broadening horizons since 1983
broadening horizons since 1983
About Gullivers
Endlessly inspired by the life-changing discoveries travel brings, Gullivers makes the extraordinary happen from journey through to destination.
For more than four decades we’ve shaped experiences with exceptional skill – connecting people, places and passions.
As masters of making moments to remember, from our own backyard to the other side of the world, Gullivers has guided groups of diverse interests from sports fans to music-lovers, educational explorers and more.
Be it taking fans to the Rugby World Cup, curating our own performing arts festival in Hong Kong or connecting schools to international music festivals, such as the Summa Cum Laude in Vienna, we’re always ready to create an itinerary that will long be remembered and treasured.
The Gullivers Story: 1984 to Today
While each year we meticulously plan a great many diverse trips for school groups, passionate sports players and spectators, music and culinary lovers, special interest groups seeking history, dance, history experiences and more, the following milestones represent meaningful signposts on our own Gullivers path. A snapshot of our legacy we are deeply proud of and a roadmap for discoveries yet to come, this timeline tells the Gullivers story so far.
Gullivers Begins
The year was 1984 and soon-to-be Gullivers founder Ken Grover so relished a visit to England with his mates for the Rugby Union Tour that he decided to turn the experience into a career. Realising how travel can form lifelong connections, open the door to other cultures and teach valuable lessons about how to live responsibly in the world, Ken and his team embarked on a fledgling business that would give people access to similar transformative experiences.
Initially, rugby tours were 95 per cent of the Gullivers business, but soon enough, the team was asked to lead tours to the cricket, music events and even history excursions. During this year, Gullivers embarked on what would be long and valued relationships with four Sydney schools – Knox Grammar, King’s College, Newington College, and Pymble Ladies College. Additionally, Gullivers began to assist what would grow to be more than 50 other schools, including Sydney High, Chatswood High and Galston High, in travel planning for leading music and sporting trips.
Official Agent of Hong Kong Sevens
Gullivers proudly became the official agent for the annual rugby tournament, Hong Kong Rugby Sevens, and continued this affiliation until 2004. Also in this year, Gullivers went to Kauai, Hawaii, for school netball tournaments, took the first Kangaroo Rugby League Tour numbering a huge 800 people to the UK, and organised itineraries and on-the-ground guides for 40 team groups for both rugby league and rugby union internationally.
Rugby World Cup Kick Off
This year, it was New Zealand’s turn to host the Rugby World Cup and Gullivers was the obvious choice to lead groups across the ditch. This was the company’s first Rugby World Cup, but since then, we have been there to charter the experience every four years.
Bobby Simpson to lead a tour of the Ashes in the UK
The International Police Olympics were held on home soil this year and Gullivers was on-hand to help with inbound travellers from Sweden, USA and across Asia. In 1988, we brought in Aussie cricketing legend Bobby Simpson to lead a tour of the Ashes in the UK.
Gullivers conceived and organised a rugby competition called the International Schoolboys 7s, which was held at the The King’s Hospital School in Dublin and attended by 800 participants. Hosted by Gullivers, the tournament was an enormous success and consisted of an open event and an under-16s event.
School Music Tours to Europe begin
A new decade brought new opportunities to explore and Gullivers was there to take 70 students to the Llangollen International Eisteddfod in Wales. Initially we started with 15 school tours, but this soon more than doubled to 40 each year. This year, we also helped with the Marching Koalas Tour. And between 1990 and 1993, Gullivers organised air travel for Rugby Union International Sevens Tour teams, including New Zealand, England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, France, Tonga, Fiji, Samoa, USA and Canada.
Rugby World Cup UK + World Netball Championship
Four years after we began our involvement with the Rugby World Cup, we were there again to lead groups to the UK. This year Gullivers also became the sole official agent for the World Netball Championships held in Sydney.
Peter Sterling also led a UK Kangaroo Supporters Tour.
We took 600 rugby-loving kids off to the Rugby Festival in the UK this year for an experience that would open their eyes to the world and the spirit of adventure. Peter Sterling also led a UK Kangaroo Supporters Tour.
Nick Farr-Jones to lead a tour of the Rugby World Cup to South Africa.
This year, Gullivers enlisted the help of Rugby Union great Nick Farr-Jones to lead a tour of the Rugby World Cup to South Africa. We also ventured to Hong Kong for our first curated festival, the Hong Kong Festival of Performing Arts.
First Summa Cum Laude International Youth Music Festival in Vienna
Our first annual event for Pymble Ladies’ College and Caulfield Grammar took us across the globe to the Summa Cum Laude International Youth Music Festival in Vienna, Austria.
Last Rugby World Cup of the millennium
Rugby League World Cup, Ashes Cricket Tour + Grand Prix Tour
First Rugby World Cup of the decade
2000 to Rugby World Cup France
Netball festival, Hawaii
Dance Tours
The Rugby World Cup, UK & Malaysia International Hockey
Culinary Tours with Adam Liaw and Rugby World Cup, Japan.
Taking 3000 people to Japan for The Rugby World Cup this year was, at this point in the timeline, one of the biggest events we’d ever been involved in. Gullivers arranged travel for the game and helped clients discover the culture and customs of this fascinating country.
Also in 2019, Gullivers launched a collaboration with celebrated Aussie cook, host and writer, Adam Liaw to guide food adventures through Japan and France. Adam’s curated tours deep-dive into the fascinating and delicious culinary culture of these destinations – revealing hidden traditions and incredible sights.
Gullivers joins the Tulla Group family
A new era for Gullivers began in November 2021 when the company was acquired by the Tulla Group. A complementary fit to the Gullivers mission, this family-owned investment company with a background in the accommodation sector has a proud legacy of nurturing and growing Aussie businesses. As part of the Tulla Group, Gullivers is renewed with fresh energy, while continuing to honour our foundational values and strong relationships with clients, schools and sporting communities. Looking forward to inspiring the next generation of travellers, Gullivers is leading the way with new destinations, events, exciting innovation and a future filled with infinite possibilities.
Rugby World Cup France
Once again the Rugby World Cup returned to France and Gullivers was there to lead groups on our flagship tour. But this year, the numbers astonished even us. Selling 14,600 match tickets and arranging travel for 4500 people, we sold more tickets than any other agent in the world.
British & Irish Lions Australian Tour & Kangaroo Ashes Tour with Aflie Langer + Gary Belcher
For the 2025 British & Irish Lions Australian Tour, Gullivers sold 800 tickets to Australians, and also looked after 2000 people as a ground handler from the UK, across three tests in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney. We also took 20 sports fans on a group tour to the Kangaroo Ashes Tour to the UK with legends Alfie Langer and Gary Belcher as tour leaders.
The heart of our story lives in how we deliver yours. Discover the Gullivers difference.
Over 35,000+ travel moments brought to life.
Where every journey becomes a story worth telling.
The truest measure of a journey well designed comes from the people who lived it. After more than 40 years, we’ve learned one thing that never changes: the best travel moments are the ones shared. Our travellers are the storytellers. Their voices, their memories and their experiences are what bring our LIVE IT spirit to life.
Here’s a glimpse of what it feels like when people travel with us.
The experiences the students gained through travelling, attending workshops, visiting galleries, and immersing themselves in such a vibrant cultural environment were truly incredible. Summer has not stopped talking about it since she returned. I know that international travel, especially with a group of students, comes with its own challenges, and I really appreciate the care, organisation, and energy you brought to the experience. Helping Summer navigate those challenges made the trip more rewarding and meaningful for her. Thank you!
The singing audition workshop was an absolute highlight. It clearly had a lasting impact, giving her a taste of the professional world and boosting her confidence. Incredible!!Summer also loved the galleries – you have unlocked a new appreciation for the beauty and depth of art!
Thank you again for your dedication and generosity. It means so much to us as parents to know our children are guided by someone who goes above and beyond.
Highlight of the tour was the encore performance by Alicia Keys after seeing Hells Kitchen was a real ‘pinch myself moment’. An absolute joy and privilege it is to work with Sarah Gillham from Gullivers. Nothing is ever too much trouble for her, she approaches every task with such calm professionalism, warmth, and good humour.
Her many years of travel experience truly shine through in everything she does. It’s clear she genuinely loves her job, and her enthusiasm and care make every trip run so smoothly. Working alongside Sarah is always a pleasure, and I feel very fortunate to collaborate with someone so capable, thoughtful, and generous with her time and expertise.
The tour highlight for us was the school exchange at Higashi. It was an amazing experience that allowed our students and the Japanese students the opportunity to engage, learn and share cultural differences. Koji was an amazing host who made sure the staff and students were welcomed and felt special on the day. The whole day was exciting and a fun new experience that our students took so much away from.They spoke about it for the rest of the tour and are still telling stories about their exchange partners and what lovely young people they were.
I think that experiences like this are what we have come to build the tour around. Rugby is a fun experience, but seeing the students engage in this kind of cultural event, was a huge win for us and will enable us to continue going to Japan for these events. I can not thank the Gullivers team enough for the outstanding effort and professionalism displayed throughout the whole time working on this tour. We will look to be planning another Japan trip for the Rugby club in 2027.
Our tour planning was in excess of 12 months in the making, and, throughout that period of time, I appreciated the many hours the Gullivers team devoted to our planning. They were only ever a phone call away and always willing to listen and understand our requirements. Our tour was very complicated with the number of participants (77 students), the number of large instruments (300kg), and the shadow parent tour following us. But our tour surpassed all of my expectations. Everything was superbly organised, well planned, thoroughly thought through, and allowed us to add in the special touches and extra experiences that were important to us.
The feedback from our parents on tour has been overwhelming. Our performance venues were amazing and our concert audiences large – all making for such a rewarding tour. Our performance venues were amazing and our concert audiences large – all making for such a rewarding tour. Thank you for your willingness to work with us so closely to ensure out tour was such a success. It is a memory that our students (and families) will cherish for the rest of their lives.
We arrived home yesterday morning after a thrilling ten days in Japan. The tour worked fantastically with all participants now being your devoted fans. Our hotels were great, our transfers between cities and / or venues worked incredibly well, the provision of various lunches and dinners were fantastic and our various destinations were a treat.
One of the decisive factors in the success of the tour was the ground staff in Japan. Each of the four worked tirelessly for long hours to make our tour such a success. They each deserve the highest of praise and recognition as they were dealing with a very fastidious and demanding client base.
Our teams, both rugby and soccer were each greeted enthusiastically and treated like kings. It was a privilege to witness the interaction between all players and adults from both sides. The games were competitive and the welcomings generous. Two days of outstanding memories. This is what we came for.
The Gullivers team have been fantastic. They have gone far beyond the call of duty and in all dealings , have been most obliging, positive and helpful. I am in the greatest of debt, as you who have tied this all together to make our trip such a huge success.
The tour was a wonderful success and I just wanted to thank Gullivers for the part you played in organising such a fantastic tour.
All the accommodation we stayed at was excellent. Hotel locations were great and the breakfast at all hotels were excellent. We had an excellent extra-large coach with us during our England journey which was great for luggage. The driver (John) was outstanding also.
Most of the fixtures were really good also and it was good for the boys to experience a variety of Schools including some of the best in England. All the off-field activities were excellent and well organised. Thanks again for locking in the Lords Ashes tickets which were definitely a bucket list day out for many of us!
A big thanks also to the team who has done an outstanding job over the past 12 months putting the tour together. They were more than happy to accommodate our needs and requests for changes and extra activities. And also did a great job the week before we departed when we had to make a late player change due to injury.
Thanks for all your assistance. The 26 boys and 4 staff had an outstanding time!
Thankyou for all the hard work involved in organising our tour! We had such a fantastic experience and truly appreciate everything that went into making it happen. The workshops were excellent – our students absolutely loved them and would have happily done more. Overall, everyone was so friendly and accommodating, and we were so well looked after. We had an absolutely wonderful time! The Expo performance was a major highlight. We’d love to look at booking another tour, potentially for 2027.
Thank you Gullivers events team for your time & effort prior to the tour, you left nothing to chance and were amazing. Everything ran to clockwork – there were no hiccups at all, amazing fellas. Thanks to Badge and Alfie for making memories, for giving up your time unconditionally, and for going beyond the tour parameters at times to make it at holiday to remember for all the right reasons.
The events team did a very good job of sorting out all the travel arrangements.Keep the formula, it worked for me, I felt valued, not just one of the herd. I have recommended you guys to my friends.
The Tour was arranged very well and I would recommend Gullivers to everyone. Sarah kept us well informed and if I had a query, it was answered quickly and expertly. Mike, Dave, Alfie and Badge we all great and very accommodating. A great job by all. Thanks for organising a wonderful and memorable Tour.
The three rugby league matches because the seats provided were well placed. The visit to the pre-match Kangaroos training arranged by Alfie (not originally scheduled) was greatly appreciated. For a tour of this type involving several “football” matches as the key events, I think the most important issues are: (A) the quality (location) of the seating at those matches, and (B) the location of the accommodations (usually central to the main tourist interests or transport hubs). This tour scored well on both of these issues.