Things to Do in Phoenixville
Recommended Things to Do by Groupon Customers
A pencil peeks out of hole in the lid of a shiny red apple, bits of yellow and black fleck a butterfly's wings, and blue and green glass curves to catch the light from the candle it holds. These are just a few of the projects invented at Busy Bees Pottery and Art Studio, where visitors can paint bisqueware, sculpt clay, or fuse glass to make homes or city-bus windows more beautiful.
Long tables sprawl across the studio's checkered floor, and plates bearing pastel treats and serene landscapes polka-dot the walls for inspiration. A paint bar arrays samples of tiles painted in each color so artists can preview their ceramic's finished looks.
Presented by Gourmet Shows, the annual Taste Philadelphia Festival of Food, Wine, and Spirits showcases hundreds of local chefs, restaurants, and vendors. More than 200 tasting stations pepper the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center, including the Taste of Italy Pavilion, where attendees can sample cheeses and wines from Europe’s boot-shaped peninsula. On the expo's stage, meanwhile, local chefs and culinary personalities teach onlookers their cooking techniques and favorite recipes during demonstrations. Attendees will have the chance to watch the likes of Michael Giletto, an award-winning chef whose food is a fusion of international cuisines, and Bethenny Frankel, best-selling author and star of Bravo's Bethenny Ever After, for an additional cost. Other educational events include beer seminars from award-winning writer Gary Monterosso and wine seminars that explain why, despite popular opinion, grape soda doesn’t complement veal as well as chardonnay does.
Marsh Creek Lake, lined with verdant shores and rolling hills, bobs with fishing boats, kayaks, sailboats, and windsurfing boards. About 535 acres of azure waters bejewel the surrounding 1,705 acres of hiking trails and picnic areas. Throughout the day, Marsh Creek Watersports leads one-hour pontoon-boat excursions that take guests through a history lesson of the park and surrounding region, leaving time for peaceful moments spent gazing at the natural wildlife. During the summer months, Marsh Creek also hosts kids' sailing camps to acquaint young ones with the techniques and safe practices of aquatic navigation, such as defending against Peter Pan attacks.
At Markie's Mini-Golf, flowing brooks meander through rocky outcroppings and pristine greens that span 26,000 square feet across 18 holes. The course's nature-inspired layout snakes through caves and around a central waterfall, which flows into a fountain that summons thirsty golf balls. Groups putt around the pintsized course before lapping up sweet, hand-dipped scoops of Nelson's ice cream in an air-conditioned snack area. The frosty treats can be consumed around indoor tables or outside at picnic tables.
A champagne toast signifies luxury, but Air Ventures provides an even more luxurious amenity—champagne toasts conducted while floating in midair. Customers sip from bottles of bubbly while on one of the company’s hot-air-balloon rides, which float over Chester County’s rolling hills, glistening lakes, and historic estates at either sunrise or sunset. The rainbow-hued balloon’s trips range from one-hour jaunts to flight packages with overnight inn stops. After their airborne adventures, passengers take home a souvenir picture of the balloon, which they can supplement with downloaded shots of their own tour.
On Friday and Saturday evenings, as party songs thump in the background, lasers beam over a row of 24 lanes—each home to a rack of glowing pins—and reflect off their thin layer of oil into the fog. Of course, Playdrome Devon Lanes hosts regular open-bowling hours throughout the rest of the week, when it echoes with the sound of crashing pins and celebratory sirens from the on-site arcade. Though unseen, heard, or smelled, the signal from complimentary WiFi streams through the air as well, allowing players to post their high scores online or to look up the cheat codes that enable the bowling balls' rocket boosters. Playdrome Devon Lanes also allows customers to bring their own food and beverages.
