Big Bus New York - Classic Tour

Home to over 10,000 aquatic animals, including one of the world’s largest Saltwater Crocodiles residing in the state-of-the-art Croc Lair exhibit, SEA LIFE Melbourne Aquarium takes you on an interactive adventure from the depths of the ocean to the icy waters of Antarctica. The stunning new Croc Lair Exhibit (opening Sept 21, 2013) is just one of the 12 new zones of discovery at SEA LIFE Melbourne Aquarium, where you can marvel at the world’s only display of Elephant Sharks in Bay of Rays, be mesmerised as you experience a rainbow of colours at Seahorse Pier and explore a world unlike any other and marvel at the majestic King and cheeky Gentoo penguins in Penguin Playground.   With interactive animal encounters, iconic state-of-the-art displays, animal feeds and diver presentations, SEA LIFE Melbourne Aquarium is an excellent, educational and completely engaging experience.

Cendrillon Massenet's enchanting take on the Cinderella story returns to the Met. ShowTickets.com has your tickets for less.

Windsor Castle* Perched high above the River Thames, Windsor Castle has been home to 39 monarchs and is the oldest and largest occupied castle in the world. Explore the superb State Apartments, furnished with paintings by Rembrandt, Rubens and Canaletto and visit 14th Century St George’s Chapel, where tombs of ten sovereigns including Henry VIII rest in peace. Stonehenge Experience this incredible UNESCO World Heritage Site; one of the most famous prehistoric monuments in Europe. Take a step inside the Neolithic Houses and visit the world-class exhibition and visitor centre boasting over 250 ancient objects and treasures. Oxford Enjoy a guided walk of one of the most famous university cities in the world. Steeped in history, stunning architecture and medieval charm, wander the cobbled alleyways and experience the famous Bridge of Sighs, Trinity College, Ashmolean Museum and The Sheldonian Theatre. *Viewing at Windsor Castle is restricted on Sundays. On rare occasions, the State Apartments may be closed.

What attractions are included? Aquarium of the Bay General admission Redeem at Aquarium of the Bay main entrance (2nd floor) Hours: 10am-6pm daily (closed on Christmas Day) Ripley’s Believe It or Not! General admission Benefits redeemable only at Aquarium of the Bay from 10am – 6pm daily (closed on Christmas Day) Hours: 10am-10pm daily Asian Art Museum General admission (surcharge for special exhibitions) Hours: 10am-5pm (closed on Mondays, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas and New Year’s Day) Bay City Bike Rentals & Tours Comfort Bike Rental – full day (until store closes) Redeem at 501 Bay Street (cable car turnaround) Bike deposit / insurance waiver required Hours: 8am-8pm daily (closed on Christmas Day) de Young Museum General admission only (surcharge for special exhibitions) General same day admission granted at the Legion of Honor and de Young Museum Hours: Tue-Sun 9:30am-5:15pm (closed on Mondays, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas) Legion of Honor General admission only (surcharge for special exhibitions) Retail: Adult $15 17 and under free admission General same day admission granted at the Legion of Honor and de Young Museum Hours: Tue-Sun 9:30am-5:15pm (closed on Mondays, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas) GoCar Tours One-hour rental 431 Beach Street - Pre-booking required $30 supplement payable to operator for single adult - For 2 riders, just one supplemental fee, but both riders need two iVenture Cards Hours: 9am-8pm daily (closed on Christmas Day) Bay Cruise – Gray Line of San Francisco Bay Cruise 60 minutes Redeem at Gray Line Retail Centers at PIER 41 or 2627 Taylor St Customers will be issued Blue & Gold Fleet ticket from Gray Line of San Francisco stock Hours: 9am-4pm daily (closed on Christmas Day) City Tour San Francisco Benefit: 48 Hours Hop on Hop Off (San Francisco loop, Sausalito tour loop, and Scenic Night Tour) Redeem at Gray Line Retail Centers at Pier 41 or 2627 Taylor St or Outside sales agents Departure times: Union Square: 9am–4:30pm  Fisherman’s Wharf: 9:30am–4:30pm Grand City Tour - Gray Line of San Francisco Benefit: Single day tour Supplement fee:  A $30 supplement payable to the operator. Reservations required Duration: 3.5 hours Departure times: 9am and 2pm daily Monterey and Carmel – Gray Line of San Francisco Benefit: Single day tour Supplement fee: $30 Adult/$15 Child (payable directly to operator) Reservations required Duration: 11 hours Departure times: 9am daily (Apr-Oct); 9am Thu, Fri, Sat & Sun (Nov-Mar) Muir Woods & Sausalito – Gray Line of San Francisco Single day tour Supplement fee: $30 Adult/$15 Child (payable directly to operator) Reservations required Duration: 4 hours Departure times: 9am and 2pm daily Wine Country – Gray Line of San Francisco Single day tour Supplement fee: $30 Adult/$15 Child (payable directly to operator) Reservations required Duration: 8 hours Departure times: 9am daily Yosemite National Park – Gray Line of San Francisco Single day tour Supplement fee: $60 Adult/$30 Child (payable directly to operator) Reservations required Duration: 13.5 hours Departure times: 7am daily (Apr-Oct); 7am Thu, Fri, Sat, and Sun (Nov-Mar) You can also view the included attractions and get contact information to make reservations where necessary.

Where does the tour start? All tours start outside Gate 2 of Etihad Stadium, located in the Docklands area of the Melbourne CBD. Etihad Stadium can be easily reached via walking, train or tram (take any of trams 11, 35, 48, 70, 75, 86 or 96) and exiting at Southern Cross Station. Do I need to arrive early for my tour? It is advised that you arrive 5 minutes prior to your tour start time so that you can check in and go to the toilet or grab some snacks before the tour starts. What do I need to bring on the tour with me? It is highly recommended that you bring with you a poncho, umbrella, suncream, water and a hat. You can never guess what Melbourne's weather will do next! Do you offer tours in languages other than English? At present all of our tours are conducted only in English however we are working towards offering tours in additional languages. Is the tour suitable for all ages and for wheelchair users? The tour is suitable for all ages however unfortunately is not suitable for wheelchairs. What happens in the event of bad weather? Does the tour still run? A little rain never hurt anybody! City Sports Tours runs in all weathers. We will contact you if a tour is to be cancelled due to bad weather. If you don't hear from us then assume the tour is on!

Shearwater is a classic Newport-style schooner yacht, only recently recognized as a national landmark in 2009.  The vessel was built by Rice Brother Corporation in East Boothbay, Maine, back in a time when yachting was a rare combination of elegance and adventure; Rice Bros. were well known for building luxury pleasure yachts and produced some 4,000 hulls over a period of 64 years. The keel was laid down on January 4, 1929 and a news clip from the Boothbay Register reflects alongside a photograph "Tyler Hodgon at the old Tide Mill is getting out timbers for the schooner to be built at Rice’s. Vessel to be built of native white oak." Traditionally built from hand-hewn native white oak, she was the last boat to be constructed at that yard - likely due to the ensuing Great Depression brought on by the Stock Market Crash that occurred later that autumn.  East Boothbay was a small coastal town with shipbuilding being its only industry. About 40 workmen were employed for the construction of SHEARWATER. Her designer Theodore Donald Wells was born in Hudson Falls, N Y on October 22, 1875. He was a naval architect and marine engineer, a member of the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers and also the Institute of Naval Architects London. His education included post-graduate work at the University of Glasgow in Scotland. He began his career as a member of the firm Herreshoff and Wells, N. Y. City in 1902. Working with Herreshoff no doubt had an influence on his designs, which bear similarities to many of the famous Herreshoff designed yachts of that time. From 1903 to 1907 he worked for Wintringham and Wells and then began practicing his profession under his own name. Mr. Wells joined the Navy Department in March 1917 and became Superintending Constructor of the Baltimore District U. S. N. Notable yachts designed and constructed under his supervision are "Viking" a 272 foot steel motor yacht built for George F. Baker in 1929 by Newport News and "Karina" a three masted schooner built for Robert E. Tod in 1932 by Staten Island Shipbuilding. Mr. Tod was a well-known offshore yachtsman as was his former yacht ‘Thistle", which competed in the Emperors Cup ocean race. SHEARWATER was launched on May 4, 1929 and photographs in the Boothbay Register reflect her graceful and elegant lines. Her first Captain, Leon Esterbrook of Edgarton, MA, arrived to take charge of the fitting out. Her owner Charles E Dunlap was a member of the Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club, Oyster Bay, NY and this became SHEARWATER’s first homeport after her completion in late September 1929. It was there in Oyster Bay that she first started to thrill those who sailed in luxury aboard her and those who were privileged to crew her on race day. Since her launching and documentation in Lloyd’s Register of American Yachts in 1929, she has had a colorful history and has been carefully maintained and restored to standards that few contemporary vessels are able to match and is truly a piece of American Maritime History. On November 7, 1942 SHEARWATER was requisitioned by the War Shipping Administration and became a member of The United States Coast Guard’s Coastal Picket Patrol during World War Two. She was painted gray and bore the numbers CG67004. Based at Little Creek, Virginia she patrolled the waters east of the Chesapeake Bay entrance and south towards Cape Hatteras. Her skipper during that period reflected on how they used their free time while out on submarine patrol to race against other yachts and in his own words "sailed in tandem with the schooner Lord Jim, racing in and out of port, up and down the east coast and winning." She was designed and built as a gaff rigged schooner but during this period was changed to a Marconi rig. She carries over 2,550 square feet while under full sail. A true veteran world cruiser, she first transited the Panama Canal in July 1946 and in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s completed a two and a half-year global circumnavigation. In December 1971 Mrs. John B. Thayer of Rosemont, wife of a former trustee and treasurer, donated SHEARWATER to the University of Pennsylvania’s Institute of Environmental Medicine. She was used by the university as a laboratory for research on physiological responses to the stresses of living and working underwater. Captained by James Shearson, she was fitted with compressors, generators, monitoring instruments and a small decompression chamber. She has participated in many Ancient Mariner and Classic yacht races in U S waters as well as racing in the Bay of Islands in New Zealand while on her circumnavigation in the early 1980’s. It is rumored she was once dismasted in the famous Newport to Bermuda race. She was last raced by the current owners in San Diego in May 1995 in the American Schooner Cup and finished second overall. She entered the yacht charter industry in 1966 whilst on the West Coast sailing to the Channel Islands and was again used to generate income to keep her shipshape while owned by the University of Pennsylvania. During the chartering industry’s infancy in the Caribbean, SHEARWATER was known as the " Queen of the Fleet". Today she continues this tradition offering the most unique sailing experience and has passed rigid Coast Guard inspections and can carry up to 49 passengers. We welcome you to join us for an excellent opportunity to experience the ambiance of a vintage sailing vessel while delighting in the splendors of The Manhattan sky-line, the Statue of Liberty or the beauty of the oceans beyond.