ADVICE FOR TRAVELLERS

BEST TIME TO GO Spring and autumn. Weather is variable, but when it gets really hot in the summer months the heat bounces around the red brickwork in the Old City – though there is summer relief in some really impressive thunder storms.

GETTING THERE If arriving in the daytime, there is a good rail connection from Philadelphia International Airport to Center City. There you can choose between walking, public transport and cabs.

WHAT TO PACK George Boudreau’s Independence: A Guide to Historic Philadelphia is exactly that. To bring 18th-century Philadelphia to life, I also recommend Zara Anishanslin’s Portrait of a Woman in Silk. Both authors live in Philadelphia.

WHAT TO BRING BACK To find a gift that’s artistically interesting and handcrafted, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts – the oldest art museum and art school in America – is worth a look.

READERS’ VIEWS USS Olympia, a protected cruiser from the pre-Dreadnought age, is not to be missed @Basement_Games

The Mütter Museum [of the College of Physicians] is outstanding, but requires a strong stomach @ petermstokes