Old Town Trolley Tours — Local services in San Diego

Tepid. Historically shallow. Moderately indifferent to human life.

This tour stands out to me in two phases: 1 a pricey bus tour, extremely short on actual historical substance, and 2 the part after the poor kid on the corner nearly got run over by an indifferent trolley conductor.

First, you Will receive a reasonable lesson in city landmarks, so that was good. +2 stars. The actual history behind them lacks a lot of substance, so I took a star away (-1). Don't worry, I won't turn this into a history lecture, but I will say that there are a lot of significant human stories involved in the foundation of San Diego. What we heard about were largely vapid stories, not worth our money.

I liked the first of our three guides, even if I thought her script lacked substance.

We left her at Barrio Logan, (where "They got Their park," according to Her). To her extreme credit, she told us about Las Cuatro Milpas.

We got back on after a magical time in the barrio, due in part to her advice (+3 stars). The next tour guide was kind of puttering mumbler with some more vapid stories, colored this time by snide commentary(-1). We left after one leg of the trip (Coronado).

Coronado was walked around. It's got a nice beach and pricey stores. We got on another trolley (+1 star for the on-off thing, btw). This driver took us to the next leg of our adventure.

A kid with a skateboard was crossing at a cross walk when she right turned into his path. He managed an eye-popping safety maneuver and even managed to save his board from rolling under. Then she apologized for the break in "entertainment" caused by her having to "keep an eye on the kid with the skateboard." (-All the stars) My wife added, "who had the right of way." (+1).

In Little Italy, the driver informed us that "No Italians or Sicilians live here any more, just Normal People." Then she played a song real loud. You all know the song. Just google "that stereotypical italian song." (-...erm... I give up on points. this review gets 2 stars).

In Little Italy, we got off and summoned an Uber.

PS: The trolley tour doesn't run long enough to make a day of it. It should run until after dinner (7 pm...

I recently had the pleasure of joining a tour guided by the incredible Letter J, and I cannot say enough positive things about the experience. From the moment the tour began, it was evident that Letter J was not only highly knowledgeable but also genuinely passionate about the places we visited.

His storytelling skills were unparalleled, bringing history and culture to life in a way that was both engaging and informative. Letter J's enthusiasm was contagious, and he went above and beyond to ensure everyone in the group was comfortable and having a great time. He was always ready to answer questions, provide additional insights, and offer personalized recommendations.

What truly set Letter J apart was his attention to detail and his ability to connect with each member of the group. Whether it was remembering our names, interests, or specific needs, he made everyone feel valued and included. His professionalism, combined with a warm and friendly demeanor, made the tour an unforgettable experience.

If you're looking for a tour guide who is knowledgeable, personable, and dedicated to providing an exceptional experience, I highly recommend Letter J. He truly made our trip memorable, and we can't wait to join another tour with him...

TERRIBLE “customer service” from Rick in Old Town. We paid for Trolley and haunted house and was told we only paid to go to haunted house and back - no hop on hop off. Wanted to charge us US$56 pp to hop on the “hop on hop off” trolley back to port instead of the pink trolley. We get back to port and BUY hop on hop off trolley tickets ( different colour to haunted house sticker) we hop back on trolley and get back to old town only to encounter Rick AGAIN who was even ruder than before abusing us and refusing to let us back on the trolley unless we purchased another US$56 tickets. Luckily James the driver chased after us and let us on the trolley - all whilst Rick ranted about us having to pay and the US$56 I did see Rick explaining to the driver earlier who questioned why he wouldn’t let us back on the trolley “It’s all about the money” whilst rubbing his fingers together. It might be all about the money RIPPING ppl off but you make the company look bad by trying to...