Waking up on the third day of our New York Mother Daughter getaway was bittersweet. We had an amazing day ahead of us, but we were leaving later that night to head home. We couldn’t wait to see our families, but we were having the time of our lives! We got up really early that morning to shower and get ready to see the rest of New York! We checked our luggage at the hotel since check out was at noon and we wouldn’t be coming back to the hotel until after dinner. The hotel was so nice and understanding about everything. We had such a pleasant experience at the Hampton Inn Times Square.
We were heading to Central Park and the Upper East side on our third day, and we talked to the concierge again about using the subway. She told us we could walk up there, but we were worried about how much walking we would be doing and we didn’t want to tire ourselves out right away. We took the subway, but as we got off as quick as we got in, we realized we really could have easily done the walk!
We started out exploring the Plaza Hotel. I mean, you HAVE to check that hotel out if you are in New York City! It was really cool to walk around and look at it, but the lobby is off limits to anyone that is not a hotel guest. Walking around and perusing the shops was fun and gave us a real feel of the elegance of the hotel. There is a really unique food court in the lower level that is worth a look. Don’t leave before checking it out!
Afterwards we split up from our friends to do some exploring on our own. My daughter and I headed to an adorable little gem called Alice’s Tea Cup. It is a little tea shop and cafe and really worth a stop if you are traveling with your daughter. There are two locations and we went to the one closest to the other things that we were doing. It was called Chapter ii on 64th Street. It is the cutest little place and you can order a pot of tea and some scones and just sit and talk. It was one of my favorite moments with her because I had her all to myself. I know that she is growing up fast and to sit there with her, enjoying a pot of tea and talking about life, it was priceless.
The tea selection is out of this world. So many to choose from, we had trouble picking! We finally chose a fruity blend called High Noon and it was really good! We ordered two scones, a ham and cheese and a strawberry blueberry. They were served with whipped butter, fresh jam and clotted cream. They were so good and we were really hungry! Perfect combination. Little tip…check out the bathroom when you are there. It is so cute!
Afterwards we did a little shopping and walking around the neighborhood. We noticed that in New York City, every neighborhood has its own vibe, and own identity. After visiting so many different neighborhoods so quickly, we really could see the differences. We had a great morning stopping in shops and walking around in the beautiful weather we were so lucky to get.
Our next stop was Serendipity for a Frozen Hot Chocolate. It is a must stop and a longstanding cafe in Manhattan. When we arrived, we had to wait a few minutes to be seated and it was an off time…around 11:30 am. The host told us that sometimes it gets so crowded you could wait hours, so I thought that a good tip for others visiting might be to make reservations if you know when you will be stopping in…just in case.
We ordered some soup for lunch and a frozen hot chocolate to share and it was worth the wait! The soup was delicious but the Frozen Hot Chocolate was divine!
We had enough to eat and were ready to walk it off. We headed to Central Park to begin exploring all of the spots we had read about. The beautiful Gapstow Bridge was our first sighting (where Home Alone 2 was filmed!) It was so pretty and picturesque. We headed past that and followed the paths around to see several sights in Central Park. We only had about two and a half hours there, but literally could have spent all day walking around. The Alice and Wonderland statue, Conservatory Water, the baseball fields, Shakespeare Park, Strawberry Fields, the Great Lawn, Central Park Lake and Cherry Hill were all some beautiful spots that we got to see.
So many spots were so pretty, but the Mall and Literary Walk was by far my favorite. If you visit one spot in Central Park, make this one the one. It is an area in Central Park so filled with life you won’t want to leave! Musicians, performers, artists, and people just hanging out and enjoying life were everywhere. You couldn’t help but feel happy walking through there! They were even filming a movie there when we were walking through which made it even more exciting!
We reluctantly finished up at Central Park and met back up with our friends for dinner. We walked just a few blocks to Blacktap Craft Burgers, a place my daughter really wanted to go to…and not only for the burgers! Mostly, she wanted to go for the shakes! And we did enjoy those shakes! It felt good to sit down after walking all day and enjoy a really good meal. The burger selection was really good and the chicken sandwich I got was delicious! The shakes were so good. We ordered the Brooklyn Blackout and even sharing it we could not finish it! It was worth every sip.
We headed back to our hotel to grab our luggage and head to LaGuardia to go home and say goodbye to our fun getaway! Our only regret? We could have used more time to see even more than we did! We would have loved to explore the museums and just ran out of time! But life is busy and three days was what we could spare and we really packed it in and enjoyed every moment. I hope my trip itinerary helps you plan the most amazing Mother Daughter trip. This was an amazing trip that I will never forget! Every moment was special because I was with my daughter and our great friends, and we also got to see things we have never seen before. It was such a wonderful experience and I hope you all have the opportunity to use these ideas and create a perfect trip of your own!
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