MEET YOUR HOSTS!

What a wonderful afternoon spent in a beautiful secluded spot on Sydney Harbour. Learning and taking photos with an experienced and awarded photographer. Loved it!! Learnt so much. Highly recommend this tour.

KJRNVR

 

Visiting three unique galleries with a very knowledgeable guide was such a treat, and an experience I would highly recommend to anyone visiting Sydney. The tour was informative and visually stimulating, and I was left wanting more. The time flew by and I was disappointed when it came to an end. Well done guys.

Pamela754
Sydney, Australia

Wonderfully interesting day spent with Alex and Jamie from “Local Eyes Australia”. Collected in a brand new mini van and driven around the historic Rocks area, under the Harbour Bridge and onto a great photo spot at Mrs Macquaries Chair all whilst being informed of the local history. The tour proceeded to the Woolloomooloo and Kings Cross area and onto a quirky little Cafe in trendy Paddington for a coffee stop and a quick look at a few shops. Next on the journey was a wander around the gardens of Vaucluse House and then to the gap and South Head with wonderful views of Sydney Harbour. Lunch was a treat at the famous Watson bay Hotel…yum! Time for the beach , so off to Bondi Beach…and despite it being a bit rainy we had a fabulous time walking along the beach and poping in to another cute cafe for a coffee. We ended the day with a drive through Centennial park and a bit more history!
I would recommend this tour for anyone who would like a personal, professional boutique experience, touching the highlights of Sydney…giving you a taste of what you can do if you have more time, but also giving a sufficient tour if that is all the time you had. Alex and Jamie have other tours available and I would like to give them a go if this trip is an example of the fabulous hospitality they offer!

Rosie Steggles
Sydney, Australia

We started the day with a senses stimulating stop: the local market, where Jamie and Alex picked up fresh produce for our lunch.

The lunch sampled the most delicious seafood and meat (including Kangaroo!!!) seasoned with bush spices and herbs, accompanied by Aussie wines. I came out feeling like I have explored Australia on a deeper level!

Thank you Jamie and Alex for opening up your house, and your excellent cooking. It was an absolutely perfect day!

Sandrine L

 

We visited Sydney several times in the past and did all the normal things tourist can do in Sydney. This time we opted for something different: view Sydney through “local eyes”. We booked A privet Sydney harbour cruise this included a visit to the Sydney fish-market, where we purchased fresh fish, shrimp, sea bugs,oysters and many more goodies from the ocean .Captain Jamie moored us at a very beautiful beach and Alex prepared us unbelievable lunch !

All of this on board of a magnificent yacht!

We enjoyed Jamie and Alex’s inside knowledge of Sydney so much we booked a walking tour for the next day. A “walkabout” in Sydney, with spectacular views, picturesque cabins and some local wildlife we thoroughly viewed Sydney from a different angle

Cudo’s for this 5 star experience!
We be will back !

Jos and Regien
Vancouver Canada.

“An athletically-fit-looking husband and wife team, Jamie and Alex Creer, pick up my spouse and me at our hotel in King’s Cross, a former red-light district, now home to some of Sydney’s best restaurants and trendy nightspots. Our first Australian visit, we booked their “Local Eyes” day-long tour ‒ thankfully ‒ in an air-conditioned Mercedes van ‒ because it’s the hottest day experienced by me at 42.5C!

Jamie describes Sydney’s history and the fact that many buildings were erected through the services of convict architects. We check out its geographic origin, the Rocks precinct adjacent to the harbour which boasts a wonderful weekend market. The Rocks offers a blend of old and new from cobblestone laneways to stylish modern bars, some of Sydney’s finest restaurants and the Museum of Contemporary Art. We see Australia’s oldest colonial buildings and view its newest development at Barrangaroo Point as the morning temperature jumps 10 degrees from 22C to 32C under a powerful sun.

Oblivious to the heat, fanatical people tethered in groups of 10, bravely climb the Sydney Bridge as Jamie relates the intriguing story of the sail-shaped Opera House at Bennelong Point. Norwegian architect, Jørn Utzon, didn’t finish the inside nor return for the opening in 1973, leaving the project under a newly elected government unhappy with escalating costs. Named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007, it houses Opera Australia, the Australian Ballet, the Sydney Theatre Company and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra.

Utzon’s submission was one of 233 designs from 32 countries, many from the most famous architects of the day. The Opera House was opened by Elizabeth II. Utzon was not invited to the ceremony, nor was his name even mentioned during any of the speeches. He was recognized later when asked to design updates to the interior of the opera house.

The bridge itself, dating back to 1932, is an architectural marvel which can rise or fall up to seven inches depending on the weather, and which requires 80,000 litres of paint per coat, always grey because no other colour is available in such a large quantity!

We continue through the Botanic Gardens, 30 hectares of greenery in the heart of the city, to Mrs. Macquarie’s Chair, an exposed sandstone rock cut into the shape of a bench, offering stunning views of Sydney Harbour. It was hand carved by convicts in 1810 for Governor Macquarie’s wife, Elizabeth. We stop there to capture some iconic Sydney photos.

We drive through Woolloomooloo via the Finger Wharf Pier with its world-class restaurants that enjoy stunning skyline views. We tour the pretty streets of Paddington, (referred to as Paddo by the locals) lined with historic terrace houses and boutique shopping – including Australian designer labels such as Banjo and Matilda, Easton Pearson and Leona Edmiston. At Barry Stern Galleries, we are treated to many vividly colourful paintings.

Jamie formerly distributed flowers throughout the world and Alex, a local TV personality is also a relocator of business types, perfect guides for their native city. We cover a wide spectrum ‒ the exclusive Eastern suburbs of Double Bay and Rose Bay, through some of Sydney’s most affluent residential streets. We stop at Vaucluse House to view the gardens and historic estate, surrounded by some of Sydney’s finest homes.

In Watsons Bay we stop for lunch and afterwards take a walk around South Head to enjoy spectacular Sydney’s harbour and ocean views. Bondi Beach like Watson’s Bay is covered with Aussies desperately trying to remain cool, many surfing at the former, and I admire them from a great viewpoint beside the Lifesavers’ Swim Club and their large pool on an adjacent steep hill as the temperature climbs to its highest point.

Later in the day, Circular Quay, a transport hub, is action packed as we take the recommended ferry to Manly which offers a panoramic view of the Sydney harbour.

Jamie and Alex were great fun to be with and extremely knowledgeable. I highly recommend this tour!”

 

Mike K

Niagara-on-the-Lake, Canada