LA Bus Tours= how do they work?

[JC Butterfly]

I'm thinking of taking a day trip to Hollywood and thought that a bus tour might be the way to go, but are you basically just stuck on the bus taking pictures of things? Or do you get out and look around a little? Or do you just get out take the photo and go?

Is there a bathroom on the bus then? Lunch stops?

 

[Buckimion]

I'm thinking of taking a day trip to Hollywood and thought that a bus tour might be the way to go, but are you basically just stuck on the bus taking pictures of things? Or do you get out and look around a little? Or do you just get out take the photo and go?

Is there a bathroom on the bus then? Lunch stops?

MOST (but maybe not all) busses have restrooms on the bus...depends on the length of the tour. There are frequent stops at the most popular destinations. IMO, some stops are WAY overdone. (One tour stayed nearly 2 hours out of 8 at the Beverly Center. Likewise, another couple of hours at Venice Beach.) Ususally the longer tours have lunch stops either at the Beverly Center and/or the Farmer's Market.

 

[darner]

We found the smaller the bus, the better the tour... we took a van tour w/ 10 people total and were able to see more things (IMHO), plus when you do stop, there are less people to wait for to return.

we did one a few years back that went up to BelAir, Hollywood Hills, Mulholland Drive overlook, Beverly Center, Rodeo Drive, Hollywood walk of fame, Grauman's Theatre, Hard Rock for lunch, Chandler Center downtown, etc... There's enough time to find restrooms at most places when you do stop.

It's fun hearing the tour guide's stories of the stars homes, etc... all taken "with a grain of salt" but interesting none-the-less...

I think the tour guide him/herself can make or break a tour no matter what the duration.

 

[Buckimion]

We found the smaller the bus, the better the tour... we took a van tour w/ 10 people total and were able to see more things (IMHO), plus when you do stop, there are less people to wait for to return.

we did one a few years back that went up to BelAir, Hollywood Hills, Mulholland Drive overlook, Beverly Center, Rodeo Drive, Hollywood walk of fame, Grauman's Theatre, Hard Rock for lunch, Chandler Center downtown, etc... There's enough time to find restrooms at most places when you do stop.

It's fun hearing the tour guide's stories of the stars homes, etc... all taken "with a grain of salt" but interesting none-the-less...

I think the tour guide him/herself can make or break a tour no matter what the duration.

Agree - The smaller group size allowed does make for a better tour. Our tour was in a large, greyhound-style bus w/restroom but we didn't get much interaction from the driver other than 'Here you are'. We had fun, but I've designed our own tours for this year's trip to catch everything >I< want...and move on when we're ready.