A mother-daughter getaway can be a time for two adults to reconnect and enjoy each other’s company or an opportunity for a mom to appreciate her last few years with a teen girl at home. Or quality time with a young daughter away from the bustle of everyday life.
Whether it’s an indulgent spa retreat, a few days of city food and culture or a weekend of hiking and biking, the best getaways for moms and daughters revolve around activities you’re both interested in.
Both of you should come home happy, relaxed and already planning your next getaway.
To help you get the planning started, here are seven ideas for mother-daughter trips to destinations across the U.S. There’s one for almost every vacation style. And there should be at least one tempting spot near you, wherever you live.
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7 Ideas For Splashy Mother-Daughter Getaways
1. A Lighthearted Southwestern Mother-Daughter Girls’ Trip
Your Hotel: The Texican Court in Irving, TX
The Texican is a boutique hotel built to resemble a Mexican hacienda, with adobe-style buildings wrapped around a trio of courtyards. It’s the right place for a mom-daughter weekend that’s relaxed, a little quirky and full of a variety of activities.
After you’ve admired the photos of famous cowboys hanging over your retro-style couch, sit on the Adirondack chairs outside your room with a beer or soda from your bright orange, vintage refrigerator.
Or order a pink cactus-pear margarita from the lobby bar and chill out on the large lawn where there are more Adirondack chairs, lawn games and a fire pit for chilly evenings.
The round pool has beautiful Mexican tiles and comfortable lounge chairs. And the cheerful restaurant has a friendly staff and very good chicken enchiladas.
Things You Can Do Together: Start your getaway with a spa day at the Ritz-Carlton‘s Las Colinas Resort nearby. Pair your massage and facial with lunch at the resort’s clubby Outlaw Taproom. Since it’s Texas, go ahead and pile steak on top of your salad, or skip the salad altogether and go for the brie burger or French-dip sandwich.
For something unique to the Dallas area, take a JFK-assassination tour. Stops include a museum in the former school-book depository where Lee Harvey Oswald perched to wait for the president’s motorcade.
There’s also the movie theater where Oswald tried to hide afterward and the frozen-in-time 1960s suburban house where he planned the assassination.
When evening rolls around, stroll over to the Toyota Museum Factory, a five-minute walk from the Texican. The outdoor plaza has free live music on most weekend nights, in addition to the bigger acts who play in the indoor Pavilion.
There’s a good selection of restaurants around and just off the plaza, too. Consider Brazilian or Salvadoran food, sushi or an American gastropub, among the options.
If you’re feeling sentimental, before you head home, stop at Irving’s “Love-Lock Bridge.” People buy personalized locks celebrating all kinds of bonds, including mother-daughter ones, to hang on the bridge. Order a lock before your trip and surprise your travel partner with it.
How To Get There: The Texican Court is a 20-minute drive from DWI Airport and 30 minutes from downtown.
• Book an air-and-hotel package at the Texican Court.
2. A Secluded Mother-Daughter Spa Retreat
Your Hotel: Crane’s Beach House Boutique Hotel in Delray Beach, FL
Things You Can Do Together: A spa weekend is the classic mother-daughter getaway, and Crane’s Beach House has some fun twists on the spa thing.
A lot of hotels have age restrictions at the spa. But here you can book massage and yoga or meditation sessions in the privacy of your room, making age less of an issue.
You can also venture over to the spa for more options, including packages that include facials, body scrubs or pedicures along with your massage.
Make sure to ask for Happiness Boxes to be in your room on arrival. Each contains a shower bomb, sea-salt scrub, hyaluronic ampule, de-stress relief mask, glow sunscreen and an eye pillow from the resort’s spa partner.
Beyond the pampering, have a real catch-up over cocktails, or cocktails, in the tropical courtyard, soak in the saline pools and walk on the beach. If you’re feeling really ambitious, explore the restaurants and galleries in the town’s Pineapple District. Or just relax in your beach-house-themed suite and have the food come to you.
Tip: Most rooms have a king or queen bed and a pull-out sofa.
How to Get There: Crane’s Beach House is a 45-minute drive from Fort Lauderdale and an hour’s drive from Miami, both of which will have plenty of flights from most of the country. It’s three hours from Orlando and four from Tampa.
Book an air-and-hotel package at Crane’s Beach House.
3. A Town & Country Mother-Daughter Weekend
Your Hotel: The Hotel Roanoke in Roanoke, VA
The Hotel Roanoke is a Tudor-style confection that dates from 1882. Inside you’ll find a charming barroom, southern hospitality and spacious, modern rooms. Despite being a four-star property, you can often find rates well below $300 a night, making it a great value.
Things You Can Do Together: The hotel is in the center of lively downtown Roanoke, which is a hub for all kinds of outdoor activities to do together.
For starters, Roanoke is a major center for mountain biking. Choose from 400 miles of downhill and cross-country trails. You’ll find plenty of outfitters to rent bikes to you and guides to get you going if you’re new to the sport.
For gentler riding, you can rent road bikes in town and pedal for miles along the Roanoke River Greenway, stopping along the way for excellent ice cream or locally brewed beer. Or both! You’ve earned it with all that cycling.
You can even book a tour that combines cycling with a sample of the city’s best restaurants.
Drive the scenic Blue Ridge Parkway or hike portions of the Appalachian Trail for a full day outdoors. Finish your weekend with a short, steep hike up to the Mill Mountain Star for stellar views of the city and countryside.
If you need a break from all the hiking and biking, reach out to one of several outfitters to spend an easy day tubing, picnicking and chatting on the Roanoke or James rivers.
No matter what you do during the day, make sure to venture out of the hotel in the evening to sample Roanoke’s small but vibrant restaurant scene.
How to Get There: Roanoke-Blacksburg Regional airport receives about 60 flights a day from around the country, often connecting through Charlotte, NC. It’s a three-hour drive from Richmond, VA and Charlotte. Two-and-a-half hours from Durham and four hours from Washington, DC.
• Read about Romantic Getaways in Nearby Staunton.
• Find 19 more weekend getaways from Washington, DC.
• Book your air and hotel package at the Hotel Roanoke.
4. An Upscale Mother-Daughter Mountain Adventure
Your Hotel: The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs
The Broadmoor has been the destination for upscale Rocky Mountain respites since 1918. Its 5,000-acre property has a variety of ways for any mom and daughter to take in the mountain air together.
Things You Can Do Together: If nothing says bonding like screaming in exhilaration, you can traverse the resort’s zip line and rope bridge course together, learn falconry and rock climbing or try your hand at skills like ax throwing and archery.
For an added treat, see the Rockies from a hot air balloon.
If you prefer your outdoor time with less adrenaline, pair up on the tennis court, hike to the picturesque Seven Falls or take a spin around the area on free bicycles.
To slow down and breathe in the mountain air, lounge by the enormous outdoor pool or admire the view from one of several patios and verandas with an iced tea. Take an easy guided walk with a naturalist.
Indoors, there are two more pools and a spa that Forbes gives 5 stars to. In the evenings, you can indulge in companionable silence as you settle by the fireplace in the cozy library with your favorite books.
Get the energy for your adventures at the Broadmoor’s 17 restaurants, cafés and lounges, including an Italian restaurant with wood-fired-oven pizzas, a gastropub with bison burgers or the French-style pâtisserie.
Tip: The Spa is largely reserved for guests 16+. But kids under 12 can get services, including a princess updo and junior Mani/pedi at the salon.
How to Get There: Colorado Springs has a regional airport with direct flights on major airlines from a handful of cities. Many more flights will connect through Denver. And you can drive from Denver, which is 90 minutes away.
• Read about summer activities in the Whistler Ski Area, too.
• Book a flight-and-hotel package to The Broadmoor.
5. A Cultural Mother-Daughter City Sojourn
Your Hotel: The Kimpton Hotel Palomar in Phoenix, AZ
The Kimpton is a true urban oasis in downtown Phoenix. The rooftop pool, lounge and bar have clear views of the mountains, open desert sky and city rooftops. The cozy second-floor living room has a fire for chilly desert nights.
Things You Can Do Together: The hotel features local artists in an ArtLab pop-up that happens every six weeks. And it offers bicycles for exploring the city.
The surrounding CityScape neighborhood offers restaurants, shopping and arts & culture venues steps away. Nearby Chase Field hosts concerts and shows by top performers. The famous Heard Museum and Art Museum are nearby, too.
Take in all the food, culture and even pro sports you both enjoy while also taking time to chillax.
How to Get There: Phoenix is a long drive from the nearest major cities, but it’s easy to find inexpensive flights from most of the U.S.
• Book an air-and-hotel package to the Kimpton Palomar in Phoenix.
• Consider a day trip to Flagstaff or a Santa Fe weekend, too.
6. A Low-Key Mother-Daughter Seaside Trip
Your Hotel: The Wylder Hotel on Tilghman Island, MD
Start your getaway at the Wylder Hotel on Tilghman Island, Maryland, by checking into a bungalow with nautical blue and white colors. From there, take a swim in the heated saltwater pool or take in the shore and marina views from the lawn or the hotel’s expansive porch.
If the off-season nights are chilly, warm up in the sauna or by the outdoor firepit.
The hotel’s Crab Shack serves up shrimp, oysters and crabs that are steamed, fried, boiled or mixed into soups and dips from a waterside pavilion.
Things You Can Do Together: The Eastern Shore has a rugged and scenic coastline that’s worth visiting in spring and fall as well as in summer.
You can ride bikes along the island’s quiet streets (bring your own or use the hotel’s), and take walks in the waterfront park or the Black Walnut Nature Preserve.
The protected bay is calm, and the hotel has kayaks and stand-up paddle boards to borrow. Take a scenic cruise by day or at sunset. Or charter a fishing boat and try your luck catching your own dinner.
If local history is your thing, you can learn about the island’s fishing and oystering community at the Watermen’s Museum. And then eat your fill of local crabs and oysters.
The island is short on public beaches, but if you want a stroll in the sand or a dip in the ocean, the Eastern Shore beaches are nearby.
Tip: The resort is dog-friendly but not all the island’s public park areas are.
How to Get There: The island is a bit more than two hours from Baltimore and Wilmington, DE; two-and-a-half hours from Washington, DC and three hours from Philadelphia. The nearest airport is Baltimore-Washington International.
Book an air-and-hotel package to the Wylder Hotel.
• Consider the Sanderling Resort, too, for a South Carolina seaside escape.
7. A Posh Mother-Daughter Wine-Country Weekend
Your Hotel: Salamander Resort in Loudoun, VA
The Salamander has 340 acres of lawn and forest in Northern Virginia’s wine country, not far from the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Check in, slip into the cozy bathrobes that come with your spacious room and relax with an afternoon coffee or glass of local wine on your private patio or terrace. If the evening is chilly, settle down in front of your room’s fireplace instead.
Things You Can Do Together: Most moms I know, a good weekend away involves a little wine, a little hiking and a little shopping, maybe with some relaxing yoga and spa treatments mixed in. This is what a weekend at the woman-owned Salamander Resort offers.
The resort offers a full-service spa, indoor pool and outdoor infinity pool, horseback riding, yoga, art classes, zip-lining, tennis and archery. Explore the resort’s trails by foot or bicycle.
If you want to explore further afield, grab a wine-trail map and do some wine-tasting at a few of the more than 20 wineries nearby. Borrow bikes to ride into charming Middleburg for a farm-to-table lunch, shopping and its summer farmers market, or hit any number of local hiking and biking trails.
Alexandria, VA and Mount Vernon are a short drive away for mom-and-daughter pairs who love exploring historic sites.
How to Get There: The resort is an hour’s drive from Washington, DC, two hours from Baltimore and Richmond, three hours from Philadelphia and four from Pittsburgh.
There are plenty of flights to Dulles International or Reagan National airports, which are 40 minutes and one hour away, respectively.
• Book an airfare-and-hotel package at the Salamander Middleburg.
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Roanoke photos by Eileen Gunn© All others are courtesy of the respective hotels. The photo at the top is the Wylder Hotel.