We had a great experience on the Old Town Trolley Tour in San Diego! It was a fun and relaxing way to see the city, especially if it's your first visit or you want to learn more about the different neighborhoods and attractions. The guides were friendly, entertaining, and shared interesting historical facts along the way while keeping the ride engaging with humor. The hop-on, hop-off option made it easy to explore at our own pace, and the trolleys ran frequently enough that we didn't have to wait long. We especially enjoyed starting in Old Town and visiting places like Balboa Park, the Gaslamp Quarter, and Seaport Village. Overall, it's a great value and a convenient way to experience San Diego without worrying about parking or traffic. I would definitely recommend it to visitors and even locals looking for a fun day out. read more

It was not supposed to be such a BEAUTIFUL DAY, according to the weather forecasters. We got there as one was boarding, and getting full. We decided to wait 20 Minutes. We started about 9:30 AM, and our first Guide, NAMED JACK. He had been a disaster/guide for some 10 Years. He was very, very good. When we walked on, there were two orange cones on the two front seats. We had waited to sit in the front seat!!! As we boarded, JACK just sat on the benches, not noticing my walker!!! I finally got the front seat, but my partner stayed seated behind me. GUIDE JACK took us as far as Seaport Village, but interesting enough, at the stop before, he had us all share our stories. NICE TOUCH. We wanted bagels at SPILL THE BEANS, but at 10 AM they were OUT OF BAGELS. Ridiculous. I don't remember the name of the Driver/Guide, who took us from Seaport Village to Coronado. In Coronado, we walked to the Hotel del Coronado. I first used the RR, beautiful white marble. I then took the metal elevator in the lobby to the Second Floor, and went out the balcony. We, My Partner and I, met up again the INTERIOR COURTYARD. We left the hotel to walk to GELATO PARADISO on Orange Avenue. On the way there, we saw the famous L FRANK BAUM HOUSE, the writer of the Wizard of Oz. It is a yellow house. UNFORTUNATELY, they did not know how to use the COUPON in the OT Trolley Brochure. Other than that, the GELATO WAS DELICIOUS!!! I had Raspberry and Lemon. We took the OT Trolley back to Old Town. We had one last Driver/Guide, NAMED LUIS. He was very thorough, but very matter of fact. We returned to OLD TOWN, 2 Hours after BEGINNING!!! read more

We've been coming to SD for years, even own a condo in town. Finally decided to take the OTT tour. I take them whenever we are visiting a city they're in. It really is a great way to get a lot of information about the city. The trolley is hop on/hop off - which means that they stop so that you can get off the train and go do whatever. It probably stops anywhere you want to go anyway (Balboa Park/Zoo, Coronado, and even the Midway), so you might as well do it on a guided tour! These tours are all professionally done and the drivers are safe and friendly. They've got daytime tours and evening tours - in San Diego, they've got SEAL tours and night time City Lights and Ghosts and Gravestones tours. We did the Holiday Lights tour a couple of years ago (the *only* thing I didn't like about that is that it was a sing-a-long, but that made my sister happy so it made me happy). I highly recommend the Trolley Tours! Thank you for reading my review. read more

One of the more unusual tours, here in San Diego is the old town, trolley tours, and sealed tours. You will board an amphibious vehicle that travels on land and then goes into the water and motor boat out to where the bait stations are and sea lions and seals are just basking in the sun great place to take the family. It is a great bargain, get the tour of the city and of course of the water and the various warships that are on the water as well and all the history about San Diego. read more

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J is amazing with his dad jokes and all the fun facts about the places he drove is to. Very nice tour and great way to see many different places without driving so you can focus and learn and take it all in the tour and J made me wanna comeback. read more

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This was one of the most fun things I've ever done while in San Diego! On top of that, it took me to places I had never been before, and I highly recommend it to anyone. Money well spent, in my humble opinion! The only thing I didn't like was the open windows in the back, which made the ride quite cold if you weren't dressed properly. read more

Old Town Trolley Tours - All aboard - Bus Tours Near Me - San Diego, California

I've taken Old Town Trolley Tours in 5 cities now and I will keep taking them as long as they keep popping up. This is THE WAY to see a city. Whether you have just a few hours or you want to get an idea of how to plan your trip, they have the best drivers who are knowledgeable and can answer any questions you have. James was our driver for our tour and he was outstanding. Such a fabulous company. Looking forward to getting to the others cities they're in to take those tours as well. Added are just a few pictures of the San Diego tour. read more

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Inconsistent Pricing & strained driver. Had family visiting San Diego for the 1st time & thought this would be a nice way to see the city with them. I Had checked prices on line & saw tickets were $49 for 1-day passes. Looked great! However when we arrived in person at the ticket booth on April 9th & wanted to purchase 4 tickets, it was $85 per ticket for 1-day passes! $340 for 4 people I thought I had misread the on-line price. But we hadn't. Prices are NOT consistent. Most dates are $45. Some days were $53. For whatever reason 4/9 was $85. It made zero sense & I felt scammed! It would have been cheaper to drive ourselves & pay for parking & skip sites we had no little interest in. Or, get on the actual red San Diego Trolley & explore that way. Our driving "J" seemed nice, but commentary was a mix of really cheesy jokes & facts. When we got off & re-boarded again hours later, we were a bit bummed to have the same driver again. He seemed a bit..frazzled cause we were running a little late, traffic was building up around 4pm & some kids on the trolley were loud, which required him to talk over them. He frequently stopped & asked us all to lower our voices, even though it was 2 parents 3 unruly kids doing ALL the yapping disrupting the tour. Listening to them made me regret even more we paid $320 for this experience. IF you do this activity check/get tickets on-line so you can actually see the prices that specific day & avoid paying double & feeling ripped off. The overall experience wasnt work $320 & I'll never take visiting guest in this tour again read more

Old Town Trolley Tours - In-person, buying ticket at booth was double what website price shows. - Bus Tours Near Me - San Diego, California

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Jack is an entertaining and knowledgeable with his San Diego history and he deserves 10 stars. The 1 star belongs to whoever manages your Old Town Trolley Tours San Diego website and does an incompetent performance. You promote "Free Museum Admission Show your Old Town Trolley sticker and receive FREE admission to the following museums" then list 6 options. I wouldn't have received a trolley sticker if I didn't pay for a trolley admission. Because of your misrepresentation on your website, we walked over to the San Diego Chinese Historical Museum which is 1 of your 6 listed museum options. Upon entry Joseph Ahlstrom, Collections Manager, informs us they have not had a partnership with Old Town Trolley Tours for 2 years, it's not a free admission, they charge $8 per adult, he gave to us at $6 per adult admission. All roads lead back to your website is not updated, has not been for awhile and your Marketing Department is giving false information to your customers. The Better Business Bureau would love to know about your unfair business practices. read more

So we have used old town in many other cities we have visited. We like to get the lay of the area then go sightseeing on are own. The first driver we had wasn't very informative. The second one was very good, we wished he had been on the first leg of our tour. The driver can really make a big difference on these tours. The day we took the tour there was a game at Petco Park. Unfortunately that did not allow us to go into the gaslamp district which was disappointing. The tour stops at all of the usual tourist attractions around San Diego. read more

I always look for these types of tours to get the lay of the area. Its especially useful when we move to a new area to get an idea of what all the areas of the city offers. If you don't get off the trolley, it is about a 2hr ride. They come every 20 minutes to each stop. The guides have so much information for each stop. I love little fun facts. Great way to explore! read more

We did the trolley tour on our last day in San Diego. Our bus driver Benjamin was funny and entertaining, he really made the trip enjoyable. The loop is about two hours in total. You stop in the Gas Lamp district, Old Town, Little Italy, Coronado island, in front of a Marriott located by the bay, Balboa Park, and some others I don't remember. There are 11 stops in all. If you use this trolley wisely and start early in the day to hop on and off for the different stops you get your money worth. The driver tells you when the last pick up is so you can plan your time. The cost in November 2025 was $55 a person with no child price and no discounts. We were not very smart in that we just went around the loop to see Coronado island and got off at Little Italy. So we paid a lot to do a little. In retrospect, it would have been far cheaper to take the ferry to Coronado island, which costs $18 round trip per person, and to walk to Little Italy from our hotel. We ended up walking back to the hotel from Little Italy. On the positive side, we were able to see some parts of SD that we would have missed. read more

The tour was very interesting and informative, it's a great idea to get around the city and learn new things and about San Diego as well as avoid having to park. We liked the ability to get on and off all day and spend time in all the fun neighborhoods. The first driver of the trolley in the morning turned around to my friend and I and said 'you guys know you're not the only ones on the tour right?' because he heard us talking. It made us a little uncomfortable because he said it was wrong of him to single us out and apologized frequently during the next few stops for it until we got off. All day we hoped we wouldn't see him when we got back on the trollies because we were really embarrassed. It's expensive to go on these tours, 50 bucks each for the day, and my friend and I don't see eachother frequently so we thought it was a nice idea to chat with eachother and enjoy the sights. We felt pretty strange all day about it. read more

I would recommend the old town trolley tour for something different and to see other areas. We had a few busy days walking around and wanted to see some areas we hadn't been to. We got on the tour at Seaport Village and only got off in old Town. Our guide, I think it was Benjamin (he had been rookie of the year a few years ago) was really wonderful! He was very informative and entertaining. Got to get a good idea of what some areas were like, what they had to offer and where we want to go back. read more

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Absolutely wonderful, great way to spend an afternoon in San Diego, good food, great vibes! read more

Old Town Trolley Tours - Bus Tours Near Me - San Diego, California

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great experience. such a great price and you get to see all of SD! Totally worth it. Coronado was our favorite stop. great Mexican food!

This is a fun way to see the city. Hits some popular stops like Old Town, Coronado, Gas Lamp, and Balboa Park. Old Town is charming and has some great dining options, but Coronado was our favorite stop. The Hotel Del Coronado is amazing. Tour guides were friendly, and the price was decent for a days worth of driving around. read more

jack, was amazing. great tour guide and driver. we appreciate the amazing safe driving and knowledgable fun facts experience.

Shyann was AMAZING!! Made the trip so much fun! She made it so much fun ! Loves her

This was a wonderful way to see all the best parts of San Diego. Starts in Old Town but if you have online tickets you can get on at any of the stops and then just check in the main hub at either Seaport Village or old town. The other stops include Balboa Park/the zoo, the Embarcadero, Coronado Island, Little Italy, the Maritime Museum, and a couple of others. We really enjoyed most of our guides, especially Deb, Nathaniel, and our favorite Kimmy. However, we were not a big fan of Rico. He was very condescending and focused too much on himself and not enough on the tour. He left out huge chunks because he was too busy talking about his own life. Other than that I will highly recommend and suggest using this as a way to get around San Diego at an affordable price. read more

Old Town Trolley Tours - Bus Tours Near Me - San Diego, California

Hop on the trolley at least once! This so a great convenient way to see many areas of San Diego while getting to relax...the good humor from their drivers is a plus. Their site is easy to purchase tickets at, or stop by any of their booths to purchase. They have many stops Coronado, Barrio Logan, Petco/ Marriott, and the Embarcadero. This time we opted for the Seaport Village, Barrio Logan and Little Italy and neither disappointed. We got to hop on and hop off all stops and encountered three humorous individuals during our ride; Cesar, Paul and Orlando which were all great! Visited Little Italy foods and gelato while browsing their farmers market and gift shops at the Embarcadero. Barrio Logan has really beautiful murals to look at and good eats to check out, Lia's Lumpia's and Mexi food. All around a really fun experience, even as a local! read more

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Old Town Trolley Tours is great! But maybe not as "Family Friendly" as you would think. The Old Town Trolley Tours offers FREE tours for San Diego Residents every year during the month of January. We absolutely LOVE that they do this and have made it a yearly tradition for our family to do. You do need to get your tickets online, and they start being available sometime in December. And as you would expect, they go fast. This year, unfortunately, our experience was not as great as years past. We had 2 tour drivers (Kim and Benjamin). Both tour guides were very knowledgeable about San Diego and all of the sights on the route. However, both of them struggled with their friendliness. Now I understand there are rules on the trolley....you must stay seated, arms and legs in the trolley. But this year, both of the drivers were adamant about noise and talking. Our first driver (Kim) made a point several times to tell everyone that they needed to uses their "Library Voice" when talking. This is an open-air trolley...you can't really use a library voice when all you can hear is the wind! There was a couple directly behind the driver that were talking to each other and the driver was so rude in how she asked them to stop. "Hey you 2 behind me, you need to stop talking, you are in my ear". I was 2 rows back from the couple and I could not hear anything. So I was a little shocked with how aggressively the drive snapped at them. After that situation, everyone else on the trolley just looked at each other and we were all scared to make any sound! My family and I got off in Coronado, and when we re-boarded the trolley we had a new driver (Benjamin). While we were still waiting to leave the stop, an older lady in front of me yelled at another lady who was sitting with her 2 kids. The older lady said to her "Maybe you should leave the trolley for a little bit, because your kids are not quiet." All of this said and done in front of the driver, who said nothing. When we stopped at Balboa Park, the family with the kids got off. And the driver helped them with their stroller. When he got back on the trolley, he said "Well that should help make it a lot quieter now". I was just so surprised by this. San Diego is a tourist town and many of those tourists are families with small kids. And let's be honest, kids get excited riding on a trolley around town. They get excited when you see the boats and cross over the big bridge, see the big buildings. It's supposed to be a fun moment. To think they have to be quiet during that experience is just ridiculous. Overall, I still love the trolley ride. I think the drivers need to be more understanding and sympathetic to those traveling with kids. Drivers are talking on a microphone during the tour which is not the best quality. I would suggest investing in a better sound system so that everyone can hear the driver regardless of noise level. read more

This was a great Hop on and off tour to take in San Diego. I recommend this tour if you are from out of town or even if you are a local. There are 11 stops and you will be able to see beautiful views of San Diego especially when you venture over the Coronado bridge. The driver I had was Nina and she gave a great tour and gave great suggestions in Little Italy. read more

Old Town Trolley Tours - Coronado bridge on Old Town Trolley tour - Bus Tours Near Me - San Diego, California

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This was a great way to explore the city of San Diego during our weekend getaway. We purchased our tickets while in Old Town and hopped aboard the trolley. We found it convenient that we could hop off and explore certain areas around the stops and then hop on a different trolley with a different tour guide and continue the route. Your pass is good all day from 9am to approximately 4pm. Be cautious as the tours end after 4pm, so if you do not want to get stuck far from your hotel and needing to take an Uber back because you missed the last trolley. Trolleys pass through the route about every 20 minutes so you wont be waiting for a ride for very long. The guides had a sense of humor and were pointing out places of interest along to the journey. The information was very interesting and I learned way more than I expected about San Diego's history and neighborhoods. Overall it was a great experience, and I definitely recommend this if you visit the area. One of the most thrilling parts of the tour was when the trolley drove over the bridge to Coronado Island, that's all I'm going to say about that because I want you to experience it yourself. Amazing view! The pricing is dynamic for the tours, meaning that it can change depending on the demand for tour. You could arrive at one time and it could be $55 for a tour but then come back in and hour and the tour could be $100. Ask questions to get the best price for your group. Enjoy!!! I know I did. read more

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Such a fun tour!! So easy and convenient to use and just a great way to get around San Diego and learn something new! All the drivers were great read more

This is a great idea for families and groups of people or individuals to learn and see more of San Diego! I went with my family (group of 6) and honestly it was alot to see and do! The buses do come pick up every 20 -30 minutes but the one stop we went to by the Petco stadium didn't come by until 40 minutes later but also no one came out that far so I don't think that stop really was necessary. It was pretty packed so there were times that we had to split our group up twice in order to fit on the bus because they won't allow anyone to stand, everyone had to sit in a seat as there's no seatbelts. The guides and drivers are all so friendly and informational, I loved hearing cool facts as we rode on various buses. Every once in a while we met a driver who didn't appreciate the group talking while he/she was talking and they'd make a comment to get everyone to quiet down to listen. It's a bus that has 38 people... just let people talk. Anyways- great tourist option! read more

Such a fun way to see San Diego! The Old Town Trolley is the perfect mix of sightseeing and history with plenty of personality. Huge shoutout to conductors Kaye and Bini who were both super friendly, funny, and full of great local stories. Definitely recommend for first-time visitors or anyone wanting an easy, entertaining city tour. Every trolley was on time! Pro tip - it does go on the highway and over bridges so hold tightly onto your belongings! read more

We bought a one day pass and started our trolley ride in front of the Star of India. I thought it was a little overpriced but we like to experience the trolleys wherever we go so we decided to give it a go. I'm glad we did. There are 12 stops. We got on at stop number 2 and it took 1.5 hours to get to Old Town (stop 1), where we got off to tour the sites. The tour guides were very knowledgeable and informative. Money well spent. read more

Old Town Trolley Tours - Bus Tours Near Me - San Diego, California

A great way to see parts of San Diego with all the great stories and then you get to make pit stops. The only thing is the seats are kind of small, especially for tall people so I have to rethink it next time I do it. read more

I went on the Holiday Nights 75 minute tour. Our Driver Rico was so fun and had us singing songs out of the song book. I learned a ton of San Diego and Holiday history around Old Town, The Embarcadero, Point Loma, Ocean Beach, Little Italy and more. The million dollar views are amazing. I highly recommend Old Town Trolley tours as a great family friendly activity. read more

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We took the tour early in our visit to San Diego. It was a great way to get an overview of places we wanted to check out. Our guide, Dillinger was informative and very entertaining. It was a fun couple of hours. read more

Love all the stops and great way to see the city. So glad I did this and would do it again. The driver we had was very passionate & felt his enthusiasm. read more

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Jack our tour guide was great first time on the san diego trolley, even though we have been here many times Thank you Jack, great job. read more

I took a mini vacation to San Diego and my best buddy suggested that i take a tour around the city to get to know the sights to explore later. And Im so glad i listened to his advice. We signed up for a tour on the trolley and by chance we ended up on David Knowlings trolley. What a walking encyclopedia this man is. Not only knowledgeabe is he, but he explains things in a very informative and in good humor, making for a very entertaining tour of the city. David obviously has a lot of experience with working with the public, and he easily connects with his "guests" during his tour. Thanks to David Knowling we learned so much about the city of San Diego. You can he really did his homework to be an informative and entertaing tour guide. Hopefully you too will get him as your tour guide on your trolley tour read more

Old Town Trolley Tours - Tour Guide David Knowling - Bus Tours Near Me - San Diego, California

tour was great. but seeing a trolley a half block ahead pull into the Gaslamp downtown stop we hoped to catch it. I sent my older jr high kid up there to let the driver know we were hustling up to the stop but my wife was on crutches and only able to move so fast. as we got closer the trolley pulled out. report from my child was we "had to wait for next one." maybe some of the other stops this would have been no problem, but this stop is the least appealing of the tour stop route, to stand around and wait. in front of an closed-down theatre, downtown with no facilities, shopping, tourist stops, attractions within a few blocks. nor a bench for my wife to sit on. did I mention she's on crutches? talked to the head of scheduling dispatcher after the tour, who was completely unapologetic when I asked about how they handle waiting for people. he explained how if they waited every time someone asked them to, they'd be late all day. look I get it, there's a schedule. and it's our fault for being slow. and there's another trolley 20 minutes later. but come on! $180+ bucks for two adults and two kids for one day, at least assess the situation, see the lady a half block away on crutches scrambling to get to the trolley, evaluate the scene where they will be waiting, and make the right call. hope the 30 seconds saved were worth it. we are a family of local San Diegans who wanted to play tourist for the day in our hometown and learn more about the city. don't think we will be sending our out of town friends, family and guests this way when they want to check out fun things to do. read more

Old Town Trolley Tours - Closed down Theatre we waited in front of at stop for next trolley - Bus Tours Near Me - San Diego, California

My 3.5yo daughter is obsessed with trolleys (big Daniel Tiger fan) so i decided to splurge and take her on the hop-on-hop-off tour. As an SD native, it was a little pricey but worth it. 11 stops total going to some of the biggest attractions. The amount you would have to pay for parking at some of these places alone almost makes it worth it. The drivers are all so friendly and knowledgeable. I love all of the personal touches each provided! Please be sure to take cash to tip, they so deserve it! James and Jack were both great! Highly recommend! We'll definitely be back! read more

Nikolas 10/10! Give this man a raise! Knowledgeable and fun! Atmosphere was amazing! Didn't want to get off the trolley!

Always love the hop on hop off bus tour! Our tour guides were Bini, Cesar, Kevin, and Elijah. All were great tour guides and provided lots of information! This tour gives the opportunity to see a lot of things around the city and hear some history. read more

Old Town Trolley Tours - Coronado Bridge - Bus Tours Near Me - San Diego, California

Rico was amazing!!! We loved our tour and I can't wait to go again. Everything he shared and the stories were so entertaining. He made it so fun and everyone who was on the trip loved it. read more

We took this tour on a whim and only regret that we had never taken it before. We're from LA and my aunt is from San Diego and she too had never taken it. If you're debating whether you should or should not do this, here are some reasons to: - You get to see and learn a lot about the city that you may never have known. - Driving around (and parking) in San Diego can be tough, this is a way you can enjoy looking around and let someone else drive. - Still worried about COVID or getting sick? The trolley is open air and you can sit wherever you want. You can get great pics! - See an interesting restaurant, or area you want to see? Just jump off! They will pick you back up in that same spot as long as it's not the last stop of the day. - The tour/driver was great (Marco?). Funny and super knowledgeable. He answered questions and gave us a locals perspective. We tipped him good! - Want to go with a group but don't want to rent cars or make a big fuss over payment and reservations? Everyone can pay their own fare (we paid on the spot about $53/pp). We are recommending this to our friends and family! PS - there is a free parking lot nearby the old Town San Diego location. read more

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