Big Bus and City Sightseeing drive almost the same loop around Rome. The hop on hop off Rome bus tour, operated by both operators, starts at Termini and stops at Santa Maria Maggiore, Circus Maximus, Piazza Venezia, the Vatican, the Spanish Steps and Piazza Barberini. Both charge around €27 for a day ticket. You’ll see much the same from the top deck either way.
The choice for Big Bus vs City Sightseeing Rome turns on how long you’ll wait at each stop, how many days you’re buying, and whether you want City Sightseeing’s second route through Piazza Navona and the Pantheon area. If you’re staying a day or more, Big Bus is usually the better buy. City Sightseeing makes more sense if you want one cheap loop, are buying day tickets for children, or care most about that second route.
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Big Bus vs City Sightseeing Rome: the key numbers
*Prices are in euro and approximate.
| Big Bus Rome | City Sightseeing Rome | |
| Routes | 1 | 2 (its own Red Route, plus ORP’s Yellow Route) |
| Frequency | 9 mins | 15-25 mins |
| Operating hours | 9 am – 7 pm | Red: 9 am – 6 pm; Yellow: 9:25 am – 4:25 pm |
| Full loop | About 1 hr 40 mins | Red: 1 hr 30 mins; Yellow: 1 hr |
| Shortest ticket | €23 (3 hours) | €18 (one loop) |
| 1 day | €27 | €27 |
| 24 hours | €29 | €33 |
| 48 hours | €34 | €39 |
| 72 hours | €43 | €46 |
| Child, 24 hours | €16 | €15 |
| 2 adults + 2 children, 24 hours | €74 (family ticket) | €96 |
| Evening tour | With the 72-hour ticket | None |
Adult prices unless stated, as of October 2026. Children are 5 to 15, and under-5s ride free on both.
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Where the buses stop
The two red routes of Big Bus Rome and City Sightseeing, share most of their kerbside stops. At Circus Maximus, Piazza Venezia and the Vatican, they use exactly the same addresses.
Some of the major Rome attractions covered by the sightseeing buses are: Termini, Santa Maria Maggiore, Colosseum, Circus Maximus, Piazza Venezia, Vatican, Spanish Steps (Via Ludovisi), Piazza Barberini and more.
A few of these stops aren’t quite where their names suggest.
To reach Colosseum you must hop off at Circus Maximus and walk up Via di San Gregorio; it’s about 20 minutes.
The stop, both called “Vatican” is on the riverside at Lungotevere Tor di Nona, opposite Castel Sant’Angelo. To reach St Peter’s Square, cross Ponte Sant’Angelo and walk down Via della Conciliazione, which takes around 15 minutes. The Vatican Museum’s entrance is further on, round the walls. If you have a timed Museums slot, leave yourself at least half an hour from the bus.
The Spanish Steps stop on Via Ludovisi puts you near the top of the steps, not Piazza di Spagna at the bottom.
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City Sightseeing’s second route
City Sightseeing Italy runs only the red buses. The yellow buses belong to ORP (Opera Romana Pellegrinaggi), which runs them as the Vatican & Rome Open Bus, and a City Sightseeing Rome ticket is valid on both. The Yellow Route is the only way on either ticket to hop off at Piazza Navona, at Largo Argentina (a few minutes from the Pantheon) or at San Giovanni in Laterano.
It has limits. The last yellow bus runs at 4:25 pm, and buses call at Piazza Navona and San Giovanni only every 40 to 45 minutes. Ride it in the morning.
How long you’ll wait
Big Bus runs roughly twice as often. A bus every 9 minutes means an average wait of under 5 minutes. City Sightseeing’s 15 to 25 minute gap means 8 to 12 minutes on average. Hop off five times in a day and you’ll spend about 20 minutes at stops with Big Bus, and 40 minutes to an hour with City Sightseeing.
Big Bus also runs until 7 pm, an hour after City Sightseeing’s last red bus. That extra hour is worth more than it sounds in July and August. The open top deck has little shade, so midday loops are hard going and the late afternoon is the pleasant time to ride.
The loop times above come from the timetables. Traffic around Piazza Venezia and the Vatican can stretch them on both.
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Big Bus vs City Sightseeing Rome hop on hop off: What you’ll pay
From 24 hours up, Big Bus costs €3 to €5 less per adult.
For a short visit, City Sightseeing’s €18 ticket is the cheapest way onto either bus. But it’s one complete loop, and you stay on for the whole 90 minutes. Big Bus’s €23 Taster lets you get on and off for three hours, on the day you buy it.
A 1-day ticket ends with that day’s service. A 24-hour ticket runs from when you first use it, so if you start at 2 pm you can ride the next morning too.
Travelling with children? Kids aged 5 to 15 pay a child fare. City Sightseeing’s child tickets cost:
- One loop: €17
- 1 day: €12
- 24 hours: €15
- 48 hours: €18
- 72 hours: €21
The €12 day ticket is the cheapest child ticket on either bus.
For 24 hours, Big Bus is cheaper for the whole group:
- 1 adult + 1 child: €45 on Big Bus, €48 on City Sightseeing
- 2 adults + 2 children: €74 on Big Bus (family ticket), €96 on City Sightseeing
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What else comes with the ticket
Big Bus names its tickets by length and adds a little more to each:
- Discover (24 hours): four digital walking tours
- Essential (48 hours): one free gelato
- Explore (72 hours): a one-hour evening tour, plus a gelato or a glass of prosecco or a soft drink
The walking tours run on the Vox Pop app in 7 languages, and each starts at a bus stop. They are Rome of the Emperors, Secret Rome, Squares and Fountains, and La Dolce Vita. Rome of the Emperors begins at Stop 3 or Stop 5; with the Colosseum stop closed, start at Piazza Venezia. The evening tour leaves at 8:20 pm and 8:30 pm, and it’s the only way to see Rome lit up from either company’s buses. For the gelato, show your ticket to a Big Bus staff member, collect a paper receipt and take it to a participating The Gelatist shop. The drink is served at Angie’s on Piazza Mignanelli, a minute from the Spanish Steps.
City Sightseeing’s real extra is the Yellow Route. It also includes one self-guided walking tour of the centre, in 5 languages, on its Sightseeing Experience app.
Both have commentary in 8 languages and free WiFi. Big Bus offers Japanese and Brazilian Portuguese; City Sightseeing has Russian instead of Japanese. There is also a City Sightseeing maxi combo pass which includes a hop-on hop-off tour for 48 hours through Red and Yellow routes and entrance tickets for the Colosseum and Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel. It is priced at around €127 per adult.
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Booking and on the day
Both companies send a voucher you can show on your phone, so there’s nothing to print or collect. Both let you cancel free up to 24 hours ahead, with no refund after that.
If you’re booking from the UK, the US or anywhere else before your dates are fixed, Big Bus is the more forgiving ticket. It can be used up to 14 days before or after the date you choose, apart from the 3-hour Taster, which is valid only on the day of purchase. You can redeem it at any stop or at the Big Bus shop at Via delle Terme di Diocleziano 34, a short walk from Termini. City Sightseeing’s 24-, 48- and 72-hour tickets start when you first board.
Both buses are wheelchair accessible. Expect some changes on the day, because stops, as they are strategically located near Rome’s major attractions, and times move with traffic, events and roadworks. City Sightseeing gives you an updated map on board, and Big Bus staff at the stops know the day’s changes.
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City Sightseeing Rome vs Big Bus: Which one should you book?
Start with your list of sights. If everything on it sits on the shared red loop, Big Bus is the stronger choice. It’s cheaper from 24 hours up, you’ll wait about half as long at each stop, and it runs an hour later. The 72-hour Explore ticket adds the evening tour, which nothing on City Sightseeing matches. If you want to know about the details of the routes, you can read Rome Hop-On Hop-Off Bus Routes: A Detailed Guide.
If Piazza Navona, the Pantheon and San Giovanni in Laterano are high on your list, City Sightseeing earns its place, as long as you ride the Yellow Route before mid-afternoon. It’s also the better pick for a single €18 loop to get your bearings on arrival, or for a one-day ticket with children at €12 each.
