One of the inconveniences that a fan of bus excursions may encounter is the impossibility of staying at the point of the route you like without the risk of falling behind the group in an unfamiliar city. The Hop-on Hop-off system solves this problem by turning sightseeing buses into a kind of public transport for tourists.
The Hop-on Hop-off service, which can be translated as "hop in and out", appeared on the tourist services market at the end of the 20th century. Among the first operators to offer this service are The Original London Sightseeing Tour, New Zealand's Kiwi Experience and the City Sightseeing brand, whose red double-decker buses can be seen in thirty countries in America, Asia and Europe. Due to the fact that the route of the excursion is known in advance, and the ticket is valid for at least a day, tourists can stay at any stop, get to know more about the area of the city they like and continue the trip on the next bus, waiting for it at the stop marked with a special sign.
While driving to the salon, a recording of the story of the sights is broadcast through headphones. The number of languages into which the accompanying text has been translated may vary. City Sightseeing tours of major cities are usually voiced in seven languages, including English.
Buses with the Hop-on Hop-off service generally run along the same route within the city, occasionally leaving it, if there is an object that is worth seeing there. However, in large cities there may be more than one route. In this case, the display at the front of the bus shows information about the destinations. Often the excursion ticket is valid on all routes within the same city.
Tickets for Hop-on Hop-off Bus Tours may vary in terms of validity. There is a day pass, which you can buy to ride around the city until the evening. A daily ticket will allow you to do the same for twenty-four hours. On selected routes, you can purchase a two-day or even three-day pass.
The length of time during which tourists have to wait for the next Hop-on Hop-off bus depends on local conditions. Thus, the schedule, which can be seen on the site of the excursion project "City Tour St. Petersburg", provides for forty-minute intervals. City Sightseeing reports ten-minute intervals in the movement of its buses, which, however, may run less frequently in winter.
