Big Bus Tours Philadelphia Reviews 411

This was the third time I purchased tickets for the Big Bus in Philadelphia. The first and second time was a wonderful experience. This last time was horror story too say the least! I purchased three 2 day passes for Dec 15 and 16 2017. On the first day our time began at 1135 when we boarded at Stop #1. We got off at Stop #6 to shop and eat lunch. While we were eating it began to snow. We returned to Stop #6 to continue the loop. Between Stop #6 and #8 the bus slid and the driver immediately panicked. I was sitting downstairs and heard the dispatcher instruct all drivers to arrange shuttles to have passengers delivered as close to their hotels, etc. At this time we were in the area of City Hall and informed that we had to get off then. Our hotel was in the 200 block of Chestnut St, which was approximately a 1.3 mile walk. No attempt was made to provide us with alternate transportation.

One day 2, Dec 16, we again boarded at Stop#1 with plans to go to the Christmas Market at Love Park. The driver let us off at "Stop #7". Since there was a great deal of road construction and barricades at that location my husband asked the guide what was the exact location for us to re-board. He was told "right here where we let you off." When we were ready to resume the tour route we returned to the same spot that the we got off of the bus. Again this is where we had been told to return. My husband saw the bus coming and attempted to flag them down, but they continued on. At this time I called the Big Bus number and was told that they were sorry and that the bus could not turn around. It was 29 degrees and I informed her that what she was telling me was not acceptable. In approximately 45 minutes a shuttle finally arrived and took us back to Stop#1. During my phone conversation and the conversation with the shuttle driver we were informed that Stop #7 had been discontinued due the safety issues in the construction area.

Our reason for using the Big Bus was to make the trip more pleasurable since I have a medical issue with my knee. It is difficult for me to walk any distance. Needless to say on day 1 the 1.3 mile walk to the hotel was very traumatic and painful. It took over two hours for me to walk to my hotel.

The only effort made to better the situation was to extend our pass for one more day. This was of little value being that we would be leaving that day. As much as we have enjoyed previous experiences with the Big Bus Philadelphia we will not be using this company again nor do I feel comfortable recommending to others. I feel that the $102.00 I spent was a total waste of money. I look forward to your response.

The worst tour I have ever experienced. Lines not on time and did not follow the schedule. The bus stayed for over 40 minutes at one stop (when it was only supposed to wait 15 min) to wait for another bus. It was freezing, with heavy snow, and the bus tour guide refused to at least keep the doors shut while we waited. Everyone on the bus was asking to please give us updates, or at least shut the doors so it would be warmer, and the tour guide would not. The driver was hanging out with another driver chatting away, missing phone calls coming into a phone by his seat. The tour guide was rambling on about her childhood and random things. The heaters on the bus did not work. The headsets are extremely cheap- bring your own, but I HIGHLY recommend choosing another company. Huge waste of money. I've been on these guides all over the world and this was the absolute worst.

Momma Z is the best. The bus drivers are remarkable, dealing with traffic. Great way to see and learn about Philly. We used the tour to see where we wanted to visit, then used the hop on hop off to get around.

Anytime I have a friend coming in from out of town I always take this tour. So much fun especially with people like Z who was our tour guide and Walter our driver. You can see so much in a smaller amount of time and get off and on again where you want. I would recommend this to anyone even people who lived here their whole lives because there are things you miss.

We used our passes on thanksgiving day in Philly. We understand its a holiday, but wish we were warned that we were only gonna be limited to a couple of stops. We were not made aware of the extent of limitation to the tour and were given a very short and insufficient tour. Customers should be warned somewhere in your booking page that these holidays can affect the experience.

Started off terribly ended even worse. My mom and I were in town for her to get her treatment at CTCA we had some downtime one day so we decided to take this tour. We went to the location to get on the bus and the man who took our tickets reeked of marijuana and whenever we tried to ask him questions he would interrupt to talk to the other guy who was standing next to him about shoes. The day we decided to take the tour there was apparently some marathon going on so some of the stops are unavailable- that’s understandable and one of the unavailable attractions was the Basilica . However, when we drove by they said it appears as if the activities that were going on that day were over and we would be able to see the Basilica after all. So before we got off of the bus we specifically checked with the bus driver to make sure another bus would come back because we were apprehensive. She guaranteed us a bus would be back. Well apparently she was wrong. We stood in the rain for 45 minutes waiting for the bus to come back. Eventually we found the number online to call and they sent a shuttle to pick us up. When the shuttle driver got there there were no apologies at all. On our route to the next stop he says he’ll be dropping us off at the penitentiary to wait for the next bus. After 45 minutes of standing in the rain waiting for a bus that never came understandingly we didn’t have much faith in there system. So we asked him to if we could stay in the van with him until the bus came. The shuttle driver proceeded to yell at us ached that calling us unreasonable.. Worst tour experience we have ever hand.

The bus frequency on the route can be more frequent

The tour guides were extremely knowledgeable of the city's history. The bus with the clear covered top and heat was excellent on a cold fall morning.

Being the first time in Philadelphia I was a little nervous about tours but Big Bus Tours was great. It is an affordable way to get around the city and the tour guides were very knowledgeable, friendly, and kind. There were a lot of options of where to get off and on at and it was easy to navigate. The path that they had was not too long but hit all of the major spots in the city. We didn't have to wait very long for a bus and the bus had lots of options. I would recommend this for anyone.

Bus was was always late. I dropped off at the Library, ant had to wait more than 1 hour for the next bus! Had only 1 day in Philadelphia, and wasted too much time waiting the buses.

There are small things that sometime leave a parmanent impression on us. May be that’s what happened when I took my parents on the Big Bus Tour in the City of Philadelphia. May be it was the bright sunny day in the month of October or the break from the boredom or just the simple but still very interactive stuffs on the bus tour that impressed my parents so much that they can’t stop talking about it. Despite of being a resident since a year, I discovered the city and its life a complete different way. Really impressed with the overall experience and would highly recommend others for this tour.

It was awesome. We loved the tour so much. The guide and the driver were great.

It was so fun and very informative. We learned a lot about our city. The guide and driver were terrific!

great tour! guides were very informative

As a longtime Philly resident, I took the tour with some friends and we had a blast. The guide was very knowledgeable and I learned quite a few things I didn't know about Philly. Hits every major attraction in Center City, as well as some nice residential neighborhoods such as Antique Row, Society Hill, etc. Good mix of historical, as well as some Insider tips and trivia about the city. Would definitely recommend it.

Big Bus Philadelphia was great! Very nice guides, easy to find the pick-up locations. Info from the tour helped us find additional activities in the evening. We bought 2-day passes, but it wasn’t necessary, it’s possible to get a sufficient experience in 1 day.

I was in Philly with my sisters birthday from October 14-18th and brought a 2day ticket and have to say the drivers and tour guides were wonderful. The drivers were awesome and the tour guides were so informative. I highly recommend this as a must when in Philadelphia.

The big bus tour was terrific. I was particularly impressed with the level of knowledge all the tour guides had of their city. It was a really enjoyable and informative tour.

The best and only to see philly whatever you do chose big bus and noone else !