London- bus tour or do it myself

[Alakazam8]

Hi been planning a trip to London and one day I have set aside to do a tour of main tourist sites- palace, tower, shard and cable cars etc and a river boat.
I’ve been looking at the commercial bus tours and just wondering whether it’s best to pay or diy.
I’m a wheelchair user so wouldn’t be able to use the open top and my lo is autistic so wouldn’t understand the commentary.
I’m sorry if this is a silly question but was wondering what any experienced visitors would recommend. How hard is it to do it by using regular buses?
Thanks

Number 11 goes all sorts of nice places - I used to ride it from Fulham to Victoria Coach station, and remember thinking that it was as good as a tourist bus!

Normal buses do have wheelchair ramps but are often crowded, may not stop etc. It will be quite tiring to negotiate getting on and off.
I think some of the Open top bus tours have spaces downstairs for wheelchair users. You don't have to listen to the commentary as it's on a headset rather than spoken out loud iyswim. They do go directly to all of the sites so will be a much easier option but it costs ££. River tours can also accommodate wheelchair users but you may need to book in advance?

Think about a river cruise as an alternative.

Hi OP, i used to work as a London Tourguide on one of these.

If you are interested in the stories of the places you are looking at - both important historical and also often more social stories, then yes, take the guided tour. I don't think you can easily get the same well researched and engagingly presented information by yourself without a lot of time in books or on google.
Tour guides bring personality and entertainment. I personally love all the stories that aren't in the usual history books - eg at this pub 100 years ago a dispute broke out over a wooden leg and you won't believe what happened next!

However, if you are just looking for a way to get from A to B I wouldn't pay the extra. Given your accessibility needs, I wonder whether it might be altogether less hassle and a similar cost to the tourist buses just to get a taxi? I haven't checked, so it could be miles off!

London buses in the tourist areas are really crowded and you have no guarantee that you will be able to get on. I would contact the tourist buses and ask what their facilities are for prebooking. I would think ordinary buses will be exhausting for your child. I speak as a Londoner, we are not always the most considerate travellers.

I have used ordinary buses before so should be ok in terms of access. I know the tour guides would bring an added extra but might not work for us. Would be better if we could get to the open top part where the guide is. I’d be interested in the history and stories if I was going on my own but with lo this wouldn’t work really.
Would a river cruise be a good alternative? Might look into this more.
This isn’t influencing my decision really but regular bus travel is free for us, but more whether it’s worth paying the £50 the bus tour would cost in terms of value for money.

Busy -ness is also an issue, wouldn’t want to be cramped on buses all day with crowds of people. Wouldn’t go well!

Number 11 looks great btw. Maybe that and a boat would work?

I would opt for the River. If you go down to Greenwich you have the Cutty Sark, the Maritime Museum, Fan Museum which has a lovely tea room, a covered market and big park. Lots of good pubs to eat in.

Alternatively the DLR to Albert Dock and then the Cable car to the O2.

You can pick the number 11 up at Liverpool Street where it starts and you can be sure of getting on. It goes right through to Chelsea. I often take visitors from oversea on it,

It isn't hard logistically to do it by bus but it might be hot, crowded, noisy and stressful.

Route 11 takes in a lot of the sights: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_Buses_route_11

Here are some more sightseeing routes recommended by tfl:
tfl.gov.uk/travel-information/visiting-london/experience-london/bus-leisure-routes

Taking the river bus would be a far more relaxed way of seeing the sights using public transport. They have air con, accessible loos, and a cafe/bar. The cable cars, Tower of London and Shard are all on the river, as are the Houses of Parliament, London Eye, both Tates, St Paul's Cathedral, Canary Wharf, Battersea Power Station, Millenium Dome (02 Centre), MI6, Royal Naval College, Trinity Buoy Lighthouse, Southbank Centre, HMS Belfast, Kew Gardens... You can go as far as the Thames Barrier and, in the other direction, Hampton Court. Most of the piers are wheelchair accessible. Here is the map and service details:
content.tfl.gov.uk/river-services-map.pdf
tfl.gov.uk/modes/river/about-river-bus

There are also official river tours with commentary etc:
tfl.gov.uk/modes/river/about-river-tours

The river buses aren't free but you can get a 50% discount if you get free bus travel:

www.thamesclippers.com/about-mbna-thames-clippers/accessibility-information

Brilliant thanks- a river bus it is then, maybe combined with a bit of the 11.
Thanks for the great advice and links. The trouble is there’s so much info out there it’s hard to find what’s right and not just trying to sell something!

I forgot to say, you can get discounted combined hop on hop off river tickets with entry tickets to museums/the cable car:

booking.thamesclippers.com/thames-clippers-tickets/joint-tickets.html?p=1

Although I'm not sure that you can get the 50% discount on them so possibly it's better just to get the river roamer. You would pay the Freedom Pass price if you get free bus travel, so £8.90:

booking.thamesclippers.com/river-roamer.html

Brilliant- thanks

Going to start off at Buckingham palace for changing of the guard. Then head to the river for the other sites we want to see. Will include a cable car ride too.
Thanks for all the advice. Wouldn’t have thought of this way if I hadn’t posted here.
Thanks again

Megabus do a really good value tour - you have to book and it's not a hop on/off one

Thanks- I’ll look at that one too.

It can get really crowded at the changing of the guard, you need to get there about an hour before to get a good spot. If you can't get a good view of the palace forecourt near the railings, you can always head round the corner to Horseguards Parade to watch the changing of the lifeguard (on horseback) instead. It's a lot quieter and you can get up close. It's at the same time (11am).

Oh thanks - we’ll do that then probably instead. (Trying to avoid too many crowds!)