A hidden gem in New York. A bit far to get there from the center of Manhattan, but it is so worth the trip for a nice, quiet relaxation. It is a 28-acre estate overlooking the Hudson River. The estate has two houses and a botanical garden, but much, much smaller than Brooklyn or other major botanical gardens. They have a small parking lot which can get full quickly. They do have offsite parking lot with free shuttle as well.

My favorite part of this estate is the walking trail that goes almost all the way around the estate. If you look at the trail on their map, it looks like such a long walk, but it really isn’t. Whoever designed the map was some kind of genius… The estate looks 10 times bigger that it really is on the map. Kind of funny…

They have Café at Wave Hill inside the main house. They offer baked goods, salads, sandwiches, etc. You can go to the ordering counter where friendly staffs will take your order. After you get your food, you can sit wherever you like.

We had a special, seasonal, off-the-menu, almost secret item. It is their quite impressive Afternoon Tea! It is offered during limited seasons, and you have to pre-reserve and pre-pay for the tea. We actually upgraded our Afternoon Tea to High Tea which adds sparkling wine along with strawberries and cream.

It was a wonderful high tea experience, felt like a royalty enjoying the tea, sandwiches, desserts and champagne in “our” castle terrace somewhere. Our server, Charleen was simply amazing! She certainly elevated our fancy High Tea to the next level, thank you!

So, next time you are feeling like escaping the concrete jungle, or just want to go chill out in a beautiful green space, or have a great afternoon tea in the nature, you know where to go!