If there’s any part of the travel industry that should sponsor me, its the Hop-on-Hop-Off companies. Listen up Big Bus Tours, I’m your gal.

I know, they are ridiculously touristy. I don’t care, I love them. The HOHO tours have saved me many times. I have many fond memories in many cities from these tours. They got me out of the cold pouring rain in Copenhagen, put me into a rain storm in DC, I froze my butt of in Paris, Dublin and Seattle to sit on the upper deck. In Rome, it saved me from literally melting and in London, it saved me thousands of steps on my already tired toes.

Top Three Reasons I choose the HO HO Tours in every major city.

1. Lay of the Land: There is no better way, in my opinion, to get the lay of the land in any major city. Not only do you get the cartoony map with all the tourist attractions, you get a guide to tell you the history and some fun facts along the way. My favorite ones have been with a live guide, despite their awful jokes.
   
2. Affordable: I’m cheap. Like, really cheap. Almost always these tours are very cost effective. I have had a few times where the bus schedule wasn’t great, or the weather put a ‘damper’ on the tour. But when you want to see as much of a city as you can in a short amount of time, this is the way to go. You really should pack some extra patience when traveling anyway, so just embrace it. Often times you can even add on extra touristy things like Madam Tussaud’s wax museums, night tours and boat tours.
   
3. Night Sights: This one varies, as some cities do not have night tours. But wow, there’s something magical about seeing a city at night. As a solo traveler 90% of the time, I try to make an effort to not be out and about walking around cities at night. These night tours offer me the ability a safe way to see the city at night.
   

Hop on Hop off tours can be extremely frustrating for many people. My pro tip is to not use the hop off feature. I like to take the whole tour (time dependent) without getting off the bus, and then make a plan for the rest of my day. In extremely busy areas it can be very annoying waiting on the next bus, and when that bus arrives, hoping theres an open seat.

I know a lot of people who prefer to immerse themselves into cultures when they travel. Sure that’s great, and if I ever had the opportunity to travel full time or at the very least spend more time in different cities, I would probably like that too. But, for now, I’m a tourist, and I don’t mind being labeled as one because I like to do touristy things.

Catch ya at the wax museum!

~Kel