Big Bus Rome Hop-on Hop-off Open Top Tour

We have done Big Bus Hop-on-Hop-off tours in several major cities. We really enjoyed all of those tours, it's such great way to explore the big highlights of a city... Then there was Rome. The service provided by Big Bus in Rome was utterly unacceptable. The day started off fine. With only a ten minute wait, we caught a bus in the morning and rode the whole circuit. The full circuit was longer than Big Bus advertised, but the traffic in Rome can be really heavy, so we didn't complain. Later in the day, after walking for a few hours and getting a closer look at several major attractions, we were ready to get off our feet and ride the Big Bus again. This time, however, we waited over an hour for a bus to come. You simply can't advertise that buses come every 10-15 minutes and then make people wait over an hour to get on a bus. Either change your advertising or put more buses in circulation, but don't pretend like you can deliver on something if you can't... The service got worse. When the buses finally arrived (three came at once to pick up all the people who had accumulated in the queue over the course of the hour), we got stuck in traffic for nearly two hours and only made it through four stops. When buses returned to Stop One, all three concluded their service and everyone was kicked off their bus without explanation. This was more than two hours before tour was supposed to end for the day. Customers quickly became angry as they realized that they weren't going to be allowed back on, and the bus drivers were ending the service early for that day. Pregnant women, people in wheelchairs, parents with young children, all with the expectation of being able to get to other stops, were kicked off the bus early without any reason given by the drivers. Many people began demanding an explanation from the poor Big Bus attendants on duty at that stop (at least two drivers just left without answering questions). The attendants tried to explain that because the traffic was so congested, to do one final circuit as was advertised and paid for by the customers wasn't possible. They said that to complete one more circuit would take the drivers longer than their current shift would allow them to remain "clocked in." That meant that everyone had make other arrangements for getting to wherever they had intended to end up for the evening. Stop One (where the buses quit on us) is by the main train station. It is probably what some people would consider a "rougher" part of town, and less tourists stay on that side of the city. Most people we heard were talking about having to have to walk great distances or take a taxi. My wife and I walked all the way across the city to get back to our hotel. It tripled the distance we would have walked if we had gotten off at the stop we were expecting to... You simply can't quit early for the day when people have planned their schedules and their physical exertion levels around an expected service. If traffic gets thick and delays the service, then figure out a way to have new drivers come in later in the day so the tour can be completed as promised. Otherwise you need to just be honest and say in your advertising that occasionally this tour will be cut short, and you may get stuck at Stop One in the evening. Let customers know that occasionally the drivers will bail on the passengers and flee the scene without explanation, leaving people confused and angry. Let customers know that occasionally they might not get what they paid for and that there will be no refund or apology. In short, improve your service or just be honest up front. Really, you should be able to do both. Last nights three busloads full of customers would have really appreciated that courtesy. Instead they were tossed off the buses and told to fend for themselves. Unacceptable!

With many options available to see Rome we chose to try the Big Bus Hop on Hop off tour. We were not disappointed, the hop on and off option allowed us to see many areas of the city that we may have missed if we had wandered on our own. The staff that work around the various stops were helpful in providing additional directions.

Big cheat for 27 Euros. You have to struggle to climb on the second floor, which is always full. Otherwise, it's a simple bus which you could take for a couple of coins. Never recommend.

Hop on hop off was fine but I bought a three day pass with the night tour included and it ended up getting canceled without explanation or partial refund

The bus was an affordable way to tour Rome but it was crowded and we had to wait a long time at stops.