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  • Convertible Top Sprinter
  • En Español tambien

Panoramic Sightseeing City Bus Tours in Austin

Take a tour in Austin’s only panoramic mini bus!

Quick Details

Take in 360-degree views in a Texas-size convertible on this best of Austin tour!

  • Duration: 90 Minutes (with stops)
  • Pickup and Drop-off: Austin Visitor Center NOTE: the van loading area can be as much as a block away from the Visitors Center-
    Please notify your guide if you require extra time to board because of a disability.
  • Languages: English & Español (headphones provided)
  • Stops: 1-2
  • Seating & Vehicle Info:
    • A Mercedes-Benz glass-top bus with a convertible feature
    • Seats are not reserved
    • When the convertible top is open: The van offers two types of seats; Shady or Sunny
      1. Shady Seats: If you prefer to be protected from the sun and wind, no problem!
        Those seats are here for you, and you don’t have to miss the scenic view with
        our glass-top system
      2. Sunny Seats: Enjoy the full open space, the hot Texas sunshine, and of course,
        the full panoramic view!
  • Extras: Receive discounts through our Pink Tag Partners Program
  • Guide Tips: On this tour, we get out for light (optional) walks so be sure to:
    1. Wear comfortable shoes
    2. Bring a hat (with ties to prevent it flying away)
    3. Bring water to drink (in sealed containers – no cup holders on board)
    4. Bring sunscreen if you need it
From :
$ 44.99 $ 38.24

Ready for All Things Austin?

Austin may be widely known for its music scene, but the city offers more than good tunes. Historic architecture dots this sprawling city, and on this 90-minute tour, you’ll see some of the best of it, including the University of Texas, the Driskill, and the Texas State Cemetery.

On this 1.5-hour excursion, you’ll find out how this quirky cowboy town transformed into a musical mecca, high-tech think tank, and a haven for hippies. Our team of Austinites will put you in the “Austin Frame of Mind” as you travel around town taking in the sights, giving you ideas that will have you ready for boot-scooting, breakfast tacos, and more.

Please note: This tour does not include the Hill Country scenic drive. If you’d like to see Texas’s beautiful Hill Country, try our signature 90-minute City Sightseeing + Hill Country Tour or the 2.5-hour city and Hill Country tour with stops.

Who is this tour good for?

This tour is good for those who want to get to know the vibrant culture of Austin and what makes this city so unique to Texas. You’ll learn more about the growing downtown Austin scene, as well as explore areas such as historic and trendy East Austin, both in the vehicle and on foot.

What you will see on this Best of Austin tour

On this 90-minute tour, an Austinite is your driver and guide, showing you the towering downtown buildings and historic architecture to murals and nature as you go.

Enjoy an audio tour in English or Spanish

You’ll also have access to sanitized single-use headsets with audio conversations about the things you pass. This GPS-powered audio tour, with real-time entertaining conversations about the sights you see, is a great way to get lost in the conversations in the language of your choice.

Get 360-degree views of famous Austin landmarks 

Along the way, expect to find out more about gorgeous architecture—and entertaining historical anecdotes—including the Driskill Hotel, the University of Texas campus, and the new development happening downtown.

You’ll get plenty of 360-degree views from the comfort of your seat, making it that much easier to see all the special details that line our streets. Catch glimpses of murals & public art, which might include Monopoly Mural, Dazed & Confused, Harmony mosaic, as your guide tells you more about the artists who created them.

About the Vehicle

You won’t miss any views in our Mercedes-Benz panoramic sprinter. In our unique vehicle you get 360-degree angles of the city sights, with a retractable roof that’s easy to open and close, making for a unique and comfortable way to see all of Austin’s city architecture. Check out our photos and videos to get a better sense of the experience!

Map and Points of Interest

Pink and white map of Austin with blue dots and letters marking points of interest covered on the tour

About the Guides

As a family business, AO Tours strives to hire professional guides with enthusiasm and deep knowledge on the state capital of Texas. Depending on the tour, you may be with an actor, a comedian, or local resident who can tell you the best places to eat, where to catch a live show, or where to get off the beaten track. Each tour is a little different than the next thanks to this group, who you can learn more about here.

Important Booking Information

Pickup and Drop-Off Location

602 E. 4th Street (Austin Visitors Center)

Please arrive 20 minutes prior to departure to check-in and board.

NOTE: Seats are subject to resale if we have not heard from you or you are not checked-in 15 minutes prior to departure. Our tours depart on schedule – Thanks!

 

Great Experience

Tour guide is very friendly and knowledgeable of the downtown Austin. Great experience! I recommend people who are new town to get a flavor of the City.

– Navigate12673423208 via TripAdvisor
Nice drive by overview of the city

Had a great time seeing some of the sites of Austin. Always nice to get an overview of a new city.

– KarenNKy via TripAdvisor
Daytime fun in Austin

Doug did a great job! He clearly loves his job and we appreciated his sense of humor. The ride was fun and comfortable in the convertible Mercedes Benz.

– Lisa_E via Viator
Great sunny open air bus and tour with Corey!

Corey was a great tour guide! Showed us all the interesting Austin spots, and added in lots of restaurant and club info. Definitely recommend!

– K5521CFkimn via TripAdvisor
Had the best time!

We booked a Very Best of ATX Panoramic City Tour with Stops on AO Tours and had the best time! Our tour guide Corey was knowledgeable and engaging. The Mercedes Van had the option to remove the roof. It was a beautiful day so we did the tour with the top down. I live locally, but my aunt was visiting from out of town. We both learned a lot about Austin! We stopped at the Austin Public Library during the tour and had time to explore and go up to the 6th floor outdoor butterfly garden. The tour went through downtown, south Austin, East Austin, and more. We saw beautiful buildings, colorful murals, lots of water and greenery. We also learned about the interesting history of Austin mixed in with fun facts about the city. We thought that 90 minutes was the perfect amount of time. I highly recommend AO Tours and will definitely book them again.

– Michele S via Google Reviews
Austin history

Jack did a great job adding his local slant and recommendations on things. We were able to learn a lot of Texas culture in a very short time

– james_e on viator
Informative and fun downtown tour!

This tour was great! It was our first time in Austin & we learned so much about the city. The bus was spacious and Jack was really friendly and knowledgeable. It was cool how there were automatic informative messages as well as a tour guide to provide more information. Would definitely recommend!

– MarissaontheMAP via TripAdvisor
My wife and I were looking for a quick way to get acquainted with Austin

My wife and I were looking for a quick way to get acquainted with Austin. Their 90 minute ATX tour is a great way to do that. They have the nicest (Mercedes sprinter) most comfortable tour buses that we saw. It's pretty cool how they can convert them into open air like a convertible. Our guide was knowledgeable and funny.

– Jay K on Yelp
Jack is a brilliant guide

I booked this tour online as we wanted to do a hop on hop off tour when we arrived in Austin. AO tours had good reviews so we decided to book this tour with them. We would have booked the tour with the hill country but it wasn't possible to book that one online only by phone. So i booked this one for 3 of us in December. The booking process was simple and we all had to sigh a waiver by email before the tour which I hadn't had to do before. But we did it easily enough and we were updated accordingly. The departure point is really easy to find and we met Jack our tour guide. He was very friendly and we really enjoyed his tour of downtown Austin. There are only 2 stops where you get off and little time there so we saw a bit but then returned to those places on our own at a later time. The tour is played over a speaker and every now and then jack would add his own touch which made it far better and more personal. All in all it was a really great tour to start our holiday in Austin and get an overview of the downtown area. We also learned a lot about Texas and Austin which was really nice as the tour is very informative. Thank you Jack for a really great tour, you are an excellent tour guide who made it lots of fun and gave a really relaxed, friendly tour and a nice warm welcome to Austin for myself and my family. You also took time to chat to me and my family whenever you could which made the tour all the better. I would definitely book a future tour with AO tours and recommend to family, colleagues and friends.

– 825leilab on TripAdvisor
Awesome tour! Do not miss!

Booked this trip last minute and absolutely felt like a VIP. The bus/convertible was awesome! Our guide was super helpful and patient and create a truly fun and informative experience! Only wish it was a bit longer and included other sections of Austin!

– Marella_M via Viator
The Austin, I never knew.

Austin cemetery, it was very enlightening to know all of the famous people who are buried there. Overall the history of Austin. also, our tour guide Doug was very charismatic and very knowledgeable and I was happy that he was able to share these things with us. Thank you so much Doug.

– Charlene_B via Viator
Doug was amazing...

Doug was an amazing guide. Provided tons of great information. We made the best of the rainy day tour.

– Rosario_C via Viator
Fun and informative.

Doug gave an excellent tour. Many ideas and options were suggested for the rest of our visit. Great overview of the town.

– Hope S via TripAdvisor
Doug was the Texan Star

A fun and interesting tour .. but I always feel that the guide makes the experience. Doug did just that.. passionate, informative and funny. Come and sign up yall…

– Jet20868045414 via TripAdvisor
Austin DT Tour - Short & Informative

Our guide and tour were great. This 90-minute tour provided us with an overview of the entire downtown area - the old, new, and the weird. 😉 Our guide, Doug, was informative and flexible - and for that he deserves our special thanks.

– denniskH8947YZ via TripAdvisor
Ask for Ari!

For new travelers, I highly invite you to experience the AO Austin & Hill Country Panoramic tour. It's Austin in 2 1/2 hours with stops at some of Austin's most breathtaking sites and with guides as wonderful as the one I had, you'll be excited for more. Book at the Austin Visitor Center or online. Fabulous tour!

– Y5123XUalexm via TripAdvisor
Active in Austin

Doug was friendly and very knowledgeable about Austin. Highly recommend. Able to buy water and souvenirs before tour begins.

– Navigator735895y via TripAdvisor
Excellent

Tour guide was excellent. Got a great overview of the city/sights. Definitely recommend if you're a first time visitor.

– Barbara C via TripAdvisor
Very intriguing!

I enjoyed the entire tour. It was very informative information as this was my first trip to Austin. It was great learning about the history of downtown Austin. I especially enjoyed the new library.

– 642teressar via TripAdvisor
Great way to see Austin!

We enjoyed a terrific 90-min tour of downtown Austin with Joel as our driver/guide. The open air van is very comfortable (rides nicely) and most lines of sight are clear and easy to follow. Joel very clearly described what we were seeing, pointed many interesting landmarks, as well as the relevant history and people associated with them. The two brief stops were well-timed to stretch out legs and see some interesting feature up close. We highly recommend to broad overview of downtown Austin.

– Sigs67 via TripAdvisor
Make sure to choose AO you won't regret it.

Let me premise this with I am not a fan of tourist city tours and if I ever do go on one it's usually just a map I paid to go on. With that said this tour was extremely entertains and our driver Joel was very easy to listen and very engaging! I thought for sure I had just paid $49 to take a nap but I was severely mistaken!! The tour was very informative and gave some excellent details about the amazing city of Austin!!! If you're choosing to do a tour in Austin make sure to choose AO you won't regret it. Also make sure to ask for Joel you won't be disappointed

– Clint E. via Yelp
Great time!

Worth every penny. Great way to see Austin and where you want to spend time. Driver friendly and knowledgeable.

– Dave_B via Viator
Great way to get the lay of the land!!

The tour was awesome. Joel was informative, fun, and made me wish I had more time in Austin to explore. Great way to learn about Austin!!

– Libby C via Viator
Highly recommend.

We had a great time on the Panoramic bus tour. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable about various areas of Austin and I learned a lot of things about Austin too. Highly recommend.

– C T via Google Reviews
Best overview of Austin

Joel did a great job. Tour gave us a good overview of Austin. Would love to have more history. Could easily have lasted 2 hours.

– Katherine_R via Viator
Great way to see Austin!

We were in town for our daughter's wedding and did a private 90 minute tour. Ari our guide was very knowledgeable and fun to be with. We learned a lot about Austin. It was a beautiful drive. Vehicle was very nice. She was on time and very pleasant. I would highly recommend.

– kathy_b via TripAdvisor
Wonderful tour experience.

AO Tours provided a wonderful tour experience. They had a terrific guide driving a great tour van. It couldn’t have gone better. We loved the tour!

– Cindy L via Google Reviews
Great City Tour

A very comprehensive city tour of Austin in the comfort of an open convertible Sprinter driven by Ari, our expert guide. Included landmarks, parks and architecture as well as interesting history! Nice photo ops and 2 stops to stretch our legs and do a bit of additional sightseeing. An excellent value for the experience!

– Sandra W on Google Reviews
Avery did a good job

Avery did a good job highlighting the city. Tour could have been longer. Loved the custom van. Would take tour again if more options are available.

Great experience

We were shown all of Austin and taught quite a bit about the Capital of Texas. There's actually a lot of construction going on. It's just there to make more room for more interesting people.

– Q9503TZbrianm via TripAdvisor
All incapsulating tour

My trip on a yucky rainy day had a bright spot in it with the superior guide - Avery - a handsome, articulate and well versed young man. The highlights, the architecture, & history-all amazing! A well conducted, entertaining and informative tour. And just the perfect length of time w/o becoming boring. Highly recommend.

– James_C via Viator
Avery did a good job

Avery did a good job highlighting the city. Tour could have been longer. Loved the custom van. Would take tour again if more options are available.

– Bill L via TripAdvisor
Austin in a Nutshell

"The guide was very nice, good energy. The bus was very nice and clean. It's a "cliff notes" version of the city that gets your feet wet quickly in 90mins."

– CrDave via Viator
Very Best of ATX Tour

It was a very informative tour of downtown Austin TX. The tour guide was very nice. I would do it again.

– Jacilyn C via Google
A very fun and memorable trip for us.

Thank you for giving us such a good time while we were visiting Austin for the first time. While other tour companies were closed during this time, we were able to take 2 fantastic tours with you.

– EvasBookStore via Google