Bees, Butterflies & Blooms: A Pollinator Paradise.”
As one of the largest outdoor miniature train displays in the United States, the Garden Railway will delight and amaze visitors of all ages.
The railway has a quarter mile of track featuring seven loops and tunnels with 15 different rail lines and two cable cars, nine bridges (including a trestle bridge you can walk under) and bustling model trains.
The buildings and the display are all made of natural materials – bark, leaves, twigs, hollow logs, mosses, acorns, dried flowers, seeds and stones – to form a perfectly proportioned miniature landscape complete with miniature rivers.
Philadelphia-area landmarks are all meticulously decorated for the holidays with lights that twinkle. There is even a masterpiece replica of Independence Hall are made using pinecone seeds for shingles, acorns as finials and twigs as downspouts.
Visitors will be able to see miniature replicas of iconic structures at some of America’s most famous public gardens including the Climatron at Missouri Botanical Garden, Torii Gate and Pavilion at Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Science Pyramid at Denver Botanic Gardens, and so much more.
Admission is $22 for adults; $20 for seniors (65 and older); $12 for youth (ages 13-17 or with ID), active military and retired military; and free for children (under 3).
Newlin Grist Mill (219 South Cheyney Road, Glen Mills, newlingristmill.org) will present its “1704 Mill Tour” on May 30 and 31..
Visitors can take a guided tour of the site’s 1704 water powered mill.
While the Mill is not currently operational, visitors on guided tours will get a rare opportunity to see the process of building a new waterwheel and waterbox.
Visitors must be on a guided tour to go inside the Grist Mill.
Cost is $10 for adults and $6 for seniors and children 12 and under.
The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University (1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia, www.ansp.org) has just opened a new exhibit – “Botany of Nations.”
Visitors can experience a groundbreaking exhibition that provides a new perspective on the legendary Lewis and Clark Corps of Discovery.
Co-curated with Enrique Salmón, PhD, an ethnobotanist and author of IWÍGARA: The Kinship of Plants and People, and developed with contributions from Indigenous cultural historians, “Botany of Nations” offers a culturally layered view of the plants of North America.
Collected on the famous expedition, some of the oldest plant specimens in the country today are housed in the Academy’s own Lewis and Clark Herbarium.
Guests can learn how the Native Nations Meriwether Lewis met on the trail shaped America’s plant knowledge long before Western scientists claimed these “discoveries.”
Centering the voices of Native Nations who have protected and cared for the lands for thousands of years, “Botany of Nations” presents plants as portals to Indigenous storytelling and knowledge.
Visitors will:
See 18th and early 19th century scientific instruments, original journals, maps and herbarium sheets that illuminate the role of natural science on the Corps of Discovery.
View Native American peace pipes as well as Corps of Discovery peace medals.
Navigate prairie, plains, plateau and Pacific coast landscapes within a model of the trail as you learn about the importance of plants such as tobacco and chokecherry through film, interactive media, cultural artifacts, sensory experiences and contemporary voices.
Watch a newly produced film about how Indigenous traditional land practices and cultural systems surrounding food provide contemporary solutions to today’s biodiversity and climate challenges.
Experience a native plant garden on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway to learn how you can grow heritage plants that foster biodiversity.
Museum admission is $22 for adults, $19 for seniors and $18 for children (ages 2-12).
Grim Philly’s “Dark Philly History Tour” (www.grimphilly.com) will be held every evening throughout the summer.
Participants can walk with tour guides from the grounds of America’s first White House, Congress, and Liberty Bell to homes and sites of Hamilton, Washington, Franklin, Adams, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, and more than 10 other Founding-Fathers.
The surprising dirt of espionage, murder, sexual license and blackmail highlight the secrets of 1776 with a ghost story or two along the way. This tour is highly researched. And your guide is a historian.
Tickets are $35.
Ghost Tour of Philadelphia (215-413-1997, www.ghosttour.com), Ghost Tour of Lancaster (717-687-6687, www.ghosttour.com) and Ghost Tour of Strasburg (717-687-6687, www.ghosttour.com) operate throughout the spring and summer and offer an eerily entertaining evening of true ghost stories and real haunted houses.
The Ghost Tour of Philadelphia, which is based on the book, “Ghost Stories of Philadelphia, PA.,” is a candlelight walking tour along the back streets and secret gardens of Independence Park, Society Hill, and Old City, where ghostly spirits, haunted houses, and eerie graveyards abound.
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articipants can discover the ghost lore of America’s most historic and most haunted city with stories from the founding of William Penn’s colony to present-day hauntings.
The activity is open year-round every night. Tickets are $24.
The Ghost Tour of Lancaster and the Ghost Tour of Strasburg are based on the book, “Ghost Stories of Lancaster, PA.”
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articipants in the Ghost Tour of Lancaster explore the long-forgotten mysteries of one of America’s oldest cities, with haunting tales of otherworldly vigils, fatal curses, and star-crossed lovers. The tour provides the opportunity to experience 300 years of haunted history from the Red Rose City’s thorny past. Tickets are $20.
The Ghost Tour of Strasburg is a candlelight walking tour of the quaint and historic town of Strasburg in the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch Country. Visitors will experience an entertaining evening with a costumed tour guide spinning tales of haunted mansions, eerie graveyards, and spirits that roam the night … in a town lost in time. Tickets are $20.
