Philadelphia Trolley Works

We only had an overnight business trip to Philadelphia and wanted to see as much of the city as we could. We hopped on the big bus and had a great time. Tour guide was phenomenal and informative. We were very satisfied with our experience. Thanks!

I reserved the Trolley and activity bus for my wedding on 9÷5÷15 and the process was very seamless and Ray was a pleasure to work with. The transportation arrived on time, with the exception of a bit of a delay for the drop offs/​pick ups at the end of the evening, as there was a bit over a longer wait time for the last straggler guests than expected. The trolley was clean and air conditioned and was perfect for my bridal party to drive around and take pictures in. Thank you for a great experience on one of the most important days of my life!

May 2^nd 2015, was my wedding day. I hired Philadelphia Trolley works to transport my guests from the Sonesta Hotel to the franklin Institute where my wedding was. Needless to say the 52 passenger coach liner I chartered NEVER SHOWED, 45 minutes of calling and being put on hold and being disconnected was ridiculous. My guests had to scramble for taxi cabs, which cost them! The concierge from the hotel was also trying to reach the Philadlphia Trolley works and had no luck, they too were helping my guests scramble for taxis. HOW DO YOU JUST NOT SHOW UP? I have never been so humiliated; it definitely put a scar on my wedding day. I had seniors who never been to Philadelphia trying to hail cabs. So I was hoping they would at least show up to transport my guests back to the hotel at 12 am. At 10:45 pm I had to leave MY OWN WEDDING to make phone calls because I had 4 people trying to reach them and they were all on hold for 20 minutes or more. NO EXAGERATION! Finally I get dispatch who says Ill call you back in 10 minutes. 20 minutes later no call, I call again, again told they will call me back in 10 minutes, I was getting really worried and the dispatch operator was getting rude, very rude, I explained I have 48 people who need to get back to the hotel that I contracted YOU for, so 45 minutes after my wedding ended we are on phones trying to get taxi cabs for our guests, a mini bus shows up and the driver states he was told to make one trip… its a 32 passenger mini bus I contracted for 52 passenger bus. Needless to say the driver made two trips. TELL ME HOW DOES A COMPANY JUST NOT SHOW UP? I complained to Philly Trolly works and spoke to Roe Derr who was THE ONLY person willing to help me! She apologized in behalf of her company she was helpful and understanding. DO not USE them for guest transportation. Although I got a refund I never got an apology or an explanation. My guests had to pay out of pocket for cabs And I lost 2 hours of my wedding not to mention the stress it caused me. THANK YOU Philadelphia TROLLY works for nothing. I get a letter in the mail a week late saying «We hope you would give us another chance»… Are You kidding me? On the most important day of my life you let me down and I am supposed to recommend you and hire you again? NEVER will I recommend them. PS Also They are NOT endorsed by the Better Business Bureau. I wonder Why??? I should have checked there first.

I called to ask when the next bus arrived because their website was a bit confusing. The woman who answered (Maggie) was super friendly and helpful. She offered to have someone pick us up and take us to stop #1 because we were at stop #19 and I said that was not necessary. So she told us the bus would arrive at approximately 2:55 and asked for my number so she can call me when it was one stop away. I thought that was so nice and she really went the extra mile. She kept her word and called to inform me that the bus was about 10 minutes away, thought that was really awesome of them.
The bus tour was great and was a very practical way to see the city and learn the incredible history behind it. This gave us a really great overview of the places we want to see for the remainder of our trip and I’m glad we took the tour.

I am a life long south philly resident, i went on a couple tours with friends visiting which were fairly good with the Trolley Tour. this time went on the Big Bus tour and it was disappointing. Our guide had no sense of humor or making it fun, she really gave more boring pointers and there are so many interesting places, sites and stories of many things we passed thru that she simply ignored. On top of that, not sure if they employ people who might not live IN THE CITY for long or at all. but this guide was rather down on the city. pointing out that the Avenue of the Arts was a shady, run down, dangerous area until ta da. Ed Rendell turned it all around. well i never saw it that way. yes it’s become much classier and even snobier but it always had some terrific sites, Horn and Hardarts. The Bellevue Strafford, Academy of Music i remember seeing concerts in the early 70s! She also had a way of giving her personal downing opinions of say the Rocky Statue. the movie.the steps. etc and other areas. and just made the trip annoying this time. we did get off at one point and a new guide came on that i can see from the get-​go was much more enthusiastic.funnier.and took a more positive and detailed. story filled way but unfortunately we only were on for a few stops with him. It is a good way to see the city. but i feel they do not bring out the fun points of the city. the areas of interest that might want u to get off and explore. which are so many. and at least on this day. i just found it below par.

This was a really easy way to see the city and depending which guide you get, you can find out a lot about Philadelphia as well! If you find a guide you like you can even just stay on board and do the whole loop which it says takes about 1.5hrs.
Our first guide was great. He was really informative, excited about telling us about the city and kept it up beat. Our second guide, not as great, but still did a decent job.
I think the site says buses come by every half hour or so but we did end up waiting for a bus at one stop for over 45 minutes so it’s a little inconsistent.
Check Groupon as they had an ongoing deal and we were able to get our tickets for $ 13/​person!

Im writing this review directed at any couple looking to use this company for a wedding.
I would just like to express my extreme disappoint with the service.
So disorganized.
–Lost credit card authorization, charge card anyway.
— Sent over many contracts detailing the day. Received emails asking where they were and then they found them but the contracts had been totally changed.
–Received a contract in which they ADDED money to the bill
–Said final payment was due 1 week before wedding. She tried to charge EVERYTHING on the card a month before.
We paid EXTRA 800 dollar to have an additional hour of service. We paid our photographer EXTRA to have an additional hour of service. The Trolley had the address (which was correct on the contract) WRONG.
They were 35 minutes late to pick up groom, which made them 45 minutes late to start photos.
We basically wasted 1,000 dollars on services we didn’t get to use.
I am making this post so others thinking what a great idea a trolley would be for the wedding will think before using this company. I am EXTREMELY disappointed in this company.

What a huge disappointment. The tour guide was horrible. 90% of what she said was inaudible. She spoke so quickly and so garbled that none of us could make out what she was talking about. She mentioned she was going to Temple University. I hope she’s not a communications major. We were the 430 tour and it felt like we were just being rushed to get through the tour so they could all go home. Due to traffic, they skipped Chinatown altogether. We literally saw no part of it whatsoever. Instead they drove us up Market Street where there was nothing really to see except City Hall in the distance. The sad thing is I took this tour not too long ago and the tour guide was fabulous. She was passionate, excited, and truly seemed to genuinely love her job. She had all kind of interesting tidbits and stories, none of which this younger guide shared. Companies like this should realize that a lot of the quality of the tour depends on the tour guides themselves. It’s a shame that many will be subjected to her.

Wow! Do not reserve a trolley from this company for your wedding. I was called 5:30pm the evening before my wedding (less than 24 hrs before the ceremony) and was told that the trolley I reserved 9 months in advance was out of commission. I could not believe this considering I called a week before to confirm all the details.
An employee at Philadelphia Trolley Works gave 2 options– use our Cirque de Soleil trolley or EASTERN STATE PENITENTIARY trolley… I am not kidding. He then proceeded to tell me he was off the next day. Enough said. I ended up calling multiple limo companies the next day at 6:30. All I received from Philadelphia Trolley Works was a refund– no apology.

Loved the carriage ride and all the trivia about Philadelphia. Ask for Chris. He was an awesome host. I will definitely do it again. Thanks Chris!

Before you go schlepping to Schuylkill Ave thinking you’re going to board a trolley there, think again. Best place to pick up the trolley is at the Independence Visitor Center at 6^th and Market Street. My traveling companions and I decided we would take the scenic route and ended up on Schuylkill Ave. Thankfully, they were nice enough to print out directions on MapQuest for us and sent us on our way in the right direction.
Despite being the only one in my group that was not a student, the guy at the ticket counter was more than happy to honor the student price for each of us, which was $ 20. Not bad for a 21 stop on/​off trolley tour. The trolley was comfortable and lucky for us, not completely packed, which left us room to run from side to side taking pictures of everything we passed. The tour guide was incredibly knowledgeable and he made the tour fun and filled with interesting little tidbits. It was also nice how the trolley stopped at the Philadelphia Museum of Art so everyone could take pictures with Rocky and if they wanted to, run up and down the stairs like Rocky did. And since it was rather chilly outside, it was nice to explore the city while being in the warmth and comfort of a trolley.
We got off at South Street (stop 18, I believe), so we could check out a cheesesteak place as well as browse some of the shops. As advised, I called the trolley line after we were done eating to see when the next trolley would arrive at South Street. We had the option of 10 minutes or another hour. In a hurry to continue our day (as the sun was starting to go down), we decided to forgo hopping back on the trolley and took a nice stroll back to the Visitor Center. If we weren’t leaving the next day, I would’ve liked to have returned to finish the tour since the tickets were good for 24 hours. I guess that’s just another reason to go back to Philly.

Tour guide was great. Bus was awful. It was designed so you can not see out the windows, is this a tour bus? The diesel fumes were so disgusting you can not breath. Police should have ticketed us! You can not breath. So if you want a great tour guide, can hold your breath, don’t want to see anything, then this is the bus tour for you. If you can’t find your bus? Just look for the huge blue cloud of diesel fumes. Bus will be under the carbon dioxide.

For a tourist, this is a great way to see the city. We started on a trolley, exited to eat lunch at Reading Station, then finished the tour on a double decker bus. Our first tour guide was pretty good, but the second one was great — enthusiastic, seemingly knowledgeable, and funny. With a couple dozen stops, the tour was extensive and would last about 90 minutes if you completing the tour all at once.
But there were some problems given the expensive $ 27/​adult, $ 10/​child ticket prices. The trolley had static over the sound system. The bus’ microphone died forcing everyone up top (in a light rain!) so that the tour guide could attempt to speak to everyone at once. That wasn’t too bad, as it got us away from the fumes we were inhaling on the back of the bus, and the kids loved being up top where it was windy.

Friendly tour guides. Pricing not bad. With my 24 hour pass, I definitely took advantage of this not just for the tour but for transportation. They allowed you to hop on and hop off as much as you want within a 24 hour period. It’s $ 27 for the 24 hour pass and $ 43 for the 48 hour pass.

Not a bad way to get a tour of the city and a little Philly trivia along the way. The 24 hop-​on-​hop-​off tour is nice since you can use it to get pretty much anywhere in the city, perhaps with a little walking included.
I’d give them another star or two if I didn’t have the almost overwhelming urge to yell «LIAR!!» a few times during the tour. We had 4 different tour guides in our 24 hours and they did an outstanding job of contradicting each other, and at times, even themselves. Some of the ‘facts’ they mentioned were simply not true, which can get annoying to a nerd like myself.
It’s a good way to see the city before picking out the tourist spots you’d like to check out, and not too expensive for 24-​hours worth of transportation.

OK, the tour was decent and the guide was knowledgeable. its nice to be able to cover a large area of the city in decent time and bus/​trolley tours are greet for this — I would give it 5 stars if it weren’t for the overwhelming DIESEL EXHAUST FUMES that almost made me and my family members pass out and/​or vomit. I actually had a headache from it until we exited the bus. If you are asthmatic or sensitive to strong fumes, then sit up top on the double deckers and not near the doors! When the bus idles with the door open you will need a barf bag and/​or oxygen. Unfortunately there aren’t any located in the seat pocket in front of you.

We took the «hop on, hop off» double decker bus tour yesterday for $ 25 total — myself and my 4 yea old who they (not I) suggested was free and let ride for free.
Even at the reduced rate of $ 25.00 for the 2 of us this is one expensive tourist ride. The 20-​some stop loop encompasses most of the major Philly sites (save for South Philly) including the new Please Touch museum.
If you take it early enough in the day you can even get off and enjoy the Art Museum or Please touch.
We got on at 1:30 and took the entire 90 minute loop. Then we got off took a break and got on the 4 PM bus (same great driver — Donna, and guide — Ernest — a funny guy) in order to get off at the Chinatown stop (right in front of the arch).
My 4 year old just loved sitting on the top deck (hold on to your hats and watch those tree limbs!).
If I were a tourist who had NEVER been to philly and wanted to quickly see the major stuff — I would take this.

I would have to give the Philadelphia Trolley Works mixed reviews. We got our tickets really cheap at
, so I guess i won’t complain too much. It is a great way to see the city and not have to worry about driving in traffic or finding a place to park. Sometimes you wait quite a bit for a bus/​trolley that has room. Your tour will vary depending on the guide and driver combination you happen to draw.
On the last leg of the tour we got on a double decker bus. It started to pour rain. All the people from up top crowded into the bottom of the bus. It was like a steam bath, so hot and humid. Rain started pouring through the bus, everyone was getting drenched. The driver and guide seemed unsure of what to do. They radioed some other trolleys to see if they had room. A few people got off, but most of the other trolleys and buses were full. At one point we pulled under a bridge to wait for the rain to slow. They were cool about the whole thing, but I got the feeling that they didn’t know what to do in a situation like this and there should be a contingency plan in case of rain.

For $ 27/​person you get yourself a relatively cheaper way to limo your persons around the city to the totally must see tourist spots.
The 24 hour hop on/​hop off deal at 20 different locales around the city is pretty sweet allowing you to explore or eat or drink at your own pace and the people on the microphone do a decent job to keep the ride light and sometimes informative.
Great for families as kids usually knock out after the first 12 minutes leaving you with a good 90 minutes of silence and a chance to breathe and relax.

I agree with cora j. that this is a great way to see the city. The day before the Philadelphia Marathon I didn’t want to be on my feet too much, so riding the double-​decker bus was the way to go.
It was freezing the day we went, so only a few brave souls, mostly children, sat outside, while the rest of us wore our hats, coats, and gloves inside the bus. Half of the top deck is enclosed, so we did get to sit upstairs and stay reasonably warm.
The tour guide was really good, and whenever he couldn’t remember something he blamed it on a «senior moment». Having grown up in Philly, he told us a lot about how the city has changed in recent years. We passed all the major landmarks and also saw many of the murals that are throughout the neighborhoods. I would say we saw pretty much all the main attractions from the bus with the exception of Rittenhouse Square.
I learned a lot on the tour, but the best thing for me was running the Philadelphia Marathon the next day and realizing the bus has taken us on the majority of the course. It was really nice to have gotten a preview of where I would be running and it made me feel like I knew my way around. The only annoying part of the tour was having to listen to some really loud tourists on the bus talking on their cell phones. Other than that, I’d say we definitely got our $ 25 worth.