Unable to view designer option at all in xamarin forms - xamarin.forms

First, This is literally my first time using Xamarin and I'm finding this particular issue quite frustrating. If I miss out any basic info, please bear with me, I have done my best.
I am trying to create a cross-platform app using a blank app template.
When I load up the .xaml files the designer view is not there. Most guides suggest this will be in the bottom right of the screen. I have checked in Tools > Options > XAML designer and the option to use this is ticked.
I have tried just creating an Android app instead of cross-platform but with the same results. I noticed there were no emulators in my android emulator manager so created a basic Nexus 5, still no difference.
I'm really stuck with this now and it's frustrating to fall at the first hurdle like this, am I doing something really simple wrong here?
I'm using VS 2017 V.15.3.3 and installed Xamarin yesterday
Thanks.

In order to use the 'designer' which I call Previewer, your XAML files need to be compiled.
Please note that the previewer is really buggy and there is yet to drag-n-drop tool for designing XAML files.
However, you can use packages such as LiveXAML (paid) or free alternatives so that you can hot-reload your XAML designs.

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