Hop on Hop off Bus Tours in Washington, D.C.

Are you looking for some memorable and educational sightseeing in Washington D.C.? Then get on a hop-on hop-off bus tour for a hassle-free way to see some of the city’s main landmarks and attractions.

Washington D.C. has plenty of amazing sightseeing opportunities, from monuments and memorials to iconic buildings and museums.Visiting so many of the city's incredible sights on foot can be tricky as it entails a lot of walking, but you can skip the walking and choose a Washington D.C. hop-on hop-off bus tour.

Hop-on hop-off bus tours in Washington D.C. are a popular and convenient way to explore at your own pace and provide a perfect introduction for first-time visitors to the city.

Continue reading our guide to learn everything you need to know about hop-on hop-off bus tours, one of the most popular sightseeing tours in Washington D.C.

What are the best hop-on hop-off Washington D.C. bus tours? How much do they cost?

Big Bus Tours

Big Bus Tours is the world's largest operator of open-air sightseeing bus tours. Travelers can choose between a classic daytime excursion or night tours where they can see the city's popular monuments illuminated.

A hop-on hop-off bus in Washington D.C. is a flexible and easy way to discover the city's many attractions. Multiple stops cover the main tourist areas so you can plan your itinerary and pick and choose where to get on and off.

Route

Big Bus Tours in Washington D.C. offers two routes across the city. The Red Loop is the official tour of the National Mall, stopping at the Washington Monument, Jefferson Memorial and Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, among others.

The Black Loop is the night tour and provides an illuminated view of Washington D.C.'s famous landmarks. However, the Black Loop route is not a hop-on hop-off tour .

Timetable

Tours for the Red Loop start at 9:30 AM and run until 5:30 PM with departures every 15 to 20 minutes. The route takes around 2 hours to complete. You can make the most of your sightseeing and start early in the morning so you'll have lots of time to explore all the sights.

Tickets

There are three types of hop-on hop-off bus tickets available in  Washington D.C. Each gives you unlimited stops for the duration of the tour. All excursions offer pre-recorded commentary in 8 languages: English, German, Chinese  Portuguese, Japanese,  Italian, French and Spanish. There is also a free mobile app that displays the bus arrival times. The multi-day ticket options, Essential and Explorer offer some added benefits, such as a special bike rental offer where you can rent for 1 hour and you'll get another hour free, discounts for shopping and on the entrance fee for certain attractions, and flexible bus ticket options.

• Discover Ticket: This is a 1-day pass for the Red Route. Tickets cost $60 for an adult and $50 for children between the ages of 3 and 12. It also includes a special bike rental offer.
• Essential Ticket: This ticket allows for 2 days of touring and costs $70 for an adult and $60 for children between the ages of  3 and 12 years. It includes the bike rental offer, shopping and attraction discounts, and a flexible bus ticket with a free date change.
• Explore Ticket: This 3-day pass costs $80 for an adult and $70 for children aged 3 - 12 years. It also includes the bike rental offer, shopping and attraction discounts, and a flexible bus ticket.

Old Town Trolley Tours

Old Town Trolley Tours started in Florida in the early 1970s.  The first tour was done from a converted bread truck with a homemade trailer. Today they have over 130 trolleys and offer tours in in seven cities. All tour trolleys offer stadium seating and have onboard monitors that display historical imagery.

Old Town Trolley Tours offers three different touring options in Washington D.C. All tours are done in English by an in-person tour guide with audio commentary in Spanish, French, German, Italian, Chinese, Japanese and Portuguese. Old Town Trolley Tours has two convenient booth locations, one at the Washington Welcome Centre and another at Union Station.

Route

Guests can choose between three different tours or opt to do a tour package to maximize their sightseeing experience. The Washington D.C. hop-on hop-off trolley tour with 15 stops also has 31 points of interest.

Starting at the Washington Welcome Centre the tour continues to the White House, National Archives, National Japanese American Memorial, Union Station, the U.S Capitol on Capitol Hill, the International Spy Museum, the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial and the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.

Washington DC Monuments by Moonlight tour by trolley

This late afternoon tour shows you Washington D.C. by night and offers an illuminated view of some popular monuments. You can pick your start and end point, choosing between Union Station or the Washington Welcome Center.

Some popular stops you can expect  on the tour include the U.S. Marine Corps War Memorial or as it's also known the Iwo Jima Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial, the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the Korean War and Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorials.

Arlington National Cemetery Tours

The Arlington National Cemetary has the graves of over 400,000 fallen servicemen and women from the Civil War through to present-day conflicts. You will have the chance to visit notable graves and memorials, such as the John J. Pershing Gravesite, the Tomb of Unknown Solider and the Robert E. Lee Memorial.

The tour offers 6 stops on a weekday and 9 stops on weekends. All foreign guests on the tour will also need to present their passports. This 30-minute-long excursion runs from 8:30 AM to 4 PM with tours departing every 30 minutes.

Timetable

The 1.5-hour-long Washington D.C. hop-on hop-off trolley tour with 15 stops runs daily from 9 AM to 4 PM. The frequency of the trolleys depends on the time of the year, as well as traffic and weather conditions. You can also use the special map app for the trolley routes and stops,  for helpful information on the points of interest, restaurants, shopping and entertainment.

If you're looking to take in the 2.5-hour-long Monuments by Moonlight tour, it departs nightly at either 6:30 PM or 7:30 PM.

The Arlington National Cemetery Tours runs from 8:30 AM to 4 PM with tours departing every 30 minutes. Limited tours are available on Memorial and Veterans Day.

Tickets

Old Town Trolley Tours offers three tour options, but you can also combine destinations for maximum value and more sightseeing opportunities.

• A Washington D.C. hop-on hop-off trolley tour with 15 stops tour allows you to tour all day with unlimited hop-on hop-off stops. Tickets cost around US$60 for adults (13 and older), children aged 4 to 12 pay around US$40, while children under 3 are free.
• Monuments by Moonlight tickets cost US$80 per adult aged 13 and older. Children between the ages of 4 and 12 will pay US$40 per ticket and children aged 3 and under are free.
• Arlington National Cemetery tour tickets cost US$20 per adult aged 13 to 64 years. Seniors pay US$15 and children between the ages of  4 and 12 years are charged US$11 each. Special rates are available for military personnel and veterans at US$10 each.

How do hop-on hop-off bus tours in Washington D.C work? Is anything included?

One of the biggest attractions of the hop-on hop-off bus in Washington D.C is that you can join the tour at any point along the designated routes. This means that if you’re at an attraction you want to spend more time at you can hop off the bus, indulge your curiosity and simply get on the next bus.

To begin your journey, pick up your ticket from the tour operator. Then, head to the designated first stop on the tour and present your ticket when you get on board. You’ll enjoy riding in comfort and can learn from the entertaining and educational commentary which will come from either pre-recorded commentary or an in-person guide.

You are free to get off at any stop that interests you and then jump back on again at any stop shown in the timetable. You won't have to wait long for the next bus as buses arrive every 20 minutes or so.

When booking your ticket, you'll need to indicate a date for your booking.  Big Bus Tours offers guests a chance to sightsee over two or three days with the Essential or Explore options. This allows for a leisurely touring option as you can spend more time exploring the sights. However, tickets must be used across consecutive days and the start of your tour needs to correspond with the first touring date you selected when making your booking.

Some tour operators allow you to use your ticket up to 14 days after the selected travel date, but it cannot be used before your selected date. You'll need to double-check with your tour operator if you want to use this option. Remember to arrive at your departure point at least 15 minutes before the bus leaves to allow for the passenger boarding process and so you can grab a good seat.

Are there any combo tickets that include hop-on hop-off bus tours in D.C.?

Old Town Trolley Tours offers a combination of two tours for a discounted rate. A package hop-on hop-off 21-stop trolley tour plus a visit to Arlington National Cemetery combines two popular tour options. This 2.5-hour-long tour offers 21 stops and will pass by 17 points of interest.

Some of the stops include the White House, Union Station Japanese American Memorial, the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, the Eisenhower Memorial, the Jefferson Memorial, and the George Mason Memorial. While the points of interest you'll pass by  include the US Supreme Court, Library of Congress, and Arlington House for the Robert E. Lee Memorial.

At  Arlington National Cemetery, you'll have a chance to see important gravesites and memorials like President John F. Kennedy's gravesite. A tour costs around US$60 for adults, and children between 4 and 12 years will pay US$40.

Travel tips

• To make the most of your day, start early. These buses usually begin their routes in the morning. By starting early, you can avoid some of the crowds at popular attractions.
• Washington D.C.'s weather can be quite variable. Bring sunscreen and a hat for sunny days, and an umbrella or raincoat for rainy weather. Even in summer, mornings can be cool, so a light jacket might be necessary.
• You'll likely do a lot of walking at the various stops, so comfortable footwear is a must.
• If you’re in D.C. for more than a day and want to explore at a leisurely pace, a multi-day pass might be a cost-effective option.