Hop on and Hop off buses in Rome

That's what we thought too. Then we sat on the bus for over half an hour and bus was not going, nobody could explain why and in addition it was very hot so finally we got off and asked for a refund. You can probably guess correctly if we got it. We liked the bus in London. It gives you nice overview of the city. Try it anyway. You may have better luck.

I've often read good things about the Hop On Hop Off buses in Rome and wondered what I had done wrong. I had planned to take advantage of the hop off and then back on option, but after waiting in line for almost an hour to get on in the first place, and then seeing the lines of people wanting to get back on at various stops around the route, I sat tight. It was nice to get my bearings, but I had wanted to get off at some of the stops, but didn't dare. I don't know if it was because it was a little cold or if it was because there were a lot of people from Ireland there for a big soccer match. But it wasn't that cold, and can't believe that the Ireland match crowds were any worse than usual crowds. But if you just want to stay on for the whole round to get the lay of the land, it works well.

We did the HOHO bus in Rome in July '08 and really enjoyed it. We stayed on the whole time, didn't get on and off. We did not have to wait to get on and the bus never stayed long at any of the stops. We do it everywhere we go that has one and love being up high and out in the open air seeing all the sights. Just be sure to wear sun block and bring water with you.

Adria, I took one of the Hop On / Hop Off Red Bus tours in Rome on a previous trip, and quite enjoyed it (for the most part). The only "issues" were that the cheap red Ear Buds they provided were cr@p, and some of the audio stations were not working. I chose to ride around the entire circuit, rather than getting on and off. I found that it was both a good way to rest my aching legs, and also get a good idea on where the main sights in Rome were located. Being on the open top deck also provided a great vantage point for getting some good photos. Cheers!

Thanks for all your good tips everyone. I think we will give it a try and stay on the bus, ride the second story of the bus, bring our own head sets from our cellphones,(hopefully they will work on the bus), bring water and sunblock. I think it will be a good overall way to see the sites of Rome. So far we are planning to do a tour of the Vatican and I read about concerts in some of their parks and one night will buy tickets and do an outdoor concert. I appreciate all of you sending responses to my question.

I was in Rome in Feb. and the lines to wait on the Ho-ho buses was still really long. We had thought about going on it, but after waiting around for a while and full bus after full bus came by with no chance of getting on, we gave up. We walked to lots of places, and took buses or the subway to others. Have you thought about a general overview walking tour of Rome? I know they have them and the cost would probably be similar to the bus or maybe even less. Add in the cheap cost of an all day transport ticket and I think you would have an enhanced experience at a lower cost. You can also ask tour guides questions, find cool places to go eat, and get a better sense of the city rather than riding a bus.

Our practice in new cities is to do the hop on/off for overall orientation. Ride it around once for a general feel and overview. Then decide on the second time around when and where to get off. Since most tickets are good for 24 hrs, we tend to start in early afternoon and then use it till noon or so the next day. Often getting off at the end at the attraction that will take the most time to see. We rode the Archeobus on a Sunday in Rome and it was excellent.

We rode the on-off bus several years ago and thought it was a very good way to get familiar with the city. We saw several sites that we would have missed otherwise. At that time, they were only taking cash, and it is a good idea to have the correct amount because the person selling tickets was not able to make much change.

Adria I have read in other HOHO articles that Rome regulates the Hop On Hop Off buses and recently the number of stops seems to have been reduced from 12 to 8. Also, the buses are no longer allowed to pause at the major attractions, the Bus Stops are not clearly marked, sometimes a very long wait to get on the buses, skipped stops, incorrect HOHO maps, earphones don't work, commentary does not sync with sights, schedule totally erratic, etc. Traffic and road / building construction is a huge problem in Rome . Which means it is a big problem for the buses. I was very diappointed in the HOHO bus in Rome 18 months ago. I didn't feel it gave a good orientation nor gave information about what I was seeing. Stops were missed because of road construction and time so commentary didn't match places. And a lot of money for that. Bobbie

My wife and I loved the on/off buses in Rome. We traveled with 2 teenagers also and they loved it.

Guess I have been lucky... I try to do these buses in most large cities. Start out when I am tired and ride the whole circuit, then decide where I want to get off next time around. I might have had a bit of a wait but I did the one in Rome in July... busy season. I love them for a good overview and a rest for your feet!