A Rocky Filming Locations Tour of Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA — Fifty years after Rocky first ran up the Art Museum steps, Philadelphia is in the middle of a citywide Rocky Season with events running through Dec. 3, the anniversary of the film’s 1976 national release. For visitors and locals alike, the movies left a trail of real filming locations across the city. Here is how to walk, and run, through the tour.

Start where everyone starts: the 72 steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The staircase climb remains the city’s most reenacted movie moment, with visitors racing to the top daily. Beside the steps stands the bronze Rocky statue, the most photographed spot on the route. According to coverage of the anniversary, the statue spent this summer at the base of the steps, so check its current placement before you go.

From the museum, head to South Philly and the South Ninth Street Italian Market. Rocky jogs through this stretch in the original film, weaving past the vendors. The market is still a working food market full of produce stalls and specialty shops, so the visit doubles as a great lunch stop. Go on a weekday morning if you want the stalls in full swing without the weekend crowds.

A short drive away in Kensington sits Rocky’s rowhouse from the first film, on East Tusculum Street. It is a private home, so admire it from the street and keep the visit brief and respectful. The block still carries the working-class character the movie captured, and fans have been making the pilgrimage for decades.

South Philly holds more of the neighborhood scenes. Tours point out Rocky and Adrian’s house from Rocky II on a quiet side street, where fans love checking whether the address numbers still almost add up to nine. Nearby stands the building used for Mighty Mick’s Gym, in the Northeast Philadelphia neighborhood the early films used as Rocky’s home turf. These are residential and industrial streets, so this leg of the tour is best done by car.

Laurel Hill Cemetery offers the sentimental stop. In Rocky Balboa, Rocky visits Adrian’s grave here, and the fictional gravestone props for Adrian and her brother Paulie remain on view near the main front gate, according to local guides. The cemetery is a beautiful riverside walk on its own, and the movie connection draws steady visitors. Check visiting hours before heading out, since it is an active cemetery with scheduled tours.

Add a cheesesteak stop at Pat’s King of Steaks, where the films appear briefly and a plaque on the wall marks the spot where Rocky stood. Boxing fans can also work in Front Street Gym, the real-life gym used as Adonis Creed’s training center in the Creed films, according to tour descriptions. The Philadelphia Zoo, where Adrian accepts Rocky’s proposal in the original film, is another optional stop for completists.

For a guided option, the Rocky Philadelphia Bus tours return on weekends from Oct. 10 through Nov. 29, departing from the Parkway Visitor Center, with stops including the Italian Market, Pat’s King of Steaks, and Laurel Hill Cemetery. Runners can sign up for the Rocky Run on Nov. 14 at the Art Museum, and the original Rocky returns to theaters Nov. 7 through Nov. 11. The statue gets its own re-dedication event Nov. 13. Fifty years on, the best way to celebrate is still the simplest: climb the steps, raise your arms, and take in the view.