Big Bus Edinburgh Hop-On Hop-Off City and Britannia Bus Tour
Overview
Available languages
Mobile ticket
Hop aboard Scotland’s official open-top tour and discover Edinburgh from the best seats in town! With a combined two-tour ticket, you’ll explore both the Edinburgh City Tour and the Britannia Tour, giving you access to the capital’s most iconic sights.
Hop on and hop off as much as you like to take in incredible landmarks like Edinburgh Castle, National museum of Scotland, Dynamic Earth, Holyrood Palace, Greyfriars Bobby, the Royal Botanic Garden, and the stunning Royal Yacht Britannia (attraction tickets sold separately).
Your ticket is valid for 48 hours, so you can pack in as many sights as you like, all at your own pace. And with our fun and friendly team on hand to help, we’ll make sure your Edinburgh adventure is unforgettable—on board and beyond!
Book now and see the Edinburgh your way, with Bright Bus Tours
Additional Info
Service animals allowed
Public transportation options are available nearby
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
Wheelchair accessible
What To Expect
Duration:1 hour 10 minutes
Operating Schedule:Britannia Tour: First tour departs from Waterloo Place at 09:00 then every hour till 18:05 which is the last tour of the day.
Stop 1: Waterloo Place (Outside Princess Suit Hotel)
Stop 2: Gallery of Modern Art (Outside National Galleries Scotland: Modern One)
Stop 3: Royal Botanic Garden (West Main entry)
Stop 4: Pier Place (At Newhaven Harbour)
Stop 5: Royal Yacht Britannia (Outside Ocen Terminal Shopping Centre)
Stop 6: The Shore (Outside Barry Fish)
Stop 7: N.St David Street (Outside Malmaison Edinburgh City)
Duration:1 hour
Operating Schedule:City Tour: The first tour departs from Waterloo Place at 09:00 and at frequent intervals until the last tour departs at 18:20
Stop 1: Waterloo Place (Outside Princess Suit Hotel)
Stop 2: St Andrew Square (North side of the park)
Stop 3: Lothian Road (Next to the Body Snatcher Watch Tower)
Stop 4: Bread Street (Opposite Dubble Tree by Hilton Hotel)
Stop 5: The Mound (West side of National Gallery)
Stop 6: George IV Bridge (Outside scotish library)
Stop 8: Grassmarket (opposite apex hotel)
Stop 9: Chambers Street (opposite Museum of Scotland)
Stop 11: Canongate Kirk (outside Cannongate Church)
Stop 12: Holyrood Palace (opposite north side of Scotish Parliament)
Stop 13: Dynamic Earth (Outside Dynamic Earth)
Stop 14: Abbeyhill (North entrace to Holyrood Palace)
Stop 15: Regent Road (At Robert Burns Monument)
Stop 7: Lauriston Place (Outside Lauriston Health centre )
Stop 10: John Knox House (opposite Mueseum of Childhood)
Options
48 Hour Hop on Hop Tour
Duration: 2 days: Unlimited use valid for 48 hours from time of first use 2 Central Routes: Edinburgh City & Britannia routes. With up to 25 stops over the 2 routes.
What‘s Included
Your ticket, your schedule! Buy in advance and activate when you board
Dog friendly
Valid for 48 hours with unlimited hop on- hop off
Mobile ticket
Cancel up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund
Multilingual audio commentary in 9 languages + free headphones
Please note Royal Yacht Britannia attractions tickets are not included.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Reviews
182 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
Brilliant 48hrs
Jo R,Jun 14, 2026
- Review from Viator
5.00Travelled on the red route and blue. Worth getting the 48 hr. Excellent being able to hop on and off. Very regular. Perfect way to see the City
Fantastic staff and tours
Mr Bosch,Jun 10, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Great tour of the inner city with the red route and the blue route around the outer city. Bus drivers and all staff at the stops were fantastic to talk to. Highly recommend this comps
Stong recommendation.
804nikol,Jun 8, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Very good and informative tour. It wasn't too crowded and stayed on schedule. Special thanks to bus driver John and super helpful Roger.
Great experience
Karen D,Jun 7, 2026
- Review from Viator
5.00Easy to find bus stops. Frequent buses and very informative commentary. Lots of interesting buildings and statues and historical info
Entrance to the Britannia
markusfC5346FI,Jun 5, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
4.00Very friendly staff, but what was not good is that we were told when purchasing the ticket that the visit to the Britannia was included. However, that is not the case; you only receive a 10% discount. At the entrance to the Britannia, we were also told that there is often a "misunderstanding" among tourists here.
Britania was good
Kenny T,Jun 4, 2026
- Review from Viator
4.00Very intresring though would have been better if the buzzers had worked to stop the bus. Driver would then not stop till at the next stop. AS my wife has walking difficulties this did not help. Wanted of at george st/ st andrews square but not off till waverly place and had to get a taxi back to george st. Otherwise happy
Bus Didn’t Show
Elizabeth P,Jun 1, 2026
- Review from Viator
1.00We had booked the first bus of the day from the cruise docks in order to meet our engagements in Old Town. The bus didn’t show. We ended up paying for another Companies‘ Hop on Hop Off bus to ensure we got into town on time.
Worth the money
Clarissa H,May 18, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Freindly staff , frequent times and usefull for all of those hills highly reccomend
Difficult to find stops. Not well marked.
A6126UJmaureeng,May 11, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
2.00Very difficult to find stops unless you ride entire route. The feature to locate a stop was vague…. Gave you a general area. Bus drivers were friendly once you found them. Also, Google Maps knows nothing about big bus and does not work well in much of the city. Obviously we spent a lot of time searching and walking to find stops.
Got us around
tjcrn,Apr 23, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
3.00I like Hop On-Hop Off Buses, have been on several in different locations. I would have to say, a couple of things about the BigBus in Edinburgh: 1) I missed have a live person as the tour guide, the recording and having to use the headphones was boring and couldn't ask questions; 2) Don't blink or you will miss the bus, they don't spend any time at each stop, especially the Royal or Blue route. On the whole they got us around Edinburgh and Leigh enough to get a lay of the land, and to get from point A to point B on their timetable.
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Operated by Bright Bus Tours Hop On Hop Off