Loved it - We booked the Malta Sightseeing hop on hop off bus and found it great. Good map that explained where to get on and off and what to find there, helpful staff on the bus and fab day out which we would recommend. The headphones didn't work - but we found we didn't really need them. There are two companies that run hop on hop off, so you need to make sure you get on the right bus. We booked all our trips through Lesley at the Tourist Activity Centre, next to the Qawra Palace Hotel. She was very knowledgable and explained everything really well.

Great experience - We went on Malta Sightseeing Red line, and contrary to some of the negative reviews we read, we had a really good trip. The bus was on time and picked us up by the Statue at the roundabout. We had a real informative tour that we where able to follow on the headphones that where given out. We got off at the ancient temple excavation site and got on the next bus that came as scheduled an hour later. Then we where let off of about 20 min in Sliema and another bus came and picked us up and took us back to where we started. Well organized and we truly enjoyed it. We did pick a day when no major Cruise ships where scheduled as we think adding 4-5000 people to the city of Valetta could cause problems with traffic jams and lots of people trying to do sightseeing on Hop on Hop off. So ours was real mellow!

Good way to see more of Malta but public bus service better, more convenient for individual locations - Like many things in Malta the Hop-on Hop-off bus is a bit confusing. There are rival companies which adds to the confusion. We went with Malta Sightseeing which offers two bus routes; a North/Blue and a South/Red tour, with a one hour turnaround at each stop. The colour denotes the colour of the bus you take. Logic would indicate that each tour would be circular, get on at the Valletta Bus Terminal on the Blue-North bus, stay on the bus and 3 hours later you will end up back where you started. This is what we did but for some reason had to change buses before Valletta, all very confusing. Anyway, EUR 23 per person for a 3 hour tour with audio commentary doesn’t sound bad value. So why do you want to do a tour? Possibly cheap transportation to a few selected locations, 3 hour stay-on-the-bus tour to see more of the island or a combination of the two. Remember it is one hour between buses at every stop. Some stops are more popular than others (Mdina Gate, Golden Bay on the North Tour) so in peak tourist season, there may be more potential passengers waiting than available seats. An alternative form of transfer to Mdina is the public bus. More comfortable, air-conditioned and cheap at EUR 2.00 one way. Takes about 30 minutes and leaves the Valletta Bus terminal at 20 past and 10 to the hour (Bus 53 from the C2 bus zone.) Like all Hop-on buses, there is a closed lower level (out of the wind and sun but poor visibility) and the open top level (with the opposite of the lower level.) The wind in Malta seems to be constant (they harvest the grapes at night to avoid the daytime heat and winds.) So forget your floppy hat, head scarf or visor cap worn backwards are the only headgear to work. We were in Malta in early September so the summer heatwave had passed but heat and tourist crowds still prevailed and the bus was packed (full.) We initially could only get a seat on the lower level, some people had to stand and it took a few stops before we were able to migrate to the upper floor. So prepare yourself for a possible short term seating disappointment and some aggressive shoulder charging as you rush for the stairs. So was the North tour interesting - YES? Was the tour value for money - PROBABLY? Would we do it again - PROBABLY? Would we still be confused - DEFINITELY - this is Malta!

Never again! - What a shambles! We paid €20 each for a sightseeing tour of the northern side we wanted to see Mdina and Rabat especially, we were told the first bus was at 9am we got there at 8.45 no bus arrived there were about 20 of us waiting the bus finally arrived at 9.50 by this time there were about 50 people waiting there was no organisation from the tour company it was every man for themselves had to stand for the best part of the journey couldn't see anything as the bus was full with people standing in the isles. We did get to see the two places we wanted but didn't hop off anywhere else as we weren't sure how long we would have to wait.

Avoid! - We actually purchased tickets for the city sightseeing bus but the guy at the bus was switching the tickets for this bus company, we wish we had waited and got the correct bus! Not sure if it's the same company or not but we were left stranded, as the these buses stop at 3pm and noone thought to tell you. Not worth the money, best to avoid this bus!

Absolutely terrible - Absolutely terrible. We used this service and had with us 2 children and 6 adults (one of which with accessibility needs). The bus was heaving with people being crammed in and left standing in the aisles and on the stairs during the journey. We came during UK half term so expected it to be busy but this was terrible and dangerous. The driver did not assist in helping with priority seating, making the journey difficult and uncomfortable for our family.

Don’t bother Hopping On! - First time we’ve ever had a bad experience with this service. Staff were incredibly rude, some buses did not have headphones, other buses had static so bad on the audio you couldn’t hear the recording. To make things worse, the audio was not in sync with sites you were coming across. Don’t waste your money on this one .. take another tour instead (based on rating).

One to avoid - Booked 2 tickets on order 0000384439. Dreadful service, the bus was way over subscribed so we had to stand in the stifling heat (no air con) and of course had no access to the commentary earphones. We got off at first stop as it was unbearable to continue and there were many complaints from other passengers.

Waste of money - Really don’t recommend this. Arrived a bit early for the bus which was late and full. So told another would be along in 5 minutes. 20 mins later one arrived. Supposed to have a 15 minute stop at the glass factory, but reduced to 5 because running late. Got off at mdina and came back to the pickup a bit early as wanted to make sure we could get on. Waited 45 minutes in the rain with a scrum of others during which time two busses were scheduled, but neither arrived. Got a bolt (Uber) home. Really, it’s like the bus service I used at school many years ago. Unreliable, no real-time information on bus location or number of seats available. Doesn’t run to schedule. No app. Guess it’s ok if you want to spend the day on a bus and get an overview of the island, but even if the buses ran to time and had room on them, there is only time to stop at one or two places. If you know where you want to go, much better to get a bolt direct. Don’t waste your money or time.

Waste of a Costa Mediterranean cruise ship stop - Dirty overcrowded busses. Not enough seats. NOT on time. Drivers stop to take a “15” minute break that lasts 40 minutes. Horrible experience and a waste of a cruise ship stop. I only got off the bus once due to the traffic and delays even though they sold me a ticket for 3 different bus loops. DON’T WASTE YOUR CRUISE SHIP TIME OR MONEY! Rip off!