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Choice passes vs all-inclusive passes

A choice pass pays off on a short list of dear tickets. A day pass pays off on a packed day. The same seller sells both in London and New York, so the two cities show where the line falls.

Updated

Two ways to price the same list

The London Pass Explorer sells a number of picks: 2 to 7 attractions from its list, priced by the number. The London Pass All-Inclusive sells days: everything on the list for 1 to 10 days, priced by the day. The two lists overlap, so for many plans you can buy either.

  • A choice pass costs the same whichever attractions you pick, so it pays most on the dearest tickets and gains nothing from cheap ones.
  • A day pass costs the same however much you fit into its days, so it pays most when the days are full. Visits it holds that you do not make are money spent.
  • Both cover only what is on their list. Anything else in your plan is paid at the gate either way.

London: five sights over three relaxed days

For Tower of London, The London Eye, Westminster Abbey, St Paul's Cathedral and The View from The Shard, with 2 adults, 3 days at a relaxed pace, London Pass Explorer takes the 5 attractions option and comes out Worth it: GBP 38 less than the gate (12%) for this plan. 5 visits at 2 a day need the 3 days option of the day pass, and that comes out Skip it, GBP 90 more than the gate (29%). Prices checked October 2026.

Every London pass for five sights, 2 adults, 3 days, relaxed pace. Prices checked October 2026.
PassOption the math picksPass costReal costSaving or loss for this planVerdict
London Pass Explorer5 attractionsGBP 270GBP 270GBP 38 less than the gate (12%)Worth it
Turbopass Flex Pass2 attractionsGBP 120GBP 294GBP 14 less than the gate (4%)Close call
London Pass All-Inclusive3 daysGBP 398GBP 398GBP 90 more than the gate (29%)Skip it
Turbopass City Pass1 dayGBP 222GBP 454GBP 146 more than the gate (47%)Skip it

London: seven sights in two days

Add HMS Belfast and London Zoo, and cut the trip to 2 days. Now the pace decides. At a relaxed pace the day pass has the larger saving, but the day pass holds 7 visits in 2 days, more than 2 a day, so its verdict stops at Close call. The choice pass takes the 4 attractions option, the one with the largest saving that fits. At a packed pace the day pass has the larger saving: London Pass All-Inclusive Worth it, London Pass Explorer Worth it.

Seven London sights, 2 adults, 2 days. Prices checked October 2026.
PassPaceOptionPass costSaving or loss for this planVisits fitVerdict
London Pass ExplorerRelaxed, 2 a day4 attractionsGBP 230GBP 31.60 less than the gate (7%)yesClose call
London Pass ExplorerPacked, 4 a day7 attractionsGBP 330GBP 95.20 less than the gate (22%)yesWorth it
London Pass All-InclusiveRelaxed, 2 a day2 daysGBP 310GBP 115.20 less than the gate (27%)noClose call
London Pass All-InclusivePacked, 4 a day2 daysGBP 310GBP 115.20 less than the gate (27%)yesWorth it

A Close call with a fit warning still shows the full saving. It holds only if you make every visit, so the calculator caps the verdict instead of hiding the figure.

New York: four dear tickets in one day

For Empire State Building, Edge Observation Deck, Circle Line Landmarks Cruise and Intrepid Museum, 1 adult with 1 packed day, the choice pass needs 4 picks and comes out Close call, USD 16 less than the gate (9%). The day pass, on its 1 day option, costs USD 169 against USD 165 at the gate: Close call, USD 4 more than the gate (2%). 4 visits fill a packed day, and their gate prices still fall short of what the day pass costs. Prices checked October 2026.

New York: eight sights in two packed days

Add One World Observatory, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, Whitney Museum of American Art and Madame Tussauds New York over a second packed day. Go City All-Inclusive now covers all eight on its 2 days option: Worth it, USD 79 less than the gate (26%). Go City Explorer needs its 7 attractions option for the same plan and comes out Worth it, USD 39 less than the gate (13%).

Every New York pass for eight sights, 1 adult, 2 days, packed pace. Prices checked October 2026.
PassOption the math picksPass costReal costSaving or loss for this planVerdict
Go City All-Inclusive2 daysUSD 219USD 219USD 79 less than the gate (26%)Worth it
CityPASS5 attractionsUSD 151USD 254USD 44 less than the gate (14%)Worth it
Go City Explorer7 attractionsUSD 229USD 259USD 39 less than the gate (13%)Worth it
Go City Essentials3 attractionsUSD 99USD 274USD 24 less than the gate (8%)Close call
C33 attractionsUSD 111USD 283USD 15 less than the gate (5%)Close call
TopView2 daysUSD 169USD 284USD 14 less than the gate (4%)Close call
C-All11 attractionsUSD 261USD 373USD 75 more than the gate (25%)Skip it

Where the line falls

Start with one London sight and add one at a time, for 1 adult on a 2 day trip at a packed pace. The sights are those both passes include, in our order: the popular picks first, then the rest by gate price. London Pass All-Inclusive saves more than London Pass Explorer from 7 sights on, and for one step at 4. In New York the same test gives: Go City All-Inclusive saves more than Go City Explorer from 7 sights on.

Saving or loss for 1 adult, 2 days, packed pace, as London sights are added. Prices checked October 2026.
The numbers behind the chart. Each option is the one the math picks for that many sights. Prices checked October 2026.
SightsAddedGate totalLondon Pass ExplorerLondon Pass All-Inclusive
1Tower of LondonGBP 38GBP 27 more than the gate (71%), 2 attractionsGBP 67 more than the gate (176%), 1 day
2The London EyeGBP 67GBP 2 less than the gate (2%), 2 attractionsGBP 38 more than the gate (56%), 1 day
3Westminster AbbeyGBP 99GBP 10 less than the gate (10%), 3 attractionsGBP 6 more than the gate (6%), 1 day
4St Paul's CathedralGBP 126GBP 11 less than the gate (8%), 4 attractionsGBP 21 less than the gate (16%), 1 day
5The View from The ShardGBP 154GBP 19 less than the gate (12%), 5 attractionsGBP 1 more than the gate (under 1%), 2 days
6Big Bus London, Discover ticketGBP 190.99GBP 35.99 less than the gate (18%), 6 attractionsGBP 35.99 less than the gate (18%), 2 days
7Windsor CastleGBP 222.99GBP 57.99 less than the gate (26%), 7 attractionsGBP 67.99 less than the gate (30%), 2 days
8London ZooGBP 254.79GBP 62.79 less than the gate (24%), 7 attractionsGBP 99.79 less than the gate (39%), 2 days

The day pass line moves in steps. Each time the visits outgrow 4 a day, the math moves to the next day option and the saving drops before it climbs again. The choice pass line moves with the price of each sight added.

Reading your own result

  • Tick everything you would do, including the sights no pass covers. Their gate price counts toward the real cost of every pass.
  • Set the pace you would keep. A packed pace lets a day pass fit more, and the verdict follows.
  • Read the option on each card. The calculator chooses the option that fits your days and pace with the largest saving, for example the 4 attractions and 2 days options above.
  • Read the break-even line. It says how many more of the included attractions would turn a loss into a saving.

How sightseeing passes work covers the other two kinds, bundles and city cards. When a sightseeing pass loses money collects the patterns behind a Skip it.