Sex and the City 2 On Location Tour: Get "Carried" Away For A Day! [New York]

by: Anne M. Raso

Financefoodie.com not only got to go on the Sex & The City Hotspots Tour from On Location Tour, but we got to do it the night before the SATC2 movie was released on May 27th!

On Wednesday night, On Location Tours conducted a very special SATC tour for $180 that included the midnight screening at the Loews Kip Bay Theater with Stanford Blatch aka Willie Garson (who was kind enough to chat and do photo ops with fans as well as interviews with press  - red carpet style!) and an Italian buffet dinner at Fresco To Go in the Wall Street area. Willie, who plays Carrie's gay husband Stanford Blatch marries "Charlotte's gay husband" Anthony (played by Mario Cantone) at the beginning of SATC 2. While we love both actors, we have to admit that Liza Minnelli as both a speaker and performer at their lively ceremony had us laughing. Liza proves that she still has the glam and the gams (and a strong gay following, if not the strongest in all of showbiz)...we were almost expecting Bette Midler to show up as the rabbi's wife or something (it was an interdenominational ceremony).

All in all, about 75 SATC fans came out for the special tour, and it was lovely that all the attendees got their own private screening which kept them away from the sold out ticket lines. Interestingly enough, everyone on the tour also got gift bags that included a gift card for free microdermabrasion--how "Samantha"! (Does anyone remember the episode where an overly abrasive microdermabrasion turned her red and peeling before a big event she had to attend? In the back of our dusty mind, we probably think it was the episode where Samantha was throwing a book party for Carrie!).

There is always trivia along the way during the tours and it leaves everyone laughing to say the least....and of course, everyone votes on which of Carrie's boyfriend was the best and Berger always comes in last in terms of popularity. (He will never be forgiven for breaking up with Carrie on a post it note!)

Now, you probably want to know the highlights of the SATC Hotspots tour before you shell out your hard-earned "Manolo Blahnik" money and you can see some of them in the pics included here. There are over 50 SATC landmarks on the tour! You get to go to nearly every Manhattan neighborhood, with the exception of the East Village and Harlem. You get to actually visit Scout, the bar opened by Aidan and Steve, although in real life it is actually a place called O'Neil's on Grand Street (not Mulberry as depticted on the show). At the bar, special red Cosmos are laid out for the SATC tour members. (You do have to shell out $9 for each Cosmo and I think it would be nice if tour members got one free drink.)

Other hotspots on the SATC Hotspots Tour includes the New York Public Library (where Carrie almost married Big), Alexis Bittar (who supplies a lot of oversized jewelry for the show and generously gives tour members a 15 percent discount), Cowgirl Hall Of Fame (where Carrie and Miranda stroll past their former boyfriend's Aidan and Steve having beers with new ladies), the oh so trendy Meatpacking restaurant Buddakan, and the Little Church Around The Corner (where Samantha attempts to seduce Friar F).

The only disappointment is that On Location Tours is no longer allowed to drive by or let customers visit Carrie's apartment (fans used to get a big kick out of taking pics on the stoops). And yes, there have been actual SATC star spottings on the tour, including one of SJP herself who stopped and said hi to fans on the tour while running errands in her West Village neighborhood one day!

For more info on On Location Tours, go to www.screentours.com or call 212-209-3370.

********Giveaway!*******

Congrats #2! -Jennifer Neal.

"The top of the empire state building"

Please email financefoodie [at] gmail [dot] com with your mailing address so I can send your prize! You have 2 days (48 hours) to respond or the prize goes to alternate winners

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We here at Financefoodie.com couldn't give higher recommendations for On Location Tours in general--having done the SATC once before and their Sopranos tour twice. For 42 bucks, you get three and a half hour tour which includes a food treat along the way (the SATC tour includes a Billy's Bakery cupcake and the Sopranos tour includes a cannoli from a bakery close to Satriale's Pork store--now the Sopranos condos--where Tony and crew used to gather for meetings).

Therefore, Financefoodie.com, in partnership with On Location Tours, is giving away a pair of tickets for the Sex and the City Hotspot Tour in NYC (ARV: $84) to one lucky reader! The best part is, if you’re not from New York but do plan to go one day, these tickets will NEVER EXPIRE. Also, if you aren’t an SATC fan, you can choose any tour from On Location Tours if you win (i.e. Gossip Girl, the Sopranos, Friends).

There are FIVE ways to enter:
1. In my comments section, tell me who is your favorite place in NYC (mine is Central Park - a bit of green in a city of skyscrapers!)
2. Follow Finance Foodie on Twitter (leave separate comment telling me this)
3. Follow On Location Tours on Twitter (leave separate comment telling me this)
4. Reblog / Retweet this giveaway (leave separate comment telling me this)
5. Facebook this giveaway on your FB wall (leave separate comment telling me this)

Contest ends June 2, 2010 at 5pm EST. Winners will be chosen via random integer generator on random.org announced on the financefoodie.com site shortly afterwards that night!

[photos: Anne M. Raso, except NYPL photo: freelargephotos.com and last photo: On Laction Tours]