San Francisco Hop on Hop off Bus Tours

Set off to discover San Francisco on a sightseeing bus that will take you around the most impressive sights of this beautiful West Coast city.

Alex Grande

Alex Grande

5 min read

San Francisco Hop on Hop off Bus Tours

Sightseeing bus through the streets of San Francisco | ©megabus13601

You've just arrived in San Francisco. You have an idea of everything you want to see but you don't know where to start: it's time to hop on a tour bus and get to know the city before touring it in depth.

1. All about the San Francisco sightseeing bus: information and tours

Pier 39| ©Bernard Spragg. NZ
Pier 39| ©Bernard Spragg. NZ

The San Francisco Sightseeing Bus tours the entire city, passing close to its most iconic landmarks. On a complete tour of its neighbourhoods, you can hop off at up to 24 stops along Pier 39, the Palace of Fine Arts and Union Square, among other places, and tour the city at your own pace. The ticket starts at £55.

In addition, this tour includes a guided walking tour of Chinatown with a professional local guide. You can also choose the premium or deluxe option to add a night tour or a tour of Sausalito to the experience. The route of the San Francisco Hop On Hop Off bus tour depends on the route. Here are the main points of interest you will see on each itinerary:

Red route - day tour

  • Washington Square/North Beach
  • Clay Street
  • Ferry Building
  • Union Square
  • Civic Center
  • SS Jeremiah O'Brien
  • Palace of Fine Arts Theatre
  • Hilton Hotel
  • Alamo Square
  • Haight Ashbury
  • Golden Gate Park
  • Golden Gate Bridge Vista Point
  • Palace of Fine Arts
  • Marina/Vaca Hueca
  • Lombard Street
  • Chinatown
  • Pier 35
  • Pier 39
  • Madame Tussauds
  • Aquarium of the Bay
  • San Francisco City Hall

Night Tour

  • SS Jeremiah O'Brien
  • Madame Tussauds
  • The San Francisco Dungeon
  • Ferry Building Marketplace
  • Pier39

Book the San Francisco Sightseeing Bus

2. What to expect on the San Francisco bus tour

Views of San Francisco from the sightseeing bus| ©osseous
Views of San Francisco from the sightseeing bus| ©osseous

The daytime bus tour of San Francisco lasts 2 hours if you take the full tour, and the nighttime tour lasts 1 hour. But in reality, the tour can last as long as you like, as you are free to hop on and off the bus and explore San Francisco and its different areas at your leisure.

That said, my advice is to take advantage of this bus tour to do the full tour and explore a little over the places you get off. The reason for this is that you will get a general idea of San Francisco and then you can go back to the sites you liked the most to visit them in depth.

During the tour, you will have an audio guide in Spanish that will tell you the highlights of the sites you visit. Again, this helps to make the bus tour a good way to get a feel for San Francisco and then explore it in more depth on your own.

The bus ticket is valid for 24 hours if you redeem it after 3pm, so you can potentially use it for longer or if you prefer not to get up early.

Book the San Francisco Sightseeing Bus

3. Plan your visit

China Town| ©Mario Sánchez Prada
China Town| ©Mario Sánchez Prada

When you book your bus tour you will receive an email confirmation and, unless you are told otherwise, simply show that confirmation when you get on the bus. That said, your ticket will be valid for one day (but not 24 hours - at midnight it will cease to be valid like Cinderella's carriage). If you get on the bus after 15:00 in the afternoon, your ticket will instead be valid for 24 hours.

This is one of the great advantages of this bus tour over other companies or other city tours, whose tickets are only valid on the same day.

How it works

Simply go to any of the stops indicated on the itinerary and wait for the bus. The daytime tour operates from 10:00 to 17:00, and the bus runs every hour. You can take this tour every day of the week

For the evening tour you must show your confirmation at the start of the tour, at 99 Jefferson Street, San Francisco Fisherman's Wharf. The tour departs every day of the year at 18:30, except December 24th and 31st.

Chinatown Tour

All options on this San Francisco bus tour include a walking tour of Chinatown, where you'll have a professional guide take you around the neighbourhood and show you the sights and sounds of what is probably one of the most colourful and authentic neighbourhoods in the United States.

Sausalito Tour

If you choose the deluxe option, your experience will include a tram tour of Sausalito. The tour lasts one hour and is available from 10:15am to 4:30pm daily. The tram departs every 15-30 minutes, and you will pass through the Golden Gate Bridge both on the way to and from Sausalito.

Sausalito is a small town across the bay from San Francisco, famous for its little houseboats and fishing pier. From there, and from the ferry back to San Francisco, you can take some very nice pictures of the Golden Gate and Alcatraz, and I recommend that before returning you take a nice walk around Sausalito as it has a unique charm.

Book the tour bus and tickets to Alcatraz

4. Useful tips for the San Francisco Bus Tour

San Francisco skyline at night| ©Sandrine Néel
San Francisco skyline at night| ©Sandrine Néel

Most Hop On Hop Off tours of San Francisco take place on open top buses. The views you'll get from the bus will allow you to take great photos, as you'll have a perspective from the first floor of a bus that other tourists won't have.

The Hop On Hop Off bus is a great way to get around the city and this is something that many people don't realise: you can use the bus as a form of transport, as it covers most of the interesting areas of San Francisco and you can hop on and off whenever you feel like it.

The night tour is a blast and very worthwhile, as seeing San Francisco lit up at night is a must do. The tour focuses on the Pier 35 area, from where you can see the iconic bridge and the city skyline.

If you're visiting Sausalito, you can choose to stay in this charming city to wander around and explore at your leisure and then return by ferry to San Francisco, which doubles as a cruise as you'll have amazing views of Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge.

5. Other San Francisco tours you may be interested in

Golden Gate Bridge as seen from the cruise ship| ©Sukanya Basu
Golden Gate Bridge as seen from the cruise ship| ©Sukanya Basu

In addition to the bus tours, I recommend you to discover San Francisco on foot with a more specific tour. You can take a tour of the city's financial district, one of the most interesting in the United States for being the mecca of the world's leading technology companies, take a cruise around the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz, and discover all the attractions the city has to offer.

And if you are especially interested in visiting Alcatraz, I recommend you to read my guide on Alcatraz tickets where you will find tips and tricks on how to get the best tickets to visit the famous San Francisco prison.

Book the tour bus and tickets for Alcatraz

Frequently asked questions

  • How many types of Hop-on Hop-off buses does San Francisco offer?

    San Francisco has a few Hop-on Hop-off bus services: City Sightseeing and Big Bus among others. Of the two, Big Bus is the most popular as its tours also include a visit to Alcatraz, Sausalito and a night bus tour.

  • How long do Hop-on Hop-off tours usually last?

    A full tour of San Francisco takes between 2.5 to 3 hours, depending on the line and route.

  • What will I see from a Hop-on Hop-off bus?

    Most Hop-on Hop-offs will take you through San Francisco's most famous neighbourhoods, such as Fisherman's Wharf, Union Square, Golden Gate Park and the Embarcadero. You'll also pass over the iconic Golden Gate Bridge and see sights such as the Transamerica Pyramid and City Hall.