Dilworth Park — Attraction in Philadelphia

Came here on a Friday afternoon to enjoy the sun, people, drinks and skate. It was a beautiful day out and we were able to enjoy a drink and each others company.

I was skeptical about skating since I don’t know how to but nonetheless it was fun. It wasn’t packed, maybe about 10 other people out there with us. The majority of the people skating, well attempting to skate were all having fun. For that moment, I forgot I was in Center City and didn’t have a care in the world.

Bring your own lock if you have things you want to put in the locker. They sell you a $1.00 lock for $10.00, rip off. Staff behind the counter were young kids/adults who seemed disinterested to be there. Paid for our skating ticket, went to get a drink and returned to the next window to try and get our skates and they had us waiting almost 10minutes before someone asked our sizes. The young man who asked what sizes we needed, appeared upset as he mumbled something under his breath and another young man who was much friendlier gave us our skates with a smile and told us to have fun. While waiting for our skates, there were 3 other humans at the ticket counter where you initially pay, helping one customer pay their money with each person pretending not to see us at the next window. Purposefully not looking over, like really making it their business to not look to the left lol. Despite us talking, staring at them and the typical, umm excuse me. Smh.

We ended up paying for street parking which wasn’t far at all.

Big downside for me: I am not good on skates and truly just came to have some fun. The sling floor was uneven and for someone who can’t skate, this seemed like a disaster waiting to happen. Sure, for those who know how to move on skates it wasn’t a problem but for the few of us who weren’t as confident, this was scary. Pieces of the floor weren’t connected to the other so you’d have a pieces sticking up or a mini gap in-between, or you’d see a slight bubble (which I labeled my mini speed...

The lot of us were here for the Mummer's Parade on New Year's Day, ringing in 2019! It was our first time sitting to watch rather than standing alongside the street in South Philly. What a difference it makes to see these performances when the performers are fresh and excited instead of plastered and worn out. The bleachers were cold, which is normal, but we weren't prepared as we should have been. The security guy for our section was warm and strict, which was perfect! There are entitled people who need to be told to sit down and shut up, or to stop it, or be considerate, or throw their trash away. To have authority nearby to help keep the crowd accountable made it fun. Anyone that was a nuisance got the boot. Love it! There were plenty of Portas around, but not near enough hand sanitizing stations. For the size of the crowd and the day long activities, the venue and security worked out quite well. The only downside was one of the emcees was a dope. The guy made dumb comments and sounded uneducated. That, and when Avengers came out, he didn't know who Ant-Man and Wasp were, but of course the big dummy could identify the Hulk. But that's neither...

I usually like coming here, but my experience today made me remove a star from my rating.

I got lunch from the mall down the street, but indoor dining is closed due to COVID, so I had no option but to eat outside. Other than the cold weather, I usually have no problems with eating at Dillworth Park; I eat here somewhat often during the summer. However, today's experience was slightly terrifying.

The park was mostly empty, so I had no issues finding an open table. I sit down, pull out my food, and am immediately surrounded by at least 15 birds. Birds on the table, birds flying over my head, birds on the ground around me. I tried to shoo them away. Didn't work, so I moved to a different area of the park. Sadly, the birds followed, and this time a seagull joined them. I don't know why there was a seagull in the city in the middle of winter, but it was there. I moved locations a third time. Finally, I was able to eat in peace...until birds showed up again. Thankfully, it was only two this time.

In summary, this is a great park, but the staff really needs to do something about this...