Prior to our holiday break beginning, I wrote out a few day trip itineraries, as well as a few winter weekend getaways. I was pretty detailed and ambitious in my planning. After reviewing all of the plans, we decided to pursue what I had planned for Indianapolis.
Our Indianapolis Winter Weekend Getaway was planned to include Afternoon Tea at Tilly’s Tea Room, followed by strolling through the Festival of Trees at the Indiana Historical Society, and ending the evening with Christmas at the Zoo before heading to our hotel room for the night.
Only it didn’t all happen as planned.
Here’s the actual itinerary.
We ended up leaving a few hours later than we planned which really put us behind schedule. However, we did make it in time for Afternoon Tea at Tilly’s Tea Room.
If you recall from my first visit, we arrived too late for Afternoon Tea because I didn’t take into consideration the time change. Illinois is on Central Standard Time, while Indianapolis is on Eastern Standard Time. With this in mind, be sure to keep time zones in mind as you plan your travels.
Tilly’s Tea Room, Saks Fifth Avenue
Tilly’s Tea Room is located on the 3rd floor of Saks Fifth Avenue in the Fashion Mall in Indianapolis, Indiana at 8701 Keystone Crossing. The first thing you notice when you walk off the elevator into Tilly’s Tea Room is the atmosphere of elegance and classiness that fills the room which really sets the tone for Afternoon Tea.
Afternoon Tea is an elegant and classy way to spend an afternoon with your significant other, family, or friends, celebrating any occasion from a birthday or anniversary to just being thankful for the presence of loved ones in your life. This especially made a beautiful afternoon to include in our itinerary.
Since there was quite a bit of food on the trays, we decided to share an afternoon tea, order separate pots of tea, and a side of soup. It was such a delightful time and was everything I imagined it would be. In fact, we really savored our time there and ended up leaving too late to make it to the Festival of Trees at the Indiana Historical Society.
Festival of Trees at the Indiana Historical Society
While this would have been my first event at this location, the Festival of Trees is not a new event for me. In fact, every year, since high school, I’ve always visited the Festival of Trees.
If you have never had the opportunity to experience a Festival of Trees event, they are traditionally elaborately decorated trees representing individuals, families, and organizations from around the local area. And, typically, while strolling the decorated trees, you can usually cast a vote for your favorite tree which can be a tough decision.
What I love most about the Festival of Trees is getting dressed up in beautiful holiday dresses while browsing through the beautifully adorned Christmas trees while sipping hot chocolate and having Christmas cookies. It is truly a holiday experience to add to your Christmas Bucket List.
With the Festival of Trees closing at 5 PM at this location, we simply missed it. Admission was $12 each and non-refundable.
Hampton Inn Indianapolis – Northwest
Since we knew we weren’t going to make it, we headed to the hotel room to check in. We chose the Hampton Inn for this visit. It is a newer hotel built in 2008, has very clean, nicely decorated rooms, and a pretty good continental breakfast. Rooms were approximately $100 per night.
Christmas at the Indianapolis Zoo
After we got checked in and rested for a little while, we layered up and headed to the Indianapolis Zoo for Christmas at the Zoo. According to the website, “dating back to 1967, the Indianapolis Zoo was the first zoo in the nation to hold a holiday lights event. Year after year, Christmas at the Zoo continues to grow”.
Visiting the zoo at night was extremely beautiful but cold. The lights displayed were gorgeous! In fact, this event was nominated for USA TODAY’s 10 Best Zoo Lights!
Due to the time that we went, we weren’t able to see many of the animals. We saw the alligators, crocodiles, a few bears, and tigers. That was about it. We also rode the train. It was such a cute and fun thing to experience while there. The people on the train were very fun and made it a fun and memorable ride through the cold dark night.
Sadly, we didn’t get hot chocolate due to extremely long lines or take any photos. And, now I am wishing that we did both.
So, if you choose to add this to your winter getaway in the future, be sure to savor the moment, get hot chocolate, take pictures, and make it a beautiful time to remember.
Admission was approximately $25 per adult, plus the cost of the train ride.
Traders Mill – Grill & Bar, 5920 W 86th Street
After about an hour at the zoo, we were cold and ready to eat. With many of the bars and restaurants having limited hours due to the pandemic it was a little difficult to find somewhere to eat that late at night.
We ended up finding a bar that was near the hotel call Traders Mill – Grill & Bar. It was a nice place. We had a few drinks and really great dinners. The dinners were very restaurant-style dinners and not cheap bar food.
We ordered the salmon dinner and the grilled shish kabob with lamb with an appetizer of fried mushrooms. Everything was simply delicious and the waitresses were humorous and friendly. After about an hour and a half there, we headed to our hotel room to get some sleep.
The Morning After and Final Thoughts
The morning after was pretty chill. We had continental breakfast, packed up, and checked out. Overall, it was a nice winter weekend getaway with a total cost of approximately $400 which included gas and snacks along the way.
If I could do things differently, we would have definitely left on time as planned and made it to the Festival of Trees. I would have also made sure to take a lot more photos throughout our time away.
I really loved ending the night at Traders Mill – Grill & Bar. Although it wasn’t on the agenda, it was a wonderful way to end the night. I’m so grateful that we went and had a nice time there.
Lastly, I would not have over-planned the day. I would have moved the Festival of Trees to the morning after prior to hitting the road to return home.
