philadelphia on a budget

The theme of our facation/staycation this year was saving money.  After our kitchen/roof renovation earlier this year, money is tight and we were looking to save a few bucks, but still have some fun.  We already have a membership to the DaVinci Science Center in Allentown, PA so we decided to check into their reciprocal program.  I was thrilled to find out that our membership (which only costs $90 for the year) also got us admission to the Franklin Institute and the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia. 

Thanks to my oldest child turning 13, we are now a family of 3 "adults" and 2 "kids" when it comes to paying admission, so the total price for the 5 of us at the Franklin Institute would have been $69.50, while the Academy would have set us back another $56.  With our membership card, it was, well priceless (and free). 

We also took advantage of a family pass from our local regional rail line, SEPTA.  We were able to get into and out of the city for only $28 for the 5 of us.  We will definitely use that again-next time we will do the historic district-when it's a little cooler in the fall.