14 PHILADELPHIA ACCOLADES In 2011 City Wins National Praise For Its Food, Beer, Hotels, Events & More 
PHILADELPHIA, March 15, 2011 – Only three months into the new year, Greater Philadelphia’s restaurants, hotels, events, beer and more are racking up all kinds of accolades from major national publications, websites and blogs. Calling the city “romantic” and “underrated,” Philadelphia has won praise for its top-notch children’s museum (Please Touch Museum®), its must-see annual events (Philadelphia International Flower Show), its mouth-watering sandwiches (Koja and Paesano’s) and much more. Here’s a look at 14 accolades making headlines so far this year: The City Itself: 1. In its March issue, Travel + Leisure listed Philadelphia in its “World’s Most Underrated Cities” list. 2. Philadelphia took the fourth spot on the cnnmoney.com list of America’s “10 most romantic cities,” which is based on the amount of money people spend for Valentine’s Day. Arts & Culture: 3. In the March issue, Parents magazine featured Please Touch Museum® in its list of the
“10 Best Children’s Museums: 2011.” 4. The Philadelphia International Flower Show and Longwood Gardens sprung up on cnn.com’s “12 places to see beautiful spring blooms.” Dining & Nightlife: 5. In Travel + Leisure’s March issue, the magazine named Mexican hotspot Lolita one of “America’s Best BYO Restaurants.” 6. In March, Food & Wine magazine included Osteria and Tacconelli’s Pizzeria in its “The Best Pizza Spots in the U.S.” article. 7. Reading Terminal Market made Frommer’s “America’s Best Public Markets,” a list that included just 10 markets. 8. Endless Simmer food blog began the year by listing two Philadelphia dishes—the bulgogi steak sandwich from Koja food truck and lasagna bolognese from Paesano’s—in its list of “America’s Top 10 Sandwiches.” 9. In its January article entitled “The Best Restaurants in Which to Do Business,” Esquire’s Eat Like A Man blog named Fountain at the Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia and Lacroix at The Rittenhouse Hotel. 10. This year, Esquire called Philadelphia one of “America’s Best Beer Cities 2011.”
Hotels:
11. Spawards.com recognized The Rittenhouse Hotel’s Adolf Biecker Spa in its compilation of “America’s’ 2011 Top 100 Spas.” 12. Travel + Leisure magazine ranked The Rittenhouse Hotel fourth on the “Best City Hotel in America” list featured in the March issue. 13. In its January issue, Travel + Leisure ranked The Rittenhouse Hotel (92.97 score), the Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia (88.37) and the Loews Philadelphia Hotel (86.67) in its U.S. list of the “World’s Best Hotels 2011.” 14. In Trip Advisor’s ninth annual Travelers’ Choice survey, the Hotel Palomar Philadelphia took the #2 spot in the “Top 10 Trendiest Hotels in the United States” list. The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) makes Philadelphia and The Countryside® a premier destination through marketing and image building that increases business and promotes the region’s vitality. For more information about travel to Philadelphia, visit visitphilly.com or uwishunu.com, where you can build itineraries; search event calendars; see photos and videos; view interactive maps; sign up for newsletters; listen to HearPhilly, an online radio station about what to see and do in the region; book hotel reservations and more. Or, call the Independence Visitor Center, located in Historic Philadelphia, at (800) 537-7676.(that’s my tag line and photo of Philly, so don’t hold it against GPTMC if u don’t love it like I do – LOL)
