Paris Hop-on Hop-off Bus Tours - Review & Comparison

Bus Tours Short Description & Review Conclusion:

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Big Bus Paris    
Tootbus Paris    
Batobus Boat    

Big Bus Tours is internationally well known for its bus tours and operates a hop-on hop-off bus route in Paris with about 10 stops. This kind of bus tour is a comfortable way to reach the most important sights such as the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the Champs-Elysees with the Arc de Triomphe and many more highlights in Paris. It will give you a good overview of the center of Paris within a day. If you like to get off at several stations to have a close view of the attractions, you should maybe plan two days for your hop-on hop-off tour.

When you start your hop-on hop-off tour, you will receive free headphones for the audio guide. You can choose from 6 languages in the audio guide to hear the information about the various attractions along the route as you pass by. You may also use the Big Bus Tours App* to track the location of the various buses live. This gives you a very good overview of the bus stops at your current location. Hence you can choose the best stop and estimate the expected waiting time until the arrival of the next bus.

Big Bus Tours offers many different ticket options for their bus tours. With the Discover Ticket, you can use the hop-on hop-off routes for 24 hours. The Essential Ticket furthermore includes a 1-hour river cruise on the Seine. With the Explore Ticket, you can ride of the hop-on hop-off buses for 48 hours and participate in a Seine river cruise. You can book the tickets with various options, such as a night tour by bus. If you buy the tickets directly from the provider online, you have to specify a date for your bus tour at the time of booking. You can change this date later if required. Under the following link you will find an overview of the different ticket variations*.

Solid Offer ! Conclusion: Big Bus Tours is a well-known and experienced provider of hop-on hop-off bus tours. The buses usually run at relatively short intervals. With the Big Bus App, you are able to check the positions of the buses in real-time. This option allows you to shorten your waiting time at the bus stops. The tickets are available online directly at the Big Bus Tours website and you can choose from a wide range of numerous offers. Unfortunately, the tickets can not be cancelled.

Order online directly from the supplier with up to 20% discount at: Big Bus Ticket Offers*
Just click on the link and enter the promo code CITYWALKS10PAR on the basket web page.

Tootbus Paris belongs to the Tootbus Group which offers bus tours in several European cities. With Tootbus in Paris, you have the chance to explore some attractions on one hop-on hop-off route with about 10 stops. As with the other operators, you will visit the main sights such as the Eiffel Tower, the Opéra Garnier, the Louvre, the Orsay Museum, the Arc de Triomphe ...

With every hop-on hop-off ticket, you will receive some free headphones for the audio guide on the bus. Unfortunately, Tootbus only provides 5 languages for the audio guide on their hop-on hop-off route. During the trip you will obtain some information about the attractions in English, French, German, Italian or Spanish. However, there is a special channel for children, but unfortunately only in English and French. You can also consume the audio guide directly via your smartphone. All you need for that is the Tootbus App. The app also allows you to track the buses in real-time, allowing you to schedule your walks between stops accordingly.

At Tootbus you can purchase two different types of tickets online for the hop-on hop-off tours. The Paris Discovery Ticket is simply just valid for the hop-on hop-off bus tour. With the Must See Paris Ticket, you will additionally get a free boat trip on the Seine. But there are also other bus tours available such as an Express Tour or a Night Tour. When booking online, you have to specify the desired day for the bus tour. However, you have the possibility to change this date afterwards and to choose a new date. You need only to consider the ticket validity of 6 months. Here you will find an overview of the tickets*.

Conclusion: Tootbus has one hop-on hop-off bus route for Paris in their program. The Tootbus App displays all the current bus locations in real-time. This tool can help you to reduce your waiting times. Children can enjoy a dedicated audio guide channel available in English and French. The online tickets purchased directly from the provider can be canceled free of charge up to 24 hours before the specified date.

You can order online directly from the provider at the following link: Tootbus Paris*

Instead of the usual bus service Batobus offers a hop-on hop-off boat tour. Of course, this has advantages and disadvantages compared to the buses. For example, you don't have to care about traffic jams on the Seine River and you usually have a much better view. However, you will have to accept some restrictions about the available stops. The route on the Seine River has 9 stops at several famous sights like Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Musée d'Orsay, Notre Dame Cathedral ... The attractions away from the Seine are unfortunately missing. These include the Arc de Triomphe, the Champs-Élysées and the Opera Garnier.

The boats are glazed on all sides and offer good views for the passengers. Unfortunately, there is no audio guide with commentary about the various attractions. There is also no app available with information about the boat tour. However, on the following web page* you can see in real-time the current waiting times at the various stops. This convenient overview helps you to avoid unnecessary waiting times.

The tickets for a hop-on hop-off boat tour are available for 1 and for 2 days. The 2-day tickets are very attractive, as these are offered with only a small surcharge compared to the 1-day ticket. You can buy the tickets directly at Batobus but also at different ticket platforms at similar conditions. The tickets which you order online directly at Batobus are usually valid for 6 months after your purchase and cannot be canceled.

Conclusion: The hop-on hop-off boats from Batobus are a cheap alternative to the known hop-on hop-off buses. With a boat trip you can avoid the heavy traffic in Paris and still see a lot of the city. Unfortunately, there is no audio guide and you have only the choice between two ticket options. An app for the sightseeing tour is also not available, but you can follow the waiting times at the various stops in real-time directly on the website.

Tickets with free cancellation*