Sky Hop Bus Tokyo — Local services in Tokyo

It does not matter what score I give this trip because it's clearly popular, over capacity and you are probably only reading this after you bought tickets.

But I'll start with the good. The blue trip is a unique experience over Rainbow bridge on an open top double decker bus. The views are amazing, you get a short time on a highway, and I had an excellent time on this segment. Alternatives are Yurikamome train or walking over the bridge, but honestly the bus was the most exciting one.

Be sure to sit on the left hand side of the bus if possible. Because they drive on the left of the road, you won't be peering over others to see the sites.

Now on to the bad. Staff very rude to me telling me not to eat on the bus when I was eating in the queue well before boarding. And then later an Asian looking couple on the bus were using an umbrella on the top deck with no staff saying anything. Show me where it is forbidden to eat in public. Double standards. There is no place for this racism like this.

I took the red route after the blue and it was just a snooze fest. Considering you can just walk between Sky Tree and Asakusa, I would just recommend doing that instead. The trouble is the most exciting parts of Asakusa are by foot only, so the bus simply can't get anywhere near it. Sure it's faster to take the bus to get the sites, but if you can't even see the sites, just drive vaguely past them and not see them, then what's the point?

The design of Tokyo is such that unless you are at key points of interest, there is just nothing but non descript buildings and blandness in-between. And considering it was grid-locked traffic most of the time, it made for a pretty boring time. This isn't a fault of the tour bus company and there isn't much that can be done to fix this I'm afraid. Just don't take a tour bus.

Don't go in thinking this is a hop-on hop-off experience. I watched with my own eyes people not be able to get on at stops along the way. And if you miss that bus, then you'll be waiting hours for the next one.

And finally the price. On one hand I would say 4500 per person is insanely expensive for the quality of the experience and couldn't recommend. On the other hand, the sheer level of demand for this service outstrips supply and they should actually be charging more. Despite my complaints about a bus tour being inappropriate for Tokyo, from a business perspective it is just begging for more competition (there is another company literally meters away at marunouchi station) or more frequent buses.

If you have the good fortune of reading this before deciding to buy. Please don't. If somehow you literally have 1 or 2 days to see the whole of Tokyo in one go, this doesn't help. Your one day will be spent being bored trying to get glimpses of temples you could easily have walked to in the same time.

If you already bought your ticket. Please just do a full round trip of the blue line. It's the only part of this experience that was enjoyable and in any way a...

A friend and I rode Sky Hop On/Off Bus Tokyo one day during a warm September 2024 week. It was a frustrating, confusing experience that is CLEARLY DESIGNED to keep you OFF their busses. Speaking of busses, they are not all open top. From MY observation, 4 out of 5 are regular busses.

Negatives: Since I could not find a competitor, we tried this company despite reviews.

Read other negative reviews! Compared to my experience, many are accurate.

Why do I say Sky Hop On/Off Tokyo is CLEARLY DESIGNED to keep you OFF their busses? You cannot stay on your bus for its whole route. (only exception: you start at Mitsubishi)

It does not matter when or where you get ON (except Mitsubishi), you are forced to get off your bus when it arrives at their interchange stop at the Marunouchi Mitsubishi Building.

You can get off at other stops, if you want. But, when you get back on, you will be forced off at Mitsubishi. This is not said on their website. All routes go to Mitsubishi. Plan your schedule accordingly, if you want to use this company.

We first got on the bus at the bus stop in Ginza and bought our tickets. One or two stops later, the employee made us get off at Mitsubishi! They had customers in lines along the sidewalk who are waiting to get on or back on the busses. My friend and I got in the back of the line. While standing there, we saw multiple busses pull up to let lots of confused customers off. We waited in line 20-30 minutes. I am sure the wait would be longer when there are more people in line. If the bus gets full while you're in line, it will take, at least, another 20-30 minutes until another bus arrives. (See their schedule!!)

Positives: -The staff seems to be hardworking individuals. The buses are clean and air...

I used the 2-day Sky Hop Bus pass on March 28–29. I had enjoyed this service in Kyoto, so I expected the same in Tokyo—but I was very disappointed.

On March 28, I went early (around 10:20 AM) to Marunouchi to pick up my physical ticket for the Green Route. A male staff member rudely told me to come “on time” without listening to my explanation. He treated me like I had arrived late for the Red Route, when in fact, I wasn’t even trying to board yet. Another male staff was just as unhelpful. It wasn’t until I asked a female staff member that I finally received my ticket.

Later that day, I waited at a stop with four other people. Only one seat was available. I was the only one allowed to board, and the others were left behind. It felt extremely unfair and poorly managed, especially since no staff helped manage the line or situation.

The next day, March 29, it was raining. I noticed other passengers receiving ponchos, so I politely asked a female staff if I could have one too. Before she could answer, the same male staff from the day before cut in and told me I couldn’t get one unless I sat in the uncovered area—something that contradicts the official pamphlet. His tone was again unpleasant.

As a solo East Asian woman, I also felt singled out. I was told to fasten my seatbelt while others around me weren’t wearing theirs. I understand the importance of safety, but the fact that I was the only one repeatedly told felt unnecessarily targeted—perhaps because I was alone, and staff found it easier to speak to me.

If you’re considering hop-on-hop-off buses in Tokyo, I recommend looking for more courteous and organised options. This one left me...