London Open Top Bus: A New Dimension to Touring

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London is packed to the brim with historical landmarks and other attractions, so the prospect of seeing all the sites the city has to offer can be quite daunting, especially if you won't be in the city for long. Fortunately, there is a way to see most of the city in a short period of time.

Seeing London's many different attractions is as simple as hopping on a London Open Top Bus Tour .

Open what?!?

A London open top bus tour follows a fixed route that takes you to see all the major London attractions . There are several companies that offer these tours, and they offer basically the same service.

You can start by hopping on at any of the numerous stops along the route. On the bus, you can enjoy the original London sightseeing tour that lets you see the city's major sights in less than a day. As a part of this tour, you can learn about the different stops on your route from an expert guide, or if you'd prefer, from multi-lingual recorded commentaries.

Of course, it's hard to appreciate the city's different attractions from a distance. There isn't nearly enough time to soak in the sights, sounds, and smells that London has to offer. Fortunately, you can simply hop off the bus and do some exploring on your own. When you want to rejoin the tour, you can then hop on the next bus. When you're done, simply get off at your original stop, or any other point on the route.

What's on the route?

Most big bus tours follow similar routes, and they cover the most famous sights in London. These include Hyde Park, Madame Tussauds, Big Ben, and even Harrods, just to name a few. There are several stops along the route, so you can't exactly hop off at every stop along the route. That's why we recommend taking time to explore the following sights.

Make sure you include The Tower of London among your hop off points during the tour. The complex has played numerous roles in London's history, including royal residence, home of the Royal Mint, and home of the Crown Jewels of England. If you want to see Crown Jewels up close, The Tower of London is the place to go.

If you find yourself in London in August or September, make sure visit Buckingham Palace. This is when the royal family vacations outside London, and you can explore the public areas of the palace guided by a pre-recorded room-by-room narrative.

If you find yourself at York Road near dusk, hop off and take a ride on the London Eye. The Eye is one of the city's newest landmarks, and it gives you a spectacular view of London and its different attractions. At dusk, the view is even better, as you see the city slowly lighting up.

Of course, these are just three of the stops we suggest you see. You may want to visit some other attractions, the beauty of taking a London hop on hop off is that you're free to do visit as many of them as you'd like (or as many as you can fit in your schedule).

Anything else I should know?

There are over 35 different stops on most big bus tours, so it's practically impossible to fit all of them into one day, or even two. Make sure you watch the amount of time you spend at each attraction. It's too easy to spend time at one stop, giving you too little time to explore others.

You should also note that the different attractions on the route may charge entrance and other fees not covered by your bus tour package. Bring along some cash for entrance fees, food, souvenirs, and other things you might spend on.

Is that it?

Yes, that's pretty much it. What are you waiting for then? Hop on (and hop off) a bus today!