History
Bus Charter in Melbourne & Yarra Valley
McKenzie's Tourist Services started in 1927, with the purchase of one Packard car during a trip to Sydney by Lorenza Reiley McKenzie (better known as "Mac") after losing an eye in a blacksmithing accident.
This one five-seater Packard soon became a fleet by cutting it in half with the help of his engineer friend Les Horn, to add an extra row of three seats. They might well be credited with inventing the first stretch Limousine.
They later extended the chassis of an eight-seater to an eleven-seater, then to a thirteen-seater and next came the "side loaders", buses with six doors opening onto each row of seats.
Mac, a pioneer in the bus business, was one of the founders of the Victorian Tourist Development Authority (now the Victorian Tourist Commission) and the Road Passenger Operations (now the Bus Association of Victoria).
In 1970 he was honoured by the Queen and received the M.B.E. (Member of the British Empire) for his service to transport and tourism in Victoria. During World War 2 he received the Order of St John for his service, the George Cross for bravery and continued to be an honorary member of the R.S.L.
McKenzie's Tourist Services started in 1927, with the purchase of one Packard car during a trip to Sydney by Lorenza Reiley McKenzie (better known as "Mac") after losing an eye in a blacksmithing accident.
This one five-seater Packard soon became a fleet by cutting it in half with the help of his engineer friend Les Horn, to add an extra row of three seats. They might well be credited with inventing the first stretch Limousine.
They later extended the chassis of an eight-seater to an eleven-seater, then to a thirteen-seater and next came the "side loaders", buses with six doors opening onto each row of seats.
Mac, a pioneer in the bus business, was one of the founders of the Victorian Tourist Development Authority (now the Victorian Tourist Commission) and the Road Passenger Operations (now the Bus Association of Victoria).
In 1970 he was honoured by the Queen and received the M.B.E. (Member of the British Empire) for his service to transport and tourism in Victoria. During World War 2 he received the Order of St John for his service, the George Cross for bravery and continued to be an honorary member of the R.S.L.
Family owned and operated for over 90 years
His daughter, Nancy Smith, and her husband, Nelson, worked all of their lives in the business. Together, they took over the reins in the later years of Mac's life and are still running the company today, increasing the fleet to a large number of modern coaches. It truly is a family business with not only each of the granddaughters working in the company at one stage or another, but now the great grandsons are working in the company. Our General Manager, Brad Sanders, a fourth generation of the founder, has been with the company for over eighteen years and we take great pride in the drivers that we employ.
The company operates a large fleet of Mercedes Benz Coaches. All but three of them are painted into the McKenzie's Green and Cream paint scheme that Mac never wanted to change. The McKenzie's name which appears on the side and the rear of the buses is the original way that Mac signed his name with the backwards lowercase "z" a trademark feature. On the front of the vehicles the McKenzie's "wings" are the main feature. Feedback from the public has told us that every time they see the wings on the front of the bus they know it's a McKenzie's.
Our company policy has always been to serve and please the public and we have done so for over 80 years.
His daughter, Nancy Smith, and her husband, Nelson, worked all of their lives in the business. Together, they took over the reins in the later years of Mac's life and continued to run the business for many years whilst increasing the fleet to a large number of modern coaches. It truly is a family business with not only each of the granddaughters working in the company at one stage or another and now the great grandson is working in the company. Our General Manager, Brad Sanders, a fourth generation of the founder, has been with the company for over 29 years and we take great pride in the drivers that we employ.
The company operates a large fleet of Mercedes Benz Coaches. All but three of them were painted into the McKenzie's Green and Cream paint scheme that Mac never wanted to change. The McKenzie's name which appears on the side and the rear of the buses is the original way that Mac signed his name with the backwards lowercase "z" a trademark feature. On the front of the vehicles the McKenzie's "wings" are the main feature. Feedback from the public has told us that every time they see the wings on the front of the bus they know it's a McKenzie's.
Our company policy has always been to serve and please the public and we have done so for over 90 years.
