How to travel to the Philadelphia Flower Show from out of town

Wondering if it’s worth the hassle to travel for the annual flower show in Philly? Even out-of-towners don’t want to miss it this year.

The nation’s first and largest annual horticultural event is back this year, with hundreds of floral displays, vendors, and educational experiences that showcase the creativity of nature and sustainability.

This year the show runs from March 2 to 10, opening at 10 a.m. each day at the Pennsylvania Convention Center at 1101 Arch St. in Center City, with admission costing $40 to $50 for adults, for weekday and weekend tickets, respectively.

Whether you live dozens or a hundred miles away from the City of Brotherly Love, there are ways to make getting here a bit easier. According to the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, the most cost-effective travel option is public transportation, including SEPTA, PATCO, or NJ Transit train lines — however, there are also options offering a little more style and ease.

For readers outside of the city, here is how to get to the Philadelphia Flower Show.

Bob Neft Tours provides bus tours to the show on March 5 and March 7 with two pickup locations each day out of Ephrata and Lancaster, Pa. For $129 per person, enjoy a chartered bus to Philadelphia with admission into the Flower Show. Book a trip: Call 800-848-1492 or register online at bobnefftours.com.

Bucket List Tours By Barb provides bus tours to the show on March 2 with four pickup locations out of Ephrata, Lancaster, Willow Street, and York, Pa. For $127 per person, this bus tour package includes a round trip in a deluxe motorcoach, admission to the Flower Show, free time at Reading Terminal Market, water and snacks on the motorcoach, and an experienced tour guide. Book a trip: Call 717-201-7566 or register online at bucketlisttoursbybarb.com.

Klein Transportation provides bus tours each day the Flower Show is open March 2-9 with three pickup locations out of Douglassville, King of Prussia, and Wyomissing, Pa. For $93 per person, this package includes a round-trip bus ride and admission to the Flower Show. Book a trip: Call 800-451-6700 or register online at tours.kleintransportation.com.

Wolf’s Bus Lines provides bus tours to the show on March 3, March 4, March 5, March 6, and March 7 with pickup locations out of Camp Hill, Carlisle, Chambersburg, Hanover, Harrisburg, York, and York Springs, Pa. Each day has different pickup locations available. From $128 per person, this package includes a round-trip bus ride and admission to the Flower Show. Book a trip: Call 800-692-7804 or register online at tourwolf.com.

There are a few mass transit options into the city, dropping passengers mere blocks from the Convention Center.

SEPTA’s regional rail lines run all across the Philly region from Wilmington to Lansdale, Pa., and Trenton, N.J., for $5 to $10. On weekends during the show, SEPTA will be operating more trains on the Warminster, West Trenton, Media/Wawa, and Trenton regional rail lines. Book a trip: Buy tickets at a SEPTA station or on board the train.

PATCO operates a rail line that stops at all the local towns across the Delaware River in New Jersey, from Lindenwold to Camden. People in those towns can take the PATCO line right to the show for around $3 to $6. Book a trip: Visit any PATCO station to buy tickets.

NJ Transit rail lines operate throughout parts of New Jersey, from Atlantic City to right outside New York City for around $10 to $30. Book a trip: Buy tickets at an NJ Transit station or on the NJ Transit mobile app for iPhone or Android.

Amtrak operates intercity rail lines all across the country and is going to be a good bet if the above options don’t reach your location. Ticket prices can range from $6 to $29 for shorter trips and $40 to $300 for longer ones (but prices can go higher). Book a trip: Buy tickets at any Amtrak station or on Amtrak’s website at amtrak.com.