The SATC Tour

Essex's answer to Miranda, Samantha, Carrie and Charlotte

One thing I knew I wanted to do when I visited New York was to take the Sex and the City tour. SATC has been a constant presence in my life since I watched the final part of season 6 when I was studying for my A levels. When I was living abroad, I watched the series over and over. I would put on episodes in the background when I was cooking, or getting ready to go out because there were no English channels on my TV or radio. It became a familiar soundtrack to my day, Carrie's constant questioning and the glamourous nights out and outfits of the characters. When the first film came out, my 3 friends and I, having assumed a character inspiration each (I was Carrie), got dressed up for a trip to the cinema, smuggled in some wine, and then headed out for our own cosmopolitans when the film ended. I bought the film on fake DVD in China and watched it with my girlfriends. The second film came out when I was in Liverpool, and I went with a new set of girlfriends to watch that as my boyfriend at the time wouldn't be persuaded! I watched the prequel TV series 'The Carrie Diaries', which I also really enjoyed and was disappointed that it was cancelled.

So going to New York, I was extremely excited to see all of the places featured in the series. I already knew about the Sex and the City tour bus, and couldn't wait to step aboard and delve into that world again, surrounded by other people as equally obsessed as me. I managed to persuade Samantha to come along with me, and I'm glad to say she was pleasantly surprised at how much she also enjoyed the experience. 

The tour begins at The Plaza, and as we walked across to the meet up point, I immediately clocked the Paris Cinema - pointing out that this is where Carrie went to the cinema on a Saturday night 'date' night alone. One the bus, our guide was enthusiastic and entertaining. As the bus drives through the city, our guide pointed out each of the 'hotspots' we could see from the show and we were also reminded of the scenes on TVs around the bus. This was really great as it brought to life what we were looking at. There were a few stops throughout the tour - at an Ann Summers style shop, cosmopolitan bar, posh restaurant from the film and Magnolia Bakery. Samantha and I, of course induldged in a cupcake from the Bakery and enjoyed wandering around empty Buddakan restaurant (where Carrie and Big have their wedding rehearsal dinner). We skipped out of the midday Sunday Cosmopolitan drinks to briefly walk around Little Italy, and didn't stick around the site of Carrie's apartment steps or to look around the sex toy shop (preferring to grab a coffee nearby instead!) The tour ends at the HBO shop, where you get a slight discount, and where Samantha and I both bought a little souvenir.

Later during my stay, we went back to see the library, although it was unfortunately closed on a Sunday so I never got to see inside. We found the community garden featured in Miranda's wedding, which was lovely and I went back to the Flatiron building to get a decent photo. I really enjoyed the tour, and I think it was an excellent start to my visit to New York, as it takes you around the city and obviously it's an interesting introduction for any SATC fan. I also loved that I did this with Samantha, as she's completely familiar with the city and so as I continued my exploration of the city, she could point out how each place connected with what we'd see on the tour.

Buddakan restaurant

NY Public library