Big Bus Tours New York Reviews 4,568

TrustScore 2 out of 5

1.9

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Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Would NOT advice! You get a folder that says the bus goes every 30 minutes, later we got told, no it is every 1 hour and when you try to get on it, it is full, so you have to wait another hour. Which... See more

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

Positive: application that shows location of busses. Negative: in summer on upper level you burn in sun and lower level you cook in heat and don't see anything due to windows that do not open and... See more

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

Buses overcrowded. Ok if you want to sit inside downstairs and see nothing. Often queuing for long periods whilst buses come and go. Audio system inadequate and failed. Bus terminated on its route... See more

Company replied

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

2 days; 2 Adults & 2 Teens: 360USD. The experience did not live up to expectations, an outdated not service oriented experience! Sellers standing at route-stops generally 'sales-aggressive'. Drive... See more

Company details

Information provided by various external sources

Discover one of the most iconic cities in the world with our incredible Big Bus Tour of New York City. See all of the famous New York attractions, from the Empire State Building to the Statue of Liberty, in the comfort of one of our open-top buses. Don't miss the highlights of our hop-on, hop-off Day Tour. We have 3 great routes spanning the best neighborhoods, including Downtown, Uptown and Brooklyn. Our spectacular Night Tour lets you experience the city that never sleeps, showcasing the beautiful illuminations of Times Square, 5th Avenue and the Manhattan skyline. We have a variety of great tickets and packages to choose from, so you can make the most of your trip to the Big Apple. Our Big Adventure Pass gives you the choice of 2 or 3-day bus passes, with free admission to your choice of top New York attractions included, such as Madame Tussauds and the Statue of Liberty.


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1.9

Poor

TrustScore 2 out of 5

5K reviews

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Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Your company is the worst

Your company is the worst. No air conditioning or ventilation in main compartment, pick up near Penn Station at 34 St. & 8 Ave shut down causing confusion for our party, not enough buses running for get on and get off, unable to use 2nd day because buses last run on Sunday for Explore Harlem is at 3:00 pm,no directs connections to the other color lines, and customer service stinks. I will not recommend your company to nobody.

September 16, 2019
Unprompted review
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Reply from Big Bus Tours New York

Good Afternoon Johnnie,

Please know while we monitor the demand, and plan for additional buses during busier times, there are elements that are out of our control. We do have A/C as well as check our buses before leaving for the days service, but sometimes we experience issues during hotter days. Prior to the stop being removed, it was limited service stop that would take longer than 20-25 mins. Please know all stop designation and removals are set upon us by the Dept. of transportation and we follow all rules and regulations.

In regards to Harlem, it is intentionally set up every hour between 10 am- 3 pm and for the fall set for 10 am, 12 pm and 2 pm not for the lack of bus count. All this information is posted on our website, app and brochures. We are truly sorry that we did not meet or exceed your expectations, but with the feedback you provided, we will continue to strive to be better, and hopefully meet your expectations next time you visit New York.

Kind Regards,
BBTNY

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

Very Inconsistent

We bought the 2 day pass online before we got to the city. On the streets there are many people selling the passes. We thought we got a better deal online, but they said it would have been 1/2 the price if we bought it from them. Don't know if this was true or not.
The bus experience wasn't as good as another tour I did in the past. The speakers weren't working on 2 of the buses we took. This made the tour non-existent and it was really just transportation. We had 1 good tour guide and 1 that was awful. Dwayne was wonderful, kept us engaged, really seems to enjoy his job. Another guide, who's name I didn't get was just a grumpy old man. He talked about how dirty the city was, told us to avoid street fairs, and complained about the world today telling us we're all just addicted to our "digital crack." Rather than point out city landmarks, he pointed out Best Buy and asked who needed to get off to fix a device. My kids even asked why he was so mean. I can't really speak to the other 2 guides we had because we were downstairs most of the trip and couldn't hear them. We got on at stop 9 (china town) and finally at stop 14 (circle line tours) we were able to move upstairs. By then, we missed most of the tour and were stuck inside with no speakers and no working AC. That was disappointing. We have done tours like this before in NYC and also in LA and this was quite disappointing.
I did like the app and felt there were a decent number of stops near the popular attractions.

September 16, 2019
Unprompted review
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Reply from Big Bus Tours New York

Good Afternoon Sue,

We appreciate you taking the time to feedback our services. We strive to provide the best sightseeing experience and we can understand, we get it wrong sometimes. Please know, we do have A/C as well as check our buses before leaving for the days service, but sometimes we experience issues during hotter days. We thank you for bringing our attention to the quality of the audio system and be assured, it is reported immediately to its designated department.

We understand your time is important, and we are always monitoring the demand, and plan for an increased number of buses to avoid overcrowding and long waits. While it is wonderful to hear that Dwayne was great, we are disappointed that your entire trip did not meet your expectations. All our guides should be presenting an entertaining and informative commentary, rich in the history and architecture of Manhattan, as well as fun facts and tidbits. Any sort of complaints or personal information should be kept to themselves.

If you have any more information you can provide to us about the guides you had on your tours, such as a name, description, time of your tours, or bus numbers to infony@bigbustours.com that would be a great help. It will be forwarded to upper management so retraining and corrective action could be taken.

Kind Regards,
BBTNY

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

I found two of your tour guide I had…

I found two of your tour guide I had racial discrimination. They should have better lessons.

September 12, 2019
Unprompted review
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Reply from Big Bus Tours New York

Good Afternoon Azit,

We, Big Bus, care about all of our customers and we do not discriminate as we pride ourselves in operating a compassionate and ethical business, anything less of that is going against our core values and we would never jeopardize our reputation in doing so. Any thing short of that is unacceptable and will not be tolerated. We take customer complaints very seriously, please let us know if you have any information like a name, description, bus number, location, or route that will better help identify him/her to infony@bigbustours.com, to further investigate this incident.

Kind Regards,
BBTNY

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

the bus tour was great and so…

the bus tour was great and so informative! We did meet a very unhelpful member of staff that served us our bus and attraction tickets at the madame tussauds off in NY had had to go back the next day as she gave us incorrect information but then we got the appropriate information and was sorted. However the weather was forecast for heavy rain one afternoon and they just simply stopped running the buses without even putting anything on their app so we had to walk 10 miles back to hotel as didnt want to spend more money as we had paid for 3 day bus tour pass.

September 9, 2019
Unprompted review
Big Bus Tours New York logo

Reply from Big Bus Tours New York

Good Afternoon Nicholas **,

We appreciate your feedback on our services for we strive daily to be the best sightseeing bus company in New York. Although, it is great to hear you enjoyed the tours and the commentary, please know all our staff are to be professional at all times, and any behavior short of that is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.

We take customer complaint very seriously, please let us know if you have any information like a name, description, bus number, location, or route that will better help identify him/her to infony@bigbustours.com, we can assure you it will be reported to upper management for disciplinary action. It is good to know that incident didn't ruin your experience and we hope you tour with us soon!

Kind Regards,
BBTNY

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

Mostly good and helpful guides, with exceptions

We went on the downtown red route 3 days in a row as a way of getting to attractions and on the uptown route once. I liked each of the commentators and each offered slightly different information. The commentator on August 30th (I forget her name) on one of the last blue route runs of the day was not as good, using poor grammar and she seemed bored with the sites. It would have been nice if the routes ran a bit later given the length of daylight in the summer. Most of the drive ers and guides were very nice and helpful, providing directions to attractions. My only complaint was with one guide on a red route bus (bus AK114, license plate 36646-BB, at about 5:00 pm on August 30th). We had just been told by a red route guide that the blue bus would pick us up one block north, so we walked to the next block and we saw a Big Bus with the door open and I stepped on and waited by the door to show our tickets and others were also approaching the bus. The guide came walking towards the door yelling "HEY GET OFF! WHAT ARE YOU PEOPLE DOING? THIS IS TBE LAST STOP, THE BLUE BUS STOPS BEHIND US. GET OUT!" I REPLIED that he could be polite about it and walked behind the bus where a big bus pulled in a couple of minutes later. This man should not be working on a tour bus.

September 1, 2019
Unprompted review
Rated 3 out of 5 stars

Depends on the guide

Good for gaining knowledge about the city but depends on the speaker. One was great but the next was hard to understand. Lots of stops along the way to let people off and on.

August 31, 2019
Unprompted review
Rated 5 out of 5 stars

It was better than I expected

I booked the big bus with attractions before I went in holiday. This allowed me to plan what attractions I wanted to see over the number of days I was visiting New York. When I arrived at Madame Tussaud’s it was easy to retrieve the voucher for the bus & the attractions were went to me in email, where I could either download it to the big bus app or retrieve it via the email link. Getting into the attractions was easy. I cannot fault it. Over the 3 days the main tour guide that stood out was John Harkins, what a character.

August 23, 2019
Unprompted review
Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Everyone was very friendly with the…

Everyone was very friendly with the exception of one elderly gentleman on the morning red route who was very annoying and abrupt. The gentleman who we had first contact with was very friendly and accommodating and remembered us every day. Mark W was a driver on the red line this morning and the gentleman giving us the commentary were both excellent and a very good example of what an employee should be in the hospitality business.

August 22, 2019
Unprompted review
Rated 3 out of 5 stars

Fair to Midland

Our tour director was great and very knowledgeable. The reason I gave it a three is because of the traffic. I know the company has no control over that, but it was a real downer. It seemed we stopped at every single light in Manhattan! Being that I tend to become car sick with heat and stopping and starting, this was not a fun experience! Other than that, it was alright not a long wait the bus stop and the stops were at convenient places.

August 21, 2019
Unprompted review
Rated 4 out of 5 stars

Enjoyed the 2-days of touring NYC

Enjoyed the 2-days of touring NYC. Sitting up top is the best. Some guides were better than others. The Sunday afternoon around 4:30pm traffic was not moving, the bus was packed and sat below. Air conditioning not "on" or "not working". Crazy hot and uncomfortable - everyone upset! Windows didn't open - worst 60 mins ever!

August 15, 2019
Unprompted review

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