Girly day in London for DD’s birthday

[lightlower]

Looking for some ideas for DD’s birthday next week. I wanted to plan a day in London as a birthday treat I was thinking maybe the Jellycat cafe at Selfridges (it’s a shame the jellycat brunch at Harrods doesn’t open till November). Would love some ideas please. She’ll be turning 8

What is a " girly day"?
I genuinely thought we had moved past this differentiating between roles and expectations placed on children because of their gender.
Why can't she just have a fun day out?

Yeah, i don’t like ‘girly day’, either.

How girly is she, OP, and is that the sort of thing she'd like?

You know what a girly day is, the op wants to have a day out with her Dd and she can call it what she likes, you don't have to be so serious all of the time !

Sorry op this just irritated me.
I was in London recently with my big "girlies" and I saw Fortnums were doing a winnie the pooh afternoon tea, it was quite pricey but it might be something as a treat

I had to edit i got my fancy shops mixed up 😀

how lovely - you call it what you want ignore the snippy comments ! Afternoon tea might be nice ? There will be some themed ones I’m sure, Fortnums is lovely too

Girly day means a day out with just females (mum, daughter, granny, auntie, friend etc…). No men or boys are invited. The women might enjoy shopping, lunch in female only company. London is ideal, sounds like fun!

I hope they have a lovely mother and daughter day out together doing fun things.

But what has girly got to do with it other than create an image of simpering, frivolous, giggling little girls?

@lightlowerlovely thing to do memories she and you will cherish. God people on here can be quite mad at times!

have you looked at open top bus tours that serve afternoon tea on them?

Tea AND a bus tour around the sights

https://b-bakery.com/london/bus-tours/peppa-pig-afternoon-tea

I'm sorry but what chance have women to be taken seriously in society when they refer themselves as " big girlies" ?
No wonder it's still such a man's world.

Paddington Afternoon Tea Bus? Paddington Afternoon Tea London Bus Tour - Brigit's Bakery

Maybe they like to be frivolous and giggle and skip and like faries and sparkles! I am sure you like none of these and clearly makes you a better woman.

We all know what the op wants, a nice day with her daughter so let’s not derail the thread.

Tickets to see Matilda

Royal Mews near Buck palace if she likes horses

Oh stop it! I was obviously being silly/sarcastic or is that not allowed either, My Dds are grown ups with serious jobs and houses etc etc I am not going to clog up the ops thread anymore and I won't be responding to you I don't understand why you didn't scroll on by,

The last time I hosted girls of that age in London we did (at their instigation) Power Up at the Science Museum, bao buns in Chinatown, Camden Market and Matilda the Musical.

Ugg why are posters so joy sucking. I have a big job and still understand the concept of a girly day.

OP- my 10 year old absolutely loved the Jelly Cat store but make sure you book a slot otherwise you’ll be there on a queue forever. We recently did a lovely day where we went to the jelly cat store, a musical and then dinner.

I get what women are saying about the connotations. Girls arent all the same. Young human females can enjoy anything boxing, chess, world of war craft or war re-enactments.

However why is why is being light, frivolous and soft seen as negative and regressive? Why are activities such as shopping, eating cake and makeup seen as less than?
Just another stick to beat girls with.
Crying like a girl eh?

In the 1970s women made big point of challenging society in its view that they were girls in a world run by the adults i .e men. It was an important part of the fight for equality.
In recent years its awful to see women embracing this terminology that they are in fact just girls. That they aren't competent adults. Which is why I challenged the OP's terminology because I think it should be challenged and not just be normalised.
But like you I don't want to derail OP's thread any further and I won't post again on it

Thank you for all the lovely suggestions, please keep them coming!

It's a shame that some people immediately associate the word 'girly' with negative connotations such as being simpering or frivolous. Those certainly aren't qualities I associate with the word, nor are they how my DD or I see ourselves. To me, it simply means a fun day out together, enjoying things we both like. I really don't think it needs to be any deeper than that!

Would she like a show? My Mum taking me to the West End as a kid is one of my most most special childhood memories. Wicked and Matilda are both great shows for an eight year old.

What about a boat trip on the Thames? It’s a great way to see a lot of the iconic sites without too much walking.

Have a wonderful day!

Art gallery or cultural experience would be on my list with my DD. What does she enjoy? A show would take up a lot of the day and is so expensive these days.

Personally I would go more for an interesting activity than overpriced teas at that age. Something like the tower of london or the science museum. Maybe a show.

Has she been to London before?

If not, get a ‘I spy’ book or use ‘Katie in London’ as a basis for your visit.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Katie-London-James-Mayhew/dp/1408331934/ref=asc_df_1408331934?mcid=437c1e03186537ea9341770216f5e8e4&th=1&psc=1&tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=697299527030&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=12217390941811097465&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9214256&hvtargid=pla-464060548696&psc=1&hvocijid=12217390941811097465-1408331934-&hvexpln=0&gad_source=1

Thank you. Did you do the fish and chip experience at Selfridges? If you don’t mind me asking, which musical did you go to see? I was thinking of booking Matilda as it’s always been on our list to go and see