London night bus tour: two open-top rides compared

The $33 listing is the specific one. It names four sights, Big Ben, Harrods, the London Eye and Trafalgar Square, seen lit up over 90 minutes from an open-top bus. Its description does not mention a guide, so check how the commentary works on the listing.

The $30 listing names no single sight. It promises a vintage open-top bus, a live guide and 75 minutes through the illuminated streets, and it pitches itself at photographers and at people who would rather see the sights away from the daytime crowds.

Neither description gives a departure point or a start time. Both appear when you pick a date on the listing.

Two landmarks come up next to a night ride, and neither is on a bus. A Tower of London night tour exists here as an after-hours visit with a Yeoman Warder and the Ceremony of the Keys: $210 for 90 minutes, 79 reviews at 4.9. The Tower of London page compares it with the daytime entry.

London Eye night tickets are not sold on their own here. The Eye comes only inside combos, and none of their descriptions names an evening slot; the London Eye page lists them.

Per hour, the $33 ride costs about $22.00, the $30 vintage ride about $24.00 and the ghost tour $28.00. For $3 more, the $33 ride gives you 15 more minutes and four sights named in writing; the $30 ride gives you a named live guide and the better rating.

Against the day: the 75-minute vintage tour by daylight costs $17, so the same length after dark on a vintage bus costs $13 more. What the extra buys, on the listings, is the lit-up city.

Day trips, river cruises and private cabs sit with the buses among the 68 tours on the main page.