Hop-On Hop-Off Bus Tour in Manhattan in Italian

From the open-top deck of a double-decker bus, Manhattan changes scale: the skyscrapers tower above you, and you finally understand how the island is laid out. The Hop On Hop Off tour in New York works this way, allowing you to get off and back on whenever you want for 24 hours, across two routes covering Uptown and Downtown with an Italian audio guide on board. It is the easiest sightseeing bus to use and one of the most flexible bus tours in the catalog, starting at $80 (about €70).

Below you’ll find everything you need to know before booking: how the sightseeing bus works, how much the ticket costs, what’s included, where the two routes go with the complete list of stops, and practical information about schedules, accessibility, and cancellation.

New York Sightseeing Bus: How the Hop On Hop Off Works

The New York sightseeing bus is a double-decker bus with an open-top deck that follows a fixed loop and stops in front of the main attractions. You purchase a time-based ticket, not a single ride: you can board at the stop that is most convenient for you, get off wherever you want to visit something, and get back on the next bus with the same ticket as many times as you like within the 24-hour validity period. There are no seats to reserve and no schedules to follow, and the audio guide on board explains what you see outside the window.

This is the main difference compared to a traditional guided tour: no one is waiting for you and no one is rushing you. That is why it works so well on the first day, when you need to understand the layout of the city before getting around by subway.

How Much Does the Hop On Hop Off Tour in New York Cost and How to Book

The sightseeing bus ticket starts at $80 per person (about €70 at the current exchange rate) for adults, while tickets for children ages 3 to 11 start at $70 (about €61). It is valid for 24 hours and includes both routes, so you can take the Downtown route in the morning and the Uptown route in the afternoon, or split them up however you prefer. When purchasing, you choose the date, then receive the electronic ticket by email within 24 hours: there is no need to print anything and there is no departure time to follow.

Book Smartly

Buying online means arriving at the stop with your barcode already ready, without having to go through street staff to purchase a ticket on the spot. Behind your purchase, you have support in Italian before and after booking, as well as a physical office in New York, on West 47th Street just steps from Times Square, where you can speak with a real person if something doesn’t seem right: a concrete advantage compared to large international platforms. If you want to combine the bus with a visit led by a live guide, also take a look at the other New York tours in Italian.

What Does the Hop On Hop Off Ticket Include?

The ticket includes unlimited transportation on both routes for the entire validity period. Specifically:

• 24-hour ticket to explore Manhattan, getting on and off as many times as you want.
• Open-top double-decker sightseeing bus, with an open-air upper deck.
• Pre-recorded audio guide in Italian, with headphones provided on board.
• Access to both routes, Downtown and Uptown, with a total of 20 stops.
• Discount on bike rentals with Unlimited Biking, the service’s cycling partner.

Hotel pickup or drop-off is not included: the bus follows a fixed circular route and can be boarded at the official stops. There is no live guide on board; the commentary is provided through the pre-recorded audio guide.

The Hop On Hop Off Bus Routes and Stops in New York

There are two active routes in Manhattan, each identified by a different color, and they intersect at Times Square: there you can get off one and board the other without paying anything extra. The onboard commentary announces each stop with its number and location, so you always know when to get ready to get off.

Downtown Route (Red): from Times Square to Wall Street.

This is the iconic route: it goes down 5th Avenue, crosses historic neighborhoods, and reaches the southern tip of the island, where you can see the Statue of Liberty from the water. The full loop takes approximately 90 minutes without getting off, the first bus departs at 9:00 AM and the last one at 4:30 PM, with buses running every 30 minutes. The 13 stops are:

• 1. M&M’s World: 7th Ave and W 48th St, in front of the store.
• 2. One Times Square: 42nd St and Broadway, in front of the Knickerbocker Hotel.
• 3. Empire State Building and Koreatown: 5th Ave and W 32nd St, in front of the CVS Pharmacy.
• 4. Flatiron District: 5th Ave and W 23rd St, in front of Eisenberg’s Sandwich Shop.
• 5. SoHo: Broadway and Spring St, in front of the Nike store.
• 6. Chinatown and Little Italy: 100 Lafayette St, near the corner of Walker St.
• 7. Brooklyn Bridge: Park Row and Beekman St, in front of 33 Park Row.
• 8. Wall Street and Statue of Liberty: Broadway and Wall St, southwest corner near Rector St.
• 9. Trinity Church: Trinity Place and Cedar St, in front of 97 Trinity Pl.
• 10. World Trade Center: Church St and Vesey St, in front of the post office.
• 11. Chelsea and Pier 57: 11th Ave between W 15th St and W 16th St, in front of the NBC Building.
• 12. Hudson Yards: 12th Ave and 30th St, northeast corner.
• 13. Circle Line: 12th Ave and 40th St, across from Pier 81.

Uptown Route (Blue): Central Park and Museum Mile.

It heads north through the museums and green spaces, and it is the route to choose if you want to combine the bus with a cultural visit. The loop takes approximately 75 minutes, the first bus departs at 10:00 AM and the last one at 4:00 PM, with buses running every 60 minutes: here it is worth planning your stops carefully, because the next bus arrives one hour later. The 7 stops are:

• 14. Hope Sculpture: 7th Ave and W 53rd St, in front of Chase Bank; this is the final stop of the Blue Route.
• 2. One Times Square: 42nd St and Broadway, the stop shared with the Red Route.
• 15. Rockefeller Center: W 49th St and 5th Ave, in front of Michael Kors.
• 16. Metropolitan Museum of Art: 5th Ave and E 83rd St, near the museum entrance.
• 17. Central Park Zoo: 5th Ave and E 66th St, across from 845 5th Ave.
• 18. Columbus Circle: southwest corner of Central Park, next to the monument.
• 19. Carnegie Hall: 7th Ave and W 57th St, in front of Trattoria Dell’Arte.

Our recommendation

Download the free Big Bus app before leaving the hotel: it shows the real-time location of buses and the waiting times at each stop. On the Uptown Route, where buses run every hour, it helps you avoid waiting at the stop after visiting a museum.

If the plan is to see the island from north to south in a single day, the best order is to start early with the Red Route, which has more frequent buses, and save the Blue Route for the afternoon, when buses are less crowded and the upper deck remains available.

What to See on the New York Hop On Hop Off Tour

The Red Route crosses the city’s main tourist landmarks: Times Square, the Empire State Building, Flatiron, SoHo, Chinatown and Little Italy, the Brooklyn Bridge, Wall Street, the World Trade Center, and the view of the Statue of Liberty from the southern tip of the island, before heading back up along the Hudson between Hudson Yards and the piers. The Blue Route focuses instead on the cultural and green side of Manhattan, passing by Rockefeller Center, the Metropolitan Museum, Central Park Zoo, Columbus Circle, and Carnegie Hall.

The bus takes you right to the entrance, but admission tickets are not included: if you are planning to visit an observation deck or enter a museum, it is best to purchase your New York attraction tickets in advance and use the bus tour as transportation between stops. This is the most efficient way to make the most of the 24-hour validity.

This bus tour is also included in New York tourist passes: the 24-hour option on both routes is included with the New York Pass, while with the Go City Explorer Pass it counts as one of the attractions you can choose. If you already have a pass, you do not need this ticket; simply go to a stop and have it scanned by a staff member.

What to Know Before Booking

• There are no scheduled times to book: you only choose the day, then board the first available bus at any stop. If you miss one, you simply wait for the next one with no penalties.
• The service operates every day except Thanksgiving Day and December 31. During major events or parades, some stops may remain closed for the entire day.
• Luggage is not allowed on board: if you are arriving or departing on the same day, leave your bags at the hotel or in a luggage storage facility before boarding.
• The bus is wheelchair accessible across the entire New York fleet, with a lift that supports up to 295 kg. However, the open-top upper deck may not be accessible for passengers with mobility difficulties.
• Children up to 2 years old travel for free, and strollers must be folded and stored on the lower deck. Children under 15 must be accompanied by an adult.
• The upper deck is open-air: in case of rain or cold weather, you will travel on the lower deck, so in winter, expect a view through the window rather than from the top.
• The ticket can be modified or canceled up to 7 days before the selected date. In case of loss, we will try to recover the barcode, but if this is not possible, the ticket is non-refundable.

One final practical detail that can make a difference on your first day of travel: jet lag can work in your favor. If you wake up at six in the morning with your body clock still on Italy time, you can be at Stop 1 when it opens at 9:00 AM and enjoy an empty upper deck, with the best light of the day along 5th Avenue. To plan the rest of your stay, check the Il Mio Viaggio a New York magazine, with neighborhood-by-neighborhood guides.

Important

After booking, you will receive your electronic ticket by email within 24 hours. The times shown are the service schedules and may be subject to changes on holidays or during special events: before heading out, check the official app, which provides updated real-time bus times. The service is operated by Big Bus New York. The Tour Operator New York team is still behind the booking and can be reached in Italian even after you are in the city.