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Thinking about using a hop-on hop-off bus to see New York City?
We had the same idea when we were last there! It’s a convenient and cost-effective way to tick off the must-see sights in Manhattan, but is it worth it, or is there a better way to explore?
We’ve been to New York a few times and it’s one of our favorite cities to be tourists in! So every time that we’re here, we always make sure to check out different tours and attractions. And with that in mind, we’ve written our honest review of the hop-on hop-off bus to help you decide whether it’s worth your time and money.
What is the best hop-on hop-off bus in New York City?
We recommend the Big Bus, because it’s one of the most affordable options, starting from $58 USD. This is a competitive price and we also got free cancellation until the day before since we booked through Viator, as well as the option to buy now and pay later.
What also drew us to the Big Bus is that it offers lots of flexibility. We liked that we were able to upgrade our tickets to see uptown Manhattan if we wanted. However, we stuck with the downtown loop as we were really impressed with the itinerary. Buses pass each stop every 10-15 minutes, so we were able to explore each stop for as long as we liked, and we could just stay on the bus and skip places we’d already seen.
The Big Bus also has a live bus tracking app which was super easy to use, and the whole operation was very well-organized. We think that Big Bus is perfect for first-timers in New York City, especially if a private tour is out of your price range!
Book your pass for the hop-on hop-off Big Bus New York here!
What are the stops on the New York City Hop-on Hop-Off Bus?
Downtown route
M&M’s Store: The downtown loop starts just outside of the famous M&M’s store, which is just off of Times Square.
Times Square East: There’s a subway station right here, so it’s a super convenient place to join the tour.
Empire State Building/Koreatown: What would a New York City tour be without a stop at Manhattan’s most famous skyscraper? Meanwhile, Koreatown is just a 3-minute walk away for those who want to check out one of Manhattan’s most vibrant and underrated neighborhoods!
Flatiron District: This ultra-hip area is known as a foodie paradise, and we highly recommend a visit to Eataly. However, it’s most famous for the iconic Flatiron Building which looks, well… like it’s been flat ironed.
SoHo: One of the city’s most fashionable districts, and the perfect place to do some shopping. We loved wandering around and checking out the cast-iron buildings here.
Chinatown/Little Italy: These two enclaves are parallel to one another, and they’re both home to some of the best food in New York City!
The Brooklyn Bridge: The bus stops on the Manhattan side of the iconic Brooklyn Bridge, so you can snap photos or even walk across it.
Wall Street: This is the world’s most famous financial district. We think it’s definitely worth snapping a quick photo with the notorious Charging Bull statue.
Statue of Liberty/Battery Park: Battery Park offers visitors clear views of the Statue of Liberty. It’s a must-visit, particularly if you don’t plan on taking a boat trip out to the statue.
Pier 81: If you purchase a sightseeing cruise on the day, this is where you’ll get off to board the boat.
Uptown route
The Knickerbocker Hotel: You can board the uptown bus loop in front of the Knickerbocker Hotel just east of Times Square. There’s a subway station right here, too.
Majestic Deli: The bus stops again to pick up passengers at Times Square’s famous Majestic Deli. This is a good opportunity to grab a snack!
The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Home to over 2 million pieces of artwork and the famous Met Gala. It’s easy to spend hours exploring this iconic art museum!
Central Park Zoo: A small zoo that was the inspiration for the Madagascar movies. It’s in the southern end of Central Park, so it’s possible to go check out the carousel, the pond, and the famous Wollman Rink from here.
Columbus Circle: This is where many of Manhattan’s busiest streets intersect, right near Central Park. It’s also home to the upscale Shops at Columbus Circle Mall.
Related Read: NYC is expensive, but we’ve found the best cheap activities and even free activities in New York City to save you money!
Pros of the New York Hop-on Hop-Off Bus
Free cancellation 24 hours prior
We got free cancellation up to 24 hours before our tour since we booked online in advance through Viator. Plus, we had the option to reserve our tickets now and pay for them later. This is great as you don’t need to worry about being out of pocket if there’s a change of plans. We always find that having free cancellation takes so much stress out of planning a trip!
Frequent buses
We loved the fact that the buses run every 10-15 minutes, as it gave us a ton of flexibility to build our own itinerary and spend the day however we liked! There was no need to stress about timing, as if we missed one bus, another one would be along in just a few minutes. This is ideal for anyone who’s looking for more independence than a typical guided tour would allow.
Buses are on time
Not only were the buses regular, they were also always on time. I don’t think we ever had to wait a second over 15 minutes for the next one to come along. This really made our day feel so much smoother and meant we didn’t waste time hanging around when we could have been exploring!
More affordable than a regular tour
Tickets for the downtown loop cost between $58 – $62 USD, which is way cheaper than a regular tour of the city. And as you’re probably well aware, New York City is really expensive, so we were eager to save money wherever we could. The bus was also a lot cheaper than using Ubers or taxis to get around.
Money Saving Tip – Some of NYC’s best attractions unfortunately aren’t free. But that doesn’t mean you have to blow your budget to see them! We purchased a New York City attraction pass during our visit and it helped us save 30-40% on admission fees to top attractions like the Empire State Building and the Statue of Liberty. There are a few different options, but the top three are the New York CityPASS®, the New York Pass, and the New York Explorer Pass by Go City.
Enough time at each stop
We had the freedom to spend however long we wanted at each stop, which was a real bonus. There’s nothing more frustrating than being rushed through an attraction you really want to see! But with the hop-on hop-off bus, we were able to take our time and fully explore the attractions that we were most interested in.
Open-top buses
We loved riding the open-top buses, as it allowed us to see even more of New York City! I mean, we pretty much had panoramic views the entire time. Even if we decided to skip a stop, we still got a great vantage point of each neighborhood we passed through. We saw so much more than we would have if we used the subway!
Book your hop-on hop-off bus pass here to get all these benefits!
Why We Book Tours with Viator
Viator is a trusted online booking system for tours around the world! We almost always book our tours using Viator for a couple of reasons:
- Free cancellation on most tours – Most of the tours on Viator allow you to cancel and get a full refund up to 24 hours in advance. This is handy in case plans change, or if booking an outdoor activity, the weather forecast is looking grim.
- Reserve now and pay later – You can secure your spot on some of the most popular tours well in advance and not pay until closer to the day of the tour.
- Lowest price guarantee – If you happen to find the same tour at a lower price elsewhere, Viator will refund you the price difference.
- Pay in your chosen currency – Avoid costly international transaction fees by choosing to pay in your home currency.
- Peace of mind – When booking with tour operators you find in person on the street or in small booking offices, you are often promised one thing and given another. This online platform holds tour operators accountable with a written description of inclusions as well as the opportunity for customers to leave reviews.
Check out the Viator website here! Or, for more info, read our detailed review about Viator here.
Cons of the Hop-on Hop-Off Bus in New York
Not much commentary
To be honest, we were disappointed with the commentary on board the bus. It was minimal, which we weren’t expecting in a city with as much history and culture as New York. It didn’t ruin our day, but this aspect of the tour definitely could have been better.
Can be overcrowded
The tour was very busy and later on in the day, some of the buses felt overcrowded. It was a little uncomfortable at times, although fortunately, we set out early in the morning so we got to avoid the overcrowding for the most part. It definitely got worse as the day went on.
Not an organized tour
We love the fact that hop-on hop-off buses let us explore by ourselves, but it’s not for everyone. This is not the same as booking a fully guided tour, as you won’t have someone with you to show you around the different attractions. And as we mentioned, the commentary on board was minimal, so it’s definitely not as informative as some of the other tours out there.
Very hot in summer
The buses don’t have the greatest air conditioning and if you sit up on the top deck, you’ll be in the sun, so this is a very sweaty experience during the summer. Some of the windows on the bottom deck of the buses didn’t open properly, either, which made the problem even worse. Being hot is just par for the course in New York City during summer, but it’s something to bear in mind if you struggle with the heat.
Queues can be long
We boarded the bus nice and early in the morning, but when we got back to the first stop later on in the day, we saw huge queues! Since this is a popular thing to do, you might find yourself waiting a long time to board at the first stop, which is why we advise getting out early.
No stop announcements
One thing we noticed is that neither the audio commentary nor the staff on board actually announced each stop. We used our phones to follow along on the app and check where we were, but it would have been more convenient if there were clear announcements for each stop. I think it would have been much easier for everyone that way.
My Experience on the Hop-on Hop-Off Bus in NYC
We visited New York City in June when we used this exact hop-on hop-off bus. The weather was hot, but fortunately not too hot to enjoy the tour, although we did get pretty warm as the day went on.
We decided to make the most of the good weather and sit upstairs so that we could enjoy the views, and for us, this was one of the biggest advantages of doing a bus tour like this. The tour wasn’t perfect, but cruising on an open-top bus beats sweating on the overcrowded New York subway any day as far as we’re concerned.
We chose the downtown route, and the bus made it super easy to tick off all of the sights we wanted to see. The stops we were most excited to check out were Times Square, the Empire State Building, and the 9/11 Memorial and Museum, and we got to see them all. It was super easy and we had plenty of time to fully enjoy each one, as well as to wander through the neighborhoods that we had wanted to see: Little Italy, Greenwich Village, and Union Square.
The bus was a very convenient form of transport between all of these places, but we still did a ton of walking! We weren’t cooped up on the bus all day; in fact, the route only took 90 minutes, but we were out for the entire day.
I would highly recommend going in the morning, partly so that you can get ahead of the crowds and also just so that you have time to fit in as much as possible.
Related Read: If you only have a few days, our 5-day New York City itinerary hits all the highlights and is what we followed on our last trip here!
Would I ride the New York Hop-on Hop-Off Bus Again?
No, probably not, but I’m glad I did it once. This is definitely not the greatest hop-on hop-off bus tour that we have ever done, but it is a great introduction to New York City for first-timers. I can’t foresee a situation where I would need to do it again, but we did have a really good day overall.
New York is a very expensive city, so we were grateful to be able to see the sights without spending a ton of money. I would recommend using Big Bus New York to budget travelers visiting the city for the first time, as it’s definitely a lot better than using the subway to get around.
We did try, but we had a hard time navigating the subway system and it was just too busy during peak hours. The bus was far more convenient and offered great views, even if the commentary left a lot to be desired.
Other Activities to do While You’re in New York City
There’s so much to do in New York, it’s impossible to get bored here – it’s not known as the “City that Never Sleeps” for nothing! New York City is full of exciting experiences you won’t want to miss. If you’re looking for activities to fill up your NYC itinerary, these are a few of our favorites.
- Take a food tour – New York has a world-renowned food scene. The question is how can you try as much of it as possible? We took this famous Chelsea Market Food Tour, which is a historic market that boasts the best food in the city. We loved taking a food tour and found it to be a helpful way to experience the booming food culture and find spots we wanted to come back to!
- Visit the Empire State Building – As the most iconic building in the city, visiting the Empire State Building is a must-do! Not only is it impressive to see from a distance, but you catch the best views of NYC from the top. Tickets to the main observation deck on the 86th floor are $52 USD.
- Go on a helicopter tour – Seeing New York from above is an experience most people only dream about. While this is a costly excursion, we can wholeheartedly say it is WORTH IT! This 15-minute Helicopter tour over NYC offers incredible views of the Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty, and the Brooklyn Bridge – just to name a few!
- Walk Central Park – Central Park is a quintessential New York stop and a giant outdoor haven right in the middle of the city. It has been featured in tons of movies and is still a spot where locals like to hang out. There’s a lot to see here, so I recommend a few hours to stroll along its historic paths or booking a tour of Central Park. There’s a walking tour if you’re keen on learning its history or for the full NYC rom-com experience, book a horse and carriage ride!
- Experience a dinner cruise – For an upscale and elegant way to see the city, taking a dinner cruise is an amazing experience! Not only do you sail right past the Statue of Liberty and catch stunning views of the Brooklyn Bridge and the NYC skyline, but the whole experience feels luxurious. We took this Bateaux New York Premier Dinner Cruise and enjoyed a delicious dinner, live jazz music, and a beautiful evening cruising on the Hudson River.
Where to Stay in New York City
New York City is huge – there is just no other way to put it! Even Manhattan (the area you’ll want to base yourself in) is a lot bigger than you think. That’s why choosing the right hotel in the right location is so important during your stay in New York.
Below, we’ve simplified it all for you by choosing a couple of the very best hotels available in the city. All three of these options have ideal locations close to attractions and the subway system. They all have amazing reviews, too, so just choose the one in your budget category and you’ll be ready to pack your bags!
Motto by Hilton – $$$
Motto by Hilton is a gorgeous hotel located in the Chelsea neighborhood only 600 meters from the Flatiron Building and close to the Chelsea Market. The hotel features modern decor that has “speakeasy vibes.” In fact, they have a beautiful bar onsite that looks like the perfect place to sip an Old Fashioned. There are a variety of rooms on offer including some that are a little more budget-friendly, and some that are pure luxury with city views! Prices start from about $400 USD per night plus tax.
You can check prices and availability for Motto by Hilton online here!
Delta Hotels by Marriott New York Times Square – $$
Delta Hotels by Marriott New York Times Square is where we stayed the last time we visited New York, and honestly, we loved it! This hotel is the perfect combination of comfort and value for money. It was clean, modern, and our room had all of the amenities we needed for an enjoyable stay (air conditioning, k-cup coffee maker, steamer, large shower, big windows, etc). Plus, the location is ideal – it’s only a couple blocks from Times Square!
Prices do range, but they do go as low as $200 USD per night plus tax depending on the time of year and day of the week. You can check prices and book online here!
Nap York Central Park Sleep Station – $
For those traveling on a tight budget, Nap York is a budget hostel that’s an ideal choice. Although affordable, this property is immaculate and offers a ton of amenities for a great stay including air conditioning and a shared kitchen. The rooms are modern and the location is about as central as it gets! This property only offers dorm rooms, but they are affordable at as little as $100 USD per night.
You can check prices and book Nap York online on either Booking.com or Hostelworld.
Don’t Forget Travel Insurance!
If you’re looking to save money on travel insurance, we currently use and recommend SafetyWing. We’ve been using their coverage since 2018 and they’ve had our backs when we needed emergency flights and got sick overseas.
SafetyWing is one of the cheapest providers out there and covers everything from medical costs to lost luggage, travel delays, and emergency flights. A huge difference we’ve found between them and other companies is that they let you take out a policy AFTER leaving your home country. We’ve also found it handy that it’s a monthly payment rather than a lump sum, and you can get a refund for unused time.
SafetyWing has helped us out in some scary situations before and their affordable coverage has given us peace of mind. You can read our honest review of SafetyWing for all the pros and cons.
Thanks for reading!
Thanks so much for sticking around to the end of our review of the Big Bus New York. When it comes to hop-on hop-off buses in NYC, this is our top recommended option. While it does have its pros and cons, I think it’s perfect for travelers looking to see a lot while not spending a ton on transport.
Before exploring the Big Apple, check out all our blogs on New York City for tips and ideas on what to do and see. I put a few blogs below that might be helpful for your trip!
How to Spend THREE DAYS in New York City: 3-Day Itinerary
10 Things to Know BEFORE Walking the Brooklyn Bridge
5 Absolute BEST New York City Food Tours +10 Tips BEFORE Booking!