Big Bus Tours

Last updated

Big Bus Tours Group Holdings Ltd
Big Bus Tours
Company type Private
Industry Open top bus operator
Predecessors
  • Les Cars Rouges
  • Big Bus Company
Founded2011;13 years ago (2011)
Headquarters Belgravia, London, England,
Areas served
Key people
RevenueIncrease2.svg $269 million(2019) [3]
Decrease2.svg $(2.3) million(2019) [3]
Decrease2.svg $(45.6) million(2019) [3]
OwnersExponent Private Equity (85%)
Merlin Entertainments (15%)
Website bigbustours.com

Big Bus Tours (formerly Les Cars Rouges and The Big Bus Company), is an operator of open top bus sightseeing tours founded in May 2011 after "Les Cars Rouges" and the "Big Bus Company" merged. The company operates in 23 cities of 11 countries with more than 150 buses around the world. [4] Most of the cities it serves are in the United States. Typically, Big Bus Tours use open top double-decker buses in burgundy and cream-coloured livery.

Contents

History

Big Bus company kiosk and bus queue at Speakers' Corner, London Big bus co at speakers corner.jpg
Big Bus company kiosk and bus queue at Speakers' Corner, London

"Les Cars Rouges" was founded in 1990 by Abdallah El Azm in Paris, France. Over the course of the next two decades, it went on to operate in Paris, Rome, Washington DC, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Miami, and Istanbul. The "Big Bus Company" first started operating in London, England in June 1991 with four buses by the Maybury family. It later expanded to Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Philadelphia, and so on. [5]

"Les Cars Rouges" and "the Big Bus Company" merged in May 2011, and formed "Big Bus Tours". Les Cars Rouges was the larger of the two companies, but for international namesake purposes, the name "Big Bus" was retained. [6]

In May 2007, the Abu Dhabi company the Al Fahim Group purchased a 30% shareholding. [7] [8]

In February 2015, the business was sold to Exponent Private Equity. [9] [10] In February 2016, Merlin Entertainments bought a 15% shareholding. [11]

Overview of operation

Buses travel near major landmarks around the town or city it tours. Pre-recorded or live commentary about the landscape is provided through small headphones worn by each passenger. Users may leave the bus and board again without limit (hop-on, hop-off) at special bus stops on a circular route. In large cities, buses go on more than one route. In some cities (such as Hong Kong) some variants of the ride include travelling by boat. [12]

Operations by country

Australia

Austria

Poland

China

Egypt

France

Germany

Greece

Hong Kong

Big Bus in Hong Kong SH6230 at Central Ferry Pier (20181009145722).jpg
Big Bus in Hong Kong

On 15 December 2008, The Big Bus Hong Kong was established. With the largest fleet of open-top buses in the city, [13] it serves three sightseeing routes: Hong Kong Island (Red Tour), Kowloon (Blue Tour) and Stanley (Green Tour). The tour offers a wide range of packages which include free travel on the Peak Tram, entry to the Sky Terrace on Victoria Peak, a traditional sampan ride, and a Star Ferry harbour tour.

Hungary

Italy

India

Ireland

In August 2018, Big Bus Dublin was officially launched with the most up-to-date fleet in the city. It offers 2 separate tours: Red (city centre and Phoenix Park) and Blue (city center including Docklands, Glasnevin Cemetery and Croke Park Stadium).

Singapore

An open-top MAN 18.240 HOCL-NL bus on the Yellow Route in Singapore. PC1586P Big Bus Yellow Route.jpg
An open-top MAN 18.240 HOCL-NL bus on the Yellow Route in Singapore.

Big Bus Tours bought over local sightseeing tour operator Duck & Hippo in September 2018. [14]

Spain

Turkey

Russia

Norway

Mexico

Malaysia

United Kingdom

Dennis Condor of Big Bus A sightseeing bus (Leyland Olympian).jpg
Dennis Condor of Big Bus

The Big Bus Tours London operates three routes with stops at these tourist destinations: Madame Tussauds, Oxford Circus, Piccadilly Circus, Trafalgar Square, Whitehall, Westminster Bridge, London Eye, Covent Garden, St Paul's Cathedral, London Bridge, Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, Harrods, Kensington Palace and Kensington Gardens. [15] [16]

United States

A Big Bus driving past the US Capitol in Washington, D.C. Big Bus Washington DC.jpg
A Big Bus driving past the US Capitol in Washington, D.C.

Vietnam

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hong Kong Tramways</span> Tram system

Hong Kong Tramways (HKT) is a 3 ft 6 in narrow-gauge tram system in Hong Kong. Owned and operated by RATP Dev, the tramway runs on Hong Kong Island between Kennedy Town and Shau Kei Wan, with a branch circulating through Happy Valley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RATP Group</span> French public transport operator

The RATP Group is a French state-owned enterprise (EPIC) that operates public transport systems. Headquartered in Paris, it originally operated under the name Régie autonome des transports parisiens. Its logo represents, in a stylized version, the Seine's meandering through the Paris area as the face of a person looking up. The company had described itself as the fourth-largest presence in public transport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New World First Bus</span> Bus operator in Hong Kong

New World First Bus Services Limited (NWFB) was the third-largest bus operator in Hong Kong. Established by NWS Holdings and FirstGroup in September 1998, it took over 88 China Motor Bus services in Hong Kong Island. From 2020 until its merger with Citybus in 2023, it was a subsidiary of Bravo Transport, the owner of Citybus. The NWFB brand was retired on 1 July 2023 with operations merged into Citybus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Double-decker bus</span> Bus with two levels or decks

A double-decker bus or double-deck bus is a bus that has two storeys or decks. Double-deckers are primarily for commuter transport, but open-top models are used as sight-seeing buses for tourists, and there are coaches too for long-distance travel. They appear in many places around the world but are presently most commonly used as mass transport in cities of Britain, in Ireland, in Hong Kong, and in Singapore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Citybus (Hong Kong)</span> Bus operator in Hong Kong

Citybus Limited is a bus company which provides both franchised and non-franchised service in Hong Kong. The franchised route network serves Hong Kong Island, cross-harbour routes, North Lantau, Hong Kong International Airport, Kowloon, New Territories, Shenzhen Bay Port and Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macau Bridge Hong Kong Port. The non-franchised routes serve mainly City One Sha Tin. It also provides bus rental services and staff bus services for some large companies, such as TVB and China Light and Power.

Stagecoach Group is a transport group based in Perth, Scotland. It operates buses and express coaches in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexander Dennis Enviro500</span> Three-axle double decker bus

The Alexander Dennis Enviro500 is a three-axle double-decker bus built by Alexander Dennis in the United Kingdom. It was unveiled in 2002 and is one of the Enviro-series bus models made by TransBus/Alexander Dennis. The bus was sold on diesel or hybrid-electric powertrains and on Volvo chassis as a bodywork.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">China Motor Bus</span> Hong Kong bus operator and property developer

The China Motor Bus Company, Limited, often abbreviated as CMB, is a property developer based in Hong Kong. Before its busfranchise lapsed in 1998, it was the first motor bus operator in Hong Kong, and was responsible for the introduction of the iconic double-decker buses to Hong Kong Island. Currently CMB does not run any transport services and has since shifted into property development as an alternative means of profit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wright Eclipse Gemini</span> Low-floor double-decker bus body

The Wright Eclipse Gemini is a low-floor double-decker bus body that was built by Wrightbus since 2001, based on the single-decker Wright Eclipse design. The second-generation Eclipse Gemini 2 was launched in 2009, followed by the third-generation Gemini 3 in 2013. Additionally, the body was available on Volvo Super Olympian chassis in Hong Kong between 2003 and 2005, marketed as the Wright Explorer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lothian Buses</span> Municipal bus operator in Edinburgh and the Lothians

Lothian Buses is a major bus operator based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is the largest municipal bus company in the United Kingdom: the City of Edinburgh Council owns 91%, Midlothian Council 5%, East Lothian Council 3% and West Lothian Council 1%.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">City Sightseeing</span> International sightseeing tour bus operator

City Sightseeing is an open-top, sightseeing tour bus operator. It provides tour bus services in more than 130 cities around the world. As City Sightseeing has grown and expanded, the company now also provides boat tours, sightseeing train tours, and guided walking tours.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tootbus London</span> British bus operating company

Tootbus London, formerly The Original Tour is a London bus tour operator using open-top double-decker buses. It also holds the franchise to run City Sightseeing's London tour. Based in Wandsworth, it is a subsidiary of RATP Dev.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">InterCity (New Zealand)</span>

InterCity is a passenger transport and tourism company in New Zealand. Its parent company is Entrada Travel Group, whose main owners are Ritchies Transport and the Tranzit Group. Entrada operates the country's only long distance bus network, and ferries and cruises in the Bay of Islands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Big Bus Sydney</span> Australian sightseeing bus service

The Sydney Explorer was an Australian open top bus tourist sightseeing service operating in the Sydney central business district and Eastern Suburbs. Nowadays the company is owned by Big Bus Tours and trades as Big Bus Sydney.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ensignbus</span> Bus and coach operator and dealer in Purfleet, England

Ensign Bus Company Limited, trading as Ensignbus, is a bus and coach operator and bus dealer based in Purfleet, Essex. As of March 2023, it is a part of FirstGroup.

London Pride Sightseeing was an open top sightseeing bus operator in London.

Open top buses are used in the United Kingdom for sightseeing and seasonal summer services.

Bus transport in Cardiff, the capital and most populous city in Wales, forms the major part of the city's public transport network, which also includes an urban rail network, Waterbus and international airport. Cardiff is a major city of the United Kingdom and a centre of employment, retail, business, government, culture, media, sport and higher education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rickshaw Sightseeing Bus</span> Brand of sightseeing transportation service

Rickshaw Sightseeing Bus is a brand of sightseeing transportation service operated by Citybus, one of the franchised bus services operators in Hong Kong. It was operated by New World First Bus Services Limited (NWFB) before it was merged into Citybus on 1 July 2023. It offers a thematic sightseeing route by open-top sightseeing buses decorated under the “rickshaw” concept, which is an old Hong Kong icon. It aims to facilitate visitors to explore local culture and diverse attractions of Hong Kong.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bath Bus Company</span> British bus operator operating in Bath and Cardiff

The Bath Bus Company is a bus operator in the United Kingdom which runs open top tours in Bath, Bristol and Cardiff, and the 'Bristol Air Decker' service between Bath and Bristol Airport. The company has been a subsidiary of the French RATP Group since 2011.

References

  1. Mkandawire, Vinjeru (9 February 2020). "Big Bus Tours chairman back aboard after chief executive steps off". The Telegraph. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
  2. "Companies house directors report" . Retrieved 6 July 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 "Companies house annual account" . Retrieved 6 July 2020.
  4. "Sightseeing Bus | Hop-on Hop-off Bus | Big Bus Tours". eng.bigbustours.com. Archived from the original on 27 June 2016. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  5. "Big Bus Tours International | About Us" . Retrieved 31 October 2016.
  6. "Big Bus Tours wants investors on board | The National". 12 October 2014. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  7. Al Fahim Group acquires 30 percent equity interest in the Big Bus Company Archived 4 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine ameinfo.com 29 May 2007
  8. Al Fahim Group buys 30% stake in Big Bus Company Gulf News 29 May 2007
  9. Private equity firms line up for 400m ticket to Big Bus Tours City A.M. 12 January 2015
  10. Double decker deal for Exponet Private Equity as group snaps up Big Bus Tours City A.M. 25 February 2015
  11. Merlin eyes Big Bus Tours takeover following £24.6 million state deal The Daily Telegraph 25 February 2016
  12. "Hop-on, Hop-off Bus | City Bus Tours | Big Bus Tours". eng.bigbustours.com. Archived from the original on 18 June 2016. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  13. "Open Top Bus Tours – Hong Kong Extras3". www.hongkongextras.com. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
  14. Homegrown tour company Duck & Hippo acquired by international operator TODAY 5 September 2018
  15. London Stops List Archived 24 May 2013 at the Wayback Machine Big Bus Tours April 2012
  16. Map Big Bus Tours Archived 21 September 2013 at the Wayback Machine February 2013