Questions people actually ask

Pick a tour on the tours page, pick a date, and book your seats online. The price on the tour page is the price you pay — no fees bolted on at checkout, no surprises at the bus.

Nope. Sorry. All seats gotta be bought online ahead of time. There's a limited number of them and we want you to have plenty of room — no roof riders, no matter how badass that might sound.

We can't hold the bus for you if you're late. Sorry to be so mean about that — there's a schedule to keep and we want everyone to have a good time. Some tours make a second pickup stop — check your tour's page for the route and catch us down the line.

Totally. Tickets are transferable. Just let us know ahead of time at help@thedetroitbus.com and we'll update your tickets with the new name.

We live in Michigan. Sometimes Mother Nature likes to throw us a curveball, and safety is our highest priority. In case of gnarly weather, you'll get an email the day of the event with a raincheck (or snowcheck) date. If you can't make the rescheduled date, you'll get a voucher good for a future tour with us.

Straight up: tickets are non-refundable. The exceptions — if we can't run at all (weather grounds the buses, we get a raincheck date on the calendar or your money back), if a travel cancellation keeps you from getting to Detroit (proof required — a canceled flight counts), or if your card got charged twice. Can't make it for any other reason? Your ticket can still go to a friend (see above). The full fine print lives in our ticket terms and conditions.

Yes, and people do it all the time. Every tour can run private — your group, your date, picked up wherever you choose. Hit the "Make it private" section on any tour page and a real person gets back to you within one business day.

Find the tour you want on the tours page and fill out the short request form at the bottom — what you're planning, how many people, when. Mike, an actual human at our garage, replies within one business day with availability and your whole-bus price. If it all sounds good, you book it. If not, no hard feelings.

No. Asking is free — no deposit, no commitment, no salesperson calling you at dinner. You only put money down once you've seen the price and decided you want the date.

Wherever you choose. A bar, your office, your house, a hotel lobby full of confused in-laws — you name the address and the bus shows up there.

Honest answer: it depends on your date, how long you need the bus, how far it's going, and the season — a Saturday in June costs more than a Tuesday in February. What we can promise is that our quote is all-in: fees and fuel included, no hidden line items, so the number we send is the number you pay. When you compare us to other companies, compare their final invoice to our quote. Getting your exact number takes about two minutes on the quote form, and a real quote comes back within one business day. No dollar figure we could print here would be as honest as the one built for your actual trip.

Tell us about your trip on the quote form — two minutes, one form, no deposit to ask. Within one business day you get a real, all-in quote: fees and fuel included, no hidden line items. The only thing on top is optional driver gratuity.

Like the quote? Sign online and pay a 50% deposit — that's what holds your date. The balance is due 14 days before your trip. Driver gratuity (15–25%) is optional and appreciated; our drivers are the best in the business.

Our fleet is hand-painted 48-seat Art Buses, each one painted by a different Detroit artist and driven by a professional. Got more than 48 people? We run multiple buses together all the time — weddings and corporate shuttles do it constantly. Just tell us your headcount on the quote form and we'll spec the right convoy.

On our public tours, no — drinks stay in the bars and venues, where there's plenty of time to enjoy them. The bus is for the ride and the stories. On family-friendly tours it's water, juice, or pop. Booking a private 21+ charter? Ask when you book and we'll walk you through what's allowed.

Some of our stops are light on food options, so we recommend you fuel up ahead of time and bring snacks. Drinking and learning is hard work. Just leave nothing behind on the bus — these buses are art.

Depends on the tour. Welcome to Detroit is built for everyone, kids included. The Brewery Hop and Drunks of Antiquity are strictly 21+, for reasons that are probably obvious. Every tour page says right up top who it's for — when in doubt, check there or ask us.

Accessibility varies by bus and by tour, and we'd rather give you a straight answer about your specific trip than a vague one here. Email help@thedetroitbus.com with your date and we'll tell you honestly what we can do and figure out what works.

The part we're proudest of: every seat you buy on one of our experiences gives a Detroit kid a safe, free ride to school or an after-school program. You have fun, a kid gets to class. Here's how that works.

No — we're a small Detroit business, and your ticket is a ticket, not a donation, so it isn't tax-deductible. We just decided that giving kids rides should be baked into the business instead of bolted on. The tours fund the rides; buying a seat is how you take part.