Reviewed by our editorial team Updated
Paris keeps its hop-on hop-off scene to two established operators, but between them Tootbus and Big Bus Tours sell five genuinely different tickets worth comparing before booking. Both send open-top double-deckers past the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre and Notre-Dame, yet route length, whether a Seine cruise comes bundled in or costs extra, and how long a ticket stays valid vary more than a quick skim of either listing reveals.
Beyond each operator’s standard day pass sits a genuinely different tier. Big Bus sells a version of its day ticket with a Seine river cruise already bundled into the price, while Tootbus pairs its full daytime network with a fixed evening loop in one combined ticket. A fifth product, the Big Bus Panoramic Night Tour, is not a hop-on hop-off pass at all, it is a single evening loop on its own.
This guide compares all five products head to head on price, rating, route coverage and the genuine differences between them, drawn from each operator’s own published route and timetable information rather than marketing copy alone. It covers the two standalone day passes first, then the cruise-bundled and day-and-night combination tickets, before finishing with the standalone Night Tour and how a ticket fits alongside the Paris Métro.
Both operators concentrate on central Paris rather than the wider suburbs, so a hop-on hop-off ticket works best as an orientation lap early in a trip rather than the main way to get around for its full length. Prices below use the standard, pre-discount figure rather than a temporary end-of-season markdown, since that is the more reliable number to plan a trip around.
A hop-on hop-off loop is a genuinely useful way to get orientated in a city this dense, since the Seine, the grand boulevards and the major museums sit closer together than they first appear on a map. It rewards a first full day in Paris more than a rushed half-day squeezed between a train and a flight.
Comparing Paris’s Hop-On Hop-Off Bus Tours at a Glance
The table below lines up all four daytime and combination tickets side by side, covering price, rating, validity and the one detail that most separates each from the others. The Big Bus Panoramic Night Tour is left out of this table deliberately, since it is an evening sightseeing product rather than a day pass with unlimited stops, and gets its own section further down this guide.
| Tour | Operator | Price | Rating | Validity | What Makes It Different |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tootbus Hop-on Hop-off Tour with Optional Cruise | Tootbus | €48.84 (£42/$57.14) | 4.4 (17,606 reviews) | 24, 48 or 72 hours | Widest audio language range and longest validity; “Top pick” badge |
| Big Bus Hop-on Hop-off Tour with Optional River Cruise | Big Bus Tours | €39.53 (£34/$46.26) | 4.4 (15,996 reviews) | 24 or 48 hours | Lower price; “Certified by GetYourGuide”; matching Night Tour add-on |
| Big Bus Hop-on Hop-off Tour and Seine River Cruise | Big Bus Tours | from €49 (£42/$57) | 4.4 (1,101 reviews) | 24 or 48 hours | Seine cruise bundled into the price, not an optional add-on |
| Discovery Hop-On Hop-Off and Paris by Night Tour | Tootbus | from €53 (£46/$62) | 4.2 (127 reviews) | 1, 2 or 3 days plus one night loop | Only ticket combining the full day network with a night loop in one purchase |
Tootbus Hop-on Hop-off Tour with Optional Cruise
Tootbus is the newer of Paris’s two big-name hop-on hop-off brands, running a fleet of low-emission double-deckers on a single loop it calls the Iconic Paris Tour. The ticket carries a 4.4 star rating from 17,606 reviews, the largest review base of any product in this comparison, and its price stands at €48.84 (£42/$57.14) before any seasonal discount.
The route runs to 11 stops, starting and finishing at Opéra/Grands Magasins and calling at the Louvre, Notre-Dame, the Musée d’Orsay, Concorde, the Champs-Élysées, Trocadéro, the Eiffel Tower and Pont Alexandre III along the way. A recorded audio guide covers ten languages, including English, French, Spanish, Italian, German, Portuguese, Arabic, Russian, Chinese and Japanese, with a separate children’s channel in English and French.
Buses depart roughly every 7 to 12 minutes depending on the season, one of the more frequent schedules among Paris’s sightseeing buses, and the ticket includes access to five self-guided walking tours through the Tootbus app. That combination, a wide language spread, real-time bus tracking and a genuinely frequent service, is a large part of why this ticket currently carries the platform’s Top pick badge.
The ticket comes in 24, 48 or 72-hour options, the longest validity window of any hop-on hop-off product in this comparison, which suits a traveller spreading sightseeing across more than a single day. It is a strong first choice for anyone who wants the broadest language coverage and the most flexible ticket length without comparing every detail of the alternatives.
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Check dealsBig Bus Hop-on Hop-off Tour with Optional River Cruise
Big Bus Tours is the longer-established name of the two operators, running its Red Classic Route through central Paris on open-top double-deckers. The ticket holds a 4.4 star rating from 15,996 reviews and carries GetYourGuide’s Certified badge, priced at €39.53 (£34/$46.26) before any seasonal discount, noticeably cheaper than the Tootbus equivalent.
The route covers 10 stops across the city centre, a slightly tighter loop than Tootbus’s 11, taking in the same core landmarks, the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Notre-Dame and the Champs-Élysées, on a circuit that takes around two hours and fifteen minutes without any stops. A recorded audio guide plays through complimentary headphones in 11 languages, one more than Tootbus offers, delivered through onboard devices rather than a smartphone app.
Tickets are typically sold as 24 or 48-hour passes, a day shorter at the top end than Tootbus’s 72-hour option, and an optional Seine river cruise can be bundled into the same booking. Big Bus also sells a separate Panoramic Night Tour as an add-on for the same trip, covered in its own section below, which Tootbus does not currently offer an equivalent to.
The lower price and the well-known Big Bus name make this the more budget-friendly of the two daytime options, and its near-identical rating to Tootbus suggests most riders come away satisfied either way. It suits a traveller who wants a single, well-reviewed loop of the essentials without paying extra for the widest possible language list or the longest ticket window.
Big Bus Hop-on Hop-off Tour and Seine River Cruise
The Big Bus Hop-on Hop-off Tour and Seine River Cruise takes Big Bus’s standard Red Route ticket and folds a Seine cruise into the price itself, rather than leaving it as a checkout add-on. It holds a 4.4 star rating from 1,101 reviews, and starts from around €49 (£42/$57) before any seasonal discount.
The cruise is a genuine one-hour sailing with Bateaux Parisiens, one of the Seine’s established cruise operators, and it runs as a fixed booking rather than a flexible hop-on stop along the river. The bus side of the ticket is identical to Big Bus’s standalone day pass, the same 10-stop Red Route calling at the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre and Notre-Dame, sold as a 24 or 48-hour pass.
What separates this from simply adding the optional cruise to the standard Big Bus ticket is the single combined price, which removes a step at checkout for anyone who already knows they want both. It suits a traveller who has decided in advance that a river cruise is part of the plan, rather than someone still weighing it up while booking.
Anyone still undecided on the cruise is better served by the standard Big Bus ticket with optional cruise covered above, since it keeps that choice open rather than committing to it upfront. This bundled version earns its place for a traveller who wants one booking, one price and both experiences locked in before arrival.
Discovery Hop-On Hop-Off and Paris by Night Tour
The Discovery Hop-On Hop-Off and Paris by Night Tour is the only product in this guide that bundles a full daytime pass with an evening loop in a single Tootbus purchase. It carries a 4.2 star rating from around 127 reviews, and starts from roughly €53 (£46/$62) before any seasonal discount.
The daytime half covers Tootbus’s full Blue line network, unlimited stops across the same landmarks as the standalone Tootbus ticket, sold as a 1, 2 or 3-day pass with the same ten-language audio guide, children’s channel and five free walking tours. The night half adds a two-hour illuminated loop after dark, run as a single continuous circuit rather than a stop-and-go route.
Buying the two separately, a standalone Tootbus day pass plus Big Bus’s Panoramic Night Tour, means booking with two different operators across two different tickets. This combined product avoids that entirely, keeping the whole day-and-evening itinerary under one Tootbus booking and one confirmation email.
It suits a traveller who already knows they want both a daytime orientation lap and an evening ride past the illuminated landmarks, and would rather lock in both at once than decide on the night tour later. Anyone unsure whether they will want the night loop at all is better off booking the standalone Tootbus day ticket first and adding a night tour separately if the trip allows for it.
Comparing Paris’s Five Hop-On Hop-Off Bus Products: The Real Differences
Once the headline price and star rating are set aside, Tootbus and Big Bus differ in ways that genuinely change how a day on board feels. Tootbus’s 11-stop loop and Big Bus’s 10-stop Red Route both circle the same core landmarks, but Tootbus runs a noticeably more frequent service, buses every 7 to 12 minutes against Big Bus’s less densely published schedule, which matters if a stop is missed.
Both operators use a recorded audio guide rather than a live onboard commentator, contrary to a claim that circulates on some third-party guides, confirmed directly against each operator’s own published route information. Big Bus edges ahead on raw language count with 11 options to Tootbus’s 10, while Tootbus is the only one of the two with a dedicated children’s audio channel and a free set of self-guided walking tours built into the same app.
Validity is the clearest practical split between them. Tootbus sells 24, 48 and 72-hour tickets, while Big Bus tops out at 48 hours, so a traveller planning to spread sightseeing across three separate days only has one real option between the two.
Where Big Bus previously only offered the Seine cruise as an optional add-on, it now also sells it pre-bundled as its own ticket, useful for anyone who would rather not weigh that decision up at checkout. Tootbus answers with a different kind of bundle, pairing its full day network with a night loop rather than a river cruise, so the two operators have built genuinely different combination tickets rather than copying the same idea.
Price splits the five products into a clear order. The standalone Big Bus ticket is the cheapest entry point at €39.53 (£34/$46.26), followed by its cruise-bundled sibling from around €49 (£42/$57), then the standalone Tootbus ticket at €48.84 (£42/$57.14), the Tootbus day-and-night combo from around €53 (£46/$62), and the standalone Panoramic Night Tour on its own at €31.40 (£27/$36.73) as the cheapest way to add an evening ride without a full day pass.
Paris Hop-On Hop-Off Routes Compared
Tootbus and Big Bus both circle the same handful of headline landmarks, but the actual stop lists diverge more than a quick skim suggests, and the difference matters if a specific landmark is the priority rather than a general loop. Checked directly against each operator’s own published route pages rather than a marketing map, the two networks split the city differently around the Louvre, Notre-Dame and, most importantly, Montmartre.
Both operators put a stop within a few minutes’ walk of the Eiffel Tower, Tootbus’s Tour Eiffel stop on Quai Branly and Big Bus’s own Tour Eiffel stop nearby, so neither has a real edge there. Big Bus adds a second stop at Champ de Mars, useful for reaching the park side of the Tower rather than the river side Tootbus favours.
The Louvre is where the networks genuinely differ. Big Bus splits it into two separate stops, Louvre-Pyramide near the main entrance and Louvre-Pont des Arts on the river side, while Tootbus serves it with a single Musée du Louvre stop, so Big Bus gives a slightly closer drop-off depending on which entrance a visit is planned around.
Anyone hoping to reach Montmartre or Sacré-Cœur by hop-on hop-off bus needs a different plan altogether. Neither the Tootbus loop nor Big Bus’s current Red Route serves the neighbourhood, and Big Bus’s dedicated Blue Montmartre Route exists on paper but is not currently running, with only the Red Route in operation, so the Métro (lines 2 or 12) or a short walk from the Trocadéro or Opéra stop is the realistic way there.
| Landmark | Nearest Tootbus Stop | Nearest Big Bus Stop | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eiffel Tower | Tour Eiffel (Quai Branly) | Tour Eiffel, plus Champ de Mars | Big Bus offers a second nearby stop |
| Louvre | Musée du Louvre (one stop) | Louvre-Pyramide and Louvre-Pont des Arts | Big Bus splits the Louvre into two stops |
| Notre-Dame | Notre-Dame / Quartier Latin | Notre Dame | Tootbus stop also names the Latin Quarter |
| Montmartre / Sacré-Cœur | Not served | Not currently served (Blue Route suspended) | Neither route reaches Montmartre right now |
Big Bus Panoramic Night Tour
The Big Bus Panoramic Night Tour is a different kind of product from everything else in this guide, a single continuous evening loop rather than an all-day hop-on hop-off pass. It runs for around two hours on an open-top double-decker, priced at €31.40 (£27/$36.73) before any seasonal discount, and holds a 4.4 star rating from 4,985 reviews.
Passengers stay on board for the full circuit rather than getting on and off along the way, watching landmarks including the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre and Notre-Dame lit up after dark from the open top deck. That fixed, uninterrupted format is the entire point of the product, a scenic evening ride rather than a flexible sightseeing pass.
It works best paired with a proper daytime hop-on hop-off ticket earlier in the same trip, giving a traveller both an orientation lap during the day and a different, illuminated view of the same landmarks after sunset. Anyone expecting to actually get off at the Louvre or Trocadéro partway through should book one of the two daytime tickets covered above instead.
With almost 5,000 reviews and a rating that matches both daytime operators, the Night Tour has a genuine following of its own rather than sitting as an afterthought add-on. It suits an evening with no fixed plans, particularly for a first visit, when seeing the Eiffel Tower’s hourly light show from a moving open-top bus adds something a static viewpoint cannot.
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Book a transferHow Hop-On Hop-Off Tours Work in Paris
Both of Paris’s main hop-on hop-off operators work on the same basic system, buy once, then get on and off as many times as needed at any stop on the route within the ticket’s validity window. Tootbus‘s Blue line begins at Opéra/Grands Magasins, while Big Bus’s Red Route starts from its own central boarding point, and both loops call at most of the same major landmarks along the way.
Frequency varies by season on both services. Tootbus publishes its own detailed timetable showing buses roughly every 7 to 10 minutes in peak summer, easing to around every 10 to 12 minutes over winter, with the first departure at 9:30am year-round and the last one shifting between 5pm in winter and 7pm in summer.
A hop-on hop-off ticket is not a substitute for the Paris Métro, and the two work best used together rather than as alternatives. The bus routes are built around tourist landmarks rather than the fastest way between two points, so a quick Métro hop can genuinely save time between stops that sit some distance apart on a bus loop.
Both operators run open-top upper decks that give the best views in good weather, so checking a short-range forecast before choosing a specific day is worth the extra minute. Booking a day or two ahead is sensible in peak summer months, when the most popular morning departures can fill up on a clear day.
Solving Real Paris Sightseeing Problems
A visitor squeezing Paris into a few hours between two trains needs a ticket that works immediately, not one built around three days of validity they will never use. The standalone Big Bus ticket is the cheapest of the five products and its single loop takes around two hours and fifteen minutes without stops, making it the fastest way to see the headline landmarks before a connection.
A family with young children who need to get off frequently, for a toilet break, a tired toddler, or an ice cream, benefits most from Tootbus. Its buses run roughly every 7 to 12 minutes, the shortest average wait of the two operators, so missing one stop’s bus costs far less time, and its dedicated children’s audio channel gives younger riders their own commentary rather than the adult track.
A traveller who specifically wants the after-dark experience, the Eiffel Tower’s hourly light show seen from a moving open-top deck, should book the standalone Panoramic Night Tour rather than treating it as an afterthought. It is the cheapest single product in this guide and needs no daytime pass alongside it, though anyone who already knows they want both a day loop and a night ride should book Tootbus’s combined Discovery and Paris by Night ticket instead, to avoid managing two separate bookings.
Anyone combining sightseeing with a genuine river cruise, not a token add-on skimmed over at checkout, should look at the Big Bus Hop-on Hop-off Tour and Seine River Cruise. Its one-hour sailing with Bateaux Parisiens is a real, fixed booking built into the ticket price itself, so the cruise is guaranteed rather than left as an optional extra that can be skipped or forgotten.
Which One Should You Choose?
For most first-time visitors, the choice comes down to how long the ticket needs to stay valid and how much a lower price matters against the widest possible language coverage. Tootbus is the stronger pick for a trip spread across three days or for anyone travelling with children who would use the dedicated kids’ audio channel, and its Top pick badge and largest review base make it a safe default for a first Paris visit.
Big Bus suits a traveller focused on a single day or two who wants a well-known name at a genuinely lower price, and its slightly broader language list can matter for a group with several different first languages on board. Its optional river cruise bundle and matching Panoramic Night Tour also make it easier to build a full day-and-evening itinerary through one operator rather than mixing bookings.
A traveller who already knows a Seine cruise is part of the plan should look straight at the Big Bus Hop-on Hop-off Tour and Seine River Cruise instead of adding the cruise separately, since the bundled price removes a checkout step for the same experience.
Anyone drawn specifically to the after-dark experience should treat the Panoramic Night Tour as an addition to, not a replacement for, one of the daytime tickets above. Its fixed two-hour format cannot substitute for a genuine hop-on hop-off pass, however appealing the illuminated skyline looks in the photos.
Anyone who wants both a daytime lap and an evening ride locked into a single booking should consider the Discovery Hop-On Hop-Off and Paris by Night Tour instead of booking the day ticket and Night Tour separately, since it keeps the whole itinerary under one operator and one confirmation.
There is no wrong choice between Tootbus and Big Bus on quality alone, since both carry the same 4.4 star average across tens of thousands of reviews. The more useful question is which ticket length, language list and set of extras actually match a specific trip, rather than which operator’s name is more familiar going in.
Rupert’s Handy Travel Tips
Trying to pick between Paris’s hop-on hop-off bus tours? Here are a few things worth knowing before you book.
- Check the validity window first: Tootbus sells tickets valid for up to 72 hours, while Big Bus tops out at 48.
- Both use recorded audio, not a live guide: check the language list that matters to you rather than assuming either offers a live commentator.
- Don’t confuse the Night Tour with a day pass: it is a single two hour loop after dark, not a hop-on hop-off ticket.
- Pair the bus with the Métro: the routes are built for sightseeing, not speed, between distant stops.
- Bundle the river cruise if you have time: both operators let you add a Seine cruise to the same ticket.
- Bundled beats optional if you’re sure: if a Seine cruise is already part of the plan, Big Bus’s cruise-bundled ticket locks in one price instead of adding it at checkout.
- Combine day and night in one booking: Tootbus’s Discovery and Paris by Night ticket covers both in a single purchase, handy if you would rather not manage two confirmations.
- Book ahead in peak summer: the most popular morning departures can sell out on a clear day.
Want to meet the reindeer behind our travel tips? Find out more in our page Who is Rupert?.
Frequently Asked Questions About Paris’s Hop-On Hop-Off Bus Tours
Which Paris hop-on hop-off tour has the most reviews?
The Tootbus Hop-on Hop-off Tour with Optional Cruise carries the most reviews of the five products in this guide, with 17,606 reviews and a 4.4 star rating.
Is the Big Bus Panoramic Night Tour a hop-on hop-off ticket?
No. It is a single continuous evening tour lasting around two hours, rather than an all-day pass with unlimited stops.
Which operator offers commentary in the most languages?
Big Bus offers 11 languages on its recorded audio guide, one more than Tootbus’s 10, though Tootbus is the only one with a dedicated children’s audio channel.
Which ticket stays valid the longest?
Tootbus, with options running up to 72 hours. Big Bus’s daytime ticket is typically sold as a 24 or 48-hour pass.
Do either of these tours use a live guide instead of recorded audio?
No. Both Tootbus and Big Bus use a recorded audio guide, confirmed directly against each operator’s own published information, despite a live-commentary claim that appears on some third-party sites.
Which is cheaper, Tootbus or Big Bus?
Big Bus is the cheaper of the two daytime tickets at €39.53 (£34/$46.26), against €48.84 (£42/$57.14) for Tootbus.
Can I add a river cruise to either ticket?
Yes. Both the Tootbus and Big Bus daytime tickets can be booked with an optional Seine river cruise bundled in.
Is there a hop-on hop-off ticket that already includes a Seine cruise?
Yes. The Big Bus Hop-on Hop-off Tour and Seine River Cruise bundles a one-hour Seine cruise into the ticket price itself, rather than offering it as an optional add-on at checkout.
Can I book a daytime pass and the Night Tour together in one ticket?
Yes, with Tootbus. The Discovery Hop-On Hop-Off and Paris by Night Tour combines the full daytime network with a two-hour evening loop in a single purchase.
How many hop-on hop-off products does this guide cover?
Five: the standalone Tootbus and Big Bus day tickets, Big Bus’s cruise-bundled version, Tootbus’s day-and-night combo, and the standalone Big Bus Panoramic Night Tour.
Where do Paris hop-on hop-off buses usually start?
Tootbus’s route begins and ends at Opéra/Grands Magasins, while Big Bus’s Red Route starts from its own separate central boarding point.
Can I use a hop-on hop-off ticket instead of the Paris Métro?
Not really. The bus routes are built around sightseeing rather than the fastest route between two points, so pairing a ticket with the Métro usually works better than relying on the bus alone.
Which tour suits families with children best?
Tootbus, since it is the only one of the two daytime tickets with a dedicated children’s audio channel available in English and French.
Further Reading
Getting to Paris is its own decision before any bus ticket comes into it, and for travellers starting in London, our London to Paris Day Trip guide covers making the crossing by Eurostar and getting the most out of a single day in the city. It is a useful read for anyone fitting a first look at Paris around one of these hop-on hop-off tickets rather than a longer stay.
Several of these tickets already bundle a Seine cruise into the price, but it is worth knowing the full picture before choosing one blind. Our Paris River Cruises guide compares ten separate Seine products, including the two Big Bus tickets that pair a bus loop with a boat.
Beyond the bus routes, Paris rewards time spent on foot in neighbourhoods like the Marais and Montmartre that neither Tootbus nor Big Bus passes through in any real depth. If an evening at the Moulin Rouge is part of the plan, it sits at the foot of the same Montmartre hill a hop-on hop-off ticket cannot reach.
A hop-on hop-off ticket is best treated as an orientation lap for a first day in the city, not the whole trip. Our Paris Public Transport guide covers the Métro and RER lines that fill in the gaps once the bus loop has done its job.
