NBC Studio Tours, A Fun NYC Experience

As part of our 30 Rock Affinia Package recently, we got passes to the NBC Studio tours in Rockefeller Center. NBC Studios, formerly an RCA radio network, formed in 1926 as the vision of Russion immigrant and successful businessman, David Sarnoff. The tour takes us through the history of this amazing enterprise, born and bred right here in New York City.

The Tour starts at the NBC History Theatre where we watched a video with Matt Lauer and Meredith Vieira who guided us through the beginnings of NBC, the transformations it has gone through, including highlights of our favortite entertainers and shows.

We got to visit Studio 3C where NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams is filmed and Studio 8H where Saturday Night Live is filmed. Both are very cool, but I will admit having been there on a Saturday, seeing some stage rehearsal and set up for SNL was the most exciting. Who we didn’t get to see however was Jude Law, the host of SNL that evening, but I did see him on t.v. later on. Ah, dreamy. Our tour guide mentioned how nearly impossible it was to get tickets to SNL. (A lottery is held in August.)

Not all studio stops are the same, and vary on tours. We also got to see a control room, operated by only 3 or 4 people at a time. All very techy and busy and interesting for sure.

There are many other fun stops along the tour, but I hate giving all the surprises away, as the surprises are part of the fun I believe. Suffice to say, if you are taking a tour in NYC, include the NBC Studios as one of them. The insight into this amazing enterprise, as well as the fun activities in store for the tour groups make the time go by incredibly fast. We couldn’t believe more than an hour had passed when it was done. It was also fun being able to tour the space while some of the studios were live, such as the MSNBC studios, where we got to see reporters prepping to go on camera and the crew busy working and moving around. Very, very cool stuff.

The tours are about an hour and 10 minutes long. Security is very strict, so avoid coming with too many bags as this may delay you. Tour tickets can be purchased and groups line up at the second floor of the NBC Experience Store at 30 Rockefeller Center (Corner of 49th Street between 5th and 6th Avenue across from the TODAY Show studio). Ticket prices are as follows: Adults $19.25, Children (6-12) $16.25, Seniors $16.25, Groups (10 or more) $16.25. Children under 6 are not permitted on the tour.

Check the website for more information on tour details as well as tour times. No photography or video are allowed during the tour.

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Tags: nyc tours
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