About Us
The Local Sauce Tours Story
My name is Justin, I’m the guy with the “tour guide hands” in the photo. I started Local Sauce Tours back in 2018 after escaping a corporate law career. I realised that I was working around a lot of unhappy people and I thought, “I want to work in a more enjoyable industry – let’s try tourism!”
From starting with one walking tour on a Saturday morning offered on Airbnb Experiences, we’ve grown to offer a wide range of unique tours and experiences, led by a team of amazing hosts.
In 2022 and 2023, we were awarded Gold in the NSW Tourism Awards for Cultural Tourism. We’re also ranked #1 for all Tours & Activities in Sydney on TripAdvisor, so you’re making a great decision to explore Sydney with us.
What our tours are like
Our tours focus on showing guests around Sydney with an expert local, weaving in entertaining stories about the area while visiting excellent, independently-owned bars, restaurants and cafes.
We limit our group sizes on all of our tours to 12 people, as we’ve found this is the magic number for guests to meet each other, bond and have a fun time. If you’re visiting Sydney or travelling solo, you’ll probably meet people on the tour to hang out with while you’re here!
You’ll quickly discover that a tour with us is a little bit different to a regular one, as we focus on making it feel like you’re just in a group of new friends hanging out and enjoying themselves, with your host keeping everything flowing and telling you stories.
Our promise
We love having each and every guest along on our tours. Whether you’re visiting Sydney or a local looking for something new to do, we know that you can choose from a million other activities – but you chose to join one of our tours and hang out with us!
We take that commitment from you seriously and will do everything we can to give you an amazing experience and the best possible introduction to Sydney. We guarantee you’re going to love the Sydney that we show you so much, you’ll be asking “when’s the next tour?” and booking again with us!
Since we started, we’ve received thousands of 5-star reviews on Airbnb, Google, TripAdvisor and Facebook. Check some recent ones out below.
We’ve received over 2,500 five-star reviews
All Reviews 5.0
-
Google 4.9
-
TripAdvisor 5.0
-
Airbnb 5.0
-
GetYourGuide 5.0
- Kevin OKeeffe24/02/2026Jake’s tour was fantastic…Cheers!read moreread less
Mark Trampe23/02/2026Matt gave us very informative tour. It was a drizzling day and he managed to keep us dry and entertained while sharing his city.read moreread lessJohn Steele23/02/2026Michael’s knowledge on the history of Sydney & Australia was very impressive. His presentation skills & friendly manner when doing do made him very interesting to listen toread moreread less - klovis7822/02/2026Great tour of Chinatown! Thanks so much Bruce!read moreread lessKate Atherton21/02/2026Excellent tour with a knowledgeable and friendly guide Matt who took care to integrate the group. Highly recommendread moreread lessDiana Westhoff20/02/2026We took the Sydney Walking Tour with Steve and it was excellent. The 3.5 hours went fast and most importantly the history of this city is amazing. Steve did an excellent job and is born and raised here which makes it great. Thank you Steve. Diana and Robertread moreread less
- jb m20/02/2026Very nice tour across Sydney. Jake was very helpful and eager to share both the big history and small facts. We would have missed out on so many details without him.read moreread lessLuana Collin20/02/2026Fantastic tour, Bruce was very knowledgeable and friendly. He gave great recommendations and provided interesting historical stories to support our tasting. EVERY bite of food was fabulous!!read moreread lessWill Taylor20/02/2026Jake was excellent – really interesting tour, great facts and we got to see a unique side to Sydney. Highly recommended.read moreread less
- Mattia Simoni20/02/2026Jake was amazing! Best tour in ages 🍻read moreread less
Christina20/02/2026Jake walked us through 250 years of history in 3 hours. It was a very entertaining and enjoyable tour.read moreread less
Rosie19/02/2026Súper divertido y recomendable para conocer buenos lugares de la ciudad, me gustó todo!read moreread less
- Kevin19/02/2026Excellent Matt did a great jobread moreread lessSteve Donovan19/02/2026Excellent Trip and guide.read moreread less
Nabiha19/02/2026It was a lovely night. our host Keirnan was knowledgeable, eager and very pleasant and upbeat. The bars we visited were very nice and we wouldn’t have been able to find them ourselves. I highly recommend 👌 ☺️read moreread less 
Allen19/02/2026Did the Thursday tour. Such nice choices of bars I otherwise wouldn’t have discovered. Kieran was an amazing host. I’d do it all over again 👍read moreread lessMary Battista18/02/2026Loved the Chinatown food tour – great activity to do with work colleagues. Perfect length, perfect amount of food. Learnt so much – even as a Sydney local! definitely recommend, thank you Justin and Bruceread moreread lessPierre Jeanjean18/02/2026Matt was a great guide. A very informative and fun tour. Highly recommended.read moreread less- Molly O’Neill18/02/2026Incredible Tour. Our guide Matt was informative and had a great sense humor.read moreread less
Les18/02/2026Bruce made our food tour of Chinatown extremely enjoyable. Food selections were diverse and the cultural history made the food even more enjoyable. Highly recommend this experience.read moreread less
Jacqueline18/02/2026This city tour in was the perfect way to hit all the major tourist spots in just a few hours — ideal if you want to make sure you see everything without spending days figuring it out yourself.
Our guide did an amazing job of connecting with everyone in the group. He asked thoughtful questions, made an effort to get to know us, and kept the conversation engaging the entire time. You could really feel his passion for the city and its history, which made the experience so much more meaningful.
I also appreciated how much I learned — there were so many interesting details and stories I wouldn’t have picked up on my own. If you’re short on time but still want a comprehensive, engaging overview of Sydney, this tour is absolutely worth it.read moreread less 
Rosie18/02/2026My best friend and I had a fantastic time on the Secret Bars of Sydney tour with Kieran on Friday 13 Feb. The venues were really interesting and fun, the knowledge shared was entertaining, and the group itself was lovely to be a part of. Thank you Local Sauce for a wonderful evening in Sydney!read moreread lessKatherine17/02/2026Steve was fantastic! He had great knowledge of the city and its history. He was also a skilled storyteller who brought the city to life for us. I appreciated his advice on what to do in the city during our visit. Highly recommend!read moreread less
Yue16/02/2026I had a wonderful time with my tour. We had a blast touring together. Our guide Michael has rich knowledge in local culture and history, gave us such a detailed introduction on some of the iconic streets and buildings in centre area. We walked, laughed and drank together. Highly recommend to people who are just in town, who interests in culture&history, and who enjoy walking around. Shout out to Michael and Justin, cheers!read moreread less- Megha Jindal15/02/2026Great way to start your Sydney itinerary. Steve is an exceptional tour guide – fun and funny, warm, knowledgeable and well travelled. 3.5 hours flew by and we got to soak into the spirit of Sydney. Highly recommendread moreread less
Ruben Zakarian15/02/2026Had a tour with Matt. Walked a lot, learned a lot. Would recommend!read moreread lessTony Ball15/02/2026Great local knowledge and a fun tourread moreread less 
XiaoXiao15/02/2026This kind of historical and cultural tour is perfect for our first time in Sydney.You can get to know the place better than just taking some photos.We took the kids and followed the experienced and very friendly Matt for three and a half hours, and felt that everything was great, the arrangement was very good👍read moreread less
Giya15/02/2026Matt was so easy to talk to and very knowledgeable about Sydney and its history really loved itread moreread less
Yifei15/02/2026Andrew is such a polite and lovely guide! He made me understand street art on a whole new level, way better than wandering around aimlessly by myself. The local food he recommended was so authentic and full of Australian vibes. I had the best time and hope to meet him again soon!read moreread less
- Kevin OKeeffe24/02/2026Jake’s tour was fantastic…Cheers!read moreread lessMark Trampe23/02/2026Matt gave us very informative tour. It was a drizzling day and he managed to keep us dry and entertained while sharing his city.read moreread lessJohn Steele23/02/2026Michael’s knowledge on the history of Sydney & Australia was very impressive. His presentation skills & friendly manner when doing do made him very interesting to listen toread moreread less
- klovis7822/02/2026Great tour of Chinatown! Thanks so much Bruce!read moreread lessKate Atherton21/02/2026Excellent tour with a knowledgeable and friendly guide Matt who took care to integrate the group. Highly recommendread moreread lessDiana Westhoff20/02/2026We took the Sydney Walking Tour with Steve and it was excellent. The 3.5 hours went fast and most importantly the history of this city is amazing. Steve did an excellent job and is born and raised here which makes it great. Thank you Steve. Diana and Robertread moreread less
- jb m20/02/2026Very nice tour across Sydney. Jake was very helpful and eager to share both the big history and small facts. We would have missed out on so many details without him.read moreread lessLuana Collin20/02/2026Fantastic tour, Bruce was very knowledgeable and friendly. He gave great recommendations and provided interesting historical stories to support our tasting. EVERY bite of food was fabulous!!read moreread lessWill Taylor20/02/2026Jake was excellent – really interesting tour, great facts and we got to see a unique side to Sydney. Highly recommended.read moreread less
- Mattia Simoni20/02/2026Jake was amazing! Best tour in ages 🍻read moreread lessSteve Donovan19/02/2026Excellent Trip and guide.read moreread lessMary Battista18/02/2026Loved the Chinatown food tour – great activity to do with work colleagues. Perfect length, perfect amount of food. Learnt so much – even as a Sydney local! definitely recommend, thank you Justin and Bruceread moreread less
- Pierre Jeanjean18/02/2026Matt was a great guide. A very informative and fun tour. Highly recommended.read moreread lessMolly O’Neill18/02/2026Incredible Tour. Our guide Matt was informative and had a great sense humor.read moreread lessMegha Jindal15/02/2026Great way to start your Sydney itinerary. Steve is an exceptional tour guide – fun and funny, warm, knowledgeable and well travelled. 3.5 hours flew by and we got to soak into the spirit of Sydney. Highly recommendread moreread less
- Ruben Zakarian15/02/2026Had a tour with Matt. Walked a lot, learned a lot. Would recommend!read moreread lessTony Ball15/02/2026Great local knowledge and a fun tourread moreread lessEileen Holliday14/02/2026Highly recommend, you won’t be disappointed at all. Justin Steele, our guide in Brisbane CBD was so much fun, informative, knowledgeable, interesting storyteller with local unwritten truths. And ending for a group photo and drink socially was a lovely way to finish the 3hr tour togetherread moreread less
AmyWebbr28/01/2026Fun and interesting tour, well curated, enjoyed the street art and food and learned a lot about the neighborhood, highly recommend!read moreread less
Sergio O28/01/2026Absolutely amazing and informative tour. Very pleasant walk through beautiful places. Great way to enjoy this beautiful city.read moreread less
Maggie P26/01/2026We booked this walking tour of Sydney to provide an introduction to the city and to get moving after a very long flight. I would recommend for both those reasons. There was a lot to explore in Sydney, and Matt was an entertaining and knowledgeable guide. Highly recommend for the newly arrived!read moreread less
Tourist6416874440223/01/2026I had a great time on the walking tour. Our guide Matt was amazing and very knowledgeable. I felt very comfortable and learned a lot. I would definitely do this tour again and highly recommend it to everyone.read moreread less
corntrader23/01/2026Bruce was very interesting explaining all the different Chinese cooking styles. Our samples were far from the “normal” Chinese restos in the USA.read moreread less
AngelGlaraga23/01/2026The tour was great, we learn a little about Australia’s history and culture aside from seeing historical sites and landmarks in the beautiful and clean city of Sydney. What surprised us is that the complementary drinks were given to us by our guide Steve at The Squire’s Landing Restaurant! It was a remarkable experience for us.read moreread less
MetroBob23/01/2026Steve was a great guide! My wife and I had such a great time walking and experiencing so much of what Sydney had to offer. We made this tour our first experience after getting off the cruise ship and checking into our hotel. It proved to be an awesome way to very quickly be introduced to Sydney and what we could enjoy over the few days we would be there. Again, Steve was terrific!read moreread less
simon c23/01/2026Thanks Steve for a very entertaining and informative tour. We went on our first day in Sydney and it was a great introduction to the history of the city. If you get Steve, watch out for his terrible jokes!read moreread less
karen s22/01/2026A great introduction to a fabulous city! Thank you for a grand afternoon!read moreread less
Fran I22/01/2026Bruce was a great guide. The pork and truffle were delicious and I went back for more the following night. He guided us to some hidden gems and different foods that I would not have associated with China. The history of chinatown and the area is also interesting. Highly recommended.read moreread less
Simone S22/01/2026Super kurzweilige Tour. Justin weiss so viel über die verschiedenen Regionen Chinas und weiss dies sehr spannend zu erzählen. Gut ausgewählte Stops. Super Empfehlungen auch für nach der Tour. Würde jederzeit wieder buchen.read moreread less
mixemotion22/01/2026Matt was great! He was professional and friendly! He engaged as much as he can with the group! He included some fun fact and history at each stop. The tour was well paced! My family enjoyed it!read moreread less
Blake B22/01/2026Great local tour of Newtown neighborhood in Sydney, with great food. A good opportunity to see some of the characteristic neighborhoods in the city.read moreread lessFran I21/01/2026Our guide, Bruce, was very knowledgeable and kept the group entertained. The history of Chinatown is interesting and we were guided to a number of food alleyways and outlets inside buildings that I wasn’t aware of. We also had styles of food that I wouldn’t normally associate with Chinese. The pork and truffle dumplings were to die for and I returned to have them for dinner the following day. Thoroughly enjoyable and highly recommended.read moreread less
Jo T19/01/2026From the booking onwards the Local Sauce service and communication was professional, friendly and prompt. Information was clear and we all arrived at the meeting place anticipating a fun night despite the wet weather. Kiama was impossible to miss with her gorgeous red wig and huge smile! We all instantly felt warm and welcome in her company for the rest of the evening as we learnt about her community of interesting people and places in Darlinghurst over a few drinks!read moreread less
한샘 기18/01/2026Sydney has so many wonderful and charming bars.I’m truly grateful to our guide Ari, who showed us so many great places and shared such a fun time with us.Ari is a warm, kind-hearted, and passionate guide who genuinely enjoys this job and spreads a positive energy that makes everyone feel happy and comfortable.Thanks to Ari, we drank, laughed, and enjoyed ourselves so much that I ended up getting completely tipsy!I sincerely hope Ari’s liver stays strong and healthy.Thank you so muchread moreread less
Denise S16/01/2026We had an awesome time with Ari, the bars were amazing and we would never have found them if we hadn’t gone on this tour. We met some wonderful people and we all enjoyed our time together. I recommend going on this tour , it gives you a lot of great bars to visit but also amazing places to explore and places to eat.read moreread less
ttbc106016/01/2026We booked a private walking tour of Sydney for two couples. Our guide, Steve, met us in our hotel lobby which was nice as we had just arrived that day from a long overseas flight. Steve was personable, knowledgeable, and gave us a wonderful overview of Sydney during our 3 1/2 hour tour. We appreciated Steve’s enthusiasm and insider’s view of Sydney! Highly recommend!read moreread less
- Christina20/02/2026Jake walked us through 250 years of history in 3 hours. It was a very entertaining and enjoyable tour.read moreread lessNabiha19/02/2026It was a lovely night. our host Keirnan was knowledgeable, eager and very pleasant and upbeat. The bars we visited were very nice and we wouldn’t have been able to find them ourselves. I highly recommend 👌 ☺️read moreread lessAllen19/02/2026Did the Thursday tour. Such nice choices of bars I otherwise wouldn’t have discovered. Kieran was an amazing host. I’d do it all over again 👍read moreread less
- Les18/02/2026Bruce made our food tour of Chinatown extremely enjoyable. Food selections were diverse and the cultural history made the food even more enjoyable. Highly recommend this experience.read moreread lessJacqueline18/02/2026This city tour in was the perfect way to hit all the major tourist spots in just a few hours — ideal if you want to make sure you see everything without spending days figuring it out yourself.
Our guide did an amazing job of connecting with everyone in the group. He asked thoughtful questions, made an effort to get to know us, and kept the conversation engaging the entire time. You could really feel his passion for the city and its history, which made the experience so much more meaningful.
I also appreciated how much I learned — there were so many interesting details and stories I wouldn’t have picked up on my own. If you’re short on time but still want a comprehensive, engaging overview of Sydney, this tour is absolutely worth it.read moreread lessRosie18/02/2026My best friend and I had a fantastic time on the Secret Bars of Sydney tour with Kieran on Friday 13 Feb. The venues were really interesting and fun, the knowledge shared was entertaining, and the group itself was lovely to be a part of. Thank you Local Sauce for a wonderful evening in Sydney!read moreread less - Yue16/02/2026I had a wonderful time with my tour. We had a blast touring together. Our guide Michael has rich knowledge in local culture and history, gave us such a detailed introduction on some of the iconic streets and buildings in centre area. We walked, laughed and drank together. Highly recommend to people who are just in town, who interests in culture&history, and who enjoy walking around. Shout out to Michael and Justin, cheers!read moreread lessXiaoXiao15/02/2026This kind of historical and cultural tour is perfect for our first time in Sydney.You can get to know the place better than just taking some photos.We took the kids and followed the experienced and very friendly Matt for three and a half hours, and felt that everything was great, the arrangement was very good👍read moreread lessGiya15/02/2026Matt was so easy to talk to and very knowledgeable about Sydney and its history really loved itread moreread less
- Yifei15/02/2026Andrew is such a polite and lovely guide! He made me understand street art on a whole new level, way better than wandering around aimlessly by myself. The local food he recommended was so authentic and full of Australian vibes. I had the best time and hope to meet him again soon!read moreread less
Wajid14/02/2026Fantastic way to get to know the history and landmarks in/of Sydney. Steve was fun and warm. Highly recommendread moreread less
Richard14/02/2026Justin was very knowledgeable, articulate and funny. He managed the group with ease and was a very good host. I can highly recommend this tour.read moreread less 
Edwin14/02/2026Ari was an awesome host.read moreread less
Barbara14/02/2026Has been an amazing experience! Steve is a really great storyteller and we’ll prepared. You feel immediately as to be with a friend. Absolutely raccomanded!read moreread less
Megha14/02/2026Great way to start your Sydney itinerary. Steve is an exceptional tour guide – fun and funny, warm, knowledgeable and well travelled. 3.5 hours flew by and we got to soak into the spirit of Sydney. Highly recommendread moreread less
Deb13/02/2026Keiran was a fantastic guide, we loved all the Matrix references throughout the tour too. The bars on the tour were pretty zany, we wouldn’t have come across them without this tour! Highly recommend this to anybody, even Sydney locals would have a great night I’m sure!read moreread less
Animesh11/02/2026Had an excellent time with Bruce, he was an amazing host and was very knowledgeable – would highly recommend him! Wish there was more food in the food tour though!read moreread less
Fiona10/02/2026Great tour! Nice way to try out new bars and meet new people!read moreread less
- Rosie19/02/2026Súper divertido y recomendable para conocer buenos lugares de la ciudad, me gustó todo!read moreread lessKevin19/02/2026Excellent Matt did a great jobread moreread lessKatherine17/02/2026Steve was fantastic! He had great knowledge of the city and its history. He was also a skilled storyteller who brought the city to life for us. I appreciated his advice on what to do in the city during our visit. Highly recommend!read moreread less
- GetYourGuide traveler14/02/2026Steve hat die Führung sehr interessant gestaltet, humorvoll führte er uns durch die Straßen, Parks und Einkaufszentren. zum Abschluss ein gutes Bier am Hafen rundete die Führung gemütlich ab. Empfehlenswert. Lieber Steve noch ein herzlicher Dank an deine Bekannte Familie. Die Infos für die Öffis waren sehr wertvoll.read moreread less
Fay12/02/2026Excellent introduction to Sydney and its history. Very informative and interesting, Matt was very knowledgeable and gave us a good orientation to the city with lots of helpful advice and tips. The small group size enabled us to interact well with other group members. Would definitely recommendread moreread lessAntony12/02/2026great guide. lots of interesting information. Great morning out.read moreread less - Carla-Marie10/02/2026Took the city and the rocks walking tour today with Mat by Local Sauce. First the communication by Justin in advance of the tour was excellent. He was very communicative in timing and day and location. Mat our guide was born and raised in Sydney and was very personable. Lots of history explained to us and lots of stories. It was a small group and very manageable. Excellent tour and would highly recommend to anyone that wants an understanding of the history of Sydney and areas. Thanks Mat for a great day. Cheers from two Canadians.read moreread lessDoug07/02/2026Really informative and fun. Saskia did a great job telling us about Brisbane history. Great exercise as well. My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed it.read moreread lessClaire05/02/2026Tom was an amazing guide who was very interesting & had fantastic historical knowledge of Brisbane. His passion for Brisbane shone through. He answered all our questions thoroughly he was very interactive and funny & very friendly. We thoroughly enjoyed our tour with Tom.read moreread less
- Paul30/01/2026We had Saskia as a guide. It was a blast seeing the street art and visiting some great bars along the way. A very enjoyable evening spent in great company.read moreread lessPaul30/01/2026Our guide Saskia was friendly, knowledgeable and enthusiastic – the whole tour was a fun learning experience. I would recommend to anyone who wants to know about the history of Brisbane.read moreread lessGareth21/01/2026Loved this tour. Was great to meet new people in some great bars. Small group, no one is asked to introduce themselves so it isn’t confronting for people that are shy. Though no one is shy after a few drinks. Highly recommended!!read moreread less
- JOSE16/01/2026Excelente tour, Justin un genio! Todo muy bien explicado que no era necesario ni preguntar. 10 puntos!read moreread less
Laredo14/01/2026This was such a great almost 4 hour walking tour from start to finish. The itinerary was packed in the best possible way—every stop felt worthwhile, well‑timed, and thoughtfully planned. Matt, tour guide was absolutely wonderful: friendly, organised, and incredibly knowledgeable. They shared so many insights and stories that added real depth to each place we visited. You could tell they genuinely loved what they do. Overall, an amazing experience and highly recommended.read moreread less
Lorinda12/01/2026We enjoyed the tastes offered, but were hoping for more for the price. Our tour guide was extremely knowledgeable about Chinatown and China in general, especially since he lives part time in China. We appreciated his thorough knowledge. The one beverage offered was at a tea stand that we had to pay extra for ourselves. It was a very hot day and it was a lot of standing around in the heat listening to him talk a lot about history. It would have been nice to have more of a focus on the food and chats about history sitting in shade or air conditioning. But an interesting tour.read moreread less - Sarah09/01/2026Tom was a brilliant guide! We learned so much about Brisbane Street art, the history of art in the city and a bit of general history too! The Thursday night route is brilliant and the small bars they bring you to are absolutely fantastic. Well worth the money!read moreread lessShaun03/01/2026Really interesting insight. Thought some of content mat be a bit dry but was really interesting and great anecdotes. Matt is a great guide.read moreread less
Kyle A02/01/2026Justin was very friendly and knowledgeable.read moreread less