Wilmington offers a variety of ways to explore history, culture and nature: from Old Swedes Church and the Grand Opera House to the Riverwalk, a tidal marsh and wooded park trails. This variety is helpful when deciding what to focus on during your stay: are you interested in early settlement history, performing arts and museums, or trails and habitats by the water?
Historic Places and Their Stories
Old Swedes Church was built in 1698 and is still in use. It is one of the oldest buildings in Delaware and one of the few surviving reminders of the colony of New Sweden in the Delaware Valley. Tours at the Old Swedes Historic Site include the cemetery dating to 1638 and are offered Thursday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Check the tour schedule before your visit.
Fort Christina Park also offers a look into the history of New Sweden: it marks the site where Swedish and Finnish settlers landed in 1638 and founded the colony. The Rocks in the park is recognized as part of the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom. Another perspective is offered by the Underground Railroad tour in Wilmington, which identifies places with documented connections to Underground Railroad and abolitionist activities. Bishop Peter Spencer established the August Quarterly tradition in 1813.
Performing Arts, Museums and City Life
The Grand Opera House opened in 1871 and has been a landmark of Wilmington and the surrounding region for more than 140 years. Each season, The Grand presents more than 80 events spanning rock, comedy, classical music, dance, jazz, world music and family entertainment. As the seasonal program may change, it is worth checking dates before your trip.
The museums offer a range of focuses: the Delaware History Museum features permanent and changing exhibitions about Delaware’s past. The Delaware Children’s Museum offers interactive exhibits as well as changing educational programs and special events. On the Wilmington Riverfront, the Kalmar Nyckel Foundation Museum and Learning Center offers maritime exhibits and an in-depth audio tour. The selection thus ranges from history and interactive experiences to maritime topics.
Market Street offers another facet of city life, with upscale dining, casual creative spots and food halls serving a variety of cuisines. When planning, you can treat cultural interests and dining as separate priorities rather than linking them to a particular event program.
Riverfront and Trails by the Water
The Wilmington Riverfront was once an important shipyard that built more than 200 ships during World War II. Today, former warehouses, mills and factories on the Riverfront house markets, theaters and museums. The area’s transformation from a shipyard landscape to a destination for culture and markets gives it a distinctive historical dimension.
Riverfront Wilmington includes a 1.4-mile Riverwalk along the Christina River. The Russell W. Peterson Urban Wildlife Refuge is an urban freshwater tidal marsh with more than 400 plant and animal species. The access point to the starting point of the 5.5-mile Markell Trail, which runs from Wilmington to New Castle for biking and hiking, is at the DuPont Environmental Education Center. The trail connects a longer biking and hiking route with the two named places; the Riverwalk, by contrast, is described as a path along the Christina River.
Parks, Nature and Getting Here
Brandywine Park offers winding trails through dense woodland for running and biking. Southbridge Wilmington Wetlands Park uses nature-based methods to improve water quality and reduce flooding. The park is a restored habitat intended to give plants and animals room to establish themselves and thrive. The parks therefore focus on different aspects of nature: wooded trails on the one hand and the development of a wetland habitat on the other.
Wilmington is connected regionally, nationally and internationally via Philadelphia International Airport (PHL), Wilmington Airport (ILG), Amtrak/SEPTA’s Wilmington Station (WIL), and the I-95 and I-495 highways. Check individual schedules and connections before traveling, as they may change. This makes it possible to plan the journey and your preferred interests—history, culture, dining or nature—separately.
Discover more destinations: Newark, Hockessin, New Castle, Claymont, Brandywine, Christiana, Brookside, Bear
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