Up Close & Local Tours
Meet the Team

Up Close & Local Tours are not your average tour operator. We offer personalised, boutique tours in Perth for both local food and wine lovers, and visitors looking for an authentic tour experience.

Operating since 2017, Up Close and Local Tours is owned and operated by Paul and Shannon, a local couple who are third generation Perth-ites. Created from our own love of travel and discovery, we understand that people want a genuine and authentic experience, which is why we only ever take our guests to our favourite local places that we love going to ourselves.

After travelling the globe, we know how easy it is to get caught in ‘tourist traps’ and be misled by ‘tips’ that are essentially paid ads. Alongside your Perth tour guide, you'll uncover some of Perth’s best hidden gems that visitors (and even fellow locals) would never otherwise find or be able to get to.

And with no more than 12 people per tour you can really get ‘up close’ to the best that Perth and Margaret River has to offer. Small group sizes mean that we can access places that can’t accommodate the larger tour groups, so on our tours you get the chance to go behind the scenes to hear and learn from the people who make the food, produce the wine and run the business. You may also get to participate in experiences that are not available to the general public.

At Up Close and Local, you don’t simply get a bus driver that will drop you off. Your Perth tour guide will be a real local that will take you to places that we have specially hand-selected. We have spent days, weeks and even years scouring Perth to find you the best local experiences (it’s a tough job – but someone has to do it!).

When you take a tour with us make sure you have a chat to your guide for some local tips near your hotel or accommodation – where to grab the best morning coffee, a rooftop bar for a pre-dinner drink, or even where to take the perfect holiday photo. We're more than happy to point you in the right direction to ensure your visit to Perth is the best it can be.

For us, it’s all about the details and the little things that will give both tourists and fellow locals a unique, memorable and personal experience, and we hope that everyone on our tours walks away knowing something they didn’t know yesterday.

We might be a small team, but we have a big passion for what we do!


meet the

Up Close & Local team

Paul Montague

FOUNDER / CHIEF TOUR GUIDE

The founder of Up Close & Local, Paul is our resident wine expert, whiskey lover and coffee snob. He runs some of our wine, whiskey and gin tours, as well as the Low & Slow BBQ food tour. He also loves driving, which means he gets the job of guiding our tours to Margaret River from Perth. Paul has a WSET qualification in wine education.

Shannon Oliver

CO-FOUNDER / EXPERIENCE CREATOR / TOUR GUIDE

Shannon answers most of our enquiries, and works with Paul to create bespoke experiences for our guests. As a wine and food lover, she also guides some of our Swan Valley and Bickley Valley wine, whiskey and gin tours. Shannon also has a WSET qualification in wine education.

Thu Phan

SPECIALIST FOOD GUIDE

Thu is a passionate foodie who enjoys cooking as much as she does eating! As a trained chef with Vietnamese heritage, Thu has a unique insight into not only how flavours are created, but the secrets to the cooking techniques to make it happen. When she’s not running our Asian Street Food walking tour, you’ll find her baking up a storm creating some of Perth’s most delicious artisan cakes and cookies with her business, @shugahills_

VIEW THE ASIAN STREET FOOD TOUR >