Big Bus Tours Washington DC Reviews 2,681

It is the worst experience I had with a tour bus anywhere in the world. Customer service at the ticket booths were rude, most drivers were rude. In particular, an African American woman driver for the yellow route were reluctant to carry us by stressing time after time her bus going to hotels only with no guide despite my clear response that we don't care because we were stranded in rain with no other alternative buses. She was very rough to us when asked questions. I saw her rearranging or refunding some of the customers due to rainy day, but refused to do the same for us or offer any explanations when asked. She even shouted at me and then walked away.

The bus is never on time and the audio system is broken. They also decided arbitrarily to skip many stops or delaying departure for one hour in the morning. There is no service and tour guides are not enthusiastic. No help, no hospitality, no service. Extremely overpriced too and I demand a full refund.

Cassie and Anna were great tour guides!
Would recommend to everybody.
We have 5 kids and they were great with the kids too.

Very disappointing service. We purchased a 2 day deluxe ticket which included a walking tour, night tour and three loops. The morning we started with the blue loop (after being informed the third loop was simply a hotel courtesy bus!) and after spending some time in Arlington the bus we were on broke down. We waited 25 minutes while we got a “replacement bus” but this was actually just the next bus which already had many passengers. This I could forgive. We finally made it back to town and boarded the red bus, and was then informed that there were diversions and many stops could not be serviced. We had two different tour guides on this and both were awful. One was rude and unhelpful. The other had severe microphone issues (we hadn’t changed buses) and spent most of the time saying “it’s so hot” and “watch the branches”, she seemed to forget he job to explain what we were passing. The night tour was the final straw. Unfortunately the same tour guide as before with the same microphone issues. She kept telling us it was too bright for the night tour so we were driving in circles! What a waste! The driver even said to us “it’s still bright, I’m trying to kill some time”. The night tour was awful and I feel bad for anyone who bought this tour for $45! It is not a surprise that the sun had not set at 7am at the end of June and acting like it was is unprofessional. The buses were old and uncomfortable. The tour guides seemed unprepared and I heard a lot of contradicting information. The walking tour was very good, and our guide was great but no tickets were checked and we seemed to pick you many people as we walked around and she joked about it but didn’t seem to mind. This was unfair for those who had paid money to do the tour.We had been in Philadelphia and used the Big Bus tour and they were excellent. It’s such a pity that such a terrible service uses the Big Bus name. I would strongly recommend trying a different tour.

I’m a marketing professor at Wagner College in New York, and I was in town this weekend in DC to visit my brother. I was accompanied by my family and my boyfriend, and I paid $400 total for six tickets to ride the Big Bus tour. What follows is a summary of how a simple mistake of me not knowing that you are not supposed to move on the bus when it is moving (they announce this through the headphones and I hadn't put them on yet) lead the tour guide to immediately scream at me AND insult me when I was on the bus. I got off and never got back on. All that money wasted.

We got on at the number 34 stop in DC. Immediately when we go on, we went to the second level. The bus started to leave. My mother texted me that she wanted me to help my grandmother with something. I never got the opportunity to put my own headphones on, so I (apparently) missed the tour guide say that we shouldn’t move on the tour. I got up to go to the back of the bus to talk to my mother and ask her what she needed concerning my grandmother. I didn’t think anything of getting up, as usually when you are on buses it is alright to move.

When I got to my mother she told me to get a pair of headphones for my grandmother, so I scooted up two rows to the tour guide and asked her for a pair. The woman, who I later learned name was Alyshia (bus number was CO144; we got on at about 3:00PM today 5-19-19) said with the most audacious attitude, “You know what I’m going to do?!” HERE! Go back to your seat!” I was shocked by how rude she was, but I just went back to my seat as she said and figured that that would be the end of it. Instead, to my surprise, she followed me to the front of the bus and proceeded to insult me over the microphone to the ENTIRE GROUP OF PEOPLE ON THE BUS. I’ve never been treated so rudely in my life, and it took everything in me not to respond with the same level of insolence as she. I told her that there was a better way to handle the situation, and her vulgarity was unnecessary. Still, she continued to insult me before finally returning to her regular tour script.

At this point, I was furious, so my boyfriend and I got off on the next stop (the White House). When I got off, there was a man outside the bus who also worked for Big Bus. I asked him for the name of the tour guide as I knew I would be making a complaint. Since the tour guide was on the top of the bus, she heard me say this. She leaned over the side of the bus and continued to insult me. The man kindly told me her name (Alyshia) and directed my attention to the bus number: CO144. I left the bus and my boyfriend and I never got on another one. At this point, I was done with your bus tour and the employees that you seem to employ. I am requesting both my boyfriend and my money back for our tickets as we did not use them again due to this terrible experience.

I understand that I must have missed her say that we are not supposed to move about the bus when it is moving because I had yet to put my headphones in and couldn’t hear her. I get that. Still, the lack of professionalism that this employee demonstrated is absolutely beyond me. I’ve NEVER had an experience like this before and I don’t understand how a business with this reputation (they have quite a few good reviews) employs a woman of this caliber. I work with college students every day, and not a single one of them has spoken to me the way that she did. I’m furious, and when I caught up with my family afterwards, I told them what happened. We’ve collectively agreed never to use your service again. This is unfortunate as my brother lives in the area and we plan to visit often now that he is settled in.

Poor customer service and incredible long waits. Waited over an hour for the first bus. Then bc bought ticket online had to get off and wait again at another stop

We spend 2x49$ for nothing. Our first stop was Arlingto semetary, Washington. That was ok but the next bus never come. The rest trip we made By metro

We took an night monument tour in Washington D.C. with Mr. Love driving and Tay giving the tour and it was a great experience! Very knowledgable and entertaining!

They were very entertaining and gave us lots of information!!! BIG SARGE IS THE BEST!!

If I could give this bus company ZERO stars, I would. I purchased tickets in Washington DC. I was specially told that the buses had ... a) air conditioning, b) enough buses to accommodate the tourist crowd, c) a knowledgeable tour guide, d) head phones to plug into their audio tours (if preferred), e) buses would run every 20 minutes from all their designated pick-up/drop-off spots.

That WAS NOT THE CASE.

1. The buses were running ~60 mins apart. In a few cases, even longer.

2. When the buses did arrive, they were so crowded that a lot of people could not board them and we were left waiting for another bus.

3. The lines to board the buses were complete chaos, the employee on hand couldn't handle the crowd and became belligerent. At one point, an employee started a screaming match with a customer.

4. When my party was finally able to board a bus, the air conditioner on the bus was broken! (as a matter of fact, NONE of the buses had working air conditioning!)

5. Because of the broken air conditioner, my party and I had to make a decision to … a) get off the hot bus and wait a long time for another or b) endure the dangerous heat! We got off, it was 99 degrees that day!

6. When we boarded another bus 1 hour later, there were no seats so we had to stand. We didn't enjoy the tour because the air conditioner was not working and we were packed in like sardines ... we couldn't see anything in the sea of people.

7. On another occasion, my party and I were waiting for ~45 minutes and the bus did not arrive and there was no employee on the street. I had to call the office to inquire about the next bus.

8. After that call, the bus arrives around 20 minutes later. When the bus arrived, the driver (a young male), started screaming my name to make sure that we got on. My party and I tried to get on but it was very crowded, the back doors could barely close with all the bodies.

He started yelling at me in the middle of the street. He angrily said, "you called the office for the bus so now you get on!!" Because it was the last bus of the day and I ran out of cash, I had no other choice. When my party boarded the bus he proceeded to step on the gas and the people who were standing (my party included) flew backward and fell on top of each other. My daughter fell and hit her back on the tall silver vertical handrail. We screamed at him to slow down but our screams were ignored.

9. And if that wasn't bad enough, the tour bus left my family at the Lincoln Memorial during the night tour. We were told to return in 30 minutes by the bus employees, which we did, but when we returned ... our bus was gone! Several others were left behind as well. We were then left to try to find a cab back to the hotel which was very difficult because it was July 3 and the streets around the mall area were then closed off to cars! We had to walk for miles to get to a point were we could wave down a cab.

10. When I arrived at my hotel, I immediately reported it to the concierge and he said that he was going to address it directly with the company. He also had no luck reaching a live person to address the issue.

11. I've been trying for 3 MONTHS to reach someone at the company (via phone and email) to ask for a refund. I've been given the runaround for 3 MONTHS. HORRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE! To date, I have not heard from anyone.

DO NOT USE THIS BUS SERVICE, YOU WILL REGRET IT. It's much cheaper and better to use the Metro, a cab, Uber, or Lyft.

We did the tour but it supposed to stop at 5. However, at 4:30 a group of us got off one bus to catch another to go to metro but then told sorry no other buses running. We all were stuck and had to pay for taxis. We tried every avenue to contact them of our experience and for them to make it right but to no avail.

Daytime tour was decent, a few tour guides stumpled though their speach and were more like an live advertisement for restaurants and businesses. It did allowed us to get to our destinations easily. The nighttime tour was amazing. Tour guide Nur was AWESOME! He was funny, interacted with my kids great, and extremely knowledgable.

Purchased tickets for Night for my mom and 2 friends for her 80th birthday. Arrived at 7:31 and tour guide very rudely said it was too late ( even though the bus was 1/2 empty) he points to my mom in her wheelchair and very rudely says “We can’t do that anyway!” Then the driver lets on 2 more people.
Side note: My mom is able to get out of the chair but he never gave her the chance to respond.
I am very disappointed and extremely upset with the rudeness that was extended to my mother as well as the lack of unprofessionalism and customer service. I am trying to get a refund but will definitely not be back or recommend this company again. Happy 80th mom ☹️

Dissapointing based on my last trip 2 years ago. No longer stops at MLK FDR monuments! Tour guide poor and speaker not working.

I would not ever recommend this bus tour. I took the night tour and the bus broke down 15 minutes into the tour. They then notified us that they didn't have an available bus to pick us up. The tour ended there and I had to call an Uber to pick me and my family up. I have emailed them twice requesting a refund and they have yet to reach back out to me and it has been a week now.

Bus breaking down isn't their fault but the customer service both at on the scene with the bus and emailing them afterwards was horrible.

We did the Night Tour of WA DC and had a wonderful tour guide. HIs name was Keary.Most disappointed with service and totally out of pocket.

I went on the night tour with guide Tom Thompson and it will forever be such a nice memory. I learned all about the city (facts most will not know). It was so pretty at night, and just riding through where so much history is is a great feeling. If you are going to tour DC, take this big bus because it goes everywhere worth going !

Bad company. Buses do not run on time. Got the tour for my elderly mom and had to eventually just get a Lyft back to the hotel. They will NOT respond to your refund request!!!

We bought passes for the night monument tour and got in line about 20 minutes before the tour. We waited about 35 minutes and were then told the buses were full. We had planned everything around that tour, and I assumed they wouldn’t sell us tickets if they didn’t have enough seats or at least walk down the line and estimate how many people would get seats on the buses. We went back the next night and got in line 35 minutes early, and the line was back further than the night before. It would have been nice for those who waited the night before to be offered priority seating since we had already waited in line. We volunteered to sit downstairs just to make sure we got on a bus, but it wasn’t easy to see the monuments and buildings from downstairs, and even though we were listening to the tour guide with headphones, she was pointing to things we couldn’t see since she was upstairs. At the stop for the Lincoln Memorial, it was difficult to hear the tour guide (or follow her) because it was so crowded. I don’t feel like I learned anything about the monuments or buildings other than seeing them from the bus, which again was difficult from the bottom seats.

We also took the Hop on/Hop Off Trolley, and we only used it for 3 stops because there were so many people on the buses that we waited for several buses before we could get on at each stop. I recognize that July is a busy time to visit DC, but we would have saved time and money by using Ubers and the Metro to get around DC.

I took the Big Bus tour on 7/18/18. The overall experience was good. The route was sufficient, it hit all the key spots. The buses are not air conditioned so be ready for a hot ride. We decided to do stop #11 at the Lincoln Memorial. Once we got off the bus there was a vehicle parked in front of the standby bus, next to the vehicle was a cooler with a case of water. Going on what I’ve seen throughout DC I assumed the water was for sale. I asked the lady in the car was she selling the water and OMG she was highly offended. She told me no, it was for employees, walk over there if you want something. She had a negative attitude and when we returned she had a captive audience of bus employees on the standby bus. She retold our encounter making sure that I heard her. I ignored her then when we got on the bus she got on and announced get your tickets out, we got our tickets out and she ignored us and didn’t even acknowledge our presence. This individual is unprofessional and way to familiar with the drivers on this route, she needs to be removed or relocated to remind her that without paying customers she would not have a job.

Sarge Henry was the best, was on there bus 3 time and from the start they made my family feel very comfortable and there knowledge and info they shared about DC Was very helpful, if your reading this please use this tour company, thank you sarge and Henry, you guys rock