GHOST POET SLEEPS IN HAUNTED HEARSE

On Saturday 19th May, Nathan Curnow, an award-winning poet funded by the Australia Council will sleep in Australia's most haunted vehicle, Elvira The Haunted Hearse.

Having recently toured Australia and New Zealand launching his first collection of poetry, Nathan Curnow is spending 2007 sleeping at ten haunted locations, writing a new book of 'Ghost Poems' based upon his experiences. So far his project has included terrifying stays at Monte Cristo Homestead (Australia's Most Haunted House), Picton (Australia's Most Haunted Town), Old Adelaide Gaol, Richmond Bridge, an old lunatic asylum, and at the residence of a ghostly politician.

"I am interested in a variety of haunted locations," says Nathan, "not just haunted houses. I want to explore fear, courage and the paranormal through language, and diverse settings mean diverse poems."

Owned and operated by Destiny Tours, Elvira The Haunted Hearse is a black 1967 Cadillac, famous for its Ghost Tours of Sydney. Many hundreds of passengers have experienced unusual feelings in and around the hearse. Often it is just feeling very cold or very hot, having a headache or strange pain somewhere in the body. Many passengers have had their hair or hands stroked by something unseen.

"Elvira has transported thousands to their final resting place, so I'm bound to get my money's worth," Nathan adds. "Destiny Tours have even agreed to split half of their fee with Guide Dogs, NSW. It's about negotiating the darkness, so helping out the Guide Dogs seems appropriate."

For more info contact Allan the Hearse Whisperer at Destiny Tours on (02) 9943 0167 or 0414 232244 www.destinytours.com.au

or Nathan Curnow on 0405 032 740 www.nathancurnow.bigblog.com.au

Destiny Tours

Destiny Tours
FREE MOVIE TICKETS
We have some free double passes to "Like Minds" on Monday 6th November 6.30pm at Hoyts Cinema Paris, Fox Studios, Sydney.
More info on the movie at www.dendyfilms.com.au/likeminds
Contact me if interested
Allan 9943 0167

Looking for a psychic in Canberra

Hey we're doing a TV thing in Canberra on the evening of Monday 2nd October 2006, Tim the Yowie Man, Elvira the hearse and me. I'm looking for a Canberra person with psychic ability who like to be a part of it and be interviewed about what he or she picks up on in Elvira? Chance for some valuable exposure, contact me asap allan@destinytours.com.au or 0414 232244

SEXPO hearse babes

Thanks to all the lovely ladies who we met at SEXPO recently. We have your pictures at http://s87.photobucket.com/albums/k140/DestinyTours/?start=all
Hope you and everyone else enjoys them.
Regards
Allan the Hearse Whisperer

Karaoke Ghost Tour

Hey everyone, we will be running a ghost tour in Sydney combined with karaoke on Friday night 18th August 2006. Only $39, for more details see http://www.destinytours.com.au/karaoke.htm
Allan the Hearse Whisperer

Weird Canberra Ghost and History Tour in the Ghost Bus

A very succesfull sellout innaugural series of tours in the Ghost Bus last night. For those who missed out we will be back in May!!! Book early to avoid disappointment.

Bella the Kastle cat

If any of our previous customers have a photo that they may have taken of Bella the Kastle cat could you please contact me. Thanks.

Spooky Sydney by Night Tour

The Ghost Bus, a spooky new nightly tourist attraction has started in Sydney. The Ghost Bus is operated by Destiny Tours, who established the bizarrely popular "Weird Sydney Ghost and HistoryTours" in converted Cadillac hearses in 2001.The unique new Ghost Bus takes passengers on a spine-tingling Spooky Sydney Tour, into a side of Sydney that raises more questions than it answers. The Ghost Bus also includes an entertainingaudio visual presentation that tells strange tales of-
Ghostly apparitions and supernatural occurrences,-
Strange phenomena, unexplainable and unusual happenings,-
Freaky facts you've always wanted to know but didn't know who to ask about death, embalming, burials and cremations,
and culminates in a visit to the cellars of a haunted hotel.
"We are very excited to launch another new, distinctly different, Sydney tourist experience", saidAllan the Hearse Whisperer of Destiny Tours. "Our research indicates that this will appeal toadventurous or skeptical locals and visitors alike. This is the only themed Ghost Bus in Australia, and the Spooky Sydney by Night Tour is excellent value for money."-
$36 per head includes a complimentary drink.-
Spooky Sydney by Night Tours operate nightly at 8pm.-
Departures from opposite the Fortune of War Hotel, 137 George St,The Rocks.- Tour duration approx 1.5 hours.-
Maximum number of passengers is 18.-
Bookings on 9943 0167 or 0414 232 244You'll know you're on the right bus when you see the coffin on top.
The very first Spooky Sydney by Night Tour in the Ghost Bus is this Saturday 10th December.
For all enquiries and bookings, please phone Allan the Hearse Whisperer on 9943 0167 or 0414 232 244 or email: allan@destinytours.com.au
Website: http://www.destinytours.com.au/ghostbus.htm

Your chance to sleep in a haunted hearse

That's right, check it out on ebay!
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=5620680572

SYDNEY SEX TOURS

NEW: starting Saturday 10th September:
A fun light hearted tour especially tailored for curious women. Travel in one of the Destiny Tours sexy hearses converted to limousines with a female driver and visit:
A house of Bondage and Discipline
Sydney's newest and best brothel
Sydney's first and foremost table dancing club
A leading Kings Cross adult shop
and much more
$69 per head, includes free goodies bag
Saturday afternoons 5pm - 7pm
Maximum number of passengers on the tour is 9

For all enquiries and bookings please phone Allan the Hearse Whisperer on (02) 9943 0167 or 0414 232244 or email allan@destinytours.com.au

Exciting Update

Great news for all ghost tour buffs! We have made some exciting changes to the Weird Sydney Ghost and History Tours. Commencing Friday 19th August, by special arrangement, Australia's only haunted hearse tour will now include a stop at the historic and haunted Hero of Waterloo Hotel in The Rocks. That's in addition to the stop at the Kastle B&D premises (also haunted). That's right, you'll be travelling in a haunted hearse to a haunted bondage parlour and a haunted hotel! (How weird is that?) At the Hero of Waterloo Hotel, tour participants can enjoy a free drink in the historic cellar where the ghost of Anne Kirkman has been seen just recently. Whilst enjoying your drink, hear the tales of ghosts, drunken sailors, trapdoors, tunnels and lots more. The duration of the tour remains the same (2.5 hours) and the cost is still only $72 which includes fact sheets and a souvenir DVD. Tours run nightly. Don't forget to bring your camera. Our very popular Weird Canberra Ghost and History Tours with Tim the Yowie Man are on again Saturday 27th August, and there's a few seats left, but be quick. Check out our website for more details and don't leave the best ride of your life till last. http://www.destinytours.com.au/Ph (02) 9943 0167

Meet Miss Sabrina the new hearse at SEXPO

That's right, Miss Sabrina the newest addition to the Destiny Tours fleet has now been converted to RHD and will be on show from Friday 29th to Sunday 31st July at the Sydney SEXPO Moore Park.
This will be the first and last opportunity to see her whilst she is still a hearse, as she will soon be undergoing major surgery to transform her into a beautiful tourist vehicle. Let me know what you think!

The truth on the haunted hearses

Who needs to go into a haunted building when you are travelling in a mobile haunted location, one of the Destiny Tours hearses? Many people have travelled in Morticia the former hearse / ambulance perhaps without realising that the truth out there....here is a compelling report from a recent passenger on the Weird Sydney Ghost and History Tour: (note that as requested I have changed the names).

Allan First of all, your tour in Sydney is amazing, to say the least. I’m sorry for the delay in returning your e-mail. I’ve been waiting for my friend Jenny’s account of what happened that night, but she hasn’t given it to me yet. I hope that you will have time to read my full account below, and I hope that my input is helpful. I don’t remember everything in order, so I will try to group it together how it best makes sense. Please bear with me in the telling. Jenny first asked me if I wanted to take this tour about a week before we got to Sydney. One of her friends had found it online and asked if we would like to join their tour on Monday, July 4th, and we said yes. At the last minute (about June 31st’), a scheduling conflict came up that would prevent Jenny and me from going on the tour with the group we had signed up with, and I suggested that she and I take our own tour the following night. She agreed. I think I should mention that I don’t believe in coincidence. Things happen for a reason. If we had gone on t he 4th, we would have ridden in Elvira, but on the 5th, we rode in Morticia instead. We arrived for the tour on the evening of July 5th, and I have to say that honestly, I thought nothing would happen. I expected a few good ghost stories, maybe a fright or two, and then to go home after an evening of good fun, unchanged. But I was wrong. As soon as we climbed into Morticia, I could tell that the night was going to be something more than entertaining. Jenny’s eyes went wide as soon as she sat down, and the look she gave me told me that she knew something was out of the ordinary. At that point, I was still so excited by the prospect of the tour that I wasn’t open to the things that were going on around me. Jenny was my first indication. She sat on the backwards seat directly behind the driver, and I was next to her in the center backwards seat. The driver had not given us any history on the vehicle yet when she doubled over and held her stomach. I asked her what was wrong and she replied, “I feel like I did when they thought my appendix burst.” About five minutes later, the driver told us about the girl who died of a burst appendix in Moticia’s past life as an ambulance. I could feel other presences in the car with us. In the front seat on the left side there was the spirit of an old man. Since Morticia used to be an American car, I got the impression that he was a hearse driver in his life who tried to continue his job after death. I didn’t see him, but I got the feeling that he might have died of a heart attack. I also felt the presence of someone who might have been a nurse or a paramedic. I couldn’t tell if it was male or female, but Jenny told me that it had to be a woman. “She” is the one who strokes the hair of the person in the center backwards seat, and she means it to be comforting. The feeling accompanied with it seems to whisper, “It’s ok now. Everything will be alright.” At one point during the hearse ride, I felt a sharp pain run through my hand and down my little finger, and at the same time I saw in my mind a very graphic picture of a man who had been in an accident. His little finger was almost completely severed, he had blood running down his face, and some of his teeth were missing. His finger was the most vivid part of the picture. He must have had other injuries too, but I didn’t see them. I think he died in the ambulance. I also felt two pains in the left side of my back that I can only describe as gunshot. One was beneath my left shoulder blade and the other was lower, just to the left of the small of my back. I’m not sure if the gunshot wound guy and the broken finger guy were the same person or two different people, but they seemed very close to each other. A little more than halfway through the tour, Jenny and I switched seats. When I was sitting behind the driver, I repeatedly felt a very small hand play with the fingers of my left hand. I think it was the appendix girl, but I’m not sure. How old was she? 9 or 10 years old? I pulled my hand away once, but then I let her do what she wanted to. She just wanted to play, and she felt so sad because she had no one to play with. There are more spirits in Morticia, but they didn’t try to communicate, so I don’t know anything about them except that they are there. The above mentioned experiences are just the ones associated with the hearse itself, but other strange things happened in several of the sights we visited. As I stated above, I don’t remember everything in order. On the tour, there is a large house that belonged to someone who went to jail, and now the house is being turned into apartments. He bought the land from some nuns. Jenny said she saw a nun there, behind the gate, and although I didn’t see her at the time I was able to describe her in detail later. This nun wore gray, not black, with a white apron, and her habit was white, coming up on both sides to form nun’s wings. She seemed very upset, as if she didn’t want anyone to enter that property. At Mortuary Station there is a terrible feeling of grief, anguish, and people crying. But it’s more than what I would expect from a train station, even one used for the purpose Mortuary Station was meant for. The souls feel trapped behind the fence that surrounds the station, and they are crying for help. They can’t leave. When I put my hand through the fence I felt warm waves wash over it repeatedly. It felt like dozens of hands, all wet with warm tears, were grabbing desperately at my arm asking me to help them. That was the creepiest part of the night. At the Kastle, they didn’t mention a ghost at first. We took the tour, and when we went into the second room upstairs I felt like something was watching me, reflected in the mirrors. Later, our mistress guide told us that one of the employees had died on her way to work once. At that point I had to ask if she had had a room in that house, upstairs, and had we been there? She answered that, yes, the second upstairs room had been hers. I thought of the letter M, though if that stood for Mistress or part of her name, I guess I’ll never know. Another stop was one of the prisons where gallows once stood. We were told on the tour that people sometimes feel a tight noose around their necks as they pass that place. Both Jenny and I felt a tight pain in the left side of our throats, and we both had trouble breathing. It could have been a noose, but my personal impression is that it was an injury, something that went through someone’s throat and might have killed them. There was definitely blood involved. I could be wrong, but I think it’s yet another spirit of the hearse playing an elaborate joke by inflicting his pain at that exact time in the tour. For passengers expecting to feel the pressure of a noose, it could easily be mistaken for one. The last experience of the night that I can clearly remember was outside of the 202 house where a lady disappeared. I saw a woman in very old fashion skirts and boots walk up the stairs to the front door with a ring of keys in her hand. The feeling was one of homecoming, how you feel at the end of a long workday when you know you’ll finally get a chance to rest, but it was unclear if it was her soul returning to her home again, or if she was revisiting the moment right before her abduction. We drove away before I could tell. I experienced several other things that night: a man’s yell from the Harbor Bridge, distant feelings of eeriness from several of the places we passed without stopping, a feeling of watchfulness from a window in an old hospital. But none of those experiences were really clear enough to describe. At one point, our driver mentioned that Morticia is soon to be retired. When he said that, there was a wave of emotion that washed through the hearse. The emotions were too many to mention, but there was a very sad overtone. Morticia, and the spirits inside her, are not ready to go. They are asking for more time. At the end of the tour, we related some of our experiences to the driver. I’m not entirely certain that he believed us. It was one of the more interesting evenings I’ve had in my life, and by far the best tour I’ve ever been on. Nothing on the tour was scary at all, as I had expected it to be. I left that evening with a feeling of enlightenment, and Jenny and I agree that the tour was a fun experience. But I have one more strange bit to add. I mentioned above that I felt a pain in my hand and saw a broken finger. The day after the tour, I took a really bad fall, and I broke my finger. Jenny was not with me at the time, but when I spoke with her that night she said, “Oh, I thought he was trying to tell me something, but I didn’t know what. I think he was trying to warn you.” For the record, I only cracked the bone and I’ll be fine in a few weeks; it wasn’t anything nearly as bad as what I saw in my vision. Even so, it’s ironic that this is the only bone I’ve ever broken... Jenny and I are planning to come back to Australia in a few years, and we are very interested in going on other ghost tours offered around the country. I hope that I have not rambled for too long. Our driver that night mentioned that you might be interested in our experiences. If you have any questions or comments about anything in this e-mail, please feel free to e-mail me back. If you intend to distribute this story, I would ask that our names and company affiliations please remain anonymous. Thank you for a great tour, and I hope to visit Destiny Tours again when I next return to Australia!

Weird Canberra Ghost and History Tours

Yes, the ever popular tours with Tim the Yowie Man are on again Sat night 28th May, a few seats left on the 11pm tour, $49 each, so be quick. Prices go up in June to $55.
See you in Canberra! Right Elle?

Blacktown Street Parade

Each year the Destiny Tours hearses do about 6 street parades which are a lot of fun. On Saturday 4th June at 11am in Blacktown we will be part of the parade. Old customers are welcome to dress up and join us. First in and best dressed gets to ride in the coffin trailer!

The new look Hearse Whisperer

About a month ago I had laser eye surgery and as a result no longer wear glasses. To complement the new look I shaved off the beard on my chin and as a result have had many comments that I look younger. Well it must be true because there's been renewed interest out there from the ladies, some of them quite a few years younger than myself.
I am single and I like the ladies, so would love to meet you all!

To the person who wrote the comment about having fun in the back of the hearse

If you are female, please contact me to discuss this further!
allan@destinytours.com.au

Canberra this weekend

For those persons in Canberra this weekend, we have a few vacancies on Friday and Saturday nights....call me on 0414 232244 if interested.
More info at www.destinytours.com.au/canberra.htm

Ghost Tour with Progressive Dinner

Due to requests, we have now combined our Progressive Dinner in the hearses with a shortened version of the Weird Sydney Ghost and History Tour. That way everyone will have a full on night of fun. Duration is 4 hours and cost for the tour and meal (3 courses at different locations) is $119 a head. More details at http://www.destinytours.com.au/dinners.htm

Expensive Elvira the hearse

It seems that Elvira the hearse has quite a "fan club" with many Sydney-siders continuously admiring her awesome beauty. But have you ever stopped to consider the maintenance involved with keeping an old girl like her on the road?
Well today she had her RTA heavy vehicle inspection, and she passed, but only because of recent maintenance. Last week the automatic transmission was serviced and several leaks rectified with new seals. Also the steering box that had been leaking fluid was rebuilt and modified with bearings that will guarantee no leaks. Likewise a coupling between the steering column and steering box had disintegrated and a new one had to be fabricated. That was at a cost of more than $1600. But wait, there's more! On Saturday she wouldn't start and it turned out to need a new starter motor and another $400. $2,000 in a week! Owning an old hearse is definitely an expensive proposition!

The weekend's activities

Congratulations to Shirley and Craig! On Saturday morning we had an early start with Elvira taking them to their wedding at Mortuary Station. See picture at http://www.destinytours.com.au/dscn2020s.jpg
Today we went in Morticia to a Cadillac Club picnic at Balgowlah and met the world's leading Cadillac historian Yann Saunders and Gita his wife who are visiting from the US.
The Destiny Tours coffin trailer has now been moved to Kings Cross and from now on will be seen more often towed along behind Morticia on the tours.
Miss Sabrina will be having her RHD conversion soon!

Eddie Munster

Miss Sabrina our new hearse arrived safely last night in Sydney....we were fortunate to meet Eddie Munster and have a couple of pictures with him. Check them out at http://www.destinytours.com.au/76hearse.htm

Dead Celebrities on tour

Last night's Weird Sydney Ghost and History Tour included a number of dead celebrities in Elvira the famous 1967 Cadillac hearse. Yasser Arafat, the King, Che Guvera, Marilyn Monro, Lady Diana and Cleopatra all attracted plenty of attention. In fact in George St, a car load of Palestinians pulled alongside Elvira. The driver wound down his window and asked Yasser "do you feel better now?" Yasser nodded his head, the Palestinian driver smiled, said something in Arabic, and drove off!
Making an effort to dress in fancy dress or as a dead celebrity can most certainly further enhance your fun experience with Destiny Tours!

Sabrina the hearse

Monday afternoon will see Sabrina the new hearse on the Pacific Highway heading south from Brisbane to Sydney. This will be the final leg of her long journey from Wattle Ridge, Arkansas.
Along the way we'll be stopping to say hi to Greg Media Man Tingle at Indooroopilly, and Steve at Kustom City in Currumbin Waters. I don't think there will be too many blue 76 Cadillac hearses on the road, so if you see us give us a wave!

Weddings too!

Did you know that we do weddings too? In fact we are taking one of our old customers to her wedding on April 2nd, in Elvira, our beautiful 1967 Cadillac hearse converted to a limo with seating for 9. Late last year Elvira had an expensive interior makeover and now looks resplendent in marone seats, carpet, curtains and door trims. For this upcoming wedding we are using matching ribbons up front and a red carpet that matches the interior carpet.
The customer's local newspaper will be covering it and of course there will be pictures on the website. Check out some of the weddings we have done in the past at
http://www.destinytours.com.au/weddings.htm

Daytime tours

Today we did daytime tours for a group of 30 senior citizens from the South Coast. Stuart's Coaches from Nowra brought them up for the day to visit the Powerhouse Museum and do the Weird Sydney Ghost and History Tours, and they all had an excellent time, especially enjoying the head turning attention in our beautiful Cadillac hearses and getting the tour at the Kastle bondage premises. Up until today, most of them had only heard of such places, but never seen one, and they all found it extremely interesting.
Although Destiny Tours don't usually do daytime tours, but we are very flexible. We are happy to work with other tour operators such as Stuart's Coaches in order to provide an opportunity for those who don't travel to Sydney often, and would like to do something very different and memorable. Chartering a coach to Sydney can be an economical and comfortable way to travel for your work or social group and we an help you with the arrangements. Feel free to contact the Hearse Whisperer if I can be of help.

Hearse driver required

Here's a great, fun, casual job opportunity for the right person driving the Destiny Tours hearses, mostly Friday and Saturday nights!
You'll need (or be prepared to obtain) a first aid certificate and a Driver Authority for a bus. This is in addition to your driving license and is issued by the Ministry of Transport. It is similar to the Driver Authority you see in taxis with the driver's picture. To get that you need to do a course, have a medical, and a police check.
Let me know if you are interested!
allan@destinytours.com.au

Batwitch's Baby

If any of you have been on a tour with Caroline Batwitch you would remember her well. On Saturday night I visited Caroline Batwitch and her new baby Lucious. They are both doing well. Here's a picture
http://www.destinytours.com.au/DSCN1959s.jpg

Psychic Tours!!

By popular request, we are resuming our tours with a psychic, and we are pleased to have a psychic/medium of the calibre of June Cleeland join us! This Friday night 11th March is the date, and more details are on the website at http://www.destinytours.com.au/june.htm

Latest news from Destiny Tours

The new hearse, Miss Sabrina has finally arrived in Australia, 5 months after I paid for her! She'll be ready to pick up soon, after her Customs clearance.

Yesterday we took the very lovely young ladies from One Teaspoon to pick up their client then off to lunch. Morticia the hearse looked great, especially as the girls all wore leopard print which of course matched Morticia's funky snow leopard interior. As well as ghost tours at night, we often do corporate gigs like this during the day. Prices are reasonable considering the hearses are Sydney's wildest limos!

Tonight is the Mardi Gras and due to street closures the Sydney tour will not be running, however we are working in Parramatta and there are a couple of seats left....

Welcome!

Well this is our first attempt at blogging and it will be used to keep you all informed on developments with Destiny Tours here in Sydney and our wonderful hearses. Hope you enjoy it.