New York’s tourist industry now draws 60 million visitors per year who pump over $40 million into the local NYC economy; and it is no secret that the buy tours have been especially booming in recent years (you now see around three times as many of them on New York’s streets than you did 10 years ago).
What’s the attraction of the Big Apple’s hop on hop off bus tour & sightseeing experience? Well, that may be a simple question, but the answer is multifaceted. Here are 7 of the most important reasons why bus tours are booming in NYC and why they rank among the very best ways to see the city:
1. Extreme Convenience
You can book ahead online or catch a ride on an NYC double-decker tour bus on the spur of the moment, with very little wait time, if any. Many of these tours begin right at Times Square, but they can start from locations all over the city, and there are over 200 stops they make all over the city. You can start or end a bus tour almost anywhere in New York in a highly convenient way.
2. No Fighting Traffic
Why try to fight busy New York traffic yourself in your own car or a rented car? Taxi cabs are in a hurry to get from point A to B, so they aren’t made for touring. Let an expert, local bus driver deal with traffic in The City That Never Sleeps, while you enjoy the ride and the view from the top of an open-air bus!
3. Audio Tour Guides
As you coast along from site to site, you can get expert commentary on what you’re seeing through in-bus audio speakers. Put on the earphones or take them off as desired, and you can hear about the sights in multiple languages with most tour bus companies. Also, tour guides will often throw in interesting stories you won’t hear anywhere else.
4. Low Affordable Prices
Bus tours are eminently affordable, especially compared to other means of touring the city and when you take into account how many different sites you see in a single trip. You can get even better deals by booking ahead online or buying all-day or multi-day passes!
5. Touring Versatility
It’s true there are numerous different bus tour routes to choose from, but the versatility of bus tours doesn’t end there. You can choose to craft your own journey, by buying an all-day pass and hopping on and off at whichever points you choose. You start and stop as early/late as you like.
6. A Taste of New York Cuisine
Most bus tours traversing New York City will stop off for meals and snacks here and there. The places where they stop will normally give you a chance to taste New York classic foods like New York style pizza or the ethnic foods of NYC’s China Town or Little Italy.
7. Safety Is Enhanced
Last (but not least, since safety should always be put first!), NYC bus tours increase safety levels as you tour the city. You are in a tour group that will stick together, even if the exact number changes as people hop on/off. Tour guides and bus drivers will always watch out for your safety and take you to only safe neighborhoods at safe hours of the day.
