Have You Heard Y.E.T? – July 2025
We wrap the financial year and look forward to big 25/26 in the July edition of ‘Have You Heard Y.E.T?!’
Welcome to the July edition of ‘Have you Heard Y.E.T?!’
This month’s newsletter features a wrap up of our key June events and a reflection on our 24/25 year. We also share our adventures with travel writer Henna Shah and launch Rob’s Firefighter Stair Climb for 2025. Our highlighted supplier is the Phillip Island Penguin Parade and the destination of the month is Sunset on the Great Ocean Road .
What’s happening at Your Exclusive Tours?
The 2024 / 2025 financial year has been another stellar period here at Your Exclusive Tours. It has been challenging, exciting, and rewarding at the same time. From investment and evolvement of our infrastructure, continual development of our relationships with trade and distribution partners, staff training, and recognition at the Victorian Tourism Awards; being awarded as the Bronze Winner in the Tours and Transport Category.
The winter weather has certainly arrived here in Melbourne, turning cold and wet. We have been fortunate on our touring days with our guests, the weather has been somewhat friendly during the tour and only turned towards the conclusion of our tour experiences.
June highlights include:
Being invited to be part of the panel at the Tourism East Summit, sharing our experience with establishing International Trade and Distribution.
Review of the Month
This month’s review is from John Tutt, who recently booked our Flavour of the Yarra Valley Private Experience with some work colleagues. As you can see, he had a great day with Chauffeur guide Kylie, including some bonus Kangaroo spotting along with sampling some of the valley’s best food and wine. We’d like to thank John for leaving his review.
Travel writer Henna Shah experiences Phillip Island and the Dandenong Ranges with Your Exclusive Tours
Your Exclusive Tours hosted travel writer @theHennaShah last month as she and her partner explored Puffing Billy & the Dandenong Ranges and Phillip Island in an action packed two days with Chauffeur Guide Rob.
On day 1 Henna and her partner experienced everything from close up experiences with our iconic Kangaroos and Koalas at Moonlit Sanctuary to high octane fun around the Phillip Island Racetrack, followed by a night with the penguins. In between, they sampled some of the best vegetarian friendly cuisine on offer, and were thoroughly entertained by Rob while on their travels.
Day 2 brought them to the Dandenong Ranges, where they travelled on Puffing Billy, recapturing their childhood spirit as they dangled their legs from the railway carriages while winding their way through the forest. Then it was off to Miss Marples tea rooms for a fuel up, before a walk through the Redwood Forest at Cement Creek. .
You can read more about Henna’s adventures on Phillip Island and the Dandenong Ranges / Yarra Valley.
Rob signs up for the 2025 Melbourne Firefighter Stair Climb
Your Exclusive Tours’ own Rob Rees has been a passionate volunteer firefighter for nearly 20 years. He has also participated in 11 of the 12 Melbourne Firefighter Stair climbs, raising funds for Lifeline, The Peter MacCallum Cancer Foundation and the 000 Foundation, which are causes that are close to his heart.
On Saturday September 6 he will again climb 28 floors of the Crown Metropol, wearing 25kg of Firefighting kit. The climbers wear their kit as a symbol of the burden of significant health and wellbeing that our first responders and their families face on a daily basis. This year they hope to raise $1million, and with just over 40 days to go, they’re already nearly ½ way to that goal! Rob’s personal goal is to raise $1000 towards that $1million total and you can support Rob’s climb by making a donation here.
Our Suppliers – The Penguin Parade
We continue our ‘Our Suppliers’ series this month with a look at Phillip Island’s Penguin Parade.
Who are they?
Phillip Island hosts the world’s largest colony of little penguins. Each night a group of these adorable little creatures waddles out of the ocean, up the beach, and to their burrows. The Penguin Parade allows the general public to share this experience, watching the penguins cross the beach and then walking beside them as they make their way to their homes.
What do they do?
The Penguin Parade includes a visitors centre where attendees can purchase food and drink, shop for souvenirs and learn all about the little penguins, including how they live, hunt, eat and survive in the wild (which isn’t always easy when you’re only about 15 inches tall!)
A network of boardwalks allows visitors to access the beach area and then walk back up beside the penguins while minimising human impact on both the penguins and their environment.
Why we love them
The Penguin Parade is a highlight of any visit to Victoria, and a must see for many tourists. It never fails to delight our guests and it provides a fantastic wrap-up to any Phillip Island experience.
Destination Experience of the Month – Sunset on the Great Ocean Road
The Great Ocean Road is well known for its stunning views, with scenic lookouts, panoramic vistas and breathtaking photo opportunities dotted all the way along it.
Many visitors experience the Great Ocean Road as a day trip, ending with dinner back at their hotel. Our Great Ocean Road Sunset experience is a fantastic alternative. Depending on the time of year, the tour starts as late as mid-morning, allowing guests to wind their way along the Great Ocean Road as the afternoon progresses, arriving at the iconic 12 Apostles in time to view the sunset. The rock formations light up as the sun hits them on its way down over the horizon, and then we watch the stars come out and the moon cross the sky as we wind our way back to your accommodation.
You can find out more about our Great Ocean Road Sunset private experience here.
Stay tuned for more news in our next edition of ‘Have you heard Y.E.T?!’ where we feature Chauffeur Guide Ben, and in the meantime, if you haven’t yet subscribed, you can do so here: