Best Ways To Get To/From The Philadelphia Airport Into The City

Philadelphia is one of the largest cities located on the East Coast and it is the 6th largest city in the US. Moreover, the population of the city is more than 6 million. For tourists who want to travel there, it is pretty easy to reach this city. 

If you are traveling from New York, located on the south at a distance of 100 miles. People from Atlantic City need to travel 55 miles, and travelers from Washington will travel 133 miles towards the north. 

It is one of the most popular cities as the 63 million people make a quarter of the total U.S. population. The city of Philadelphia is known for the best restaurants, art institutions, Liberty Bell, and much more. 

If you’re planning a visit to Philly this holiday season, our comprehensive guide details all the information that you need to get to/from the Philadelphia Airport. 

Getting from Philadelphia Airport to City 

Philadelphia Public Transportation

The public transit system of Philadelphia is considered one of the largest in the US. The public transit system consists of elevated trains and subways, commuter rail trains, buses, and trolleys. While the SEPTA Key Cards are used to purchase and store the fare. 

Moreover, 2 other lines take passengers from downtown Philadelphia to the City Hall (the Broad Street Line and the Market-Frankford). Besides these subways lines, there are more than 70 bus routes, 5 trolley lines, along with a PHLASH tourist bus. The bus helps to meet the needs of people from downtown Philly and adjacent areas. 

Philly PHLASH

If you want to explore some major tourist sites in the city, opt for the Phlash tourist bus. The bus covers more than 20 stops and runs between May-October. The best thing is that the busses run on an interval of 15 minutes. So, you don’t need to wait for too long to find one. 

Those who are interested to learn more about their services, download the mobile app or check out their sites. Some of the popular destinations covered on the route are Philadelphia Museum of Art, Independence Mall, Penn’s Landing, One Liberty Observation Deck, The Franklin Institute, Rocky Statue & Steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and Philadelphia Zoo. 

Walking 

It is recommended that you should explore Philadelphia city on foot. The fact that each corner of the city is worth exploring, you may miss some of them while traveling through public transportation or car. 

Note: Before starting, it is recommended that you should download the Big Bus Philadelphia Tourist Map to locate the popular tourist spots. It’s up to you if you want to use a printed version or save the .pdf. If you are traveling with your family, download the maps of Philadelphia and maps.me app. It would be easier to navigate by dropping pins to popular locations. 

Biking 

Many people like to use bikes to travel from one place to another. Besides the health benefits attached to biking, it is an affordable option as well. Notably, Philly is one of the top cities in the US where people prefer to commute by bike. You will find dedicated bike lanes on most of the roads. Tourists can contact the rental shops or use bike-sharing services to get the bike. 

Rideshares & Taxis

Taxis are generally easy to find in the city and they are known to be a popular way to get around. Especially those who are near major streets or popular destinations can easily find them. Moreover, those who can’t find them can use alternatives such as Lyft or Uber. They can be ordered via mobile devices. 

SEPTA Airport Line Regional Train 

The SEPTA Airport Line Regional Train is the best amongst all if you are looking for an inexpensive and easiest way to get to or from the Philadelphia International Airport. It will take you to City Center in downtown Philadelphia. 

The train takes around 25 minutes to reach the City Center while stopping at all the major terminals on the way. In addition, the timings of the service from 5:00 am to midnight are pretty convenient for everyone. 

Note: You can do bookings to purchase the SEPTA airport transportation tickets. The bookings can be done at the station or online and they are usually cheaper than the regular fare. Moreover, SEPTA ticket purchases take around 7-10 business days to arrive by email. 

SOME ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS

If you are interested in seeing the sites, it is better to take a Hop-On Hop-Off Bus Tour to enjoy the views. It will allow you to enjoy the views at your own pace and the tour is often recommended by the tourists to get around the Philadelphia city in one go. Remember there is still an option to Hop off at popular sites and stops. Many people like to explore the area on foot. 

Note: It is better to pin-point the stops that you want to explore in advance before starting your journey. You can download the Big Bus Philadelphia Route Map to do so. 

Getting from City to Philadelphia Airport 

Tourists who want to reach the Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) from the Center City need to travel around seven miles to get there. Around 25 airlines are currently operating from the airport and there are 500 departures to over 120 destinations around the globe daily. 

Nonstop flights are provided by Southwest Airlines to cities such as Atlanta, Orlando, Phoenix, Las Vegas, Chicago, and Denver. Moreover, international travel can also use American Airlines to reach Budapest, Bahamas, Paris, Toronto, Cancun, Rome, and London. 

So, for those of you who want to travel to Philadelphia International Airport from the Center City should go for the SEPTA Regional Rail. It just takes 25 minutes to reach the airport and stops at all major terminals of the Philadelphia International Airport. The service runs from 5 am to midnight daily. Also, you can get the Airport Line runs every 30 mins to facilitate the passengers.  

FARE

Tourists who need to travel from Center City to PHL can contact any Sales Office to buy a ticket. Besides, they can also get one from Penn Medicine Station, 30th Street Station, Temple University Station, Suburban Station, and Jefferson Station. The cost of an individual ticket is $6.75. The Fare Kiosks and Sales Offices accept cash, credit, and debit cards. 

Moreover, those who are on time can pay a cash amount of $8 while boarding the train. You can use TransPass (over the weekend), a SEPTA TrailPass, and the One Day Independence Pass to reach the Airport from the Center City. The SEPTA Key card would be loaded with One Day Independence Passes, TransPasses, and TrailPasses. However, you need to ensure that the conductor knows about your final destination.

Notably, passengers who are coming from the airport can pay via credit, debit cards or cash to purchase a Quick Trip from the Airport Line Terminal Stops. Each Airport Line Terminal Stop has these Kiosks. The Quick Trip is best for those who need to travel one-way from PHL to the Center City. The cost of each Quick Trip is $6.75. 

AIRPORT LINE MAJOR STOPS

Some of you may be interested to know about the stops that come along the way. The airport line stops at all the major locations including:

• Temple University
• Jefferson Station
• Suburban Station
• 30th Street Station
• Penn Medicine Station
• Eastwick
• Terminal A (East and West Gates)
• Terminal B
• Terminal C + Terminal D
• Terminal E + Terminal F

GENERAL INFORMATION

The Philadelphia Airport is generally considered as the Philadelphia Airport’s hub though, but we can also see a significant presence of other airlines including United Airlines, Southwest Airlines, and Delta Air Lines. 

The Philadelphia Airport has been serving both domestic and international destinations for years. Moreover, it has four runways, seven terminals, and 126 gates. A shuttle service runs that takes passengers from one Terminal to another. But the fact that all the terminals are connected, you can also take a walk. 

As far as the renovation of the Philadelphia Airport is concerned, the management has spent more than $2 billion since 2000. More specifically, the expansion of Terminal E required $45 million, $12.5 million was spent to renovate Terminal A-East, and a capital of $550 million was spent to build Terminal A-West. The airport is being constantly renovated from time to time. 

Airline Locations

It may be difficult for some tourists to find the exact terminal of their airline. Thus, it is better to pin-point the terminal before leaving for the airport. In this article, we have mentioned all the airlines along with the terminals for your convenience. 

1. Terminal A-East:

American Airlines, Frontier, Air Jamaica, Delta, Midwest, American Eagle, Charter Airlines and USA 3000. 

 

 

• Terminal A West:

 

British Airways, Air France, Air France, US Airways & Lufthansa International flights. 

 

 

• Terminals B & C:

 

Domestic flights of US Airways

 

 

• Terminal D:

 

United, AirTran, Air Canada, and Continental

 

 

• Terminal E:

 

Southwest and Northwest airlines

 

 

• Terminal F: 

 

US Airways Express

Driving Directions

For those not familiar with the driving directions, you can access the Philadelphia International Airport directly from I-95, I-76 and Route 291. Those people who are traveling from the New Jersey Turnpike should take Exit 3 to get to the Walt Whitman Bridge and from there you need to follow the Walt Whitman Bridge. However, if you’re coming from the Pennsylvania Turnpike, you need to take Route 476 to I-95 North. Keep driving until you arrive at the airport exit.