Viral Portal on move to make room for Christmas Village in Philadelphia
The viral Portal in Philadelphia is on the move, but it isn't going far. Crews are working to relocate the Portal to make room for the Christmas Village in Center City, officials with Portals.org confirmed.
The Portal will remain in LOVE Park, but will now stand next to the Philadelphia Independence Visitor Center, near the "flying saucer" building at 16th Street and JFK Boulevard.
"The launch of the Philadelphia Portal has been a huge success in its first few weeks, and we are excited to see it stay open for the holiday season. To help accommodate the opening of the Christmas Village, the Portal will be moving to a new spot in Love Park, just a short distance away from where it is now," Joseph Callahan with Portals.org said. "We hope that the increase of people in the park will help bring in a new wave of visitors looking to experience the Portal and connect with others across the globe."
The Portal will take two days to move but will be up and running again for the weekend, according to photographer HughE Dillon.
The popular Christmas Village returns to LOVE Park near City Hall on Saturday, Nov. 23. According to the holiday market's website, the Christmas Village will run through Christmas Eve. Its hours are from noon to 8 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and noon to 9 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. The market will be open on Thanksgiving from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and noon to 5 p.m. on Christmas Eve.
Last month, the popular bidirectional screen offering people a chance to connect with countries Ireland, Poland and Lithuania was installed in LOVE Park. The viral Portal art installation was first installed in New York City's Flatiron Plaza.
"We are going to lean in and give really big ideas a chance in this city and make sure we're doing it in a way that everyone across neighborhoods all play a part," Michael Newmuis, the city's 2026 director coordinating plans for Philadelphia's active role in celebrating the 250th birthday of the United States, said last month.
The Portal livestream changes views about every three minutes. The livestream operates 24/7.
