London Hop-On Hop-Off Buses

In London, one of the first cities in the world to introduce tourist buses, travelling around the city on one of these buses is a must. You will discover the city and travel between the main tourist attractions while sitting comfortably.

As this is one of the most typical experiences in the British capital, there are many tourist bus companies. They all work in the same way but differ in terms of the route and number of routes, prices and stops. Here are the main options:

• Big Bus sightseeing bus, from £36
• Offer: tickets for the London Eye, pass for the Big Bus sightseeing bus and cruise on the Thames, from £62
• Big Bus London Night Tour, from £37
• City Sightseeing London tourist bus, from £43
• Vintage tourist bus and Thames cruise, from £67
• Toot London tourist bus with Thames cruise, from £50
• Toot bus tour of London for children, from £25
• Golden Tours (included in the London Pass), from £79

The Big Bus London tourist bus is the most popular and comprehensive option. With four hop-on hop-off routes and more than 50 stops, it is ideal for exploring the city in depth.

In addition to the bus tour, your ticket includes a cruise on the Thames and a guided walking tour. The buses have audio guides in more than 10 languages, including Spanish, and are wheelchair and pushchair accessible.

Types of Big Bus tickets

• Classic (1 day): access to the routes + Thames cruise.
• Premium (2 days): routes + cruise + walking tour.
• Deluxe (3 days): more complete experience with extra days.

Main Big Bus routes

• Red Route (approx. 2 hours): Marienplatz, Tower of London, Buckingham Palace, Houses of Parliament.
• Blue Route (approx. 1 hour): Hyde Park, Notting Hill, Natural History Museum.
• Orange Route (approx. 1 hour): London Eye, National Gallery, Madame Tussauds.
• Green Route (approx. 1 hour): British Museum, Covent Garden, Euston.

What's included

• Unlimited access for 1, 2 or 3 days.
• Cruise on the Thames.
• Guided walking tour.
• Recorded commentary + live guide on the Red Route.

Big Bus + London Eye + cruise combo pack

If you want to make the most of your visit, the Big Bus package with admission to the London Eye and a cruise on the Thames is also available for only 62

Big Bus night tour

If you prefer to experience the city under the lights, you can opt for the Big Bus London night tour, from 37 For two hours, you'll travel non-stop past the most iconic monuments, such as Big Ben, the Tower of London and the West End, with spectacular panoramic views and a multilingual audio guide.

The City Sightseeing London tourist bus is another great option for discovering the city in a comfortable and flexible way. With a ticket valid for one full day, you can explore the main areas of London aboard a double-decker open-top bus, hopping on and off at any of its stops.

Unlike the Big Bus, which includes up to 3 days of travel, this experience is designed for those looking for a practical one-day option with unlimited access to the 3 available routes. All routes have an audio guide in 11 languages, including Spanish, so you don't miss a thing.

Types of City Sightseeing tickets

• 1-day ticket: unlimited access to all 3 routes throughout the day.

Main City Sightseeing routes

• Red Route: passes by London's great icons, such as Big Ben, the Tower of London, Trafalgar Square, St Paul's Cathedral and Buckingham Palace.
• Blue Route: combines culture and modernity with stops at the London Eye, Westminster Abbey, Madame Tussauds and the neighbourhoods of Notting Hill and Kensington.
• Green Route: connects key stations (Waterloo, King's Cross, St Pancras) with the main routes, ideal for those arriving by train.

What's included

• 1-day ticket for the London tourist bus.
• Audio guide in 11 languages.
• Unlimited hop-on hop-off travel during the validity of the pass.

If you're looking for the most authentic tour of the city, don't miss the route on the old-fashioned Routemaster bus, the typical one.

In addition to including a free cruise on the River Thames, like the other companies, the Vintage Tour sightseeing bus offers you the chance to buy tickets directly for the London Eye, the highest Ferris wheel in Europe, and for the unmissable and historic Tower of London. But it also includes the option of visiting Stonehenge, a prehistoric monument declared a World Heritage Site.

However, this bus only has one route covering London's main attractions and is not adapted for people with reduced mobility who need to board in a wheelchair. It is, however, accessible with a pushchair. The full tour lasts three and a half hours.

How does it work?

You will receive confirmation of your ticket as soon as you make your booking, and cancellation is free of charge if made 24 hours before the start date of the tour. At the time of booking, you must choose between the morning or afternoon departures. Please note that if you want to see the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace, you must choose the morning tour.

This is an open-top bus tour, so please bear in mind that it may rain. On some occasions, the open-top bus may be replaced by a closed-top bus.

What's included?

The Tootbus London tourist bus combines the best of the city by land and water. With a 24-hour pass, you can hop on and off at will on the three main routes (yellow, blue and green), and round off the experience with a cruise on the River Thames between Westminster Pier and Tower Pier.

This is a great option if you want to explore London with flexibility and add a river trip to your itinerary. It also includes a multilingual audio guide (with a children's option), free headphones and access to the Tootbus app to track buses in real time or even take self-guided walking tours (Tootwalk).

Types of Tootbus tickets

24-hour ticket: unlimited access to the yellow, blue and green routes + Thames cruise.

Main Tootbus routes

• Yellow Route: includes iconic landmarks such as the Tower of London, Big Ben, the London Eye, St Paul's Cathedral, Piccadilly Circus and Buckingham Palace.
• Blue Route: connects cultural and commercial areas, passing through Kensington Gardens, Notting Hill and South Kensington museums.
• Green Route: links key stations with central London, ideal for starting your tour if you arrive by train.

What's included

• Hop-on hop-off sightseeing bus tour.
• Access to 3 main circuits (yellow, blue and green).
• Cruise on the Thames between Westminster Pier and Tower Pier.
• Multilingual audio guide and children's channel.
• Free headphones + Tootbus app with self-guided walking routes.

Tootbus bus tour for children

The Tootbus bus tour for children is an option designed especially for families. With a tour lasting around 45 minutes and live commentary in English, the little ones will enjoy a fun and educational experience passing by places such as the London Eye, Waterloo Bridge, St. Paul's Cathedral and the Tower of London.

Tootbus night bus tour

If you want to discover London under the stars, the Tootbus night tour offers a 90-minute tour with a multilingual audio guide. The open-top bus passes by the city's most iconic illuminated landmarks, such as Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus, Big Ben and the London Eye. A magical experience to see London's night skyline.

If you are going to spend several days in London and want to make the most of the city's cultural and leisure offerings, in addition to having the option of taking the tourist bus, I highly recommend that you get a tourist card.

These passes allow you to save money, as you don't have to pay the entrance fee for each of the attractions you visit, and time, as you can access them through their fast queues. I have written a post about London Tourist Cards in which I explain in more detail that the tourist passes that include a day on the tourist bus are:

London Pass

Everything you can visit in London in terms of cultural tourism is included in the London Pass, with access to more than 80 attractions and a day on the tourist bus. The price depends on the number of days of use, with a maximum of 10 days that you can customise by paying only for the days you are going to use it.

London Explorer Pass

The Explorer Pass is the ideal option for discovering the essentials of London in a minimum of 4 days and adding to your experience with visits to some of its most entertaining attractions, such as the London Eye, Madame Tussauds or the London Dungeon, among others. This tourist pass can be customised and you pay for the number of attractions you wish to visit.

With this pass, you can choose between two tourist bus companies: Big Bus Tours, which I mentioned at the beginning of this article, and Golden Tours, one of the city's newest companies with its recognisable blue buses.

Golden Tours has a total of four routes, two of which, "Pick Up and Drop Off", are really interesting as you can take them in the morning from hotels in the Notting Hill, Bayswater and Victoria areas to the city centre and back in the afternoon. Golden Tours' tourist buses make more than 70 stops, and their day ticket includes a cruise on the Thames and a walking tour in English.

You also have the option of booking only the Golden Tours tourist bus ticket for around £55, without having to purchase the tourist card.

Golden Tours tourist bus route

If you're someone who likes to get around the city without having to go underground on the Tube, where it's impossible to enjoy the views, I recommend you consider taking a cruise on the Thames, which will allow you to continue discovering London's most impressive monuments on the riverbank while you relax or even enjoy a luxurious dinner. Here's an article where I tell you all about these cruises: 7 Best Thames River Cruises

If you are also thinking of visiting one of the city's most iconic attractions, my recommendation is, without a doubt, the London Eye. For those who prefer to enjoy the views from the air, the London Eye is definitely a great option. This guide provides all the information you need to organise your visit. London Eye Tickets all the information you need to organise your visit.