McKenzie's Tourist Services


Mac in 1942 as Red Cross Assistant Commissioner	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.

LM McKenzie when awarded his MBE	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.
	His daughter Nancy Smith and her husband Nelson who worked all of their life in the business, took over the reins in the later years of Mac's life and are still running the company today, increasing the fleet to a larger 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 Brian Luscombe has been with the company for over thirty-five 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 lower cased "z" a trademark feature. On the front of the vehicles the McKenzie's "wings" are the main feature. Feedback from the public has told is 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 70 years.