Sightseeing bus. The double-decker bus is the best tourist transport. How to book an excursion

Running on gasoline, originates in the 19th century. Since then, this type of mechanical transport has undergone significant changes and has gained great popularity in various areas of life. And this is not surprising - the bus is easy to use, roomy, and its modern models offer maximum comfort.

One of the most interesting models of this transport is the double-decker bus. At one time it was created to increase passenger capacity on London roads. Now such a bus is rarely used as urban transport, but it has found excellent use in the tourism sector.

The double-decker bus is intended mainly for the transport of seated passengers, but has the capacity for long distances. Those who sit on the top floor and have the opportunity to explore the surroundings enjoy a special advantage during excursions. Some models of transport have an open top, which is very popular with tourists, but not suitable for rainy days.

The advantages of a bus with two floors are obvious. It accommodates twice as many passengers as a regular one; possesses high maneuverability and dynamics; is highly attractive to tourists. There is a misconception that these buses are prone to rollover, but in fact, they are all equipped with an anti-rollover mechanism.

It is worth considering that a double-decker bus has a number of inconveniences. In particular, a high garage of great height and the development of a route that excludes low bridges and the proximity of trees.

Now double-decker buses are produced by several companies from different countries. Among them are the Swedish concern Volvo, the German company MAN and its subsidiary NEOMAN, as well as the German bus manufacturer Mersedes-Benz.

Travel companies willingly use the MAN bus for excursions. The Man Wagon Union model has a large retractable roof, which allows you to view long distances in the warm season. This model is used exclusively as a tourist bus.

For a large group of passengers, the Man Jonckheere model is ideal. It is designed for 75 seats, equipped with air conditioning, a microphone, a DVD system and a toilet.

The Man Lion, s City DD model, designed for 85 passengers, has an even greater capacity. This bus is the epitome of transport comfort. It provides places and ramps for the disabled, wide aisles, a spacious store with folding backs, two stairs. Moreover, the staircase on the back platform is designed so that you can go directly to the second floor, bypassing the first. The bus has three wide entrances and a low-floor ground floor with no steps. The height of this model is more than 4 meters, so the view from the second floor gives an amazing feeling. Driving a bus is pure pleasure - everything is aimed at reducing fatigue and distracting the driver. The work of the liner is “monitored” by a special computer program.

The double-decker bus is increasingly being introduced into the tourism sector, as it fully pays for its costs. Tourists always prefer a double decker for trips. In addition, it benefits from a large capacity.

Moscow is majestic and incredibly beautiful, sightseeing routes can be very diverse, exciting and truly exciting. A walk through the main sights of the capital is the best way to get acquainted with the history and life of the city, and excursions on a red double-decker bus around Moscow will just satisfy the needs of tourists and help you spend your day in the most comfortable and informative way.

Excursion program

If you are a guest of the capital or just a Muscovite who wants to fill in the gaps in the memory of the history of your city and enjoy the landscapes and stunningly beautiful architectural structures, then buy Moscow tours by bus, a Moscow tour by bus is a trip thanks to which every local and a visiting "capital" tourist will be able to learn and discover something new, something that he probably did not even know about.

Sightseeing tours around the city can be both multi-day (two-day) and single (one day or 24 hours). As a rule, the route on the red bus passes a small circle, but at the same time, such tours allow passengers to get off the bus at any place, and then just likewise enter another bus running on an identical route.

Excursions around Moscow on a double-decker bus from City Sightseeing are of only two types. The first view is red, on the red bus No. 1, and the second is green, No. 2. These sightseeing tours have the same schedule, but their length and route are different.

In the first and second cases, i.e. in "red" and "green" - the trip starts from one place, namely from Bolotnaya Square, but in the first case there are 18 stops, and in the second - 30.

We bring to your attention the route and the main attractions at each stop, which passes the first - "red" bus with route number "1":

• Bolotnaya embankment (square). There are not many sights here, the embankment is better known for its historical events, such as the punishment of Yemelyan Pugachev, and other public executions. In the 18th century, there were a large number of monastic and princely gardens and kitchen gardens on the square, festivities were held and trade was conducted. But now it is a beautiful, ennobled park area, with a large number of shops, flower beds, monuments - I.E. Repin, the sculptural composition “Children are victims of the vices of adults”, the Luzhkov Bridge and its iron “Trees of Love” and just playgrounds where you can go for a walk with your family.
• House on the embankment (cinema "Drummer"). Built in the style of constructivism, the cinema building has a rich history and is the first cinema in Moscow to show sound films.
• Bolshoy Kamenny Bridge across the Moscow River. This bridge, which has long been “not stone”, is one of the main places where tourists come to enjoy the picturesque panorama that opens on the walls of the Kremlin, the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, the Archangel Cathedral, the Government House and other iconic sights of the capital.
• State Museum of Fine Arts named after A.S. Pushkin. Well, there is no need to talk about this place. The Pushkin Museum was founded back in 1898, although it was called the Museum of Fine Arts and the name of Alexander III, but even since then the museum has been not just a university research center, it has been a place where the most incredible and authentic works of art of antiquity and modernity are collected.
• Moscow metro station "Kropotkinskaya". In addition to the marble-granite metro station itself, awarded the Grand Prix at the exhibition in Paris and Brussels, there are such famous sights on the surface as the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, the Patriarchal Bridge, the Library. Lenin, a monument to Alexander II, as well as a huge number of museums and galleries.
• Lane Sivtsev Vrazhek. The lane is located between Gogolevsky Boulevard and per. Cash, on the very lane. Sivtsev Vrazhek is something to see. There is a huge number of residential buildings in which very famous actors, writers, top military leaders, doctors and many other public figures of the Soviet period used to live.
• Arbat Gate Square (Arbat Square). The square begins to come to life and fill with new colors in the evening and gathers a huge number of people on its territory. Here is the ground lobby of the Arbatskaya metro station, the Arbat Gate Square, the Mansion of the merchant Morozov, the Prague restaurant, the Peace Wall, the monument to N.V. Gogol, if you walk through these places, then the evening tour promises to be very interesting.
• Mokhovaya street (Alexandrovsky garden). Driving along Makhovaya Street, you can see such sights as the Russian State Library, the monument to F.M. Dostoevsky, if you go to the parallel street (Manezhnaya), you can get to the Alexander Garden itself and to the northwestern wall of the Kremlin.
• Street and metro station "Okhotny Ryad". Passing by Manezhnaya Square, the Geological Museum, you can see the famous "Okhotnoryadskaya" street, where the Building of the Council of Labor and Defense, the hotel "Moscow", the lobby of the metro station in the house "Okhotny Ryad" and the house of the Unions are located.
• theatre square. Immediately after Okhotny Ryad, Teatralnaya Square begins, on which the Bolshoi, Molodezhny and Maly Theaters are located, the combined lobby of the Moscow metro stations Teatralnaya and Okhotny Ryad, the Metropol Hotel, as well as monuments to Vysotsky, Ostrovsky and Marx.
• Lubyanka metro station (Lubyanskaya sq.). When the sightseeing tour of Moscow reaches this square, it is better to get off the bus and walk around the square on foot, observing the entire architectural ensemble. On the square there is the Building of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation, the Biblio-Globus Trade House, the KGB Computing Center, the Square and the Solovetsky Stone monument, the Detsky Mir department store, a museum and many other interesting buildings that require only multi-day excursions.
• Upper trading rows, GUM. An incredibly large shopping complex located and looking at the main square of the country with its “face”, is still a “general store” where you can not only buy goods, but also drink coffee in a cozy cafe and watch people passing by.
• Red Square. The most popular and demanded trip to the main square of Moscow is the New Year's excursion. During this fabulous period, the square itself is transformed, a huge New Year tree and an ice rink appear on it, which first appeared on the square back in 2006. Of course, on other days and seasons, there are places to go and things to see on the square. These are St. Basil's Cathedral, a museum, the well-known mausoleum, the Execution Ground, the Upper and Middle Trading Rows, etc. Tourists are allowed to take “selfies” and shoot videos in the square and indoors.
• Bolshoi Moskvoretsky Bridge. After the square, on a sightseeing red bus, you will pass along the Bolshoi Moskvoretsky Bridge, which stretches across the Moskva River, and then you will get to Balchug Street.
• Balchug street. Further excursions on a double-decker bus in Moscow are almost over, on this street you can look at the Balguch Kempinski hotel and the Balguch Plaza business center.
• Confectionery factory "Red October". Then the trip on the official City Sightseeing bus continues to the Krasny Oktyabr factory, founded back in 1851 and producing such famous sweets as Alyonka, Mishka kosolapy, Kara-Kum, Golden Key, etc.
• Cinema "Drummer". This "red" tour begins to finally close, returning to the famous cinema.
• Balchug street. Then again the tour leads to Balchug Street, and from there to Bolotnaya Square, where the bus picks up new passengers.

"Green" route No. 2 also passes half of the listed attractions, and also includes such famous places as Stary Arbat, Novospassky, Patriarchal, Bolshoy Ustinsky and Borodinsky bridges, Novospassky Monastery, Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul and others.

How to book an excursion

The tour can be booked online, which makes the "Moscow" route through the sights. To do this, you need to go to the official website or the website of City Sightseeing partners and make a purchase.

You can arrange both two-day and one-day excursions and pay for the ticket using the PayPal payment system.

Day Tour by City Sightseeing Bus

Day trips or 2 day trips on a red double decker are very convenient. At any time of the day, namely starting from 10:00 am, you can board a red double decker anywhere along the plying route.

There will be no need to look for buses at the station, as they stop at the "red" signs that are located around the city. The main and main stop of both routes is Bolotnaya Square near the monument.

red bus timetable

The double-decker tour bus has two schedules:

• From May to October: the first flight leaves at 10 am and the last one at 17:15. On weekends, the last "first" route leaves the square at 18:30, and the "second" green one half an hour earlier, i.e. at 18:00.
• From November to April: the first flight on weekdays departs at 10:00, the last "red" and "green" flights at 17:00 and 16:00, respectively, on weekends and holidays at 18:00 and at 17:00.

Sometimes, due to the condition of the roads, possible repairs, due to possible Moscow traffic jams and other unforeseen circumstances, the schedule and the route itself, along which the double decker runs, may change without prior notice to passengers.

The duration of the first red bus running along route No. 1 lasts an average of 1 hour, while the double decker stops at the most remarkable sights for 10 minutes, throughout the route you can listen to an audio guide that tells about historical incidents and about the sights themselves on 8 languages ​​of the world.

In terms of length, flight No. 1 takes about 10 km of the way, but it passes them in an hour, so that all tourists can take full-fledged and high-quality photographs from the second floor of the bus. Route No. 2 is twice as long as the first (20 km), therefore, more time will be spent on the trip, namely 1.5-2 hours, depending on the state of the roads and congestion.

Excursion red double-deckers run daily, seven days a week, multi-day (more than 2 days) or excursions from Moscow are not provided, since the bus makes its flight along the route within the Moscow Ring Road and in one hour.

But those who purchased a ticket on the spot or via the Internet are given the opportunity to use the services of the bus for one or two days, getting on and off the board at any time of the day until 18:00, the so-called "hop-on hop-off".

Prices for sightseeing tours in Moscow

In general, the price of a ticket for a red sightseeing double decker in Moscow depends on several factors.:

1. The ticket price is different for residents and foreign travelers. For the latter, it is a little more expensive than for Muscovites or people living in other regions of Russia.
2. The ticket price depends on the number of days, there are two options: either 1 day, i.e. 24 hours or two days.
3. The ticket price differs depending on which category of passengers you belong to. For adult residents, the cost of 1 day excursion is 1,000 rubles per person, for pensioners and students - 800 rubles, for children (from 0 to 6 years old), disabled people of the 1st group and veterans of the Great Patriotic War - free of charge. For children over 6 years old and disabled people of groups 2 and 3 - 600 rubles.

It is also possible to purchase a small discount by choosing the family rate, if the family consists of two adults and one child - 2,400 rubles for all, two adults + two children - 2,800, two + three - 3,200 rubles.

On average in Moscow, ordering a bus for an excursion starts from 700 rubles per hour. Therefore, if you purchase a hop-on hop-off ticket, then you save at least 10 times the cost of the tour.

Having spent only 1000 rubles, you have the opportunity to ride around Moscow sights throughout the day and at any time convenient for you.

At the end of July, a second excursion route was launched in Moscow on double-decker buses, which runs through the western part of the center of Moscow. The line runs along Novy Arbat, Shevchenko embankment, along Borodinsky bridge, Smolenskaya and Mokhovaya streets, along Ilyinka and past Vasilyevsky Spusk.

We managed to take part in the first voyage of the new route of the red double decker, as well as take a river trip on a sightseeing boat.

Buses depart from Bolotnaya Embankment; the stop is located at the Luzhkov bridge, next to the monument to Repin.

Double deckers and motor ships operate on the principle of Hop On Hop Off, when a tourist can get off for sightseeing at any stop along the tour, and then return and continue the tour on the next bus or water bus.

The fare is 600 rubles for adults, 500 rubles for children over 5 years old, students and pensioners. A free ticket is provided for children under 5 years old. The pass is valid 24 hours. The same conditions apply for sightseeing trips on the ship.

I will add that you can also purchase a combined ticket, which gives you the right to ride buses and ships an unlimited number of times within 48 hours and save a little on each service. The cost of such a ticket is one thousand rubles; it is valid for 24 hours from the moment of the first pass on the bus and within 24 hours from the moment of entering the deck of the excursion boat.

When traveling on a double decker, it is better to sit on the second floor, not only because of the panoramic views and the refreshing summer wind, but also the opportunity to avoid the crush. On the second route, the length of which is 17 kilometers, 32 stops are planned, almost at each of which tourists will get off and on.

Thus, for those who want to drive a full circle without getting off the bus, the second floor guarantees freedom from fuss. The trip will take about an hour and a half, depending on the traffic situation.

The intervals between buses at each stop range from half an hour to 40 minutes. Summer schedule of double deckers, from April to November, from 10:00 to 18:00 (excursion "Golden-domed Moscow") and from 19:00 to 21:30 (excursion "Evening Moscow") on weekdays, as well as from 10:00 to 19:00 and from 19:00 to 22:30 on weekends, respectively.

River buses run a little less often - every hour from 11:00 to midnight, but after 22:00 flights are operated according to the actual weather.

Buses and motor ships are equipped with an audio system for sounding tours in eight languages: Russian, English, German, Spanish, French, Chinese, Italian and Arabic.

Headphones are given free of charge, but their quality does not allow you to enjoy the sound. Mine, for example, fell apart after half an hour, so I had to use my own headphones. In addition, during the movement, due to the roar of the motors, the words of the guide can sometimes not be made out, so you have to listen to the tour at full volume.

There is one more drawback: as it turned out, not all slots work properly. For example, my headphone jack was broken and I had to use my neighbor's jack.

One of the main advantages of a tour of Moscow on a double-decker bus is the opportunity to see the sights at eye level.

Stucco moldings, bay windows and other decorative elements, which pedestrians can only see with their heads held high, are visible on the second floor of the bus almost at a distance of a couple of meters.

And the endless Moscow traffic jams are only an assistant in this.

The slower the bus moves, the more chances to see the architectural details.

However, we must pay tribute to the capital's roads at noon on a weekday, when we went on an excursion.

We only stood for about five minutes a couple of times at traffic lights. Once, however, we got stuck on Gogolevsky Boulevard, losing ten minutes in a traffic jam.

And if the loss of time seems not such a significant drawback of a pleasant walk on a double decker, then the music playing in the headphones in between stories about the sights is clearly an amateur.

Get ready for songs about Moscow performed by Oleg Gazmanov, Alexander Rosembaum, Vladimir Vysotsky and the Bravo group.

Despite some shortcomings of this kind of excursions, this is one of the most pleasant ways to see Moscow without looking at the roofs of cars.

In one hour, a red sightseeing boat with the logo of the City Sightseeing brand makes its way around the Golden Island along the Vodootvodny Canal and enters Gorky Park.

In total there are 33 seats on board.

The view from the open area is much better, but in cold weather and rain you can hide in the covered part of the deck.

Unlike a bus tour, during a river walk, there are a little less stories about the sights that the ship sails past and more music sounds.

It is better to sail in clear and sunny weather.

The gray sky and rains, if they add romance, then until the first goosebumps appear.

During cool weather, tourists are given blankets.

Excursion river trams run only in the warm season, from May to November.

We traveled by bus and boat around Moscow in a total of two and a half hours.

And, in my opinion, this is the best option for exploring the center of the capital in such a short time. You can have time to see all the key sights, but for those who are not in Moscow for the first time, enjoy the views of the cities from the second floor of the double decker and the deck of the ship.

Double-decker sightseeing tours popular around the world are operated by City Sightseeing. Buses of corporate red color, with the names of cities on the body, run in more than a hundred cities of the world.

In Moscow, the first line was launched in August last year, and by the end of 2013 the company will open another route through the Russian capital.

Natalia Staroverova

In September, progress in the tourism sector came to Moscow! As in all European cities, City Sihgtseeng double-decker sightseeing buses appeared in Moscow. Of course, we did not pass by this event and decided to take a tour on a red double-decker bus around the beautiful Moscow.

It is clear that it is difficult to surprise me with a trip around the Kremlin, but innate curiosity won. The appearance of City Sihgtseeng sightseeing buses is certainly a breakthrough; in many European cities such buses have existed for a long time. But everything in Moscow cannot be like in Europe, because we have our own secrets.
How did the organizers solve the issue of traffic jams? What do we show tourists in Moscow besides the Kremlin?
In general, let's go!

Task number 1. Choose a time for the tour

Opening hours of the double-decker bus: from 10-00 to 18-00 on weekdays, from 10-00 to 19-00 on weekends.
The ticket is valid for 24 hours and cost me 600 rubles.
I went on an excursion on weekdays from 17-00 to 18-00, and naturally the bus was stuck in traffic jams for some time. In order to breathe less exhaust gases, I advise you to go on an excursion on weekends or on weekdays during the daytime.
By the way, there are also night tours: from 20-00 to 21-30 on weekdays, from 19-30 to 22-00 on weekends.

Task number 2. How to find the red tour bus

I managed to find a stop at the very beginning of the bus movement - on Bolotnaya Square. How it looks can be seen in the photo. A small inconspicuous red pillar next to the monuments, opposite the bridge in front of the Tretyakov Gallery, on which there are numerous trees with castles.
In my opinion, it is more convenient to get on the bus at the Teatralnaya Ploshchad bus stop, which is located opposite the Bolshoi Theatre. Here, the metro is nearby, and it’s hard not to notice the stop, or rather the bus itself.
Finding other stops is quite problematic, since they do not have any identification marks.

Task number 3. Deal with prices

Ticket price for one day: adult 800 rubles, children under 13, students and pensioners - 600 rubles.

Ticket price for two days: adults (14-59): 1000 rubles, children (6-13 years old): 800 rubles, pensioners (60+): 800 rubles, students -800 rubles.

This price includes the following bonuses: free headphones, a lot of free maps and guides around Moscow on the first floor of the bus, a 10% discount with a ticket for city tour services in other cities. Also on the ground floor, a handsome guy offers to use a blanket for the duration of the walk, which will not hurt on a cool day.
The tour is conducted in two languages ​​- Russian and English.
But this is a surprise! Apparently, the French, Germans, Spaniards, Japanese, etc. do not come to us ... But we demand that in any hotel in the world they speak Russian with us!

Task number 4. Understand the route of the tour bus

There are currently two bus routes.

Route number 1- Bolotnaya embankment, Serafimovich St., Prechistenskaya Embankment, Volkhonka St., Gogolevsky Boulevard, Arbatskaya Square, Znamenka St., Mokhovaya St., Okhotny Ryad St., Teatralnaya Square, Lubyanskaya Square, Red Square (Vasilyevsky Spusk), Balchug St., Sofiyskaya Embankment

Route number 2 - Bolotnaya embankment, st. Serafimovich, Mokhovaya st., st. Vozdvizhenka, Novy Arbat st., Kutuzovsky prospect, Ukrainian Boulevard, Taras Shevchenko embankment, st. Bolshaya Dorogomilovskaya, st. Smolenskaya, Smolenskaya-Sennaya Square, Smolensky Boulevard, Smolenskaya Square, Novinsky Boulevard, st. New Arbat, Gogolevsky Boulevard, Soymonovsky passage, st. Znamenka, st. Mokhovaya, Okhotny Ryad St., Theater Square, Teatralny Proezd, Lubyanskaya Square, New Square, st. Ilyinka, Red Square, st. Bolotnaya, Bolotnaya square, Sofia embankment, st. Balchug, Lubochny Lane.

We tried route #1.

Bus route number 1 includes 18 stops, a full circle lasts about 40 minutes. See the map below.

View City Tour in a larger map
As you can see from the route, all these sights can be walked around in 40 minutes. I do not understand the need for such a bus on such a route. Usually, sightseeing buses ride in a large circle, pass a route that the tourist himself may not be able to master. Well, for example, he does not know how to get to all the sights by metro. Or you just can't figure out the itinerary. And so he comes, pays about 20 euros in Europe and is given a tour in his native language, a well-planned route and a complete picture of the city.
With us, you need to know English or Russian and think that in Moscow the sights are the Kremlin and Mega.
Feel, again smells of Russian spirit. The main thing is that they did, reported, ticked the box. And it is not necessary to think about those who will use this miracle.

I'm going, I'm going, I'm going

I found a bus, bought a ticket, armed myself with guidebooks, prepared to listen. Another task is to find a working radio point. Strange as it may seem, some of them didn't work. And this is provided that the excursion route was launched about a month ago. It’s good that there were not very many people on the bus, and you could choose seats. The bus during my trip was filled by 20 percent, while the first floor was completely empty. Not a season.

To be honest, a few things blew me away during the trip.
The route in my opinion is very short, the circle could have been done more.
Everything is very standard: the Bolshoi Theater - the Kremlin - the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. The text read on the audio guide is also very mediocre. Where is everything else? Where is the Moscow Art Nouveau and old lanes? Where are the parks and museums?
The organizers, because of people like you, many people think that in Moscow there is only Red Square, traffic jams and everyone is pushing. This beautiful route will further strengthen this idea in the minds of people.

Does a sightseeing tour in Moscow differ from a city tour in Barcelona or Paris? The double-decker bus itself is the same. The only difference is the presence of a roof and anti-vandal radio stations.
There is no registration of stops in Moscow, while in other cities it is clear to tourists where the stop is.
There are also not enough non-stationary information points where you could get some information about the tour.
Also in Moscow, you need to be prepared for traffic jams, and for the fact that you will have to absorb the exhaust gases of cars standing in them in huge quantities.

But there are also positive impressions. From the height of the second floor of the bus, I took good photos, I especially liked the street spans and the view of the Kremlin from the Zamoskvoretsky bridge.

From all of the above, we can conclude that Moscow really began to do something to develop tourism. But for now, we are at the very beginning of the journey.

Well, we are waiting for the appearance of new routes, because the organizers promise that they will appear soon.
City sightseeing official website: www.city-sightseeing.ru or http://hoponhopoff.ru/

Tour ticket prices depend on the number of participants, type and duration of the tour. You can sort programs by cost, rating, and guest reviews. The list of inexpensive excursions includes historical, architectural, literary and water:

• By historical places. Architectural and historical ones will fill up the baggage of knowledge about the origin of Moscow, the stages of its development, residents, cultural and architectural values. You will be shown the exhibits of famous museums, the heritage of the Kremlin, the magnificent architecture of the capital's mansions and theaters.
• From bird's eye view. We offer unforgettable excursions to the highest points of the capital. Together with your guide, you will see the observation deck of the Moscow City business center, the Ostankino TV tower and climb to the spire of one of the seven Stalin skyscrapers.
• Boat trips. Unhurried cruises along the Moscow River are waiting for you. From the board of the ship or boat, sights will spread in front of you: the Moscow Kremlin, St. Basil's Cathedral, the Luzhniki stadium, the Park. Gorky. Excursions can be combined with a romantic date in a fish restaurant.
• Secrets and mysteries. Walks with diggers along underground rivers and catacombs, an author's excursion to Stalin's bunker, acquaintance with the tunnels of the Moscow metro are waiting for you.