The Original Tour
 | |
.JPG) The Original Tour's VLE620, an East Lancashire Optare Visionaire registered LJ07UDD, at the Windsor tour terminus outside the castle. | |
| Formerly | London Coaches, The Original Sightseeing Tour, Tootbus London |
|---|---|
| Parent | First Bus London |
| Founded | June 1951 |
| Headquarters | Wandsworth Garage |
| Service area | Central London |
| Service type | Tourist bus operator |
| Routes | 4 |
| Depots | 1 |
| Fleet | 90 (September 2014) |
| Website | www.theoriginaltour.com |
The Original Tour, formerly Tootbus London[1][2][3] is a London bus tour operator using open-top double-decker buses. Based in Wandsworth, it is a subsidiary of First Bus London.
History
[edit source]
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The Original Tour was founded in by June 1951 by the London Transport Executive at the time of The Festival of Britain. In 1986 it was privatised, being sold to London Coaches / Blue Triangle. In December 1997 it was sold to Arriva. In March 2001 the London Pride Sightseeing business was purchased.[4][5]
In September 2014, the business was sold to RATP Dev.[6][7] The business was rebranded to Tootbus London in July 2021, in line with other RATP Dev-owned sightseeing operations being rebranded under the Tootbus identity.[8]
In December 2025, the company was acquired by FirstGroup[9][10] and renamed as The Original Tour on the 75th anniversary of the company.[11]
Sightseeing tours
[edit source]After purchase of a 24-hour ticket, 48-hour ticket or 72-hour ticket, ticket-holders may board any of the tour routes at over 40 different stops without another charge. Services operate daily, with a recorded audio guide in English and several other languages which can be listened to with headphones. A river cruise is also included in the ticket price.
The Original Tour operates three sightseeing routes, which are as follows:[12]
| Route name | Places served | Frequency | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow Route | Tower Bridge, Tower of London, St Paul's Cathedral, London Eye, Big Ben, Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, Piccadilly Circus, Trafalgar Square, National Gallery, Downing Street, Borough Market, etc. | 15–20 minutes | Route also includes a children's audio guide in English and French. |
| Royal Blue Route | Buckingham Palace, Lambeth Palace, London Eye, Big Ben, Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, Downing Street, Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus, Harrods, South Kensington, Kensington Palace, Hyde Park, Notting Hill, Marble Arch, etc. | 20–30 minutes | |
| Green Route | Russell Square, King's Cross, St Pancras International station, Euston station, British Museum, Leicester Square, National Portrait Gallery, Trafalgar Square, Covent Garden, Somerset House and Aldwych | 30 minutes |
Pre-recorded audio guides are provided on all routes in English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Japanese, Brazilian, Chinese, Russian and Arabic as well as a children's audio guide in English and French on the Yellow Route.
Fares
[edit source]The Original Tour tickets are valid for one to three days. Each ticket includes access to all tour routes and the Thames River Cruise.[13]
Transport for London
[edit source]In May 2004 The Original Tour became a Transport for London (TfL) contracted bus operator when it commenced operating route 337, the first time a route service had operated out of Wandsworth garage since 1986. Buses operated with Arriva London branding, but under The Original Tour's operating licence.[14][15] When next tendered, route 337 passed to London General in May 2011 and The Original Tour ceased being a TfL operator.[16][17]
Fleet
[edit source]Historically the fleet consisted of former double deck route buses, that after being converted to open top configuration, were given a second life. However, in 2005 ten Ayats Bravo City bodied Volvo B7Ls were purchased new.[18] As at September 2014, the fleet consisted of 90 buses.[6] The fleet include Ayats Bravo City bodied Volvo B7Ls, Plaxton President bodied DAF DB250, Optare Visionaire or MCV DD103 bodied Volvo B9TL, Scania Omnicity buses, and the new purchased Unvi Urbis electric bus.[19]
In November 2023, it was announced that the fleet of 15 Optare Visionaire bodied Volvo B9TL would be retrofitted with electric drivertrains to make them battery electric buses.[20][21]
See also
[edit source]References
[edit source]- ↑ Companies House extract company no 2328599 The Original Tour Limited
- ↑ "World's first hop-on, hop-off tour returns". Bus and Coach Buyer. 1 July 2026. Retrieved 29 June 2026.
- ↑ "The Original Tour Returns Under Its' Original Name". UKInbound. 29 June 2026. Retrieved 29 June 2026.
- ↑ About The Award Winning London Original Sightseeing Tour Original Tour
- ↑ The History of EnsignBus Ensignbus
- 1 2 RATP Dev acquires leading London sightseeing operator Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine RATP Dev
- ↑ "RATP buys Original Tour from Arriva" Buses Magazine issue 716 November 2014 page 7
- ↑ Dennis, Juliet (28 May 2021). "The Original Tour and Bath Bus Company rebranded to Tootbus". Travel Weekly. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
- ↑ "FirstGroup plc acquires sightseeing bus operations | First Bus". www.firstbus.co.uk. Retrieved 12 June 2026.
- ↑ "FirstGroup PLC acquisition of sightseeing bus operations in London and Bath". londonstockexchange.com. 11 December 2025. Retrieved 12 June 2026.
- ↑ "Iconic London hop-on hop-off sightseeing tour turns 75". London Now. 12 June 2026. Retrieved 2 July 2026.
- ↑ Hop-on Hop-off & Themed tours Tootbus London
- ↑ London Hop-on Hop-off bus and River Cruise Tootbus London
- ↑ Bus tender results Route 337 Transport for London 2 February 2004
- ↑ "Arriva London" Buses Magazine issue 590 April 2004 page 66
- ↑ Bus tender results Route 337 Transport for London 6 September 2010
- ↑ "Route back by popular demand" Bus Talk issue 10 June 2011
- ↑ New order gives the original tour the first new open top buses in London Arriva 1 June 2005
- ↑ "Quack77 - Tootbus fleet list". buslists.uk. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
- ↑ Team, routeone (14 November 2023). "Magtec to repower 15 Tootbus B9TL open-tops to battery-electric". routeone. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
- ↑ "Tootbus engages Magtec to repower 15 open top buses in London". Sustainable Bus. 14 November 2023. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
External links
[edit source]
Media related to Tootbus at Wikimedia Commons- Media related to The Original Tour at Wikimedia Commons
- Company website
