With the release this week of Sex And The City 2, HOLLY THOMAS goes in search of New York’s most glamorous hot spots

TWO YEARS after the first Sex And The City movie, the fabulous four are back for their big-screen encore, which premieres in London this week. Each of the four main characters, Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte and Miranda, have their own distinctive styles and their own separate neighbourhoods in New York to match. To follow in their footsteps I took to the streets in my most comfortable flat shoes, sadly not from Christian Louboutin, in search of the
best things to do, SATC-style.

The elite fashionistas of Manhattan are to be found in the Meatpacking District, where Samantha’s character lives.

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So it seems right that I should start my journey here and I check into the stylish Hotel Gansevoort.

There is a fascinating mix of culture with blue-collar workers hauling meat in and out of warehouses, wedged between designer flagship stores including Diane von Furstenberg, where Carrie shops. From my room I can see across the Hudson river and directly on to the Soho House rooftop pool (which also features in the show).

Lucky for me, the Gansevoort also boasts a rooftop pool and this one has underwater music. It really is the place to see and be seen.

The restaurant Pastis is across the cobblestoned street and a firm favourite for a get-together for the SATC women. I can’t resist a visit if only for the celebrity spotting.

Sadly, Sarah Jessica Parker (Carrie) is nowhere to be seen. Park Avenue, where Charlotte’s character lives, is a whole different ball game with its wide, pristine pavements and doormen assisting residents.

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Women here exude the trademark Manhattan sheen with carefully styled hair and impeccable clothes. Several scenes in the new film were shot at Fifth Avenue store Bergdorf Goodman, just a few blocks away. The costume budget for the new movie was a rumoured $10million (£6.9m) with more than 140 costume changes. So I book an appointment with a personal shopper, Danielle, for a taste of how it feels to be a SATC girl.

My jaw drops when she directs me to a dressing room at Bergdorf’s.

It’s bursting with gorgeous designer clothes, shoes and accessories just for me. I’m in heaven. For more than two hours I gleefully try on thousands of pounds’ worth of labels favoured by the SATC girls. The fashion label Halston, originally made famous in the Seventies, has recently re-emerged with SJP’s endorsement as president and chief creative officer.

The white dress she wears in posters for the new movie, pictured above, is my favourite but with a $500 (£345) price tag, I reluctantly leave it on the rails and buy a much more affordable pair of skinny jeans.

Danielle is a woman in demand from New York women everywhere. She gets emails from clients asking for advice on outfit selection and responds in seconds. I love her.
 
NEARBY is Carrie’s stomping ground, the Upper East Side. On her doorstop near Central Park is the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I turn up at the museum doors on Monday morning to find it closed. I am cheered at the memory that Carrie makes the same mistake when trying to visit the Guggenheim Museum in one episode.

The exhibition, American Women: Fashioning A National Identity, which is on until August 15, is worth a visit.

Exquisite dresses dating from 1890 to 1940 are on display. On a recording, SJP’s voice guides me around through rooms of gorgeous designer gowns, explaining how they influenced our perceptions of the modern woman.  

I head to Central Park and the Boathouse restaurant, which features in the movie. I feel terribly elegant as I sit on the deck with a delicious fish platter, watching rowing boats pass by. Miranda has shunned Manhattan and chosen a family home in Brooklyn.

I walk across that monumental bridge and take a cab to a flea market held in the Williamsburg Savings Bank Tower
each Sunday. Inspired by Carrie’s unusual fashion finds on screen (she mixes flea market items with designer clothes), I search the place and strike gold with a vintage Halston neck scarf; a steal at $5 (£3.45). Residents are celebrating the start of summer with bands and stalls selling everything from beer to furniture. On Brooklyn’s Fifth Avenue I sip a champagne cocktail ($4/£2.75).

To find your own “Mr Big” (the love of Carrie’s life) the Andaz Hotel is the place. It’s the only hotel to boast a Wall Street address. Swarming with dashing men in well-cut suits, the hotel, which opened in January, is impressive with its attention to detail.

The bathroom screams romance with a tub big enough for two. In the bedroom, there’s a lighting menu  (daytime, relax, nightlight and sleep) and at the flick of a switch, I can activate blackout blinds. At 6pm every evening free wine and snacks are served in the seated lobby area.

Eager for more SATC trivia I take a coach trip with On Location Tours. In three hours, I visit all the top locations used in the filming.

IT’S A great way to learn about the city away from the tourist traps. Ally, the tour guide introduces herself as the on-board “sex-pert” while excitable girls (and a few bored-looking men) listen intently.

The coach weaves through Manhattan, ending up at the city library where Carrie was jilted on her wedding day in the first film. You can quaff cosmopolitans along the way but don’t get too Carrie-d away.


GETTING THERE:
Hayes & Jarvis (0871 664 0246/www.hayesandjarvis.com) offers four nights in New York from £849pp (two sharing), room only.

Price includes two nights at the Gansevoort Hotel and two nights at Andaz Wall Street and return  flights with Continental Airlines from Heathrow. Departs June 9. 

NYC & Company 0207 367 0934/www.nycgo.com