Hop-On Hop-Off in Stockholm: Bus, Boat or Stockholm Pass?
4 min read
Hop-on hop-off in Stockholm works best as a way of getting between the museums and the Old Town, not as a tour you ride from start to finish. The hop-on hop-off bus or boat ticket from RED Sightseeing costs €20 per person, is rated 3.9 out of 5 and has 4,546 reviews. You choose bus, boat or a combination when you book, and the page calls it a 24-hour ticket.
What the ticket covers
According to the booking page, the network has 22 bus stops and 8 boat stops. The start is at the Royal Swedish Opera, Gustav Adolfs torg 2. Bus stops include Gamla Stan, the Central Station, Stadshuset (City Hall), Hötorget, Stureplan, the Vasa Museum and Skansen. The boat stops include the Royal Palace, Nybroplan, the Vasa Museum, Skeppsholmen, Gröna Lund and Fotografiska. The ticket includes an audio guide (the page lists ten languages in one place and fourteen in another), earphones and Wi-Fi on the bus and boat. Entry to the attractions along the route is not part of it; the page marks them as optional and with an extra fee. The ticket is valid only on the RED Sightseeing buses.
When it actually runs
This is the part that matters in autumn and winter. The page says the boat service is unavailable in winter because the waterways freeze. It gives these operating periods:
- Bus: 18 December 2026 to 10 January 2027, 10:00–15:00; 12 March to 2 May 2027, 10:00–16:00; 3 May to 31 October 2027, 10:00–17:00. A bus leaves every 45 minutes, and the last full tour starts one hour before the end of service.
- Boat: 19 March to 2 May 2027, 10:00–16:00; 3 May to 31 October 2027, 10:00–17:00.
The bus list has no entry before 18 December 2026, so none for the rest of November and early December, and none between 11 January and 11 March 2027; the boat list has none before 19 March 2027. Check the dates on the booking page before you plan a trip in those windows.
Children, dogs and access
Children up to 6 years travel free with a paying adult. The page says smaller dogs are normally welcome, and passengers with dogs may be asked to sit in a particular area. Only the buses are wheelchair friendly; the boats are not.
The Stockholm Pass as the alternative
The Stockholm Pass, sold by Go City, costs €92.40 per person, is rated 4.1 out of 5 and has 2,528 reviews. It is a digital pass for 1 to 5 consecutive days and covers more than 50 attractions, including the Vasa Museum, Skansen, the Royal Palace, the Viking Museum and the Nobel Prize Museum. A hop-on hop-off bus is part of it, but only from April to October, according to the page, so in winter the pass will not get you around the city. The page lists the one-hour Royal Canal Tour in the pass for April to December. The pass is activated at your first visit and is valid for one year from purchase. The page warns that the most popular attractions need reservations and that opening hours can change.
Which to choose
- Summer, two or three sights on Djurgården and in the Old Town: the hop-on hop-off ticket is enough, and the boat is a pleasant way to cross the water.
- Winter or a short stay: the bus on its shorter winter hours is possible, but walking Gamla Stan and paying for individual museums is more predictable.
- Many museums in a few days: compare the entry prices you would pay with the pass price. The Vasa Museum and Skansen are both named on the pass page and both on Djurgården, close together. ABBA The Museum is not among the attractions named there, so check whether it is included.
If what you want is the water, the canal and bridge cruises are shorter options. See all offers on our pages for museums and tickets and archipelago cruises.
