My wife and I were in Melbourne the last week of May to attend the Rotary International 2023 International Convention and we met up with another Rotarian couple that we've known now for several years to see a little bit of the area around Melbourne. We decided on a tour operated by your company, Sightseeing Tours Australia, for the Full-Day Great Ocean Road and 12 Apostles Tour, for Tuesday, May 30th, 2023, Itinerary Number 1404753517, Booking Reference 1017395301. From the onset of the tour, we were very disappointed in the attitude, lack of professionalism and downright rudeness and disrespect/racist attitude of the driver/tour guide, a "John O.", or something to that affect. We, along with our friends, and a number of other passengers, including other Rotarians from other parts of the world, were subjected to this individual's verbal harassment and inhospitable attitude and I am writing this message to let the company know that this individual not only did a disservice to your company, but also to the overall impression of people who were in your country to experience its beauty and culture, only to leave with a feeling of never wanting to visit Australia again. To begin with, when he came to the stop we had indicated to our friends we would meet the bus, where we had been waiting for over 15 minutes, he came off of the bus accusing our friends, who had booked the itinerary, of being late and was very rude to a number of the other people that were there trying to ascertain if this was the bus they should be on. Our friends had indicated via chat with your company that they would be at Her Majesty's Theater at 7:10 am the morning of May 30th, but were called that morning to change their pickup location, which they did. When they got to their new pickup location, there was a bus there, but it was not the bus for our tour, but the driver was kind enough to take them to our pickup location, The Great Southern Hotel, where they arrived 5 minutes after the designated pickup time, just after we boarded the bus. I explained to John O. that they were en route, as I had called them once John O. informed us that they were not on the bus. When they arrived, he proceeded to berate them very rudely about them being "30 minutes late", which they were not. It was very unprofessional and very rude the way in which he was addressing them and he essentially made a scene about it in front of the entire bus passenger group. A little while later, John O. was giving some instruction to the group on the bus, and he stopped in mid sentence and started scolding a gentleman about something he may have had audible on his phone, threatening him to "take him to a police station and have him arrested" for allowing whatever it was that was audible on his phone, which no one else on the bus could hear. John O. stated to this gentleman that "this was a public bus, not his own private tour", and that he had no right to have audible what he had and that it was illegal for him to be doing whatever it was he was doing. Most of the bus passengers were in total shock about this blatant threat to a passenger, who was non-white, possibly did not speak english very well and was not at all being a nuisance to anyone else on the bus. Despite the intent of the comments, its impact definitely had serious racist undertones and created a very unsafe environment for an event we all paid for but felt as if we were prisoners in our own recreational experience. My wife, who was closer to the gentleman in question said that John O. seemed to be targeting this gentleman, as he had said something else to him a little while earlier in a threatening tone, and that John O. was totally inappropriate for chastising this passenger, a paying customer, in the way that he was, in public, in front of other passengers. In addition, his accusation to this gentleman was totally hypocritical, as John O. was playing (apparently) his own selection of music throughout the trip throughout the bus's sound system, and at one point turned up the volume on a particular Beach Boys song, encouraging everyone to sing along (which no one did). A number of passengers throughout the trip discussed among themselves this threat to the passenger and how inappropriate it was, but did so somewhat fearfully, as John O. might retaliate some of the same threats to them as well. At the stop labeled "Koala Cafe", myself and one of our friends had walked up the hill to try and see koalas in trees and walked back to the bus, keeping track of the time that had been allotted to be back on the bus. As we approached the bus, John O. started berating us for being late and my friend state that we had been conscious of the time and we were on-time. John O. started yelling at us "Oh, well I guess all of the other people on the bus are wrong, huh?" and then cursing at us "Don't give me that bullsh!t" as we got on to the bus. My friend replied "Don't yell at me" very calmly, despite my desire to argue... read more

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Don't use - Book with another company. We booked 2 adults for the 1 day tour of Kangaroo Island. Sight seeing tours website accepted our booking and took payment of over $600. We received a confirmation e-mail of our booking. 2 days later I receive a phone call asking if I can change our booking date to 3 days later. We have flight home booked on this day and so cannot change. I am then told that no other dates are available and so our trip is cancelled. A full refund will be processed however this can take 5 days. The company will have had my money for over a week and as they left it 2 days before even telling me that the trip they had confirmed I had booked on to actually wasn't available, I am now chasing round trying to find an alternative. read more

I booked with this so called company in 2020 on my first ever trip to Australia which i'd been saving for for 5 years but then covid hit and my trip to Australia was cancelled. I put my trips on hold but because I then could not book to go to Australia in 2022, I contacted them for a refund. First they said they only give back 75% as 'a favour' and i'm still waiting some two months later. I'm on a pension and can little afford to be ripped off like this! You would think Australian tourism would be doing all they can to lure people back to the country instead of putting prices up and ripping off customers! Why am I being punished because of covid? read more

If you want to see the 12 Apostles but don't have the time to drive yourself through the entire Great Ocean Road, then this tour is perfect! You can choose your pick up location from a few hotels. Pick up is around 7:30, depending on which location you choose. Since we were staying near Chinatown, the closes spot for us was the Exford Hotel. It's $94, and you only need to book a day or two in advance. While researching, I found a few other tour companies with the same exact itinerary but they were slightly more expensive. I think Great Ocean Road Melbourne Tours works in conjunction with other tour companies and place people that way because when we showed up, the tour company's name was actually Wildlife Tours Australia. We had a small bus (about 25 people), which was good - because that meant you don't have to wait for as many people at each stop. Our tour guide, Ben was awesome. He kept us entertained with his quirkiness and just genuinely seemed to love his job. These are all the stops we made in this order: 1. Urquhart's Bluff 2. Memorial Arch 3. Drove through the town of Lorne 4. Spotted some koalas at Kennett River 5. Stopped for lunch (included) at Iluka restaurant in Apollo Bay. If you go here, get the fish and chips! 6. Super old and tall trees at Mait's Rest in the Otway Rainforest 7. Loch Ard Gorge 8. 12 Apostles 9. Gibson Steps There's also an add-on option to do a helicopter tour of the 12 Apostles. But on the day of, it was too packed and they had to cancel it for anyone who signed up. The itinerary says you get back to Melbourne at around 9, but it's really around 7. I'm glad we got to stop at so many spots, but this also meant that we didn't have a whole lot of time at each location. So if you would like a more leisurely tour, this isn't that. But if don't mind a faster-paced tour and you want to get your money's worth, this is probably your best bet. read more

It is one of the great coastal drives. It was a long day but well worth it-you could never have covered all of this ground of natural wonders on your own in one day. We started off with a photo stop at the Memorial Arch and then took a break for lunch in Great Apollo Bay. The scallop pie at the Great Apollo Bay Cafe was excellent. We then proceeded to the Twelve Apostles, did the scenic walks around the area of the Twelve Apostles, a stop at Loch Ard Gorge and then spent some time in Port Campbell-a seaside village. It was a full day and by the time we got back we were exhausted but as I said, it was well worth it. The trip was nicely paced and we were not rusted at any point. They do stress being on time so the bus can leave in a timely fashion and everything can be covered. I would recommend. read more

Easter Friday started with a day trip down the Great Ocean Road. At 7.35am, I waited outside the Travel Lodge in Southbank for the Australia Sightseeing Tour 24-seater bus. It arrived around 10 minutes late (sort of a given with Melbourne traffic) with a smiling and welcoming driver, Bisho, in the driver's seat. He ticked off my name and we set off on our journey. He gave us a rundown of the itinerary, told us when we would have our toilet stops, what to look out for, and said that he would give us some background before each stop. While driving onto the West End Bridge, we were told that it took 10 years to build, connecting the North to the West. The bridge collapsed once killing 16 workers (Australia's largest construction disaster), but since then there have been no tragedies. There is a point in the bridge which is pretty high and people have used it in the past to commit suicide. Hence, both sides are lined with fences. Melbourne has around 4.3 million people living in it and as we drove on the bridge, we were told that we would be driving past Geelong (population of 200,000), Ballarat, Angelsea, Lorne (population of around 3,000) and a few other small towns. Places we visited included: 1. Angelsea Beach - Here, we had our morning tea and first toilet stop. Small town. Not much to do here. Over some biscuits, tea, coffee or milo, we went around the group and did introductions. There were 4-5 people who were students learning English and had come from Brisbane for the weekend. There was a couple from UK celebrating a birthday in the Gold Coast. A couple from Singapore who were just visiting for 4-5 days. Americans visiting their sibling for a short week. And myself, a newbie to Melbourne. 2. Memorial Arch - Next stop was a quick stop (10-15 minutes) where we rushed to take our photos underneath the "Great Ocean Road" sign. 3. Lorne - We drove past this small town that became famous due to the Pier to Pub Race (1.2 km swim from the Pier to the Pub now limited to 3,000 contestants) and the Falls Festival (over 65 bands playing over the Christmas break) 4. Kennett River - We spotted some koalas and fed some parrots here. Again, another stop for a toilet break. .5. Iluka, Apollo Bay - Around 12pm, we reached our lunch stop where we ordered takeaway pizza from Iluka and ate it in the park. 6. Otway Rainforest - Here, we did a short walk (15-20 minutes), where Bisho pointed out eucalyptus and myrtle beech trees. Myrtle Beech Trees are interesting because they scavenge off nutrients from fallen trees and over time merge with other trees forming a tiny community. A cavernous gap forms between these trees. 7. Loch Ard Gorge - On the way to Loch Ard Gorge, we were told the sad story of a ship that had sailed from Ireland and wrecked. Young 18-year old Eva lost her entire family. Only one crew member survived. He was pressured by the media to leave his fiance and marry Eva. However, Eva refused and went back to Ireland. Good on ya Eva not falling for peer pressure. The surviving crew member subsequently got married, had children, lost them in another shipwreck. After 3-4 shipwrecks, at the age of 40, he himself died in a shipwreck. Here, there were three walks to choose from. Take the Archway walk (160 m) or the longer Razorback walk (300m) and check out two apostles called the Salt and Shaker. You can also go down some steep steps to view the Gorge itself. Another walk includes checking out the wreck. 8. 12 Apostles - Finally, we went further towards an area from which we could do a 15-30 minutes walk to view the '12 Apostles'. There were actually only 9 Apostles, and one fell apart. So, there are currently, 8 Apostles. The '12 Apostles' is just a catchy name from the Bible. 9. Dumpling Pots - While traveling down the Great Ocean Road, we also saw some cool looking structures called 'Dumpling Pots'. 10. Gibson's Steps - These steps are carved into limestone walls and take you down to a lonely Apostle. These steps are a nightmare climbing back up (I'm so weak) The entire trip was enjoyable with great company and interesting commentary from Bisho. We had just the right amount or a bit less time at each spot. So, no time to take loads of selfies and just look at the sights and feel! Works for me because I don't like wasting time and get bored quickly. But for those, who want a medium-paced tour, well, then this tour ain't for you. All of us wanted to be back in the CBD asap, so no toilet or food breaks were made enroute home. We reached the CBD at a decent time - 7.30pm. read more

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To all visitors PLEASE STAY AWAY from SightSeeing Tours Australia. You will find that their prices are typically the lowest compared to other online tour agents by at least $10 to even $20 per day tour. I was lured by this and made two bookings with them - One for Blue Mountains in Sydney and the other a week later for the Great Ocean Drive in Melbourne. BIG MISTAKE. Note: Sightseeing Tours is only an agent and does not organize any tours. They use other tour operators (the cheapest found on that day). Most positive reviews are for the location visited and not for the booking and customer service experience with SightSeeing Tours Australia. After completing my Blue Mountain one day tour in Sydney I went SCUBA diving at the Great Barrier Reef from Cairns. After my last dive I had a small accident trying to help another fellow diver surface quickly when he was out of air. In the process I ripped my side against the side of the boat resulting in a large gash that required a couple of stitches and immediate medical attention. It wasnt a life threatening accident but under the laws of Queensland and international diving rules I was kept under observation and strongly advised against flying for at least 24 hours after the bleeding had stopped and I was ruled to be out of risk. In less than 30 hours I had a scheduled flight to Melbourne, followed by the Great Ocean Drive one day tour. I called SightSeeing and spoke with a few agents including one local Manager called Cameron. They were all rude and insensitive and basically indicated that they did not care whether I was hurt or not, no refund after 48 hours prior to the scheduled tour. When I asked for a Supervisor to connect with me (BIG MISTAKE) I got a call from Liz who claimed to be "One of the Onwers" of SightSeeing Tours Australia. Lisa was the most inhumane, rude and belligerent person I even interacted with. I explained the situation and even offered to send her all my medical records so she could make sure that I had a medical emergency. She insisted in the most impolite, insensitive and inconsiderate manner then she did not care what the emergency was and if I were dying she does not care. When I pointed out the sharp contrast in customer service between how this would have been handled in the US vs. Australia, she indicated Australians only care about making money even if it came at the cost of the health of others. She further went on to disrespect me and my situation and indicated that in the future I should buy the medical insurance they offer. I could not believe it. All for this just because I wanted to save $25 dollars compared to other internationally recognized and some US-based tour agents. In today's day and age when people are healthy one day and next day diagnosed with life threatening diseases such as cancer, tumors, etc. how do people like Liz and Cameron continue to live with themselves is beyond me. Being a spiritual person I leave it to karma and hope that these individuals either realize the pettiness of their actions OR they are physically and mentally unable to have any interactions with any other human being in the future. SHAME! SHAME! SHAME! Once again this is a review of Sightseeing Tours Australia and not the places to visit in Australia. Australia is a beautiful country. Just pay the $10 or $15 more per tour and stay away from Sightseeing Tours. You will thank me in the long run! read more

I booked the Great Ocean Road day tour with Sightseeing Tours Australia for my parents, partner and aunt for our upcoming trip to Australia. As a courtesy I informed them that my mum has reduce mobility and sometime needs to use a wheelchair although this can be folded away and does not take up much space. I received a response to advise that they would not be able to accommodate this on the small group tour that I had booked. They attempted to offer me a larger coach tour but I deliberately did not book one of these trips as it would be difficult for my mum to get on and off the coach all day. I find it alarming that in this day and age there are still company's that can not or will not accommodate disabled people. Truly shocking. Shame on you Sightseeing Tours Australia! read more

Worst customer service. Unprofessional. Don't book. You will get you money taken away.