This is the second and final installment of my daughter’s and my trip to NYC in March 2026.

We woke early on our third day in New York City, ready to take on a full day of sightseeing. Thankfully, the weather was on our side. The blackout curtains in our swanky, but tiny, hotel room slowly lifted with the push of a button to reveal bright sunshine. Though it was still a bit chilly, temperatures were warmer than the previous two days, which was key given that our itinerary included plenty of time outside and a lot of walking.

We once again set out to take on the New York subway, this time heading downtown to Battery Park and the terminal for Statue City Cruises, which would take us to Liberty Island and Ellis Island. The quickest route required a transfer, and I very confidently guided us onto the wrong train. Sigh. The New York subway system is very different from what we are used to in Washington, D.C. (it is significantly larger, with 472 stations, 36 lines, and 665 miles of track, compared to 98 stations, 6 lines, and 129 miles in D.C.). Still, we managed to right ourselves and arrived at the Battery Park ferry area right on time.

We had 9:30 a.m. tickets, the third ferry of the day. The line seemed long when we arrived, but it moved quickly, and before long we were on the small jetty preparing to board. Though the sun was out and the sky a deep blue, the waters of New York Harbor were a steely gray. The waves were active, and the ferry, sans passengers, rocked furiously. Thankfully, boarding moved quickly, and it was perhaps the added weight of some 500 passengers that made for a smoother ride to Liberty Island than I had anticipated.

We found standing-room-only space on the second level alongside the deck. Unfortunately, it was on the wrong side of the ferry, leaving us without a view of our approach to the Statue of Liberty, though we did have a stunning view of Manhattan. This was my fifth trip to New York City, though my first three visits had been brief—a senior year trip in high school, a day spent with a college friend visiting from Connecticut, and another quick trip that consisted of a long day of sightseeing after taking the train up from Washington, D.C. I had long wanted to visit the Statue of Liberty, and finally seeing it there in front of me made my heart flutter, if only just a bit.

With the wind picking up, we first made our way through the gift shop to warm up a bit before heading along the path that offered a view of the statue’s front. This, however, was where the wind was at its strongest, and we could not stay long. We continued around and made our way to the pedestal, where we explored exhibits on the statue’s design, transport, and construction. During my visit to Colmar, France, in 2023, I had visited a museum in the childhood home of Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi, the statue’s designer. Both C and I had also visited the Eiffel Tower, built by Gustave Eiffel, who created the statue’s iron framework. Standing there, it felt especially meaningful to finally be at the Statue of Liberty itself.

From the pedestal, we took in a few more views before heading along the promenade to the Statue of Liberty Museum. With the crowds in the museum and displays covering much of what we had already seen, we opted to move on to Ellis Island. The main immigration building, a beautiful Beaux-Arts structure completed in 1900, is an iconic sight, but much of its façade was covered in scaffolding for renovation during our visit, which I found disappointing. We had lunch, took in the Great Hall, and wandered through the exhibits. My favorite displays were the old travel advertisements promoting voyages to America, along with the interactive exhibits showing the number and origins of immigrants to the United States over the years. The advertisements have a certain romantic quality, though the journeys themselves were likely anything but for most travelers. Still, the promise of a new beginning may have made them feel that way. By this point, the crowds were starting to wear on us, so we made our way back to the ferry and returned to Battery Park.

After returning to Manhattan, we focused on catching a few sights in the Financial District. We started with the SeaGlass Carousel in Battery Park. We added this to our itinerary after C came across several TikToks highlighting New York attractions. We used to be very into carousels and still have a great deal of affection for these simple, but fun, amusement rides. The SeaGlass Carousel is one of the most unique and beautiful carousels we have come across. It is a relatively new addition to the city, opening in 2015, and its theme pays homage to Battery Park as the site of New York’s original aquarium, which opened in 1896.

Unlike a traditional carousel, there is no center pole. Instead, the floor rotates while the illuminated fish glide and gently move up and down. Riders sit inside the fish rather than astride them, creating a much more relaxed and immersive experience. The entire ride feels almost dreamlike, particularly with the lighting, music, and movement all working together. At $6 for a surprisingly long seven-minute ride, this ended up being one of our favorite activities in New York City.

We then wound our way farther into the Financial District to track down some of the area’s well-known statues. We started with the Hello Kitty and Miffy statues just across the street from Battery Park before heading to one of the city’s most recognizable landmarks, the Charging Bull, the bronze sculpture symbolizing financial optimism and prosperity. We had the Sanrio statues entirely to ourselves, but the scene around the bull was quite different. It was nearly impossible to get a photo of or with the statue without also capturing lines of tourists waiting their turn or frustrated New Yorkers trying to weave their way through the crowds.

I managed only a few less-than-spectacular photos before we headed to our next stop: a well-earned snack at Liberty Bagels, located just a minute away. This was another New York spot C had discovered online and insisted we add to our itinerary. Though the company only opened in 2018, it has quickly become one of the city’s top-rated bagel shops, which is especially notable given that bagels are considered one of New York’s signature foods, alongside pizza and hot dogs. Liberty Bagels is known for its fresh, hand-rolled, kettle-cooked bagels made daily. Given the popularity of its Wall Street location, I had expected a far worse line than the one we encountered. We still had to wait a bit, but that gave us time to take in the scene, including the mounds of colorful cream cheese behind the counter that resembled gelato. We each ordered one of the shop’s signature bagels. I chose a Liberty bagel with half regular cream cheese and half avocado cream cheese, while C went with a rainbow bagel topped with strawberry cream cheese. Both were enormous and far too much for one person, so we each ate half, wrapped up the rest for later, and continued on with our sightseeing.

We made two final stops in the Financial District: first at the Fearless Girl statue and then at Trinity Church. While the Charging Bull may be the more famous landmark, I appreciated bringing C to see Fearless Girl more. From there, we walked down famous Wall Street before crossing over to the striking Neo-Gothic Trinity Church. Though the current structure was built in 1846, the church itself was established by royal charter in 1697 by William III of England. Given that he and his wife, Mary II of England, also established the College of William & Mary—my alma mater—in 1693, I have always had something of a soft spot for him. Though I would have liked to spend more time there, we had already spent hours sightseeing and simply did not have the energy for much more. We did, however, wander through the cemetery, where we found the grave of Alexander Hamilton. With that, we caught the subway back to our hotel for a bit of rest.

That evening, we made our way to the Lena Horne Theatre to see the musical Six, a high-energy pop musical centered on the six wives of Henry VIII, reimagined as modern pop divas competing over who had the most difficult experience being married to the infamous monarch. It was an amazing show filled with infectious songs and an incredible amount of energy. C already knew some of the music, but I had not heard a single song beforehand and still found myself practically singing along by the middle of each number. Since the trip, I have caught myself humming the songs and playing the soundtrack on repeat.

On our fourth and final day, we slept in. After several early mornings, it was nice not to have to rush anywhere and instead take things a bit slower while Broadway stretched out below our hotel window. We eventually headed to Ellen’s Stardust Diner for an early lunch. The diner, where aspiring Broadway performers serve meals while belting out songs, felt like a quintessential New York experience mixed with a themed restaurant. Though we arrived around 10:30 a.m. in hopes of beating the lunch rush, there was already a line stretching halfway down the block. Ellen’s is extremely popular with tourists and does not take reservations. Thankfully, we managed to get inside just before 11 and were able to order lunch. It really was a blast. One sing-along followed another, which honestly made it a bit difficult to focus on eating. We both loved it.

For our final major stop of the trip, we headed to Museum of Modern Art, with a brief stop at Rockefeller Plaza along the way. Long ago, when I visited my former college roommate in New York, we ended up at MoMA on a lark. What I remember most from that visit was not necessarily the art itself, but riding the escalators, goofing around, and trying to make sense of some of the more abstract pieces. I have never been a huge fan of modern art, though there are several works at MoMA that I absolutely love, including Salvador Dalí’s The Persistence of Memory, Andrew Wyeth’s Christina’s World, Vincent van Gogh’s The Starry Night, Gustav Klimt’s Hope II, and Edward Hopper’s Gas. On the other hand, I strongly dislike Joan Miró and Jackson Pollock and remain somewhat undecided on Pablo Picasso and Andy Warhol.

Still, much like that earlier visit years ago, C and I probably had the most fun with the strangest pieces in the museum. I had not been entirely sure how much she would enjoy MoMA, but we ended up spending a good two hours there before finally calling it a day.

We had an extraordinary time in New York City and truly made the most of our four days there. From world-famous landmarks and museums to Broadway, bagels, subways, and even a few roller coasters, we managed to experience so many of the sights and activities that make the city so memorable. Most importantly, though, it was another great mother-daughter trip that I think both C and I will remember for a very long time.