Hop On-Hop Of Versus Metro Card

We are coming to NY April 4th - April 11th and plan to buy the 7 day metrocard for the week unlimited usage. I have already purchased online the 3-day NY pass and was wondering if the hop on - hop off bus was worth it or since we%26#39;re purchasing the metrocard, would it be a waste??

Thanks in advance for the advice

Hop On-Hop Of Versus Metro Card

I would say if you are a planner then go with only the metro pass. You can get anywhere you want on public

transportation. Hop on Hop off is more for those who

have no plan and no idea what they want to see and need to be led by the hand on someone else%26#39;s schedule

(ie. waiting for the next bus) If you have done your

planning go with the metro card and when confused ask

a local. We will be more than happy to help or at least tell you where to go.

Hop On-Hop Of Versus Metro Card

I make a living doing pedicab/bike/walking tours of NYC.

As a seven-year vet of hop-on-hop-off tourguiding, I%26#39;d say to take the tour to get a good overview of our island, but not to depend on it for regular transportation. You%26#39;re much better off using the Subway for travel here and there. For one thing, you have the option of going in either direction, while the tour buses go in just one.

There are logistics problems with Gray Line and with Citysights (which will merge into a new company next year).

The thing is that buses run every 10-20 minutes in the high season and most people get on in Midtown. Most people get off downtown, for:

Statue of Liberty/Ellis

SoHo shopping

Chinatown shopping and eating

Around late afternoon, all the people in Chinatown, all the people in SoHo, and all the people at the Statue try to get back ON... ALL AT ONCE. With their shopping bags. Buses are packed.

Invariably there are delays. Gray Line mitigates this somewhat by running buses south on the West Side highway, empty, directly to the Statue stop. Citysights may, also, but I don%26#39;t know personally.

Doubledeckers are best utilized in the morning, but don%26#39;t count on them for the late afternoon.

Afterthought: please post this to anyone coming to NYC.

TourguideStan (google my name)

These are two entirely different things. The hop on/hop off bus is essentially a tourist bus that takes you to various sites in Manhattan. It will give you a general over view.

The MetroCard is how we travel. It takes you everywhere, whenever you want to go. It will take you to nabes that the Hop On bus just doesn%26#39;t go to. The MetroCard does both on and off the beaten path.

If you are a good planner, and have done the research, you may skip the tour bus and just take the subway. If you want someone to hold your hand for a day, the Hop On bus may be worth your while.

The choice is yours.

Since you%26#39;ve already purchased the 3 day pass, I%26#39;d use the loops tours as TOURS and perhaps do each loop staying on the bus so you get the lay of the land. Use the metrocard for getting around. If you happen to be on a bus where the guide is not very good (or not easy to understand) get off and wait for the next bus.

I second all this advice - especially Stan%26#39;s -- seriously -- If/when you do the HOHO bus choose a nice day to start it on and ride early in the day for sightseeing.

I will be back as a tour guide on the buses in April --- Some folks who are here for a week like to do the buses midweek or at the end when they are tired of walking and riding subways and buses and it%26#39;s a nice day.

Do your planning around the MetroCard -- do a double decker when/if it makes sense during your time here.

Just got back from 4 days in NYC and lived on the subway. Just look at a good map before you go use Hopstop.com for specific directions and ask if you have questions people will actually help you. We live in Chicago so we understand that mass transit is the way to.

We are just back from our trip to NY only used the subway, it was very quick the longest wait at a subway was 5 minutes and that was last Sunday morning.

Hey New Yorkers,

Maybe if we get enough of them to use MTA we won%26#39;t

get that fare increase in June.

Its a bargain next to our public transport

Bilmin - That%26#39;s the idea.

Seriously -- people from away from here really do not understand mass transit and they aren%26#39;t going to learn back home and this City they came so far to visit could never have occurred without mass transit.

I work on the double deckers and so many great (and not so great) photographers spend their entire trip trying to kill themselves standing at 20+ miles an hour and looking through their camera lense that they never actually sightsee from the top of the bus and might as well be home watching old NYC movies on TV.

Taking pictures works much better when you are sitting still or better yet OFF the bus and on the ground. Use the HOHO buses to sit back and enjoy the view.

We have plenty of room for all of our visitors in the subways and buses (when it isn%26#39;t rush hour -- 8-10 AM 4-7PM) -- You can still squeeze in then.