Philadelphia is famous for its murals—and on this small-group walking tour of two South Philly neighborhoods, you can look forward to discovering some of the city’s top public artworks. Meet your guide in the afternoon on South Street and head off to see colorful art in the Queen Village and Bella Vista neighborhoods. Then, finish with a trip to the Magic Garden, an immersive sculptural environment.

This small-group tour offers sightseeing on a personal scale
See some of the best examples of Philadelphia’s public artworks
Head off the tourist trail when you explore two South Philly neighborhoods
A portion of the ticket cost benefits local arts organizations

What's Included

Local, English-speaking guide
Admission to the Philadelphia Magic Gardens
A donation to a local community art organization

Gratuities
Additional food and drink
Souvenirs or personal shopping

Meeting And Pickup

Meeting point

Theatre of The Living Arts
334 South St, Philadelphia, PA 19147, USA
Meet outside the entrance of the Theatre of the Living Arts (TLA); 334 South St., Philadelphia, PA 19147

Start time

02:00 pm

End point

Philadelphia's Magic Gardens
1020 South St, Philadelphia, PA 19147, USA
We will end at the Philadelphia Magic Gardens.

What To Expect

South Street

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Bella Vista

1 hour 15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Philadelphia's Magic Gardens

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Service animals allowed

Near public transportation
Transportation is wheelchair accessible
Most travellers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 12 travellers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.

Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.

Traveller Photos

Reviews

5.0

61 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travellers.

Showing 1-10 of 61 reviews

Fun, Interesting Art Tour!

Amber_W, Sept 2023

This tour was great! Chuck walked us through South Philly were we saw many interesting and beautiful murals and learned about the history of murals in Philadelphia. We also visited the Da Vinci Art Alliance and the Magic Gardens where we saw some unique mosaics. Chuck was a very fun, engaging, and informative guide!

Fun walking tour

Marisa_L, July 2023

Our tour guide, Miriam, was friendly, upbeat and knowledgeable. We had a small group-only my daughter, myself, and another couple. We walked the streets of South Philly and saw beautiful art on buildings and inside a gallery. We even met the artist who was displaying art in the gallery. We also went inside some artsy shops and in a thrift store. There was time to shop in each one. The pace was just right to take everything in and appreciate the surroundings.

Well worth it

Patricia_F, July 2023

The guide was very knowledgeable and eager to share her stories. We covered a lot of art during our tour

Great tour

MaryEllen_C, June 2023

Tom did a wonderful job exploring the mirrors, a Philadelphia and the life of Isaiah Zagar. it was a two hour tour and it did require walking for the two hours.

Great Experience

Marissa_F, May 2023

Chuck is a great tour guide. He is full of knowledge about the art scene and the city. We learned so much from him. He took us into galleries and shops so we can get a sense of this wonderful city. Such a great way to get appreciation for all things art in a not so traditional way.

Transformative

Cynthia_G, May 2023

This was an unbelievable experience. My granddaughter called it transformative. The tour guide was very knowledgeable and her enthusiasm for the artist made the experience more enjoyable. In addition, we visited some local shops that we could revisit to browse and perhaps purchase souvenirs.

Loved the tour!

Kristy_K, May 2023

We were one of the lucky ones and got to have Chuck twice leading our Philly tours. He was outstanding yet again. We love his knowledge, how he interacted with our kids and how he truly shows his love for Philly. The art he took us to was amazing, and we met some neat people along the way. Do not miss this tour. This was our last one on our visit and was well worth the time!! Our family hopes you get Chuck once on a tour!!! He is the best!!!

The tour was ok but we...

Murray_H, May 2023

The tour was ok but we didn’t love it. A little too much time with non-art related stuff (we stopped in several shops), and we would have liked more time in the Magic Garden with the guide. We would have also liked a better balance of the time between the mosaics and murals

Amazing art tour

Larisa_R, May 2023

I purchased this tour for my husbands birthday and he and I absolutely loved it. Very informative and it was nice to walk through town and be immersed in the culture. The guide Marty was awesome!

Response from Host, May 2023

Excellent to hear! Thank you for choosing to spend the special occasion on a WeVenture tour. And happy belated birthday!

Highly recommended tour

Tre_M, Nov 2022

We really enjoyed our South Philly art tour. Since we went during the week in the afternoon, it was just my wife and me for the tour, led by Chuck. Chuck was friendly, knowledgeable, and very good at answering any questions that we had. Even though we both Have visited Philadelphia many times, we learned many new things on the tour that we would not have known without Chuck’s expertise. In particular, the work of Isaiah Zagar Was the highlight. His mosaics are amazing and we learned a lot about them through Chuck’s explanations. We were fortunate enough to have a chance meeting with Isaiah’s wife Julia, who Chuck knew and introduced us to. What a great experience!

Response from Host, Jan 2023

Thank you Tre! It's always great to run into one of the artists along the way (especially Julia, she's amazing). Chuck has been a local in that neighborhood for many years, which makes his tours so fun, engaging and unique.

Unmissable tour!

Penny_F, Nov 2022

Excellent tour. Philly art is exceptional - surprising , quirky and beautiful. The tour guide Dale was extremely knowledgeable and very personable. We walked through pretty streets in South Philly and saw wonderful examples of unique street art around hidden corners.

Response from Host, Nov 2022

Thank you Penny! The Philly public art scene is starting to get the international attention that it deserves. On almost every block and down almost every alley of South Philly, this art greets passersby and inspires us on a daily basis. That's why we love to lead this tour; to show the art in the hidden nooks of the city and give insightful context on the art and the artist.

Tour guide, Dale, was...

Cara_B, Oct 2022

Tour guide, Dale, was great! Very knowledgeable. The small group really give you an opportunity to ask questions.

10/10 Recommend! So fun and informative.

Savannah_S, Oct 2022

I went on this tour with an environmental group from college. We all really enjoyed it and would definitely recommend it to others! Our tour guide, Dale, was very knowledgeable and made the tour an awesome experience. I’ve passed many of the murals before but will now look at them differently and think of the meaning behind them. We even got the serendipitous chance to run into someone from the Zagar family (Isaiah Zagar created magic gardens)! Thank you!

Philadelphia 9/4/2022

Noemie_B, Sept 2022

Couldn’t upload the beautiful pictures of murals I took during the tour since the website gave an error message back.

Don't miss this excellent tour of Isaiah Zagar's work and much more

Becky_M, May 2022

Our tour guide, Adam, was so personable, knowledgeable, and interesting! Too many highlights to mention. Great stops along the way for viewing many of artist Isaiah Zagar's incredible mosaic pieces around South Street, a few of the Mural Arts program's pieces, interesting homes and brownstones, and even a stop at the fascinating Da Vinci Art Alliance. The last stop at the Magic Gardens was truly remarkable. We are from the western suburbs of Philadelphia and were not familiar with Isaiah Zagar prior to this tour. We are so ecstatic to have been exposed to his incredible body of work. Highly recommended this walking tour in South Philly!

2 Fabulous hours.

Jennifer_V, Apr 2022

Charles has a love for and a deep knowledge of Philadelphia. The stops on the tour were so well narrated. Charles’ ability to interact with such a diverse group of strangers makes us want to do more of these walking tours. He was conscious of time and people’s post-tour plans to ensure we could fit everything in. We should all find our passion in life like he has! Thank you for making my husband’s birthday special!

So much art and local history!!

Rania_E, Dec 2021

Another amazing tour! We wound up being the only ones, so it was a private tour. The guide meaningfully navigated through the streets connecting the streets and how they formed, they history of different eras with the art he showed us. Really appreciated the emphasis on the evolution of the local artists and linkages to the different communities that immigrated here and also the recognition of inequities. Art is so profound across all cultures! Our tour guide Dick was brilliant and so well-informed!!

Response from Host, Dec 2021

Thank you for leaving this great review! Dick is indeed a wealth of information in that neighborhood of Philly (all neighborhoods, really) and the public art of the area tells such a rich story of this incredible city.