New York City is home to some of the most iconic landmarks in the world, but taking in the highlights can be daunting. With this hop-on-hop-off bus tour, admire the most famous sights in the city without getting footsore or having to navigate public transportation. Relax on an open-top sightseeing bus to admire Times Square, Central Park, and more. You'll also receive entry to the Empire State Building with this package.

See NYC from the Empire State Building and an open-top bus
This pass includes a range of different hop-on-hop-off bus routes
Learn about the city’s history and architecture with on-board commentary
Enjoy panoramic views from the Empire State Building observation deck

What's Included

Entry to the Empire State Building
Hop-on hop-off, open-top, sightseeing bus tour
Wi-Fi on board

Hotel pickup and drop-off

Meeting and Pickup

Start time

Opening hours

4/22/2024 - 4/28/2024
4/29/2024 - 5/5/2024
5/6/2024 - 5/12/2024
5/13/2024 - 5/19/2024
5/20/2024 - 5/26/2024
5/27/2024 - 6/2/2024
6/3/2024 - 6/9/2024
6/10/2024 - 6/16/2024
6/17/2024 - 6/23/2024
6/24/2024 - 6/30/2024
7/1/2024 - 7/7/2024
7/8/2024 - 7/14/2024
7/15/2024 - 7/21/2024
7/22/2024 - 7/28/2024
7/29/2024 - 8/4/2024
8/5/2024 - 8/11/2024
8/12/2024 - 8/18/2024
8/19/2024 - 8/25/2024
8/26/2024 - 9/1/2024
9/2/2024 - 9/8/2024
9/9/2024 - 9/15/2024
9/16/2024 - 9/22/2024
9/23/2024 - 9/29/2024
9/30/2024 - 10/6/2024
10/7/2024 - 10/13/2024
10/14/2024 - 10/20/2024
10/21/2024 - 10/27/2024
10/28/2024 - 11/3/2024
11/4/2024 - 11/10/2024
11/11/2024 - 11/17/2024
11/18/2024 - 11/24/2024

Ticket Redemption Points

5th Avenue & West 32nd Street, 5th Ave & W 32nd St, New York, NY 10001, USA

Park Row & Beekman St, New York, NY 10038, USA

State Street & Pearl Street, State St & Pearl St, New York, NY 10004, USA

42nd Street & 12th Avenue, 42nd St & 12th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11218, USA

7th Avenue & West 48th Street, 7th Ave & W 48th St, New York, NY 10036, USA

What To Expect

Explore Downtown (Red Route)

10 Stops

12 Points of Interest

Duration: 1 hour 30 minutes

Operating Schedule: 9:30 AM (from stop 1 - M&M'S World) - 4:30 PM Every 20 to 30 minutes, totally route takes 90 minutes Customers are advised to visit our website or to download our app to find out more about our new health and safety measures and for the most update service information.

M&M'S New York

W 42nd St and Broadway

5th Avenue & West 32nd Street

5th Ave & W 23rd St

Broadway/Spring St

100 Lafayette St

Park Row & Beekman St

Broadway & Wall St

PX3P+85 New York

Circle Line Sightseeing Cruises

Points of interest passed by on this route

Times Square

Empire State Building

Flatiron Building

Greenwich Village

Battery Park

The High Line

SoHo

Little Italy

Charging Bull (Wall Street Bull)

New York City Hall

Bryant Park

Madame Tussauds New York

Explore Uptown (Blue Route)

5 Stops

5 Points of Interest

Duration: 1 hour 30 minutes

Operating Schedule: 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM from Stop #11 - 7th Ave & W 50th St Every 60 minutes, totally route takes approximately 75 - 90 minutes Customers are advised to visit our website or to download our app to find out more about our new health and safety measures and for the most update service information.

W 42nd St and Broadway

7 Av

5th Avenue & East 83rd Street

5th Avenue & East 66th Street

Central Park South & Columbus Circle

Points of interest passed by on this route

Carnegie Hall

Grand Central Terminal

Bryant Park

Central Park Zoo

Central Park

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Service animals allowed

Near public transportation
Infants must sit on laps
Transportation is wheelchair accessible
Most travelers can participate

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.

Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.

Frequently Asked Questions

The answers provided below are based on answers previously given by the tour provider to customers’ questions.

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Q:Do I have to pre-book a time to visit the Empire State Building using the Empire State Building Ticket w/ Hop-on Hop-off Bus?

A:Before you can board the bus, you will need to pre-book a time and date for your tour. You can do this through our online booking portal (which will be provided in your confirmation email), or with our staff at the departure locations.

Mar 2021

Q:How often does a bus arrive at each stop during the Empire State Building Ticket with Hop-on Hop-off Bus Tour?

A:A bus arrives approximately every hour on both the Downtown (Red) and Uptown (Blue) routes.

Mar 2021

Q:Do I have to go to a central location to redeem my ticket for the Empire State Building Ticket with Hop-on Hop-off Bus Tour?

A:You may redeem your printed or electronic ticket at any of the listed bus stops.

Mar 2021

Q:How long is a full circle ride on the Empire State Building Ticket with Hop-on Hop-off Bus Tour without getting off?

A:A full rotation on each of the Downtown (Red) and Uptown (Blue) routes is approximately 90 mins. Note: Tour duration can fluctuate according to the season.

Mar 2021

Q:How will I know which stop(s) to use during the Empire State Building Ticket with Hop-on Hop-off Bus Tour?

A:Our live guides and pre-recorded commentary will communicate upcoming stops. You can also download our free App for more information on routes and times, and what to see and do at each stop location.

Mar 2021

Q:Is the Empire State Building Ticket with Hop-on Hop-off Bus Tour wheelchair accessible?

A:Yes, we operate wheelchair-accessible vehicles with lifts that can accommodate up to 650 pounds. If you require an accessible vehicle, please let us know in the "Special Requirements" box at checkout.

Mar 2021

Q:Can I bring a pet with me on the Empire State Building Ticket with Hop-on Hop-off Bus Tour?

A:No pets are allowed onboard the bus, except ADA service animals.

Mar 2021

Q:Can I bring food or drink with me on the Empire State Building Ticket with Hop-on Hop-off Bus Tour?

A:No food or alcohol is permitted onboard the bus. Non-alcoholic drinks in screw-top bottles are permitted.

Mar 2021

Q:Can I bring luggage on the Empire State Building Ticket with Hop-on Hop-off Bus Tour?

A:No, luggage is not permitted onboard the bus at this time.

Mar 2021

Traveler Photos

Reviews

3.5

69 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

We perform checks on reviews

Showing 1-10 of 69 reviews

Don't bother with this Hop-on/Hop-off!

James_H, Apr 2024

We have thoroughly appreciated previous Hop-on/Hop-off buses in other cities but I was very disappointed in the Manhattan experience. We were introducing NYC to family visiting from another country but we were unable to view most of the buildings and other sites mentioned. Even though our purchase also included Empire State Bldg entry, there was NO time available to take advantage of that. It took over an hour waiting for a bus that had space for us so we didn't even begin until after 10:30 am. You should consider only selling a 48-hour experience since the bus schedule starts late and ends early.

Terrible

Angelica_A, Dec 2023

Well it didn’t happen! Very disappointed! I went to two locations to redeem my voucher for tickets and no one was there. I went to a pick up spot to hopefully get some help. The bus driver wasn’t any help and rude. I want my money back. This was a terrible experience.

Great tour…bit of a rough start!

DONNA_B, Oct 2023

We very much enjoyed the Big Bus hop on & hop off tour with entry to the Empire State Building after a bit of a rough start. The reps are easy to spot at their designated location to pick up your vouchers. I would recommend doing a 2 day pass if you really want to do both loops. I would have given Big Bus a 5* rating except they had the wrong time slot. We had purposely booked the 9:30am time slot to visit The Empire State Building so we wouldn’t be on a strict timeline to get back there. When we picked the tickets up our time slot was 12:45pm…Rep was no help, said maybe we were from a different time zone..not the case. We went anyway for 9:30am & because it was the first time slot and not yet crowded they let us go up.

Many attendants around...

Michael_B, Oct 2023

Many attendants around the city to answer questions. Easy access. Most audio boxes worked, but not all.

Raining very hard - bad...

Peter_M, Oct 2023

Raining very hard - bad directions to starting point - too rainy & foggy to see anything - you should give us a full refund. Not sure if that day’s excursion even happened. Please call me at 361-648-7248.

Tourist trap

Florin_P, Aug 2023

The buses are overcrowded and dirty, and traffic around Times Square is horrible. It took 45 minutes to get to the next stop. We ended up only taking the hop-on bus to get to Wall St, then spent our time walking around there. By the time we were done, the bus schedule was done for the day. So at $85 per person, this was the most expensive bus ride downtown. Do yourself a favor and take the regular bus or metro to the destinations you want to get to

Never buy empire building combo tickets from viator.

LALATENDU_S, Aug 2023

Never buy combo tickets from viator. We bought tickets for one day hop on/off plus empire state admission tickets from viator. Viator sent us a voucher and asked us to redeem with any street agent. The next day morning we went to empire state and redeemed with a big bus street agent. The agent gave us tickets only for the hop on/off bus but not empire. Upon enquiring he instructed us to go directly go to empire and show the viator voucher. We went inside after clearing security and scanned the voucher at the entry scanners which did not work. The security lead us outside and asked to check the tickets with the agent. I contacted viator but they did not provide any assistance. The agent on the phone only told they will contact the provider(Big bus) and let us know. We spent 2 hours and cancelled the plan that day. I got an email from viator in the night with a link to download empire tickets which they said is valid for 15 days. The next day was our last day in newyork but we decided to use the tickets. So I checked out of our airbnb and again parked our car by paying additional amount. We again went to empire with the new tickets and again the tickets did not work at the scanner. This time I decided to buy new set of tickets at the counter as I w could not disappoint my family anymore. So we bought the tickets directly at the empire state counter and visited. Completely disappointed with the unprofessional behavior of the street agents and the viator phone agents. They did not help me at all. I ended up paying twice.

Taped audio and music, yeesh

Sara_M, Aug 2023

The audio tour was weak. Lots of music and not as much information about the city as I was hoping for. Less banter and more useful facts would have been good.

The whole tour was...

EstelaR_C, Aug 2023

The whole tour was amazing , we included tickets for the Empire State Bldg visit with breathtaking views. Enjoyed the tour very much.

Not so great start

Vincent_C, Jul 2023

The meet up place on 42nd and 12th was non-existent. Had to hustle back to Time Square and almost missed our slot. The location by Tome square is adjacent to M&M Store. Why not say that! You can do better! We lost hop off and on time!

Bad sound

Marcie_R, Jul 2023

Sound did not work. We changed seats and finally able to listen. Did not have time to ride both buses and was disappointing that tickets were “all day” but expired at 5:00.

Could have been better

Susan_W, Jul 2023

The Empire State Building tour was a great tour and experience. The bus tour could have been better, we didn’t get to see the Statue of Liberty, I feel like we turned before we should have. So, we didn’t get to even glimpse it from the bus. The bus driver wasn’t the friendliest either.

Great ride

Rhonda_B, Jun 2023

Beautiful 911 memorial. Empire State building was great. Was hoping the bus would have gone so we could gave seen the Statue of Liberty from the bus Would have also liked to go to central park

Just going up 1 of the...

Lee_B, May 2023

Just going up 1 of the most famous and iconic buildings in the world, what a brilliant experience, its a must do when you visit New York for the 1st time

Sights

Sheryl_M, May 2023

Great to see different parts of the city! And didn’t have to drive! Took us by different places of interest!

We’ll worth the money!

Candy_K, Apr 2023

This was the one hop on hop off tour that was Great! You had time to hop off see what you wanted to see and get back on! You get your moneys worth with this one!!!!

Great

Lisa_F, Feb 2023

Good idea to start off your New York experience, particularly if you haven’t been before. Good fun trip to help you get your bearings! Commentary throughout Ticket add in for empire state was as great addition but you must book a slot and ensure you get there on time

Christmas in Manhattan

Carol_W, Dec 2022

The ease of seeing the sights without al the walking and people! It was a very comfortable and exciting experience.

Great tour!

McKenzi_W, Jul 2022

The bus was a great experience to see all of Manhattan! Easy to navigate and get on and off! Do it!!

Not so memorable because...

Regina_C, Jun 2022

Not so memorable because of the heat. But, Jimmy is fun and shares good information about the sites visited