When I heard that an Equinox was going to open its doors in SoHo I was thrilled! I have made my home within this neighborhood since the end of 2006 and had always made the trek to the 19th Street location for my workouts. Even though I have always worked in the Union Square area, I am now able to workout close to my apartment. YAY!
I was expecting this gym to be nothing short of spectacular. I mean, we are in Soho. When you walk into the gym, you are greeted by the shop and 'witchcraft—nothing out of the ordinary really. After walking up two half flights of stairs, there is a lounge area (about 350 sq ft) with couches, tables and a flat screen TV where you can eat, go online or just sit on the comfy cushions. The next two sets of half flights take you to the long front desk where a few snobby Soho wannabes check you in. Walking to the right of the front desk there are two choices: walk upstairs to the men's locker room and yoga studio or make a right to the main gym floor.
The main floor of the gym is pretty straightforward; you've got the regular treadmill, elliptical and bike section with flat screen TVs to keep you distracted from your workout. The rest of the large space is filled with every typical weight machine, free weights and stretching mat and, of course, a workout studio and cycling studio. In the back of the gym, above Broadway, there is a small Pilates studio where you can take private lessons for an extra fee. I tried this machine-type Pilates once, but it wasn't for me—too slow.
The yoga studio is the hands-down best in-gym studio I have ever seen (yet). With calming brown walls, giant flower pots with huge bamboo sticks, and beautiful lamps, this room puts you immediately in a relaxed state. Although I truly love what they did to the yoga studio, I hate that the women's restroom is downstairs and long walk away. If the men's locker room is adjacent to the studio, why didn't they just build a small unisex restroom next to it so I don't have to run my ass down the stairs and around the corner?!
This gym is beautiful and it exudes a new and open, and if you go during the day you may see a celebrity (I haven't seen anyone just yet). The only issue I have with going to this location is when I have to walk/push down Prince Street to Broadway through hundreds of tourists, which makes me want to turn around and go back home.