Need to know which busses go to the places you want to visit in London? These London sightseeing bus map options will help you find the best routes.
There are a lot of bus tours in London, but have you thought about using public buses as personal sightseeing tours? You won’t have access to live tour guides or commentators, but it can save you a lot of money over group tours. London’s bus routes are so easy to explore online that it doesn’t make sense not to at least consider this idea. Keep reading for all of the information you need to make it happen.
Best London Sightseeing Bus Map Routes
The public buses in London aren’t what you may expect. They’re bright red double decker buses that allow you to cruise through the city, enjoying the fresh air as you watch the biggest attractions float by. The extensive routes and ease of boarding makes them perfect substitutes for organized city tours.
You just need to know the best routes to take to see attractions that interest your group. The following list will introduce you to our top picks.
1. Bus 24 – Grosvenor Road to Royal Free Hospital
London’s 24 bus starts near Churchill Gardens on the banks of the River Thames. It goes north to Royal Free Hospital, passing through Victoria, Westminster, Central London and Camden Town along the way. You don’t have to take the full route to see some well-known London attractions. Some of the stops along the way include:
- Churchill Gardens
- George’s Square
- Westminster Cathedral
- Westminster City Hall
- Westminster Abbey
- Horse Guards Parade
- Trafalgar Square
- Cambridge Circus
- Camden Market
Some of the attractions you’ll see include the Thames River, Battersea Power Station, and Parliament Square.
2. Bus 15 – Blackwall Station to Charing Cross Station
London’s Bus 15 travels straight through Central London and will deliver views of the following attractions:
- The Monument
- Tower Bridge
- Tower of London
- The Strand
- Paul’s Cathedral
- Fleet Street
- Waterloo Bridge
- Trafalgar Square
If you visit Brick Lane, that’s a great place to get on this bus and ride the line as a mini tour of Central London. The route will take you to the London Zoo as well as stops convenient to many other popular attractions.
3. Bus 14 – Putney Heath/Green Man to Russell Square
This is the best bus route in London if you want to visit or just ride past some of the city’s elite museums. The route will take you by the following attractions:
- Mary’s Church
- British Museum
- Victoria and Albert Museum
- Brompton Square
- Science Museum
- Harrods
- Hard Rock Café
- Natural History Museum
- Piccadilly Circus
- Chinatown
- Royal Institution
- Royal Geographical Society
Ways to Create Custom London Bus Tours for Free
Now that you see a few of the best bust routes in London for sightseeing, it’s time to discuss how you use these lines and others to create your own sightseeing bus tour through the city. There are a few options, including:
- Pick a bus route and follow it start to finish. You can either ride it back in reverse to get back to your starting point or plan another form of transportation from the end point.
- Pick a bus route and ride a portion of the route, using it as transportation to attractions you want to visit. You’ll enjoy a bit of sightseeing as you get from point A to point B while in London.
- Find more extensive London bus maps online and create a larger sightseeing tour connecting multiple bus lines.
If you choose that last option, you need to know where to find bus maps for London. We’ll give you some resources for that next.
Where to London Sightseeing Bus Map Options Online
Transport for London is the official resource for bus lines in London. Search for the bus route of interest from the homepage to view a complete list of the stops. You can also view bus maps that will deliver a visual of each bus route and London top attractions on a map. The spider maps may help you see how different routes connect together, helping you create more extensive free bus tours of London from home.
The Live London Bus Map at TrainTimes.org is another great resource for trip planning. Select the route number from the dropdown menu in the bottom left-hand corner and the route will appear on the map instantly. The focus is only on bus routes, so you won’t get travel tips or information about attractions on this map. It may still help if you’re interested in learning the routes or figuring out how to connect between them.
Finally, you can copycat from official London bus tours. Find their websites online and check for their route lists. Many tour groups now post at least a skeleton view of the route to help sell seats on their upcoming tours. You can use that information when planning custom walking tours of London, but they won’t correspond to official London bus routes.