Just finalising last leg of oz tour.
What must see / do things should be put on the list on the gold coast?
Thank you!
TBH - it is a bit like Blackpool with better seafood , same clientele , same tattoos - but sun, loads of sun ....
Surfers Paradise is tacky as **** ...
Nimbin is really fun. 50 year old hippies all over the place - and the countryside around in really nice.
Surfers defo not on the list!
Glasshouse mountains I believe. Didn't go myself but people who did said it was good.
Couldn't move on quick enough myself. It's definitely upmarket from Blackpool though.
Love it or hate it i'm a big fan of the gold coast, worked at white water world and dream world theme/waterpark a few seasons ago on my travels.
Glasshouse mountains are beautiful. Take a run up to the Sunshine Coast and visit Noosa. There are other lovely places like Caloundra . Australia Zoo is worth a visit at Beerwah
Theme parks and try and get on a drunk and stupid on TV show. The better question is what are you skipping to do that?
Keep driving. Seems pointless to go to Aus and spend time where you could be anywhere.
I've got extended family living there, been there a few times, and I didn't think it as a Blackpool by any stretch of the imagination.
It is a bit of a resort tho, but only in a few core places. We did loads of great stuff, but I was with people who knew what to do to show us a good time in the area.
I wouldn't go to the Gold Coast or Brisbane unless there is a particular reason to go there.
Edit: I'm not criticizing them, I'm just saying if I could go anywhere in Australia and only had limited time, I personally wouldn't prioritize the Gold Coast.
Where else are you going? What kind of experience are you looking for?
For pristine tackiness head north of brizzy to the ettamogah pub. Now there's a days driving in 40c heat I'll not get back.
Tambourine mountain is cool. Just watch out for snakes: the barstewards are frikking everywhere.
There's that golf course near slacks creek which somehow managed to get sharks into the ponds during flooding.
If you're into bush-walking or wildlife, Lamington and Springbrook national parks in the Gold Coast Hinterland are pretty special.
Byron Bay is nice, stay at the Aquarius and surf the Pass, drink at the Friendly Railway Bar (seriously good pub) and get a pie from next door on the way home. Good food in Byron. Noosa Heads is worth a visit. I prefer the Sunshine Coast to the Gold Coast. Easy driving out there and carhire is cheap but that's about the only thing that is cheap. In Nimbin talk to the aborigines rather than the shopkeepers. There are some good waterfalls in that area but dust roads to get there (which invalidate your insurance).
I have seen goannas and loads of bush turkeys at Noosa. Sharks at Julian Rocks, Byron, made me get back on the boat (Im a chicken).
Australia Zoo is pretty good, what was Steve Irwins place near Caloundra.
I thought Nimbin was a bit of a dump, frankly. Not the prettiest country town, a large number of substance abusers (alcohol and hard drugs, not just weed smokers), and an almighty fight outside the pub on the night I was there. The hills were pretty and the backpackers had teepees, which was quite fun.
Noosa is "nice" - nice beach, full of beautiful people. Hotels are quite expensive - but good to hang out in for 24hrs
A specula trip there might be taking it a bit far ...
Further up the coast, (Fraser Island, Whitsundays, GBR) or down the coast (Sydney) are more worth the investment of time ....
Couple of days on Fraser Island is definitely worth doing but I wouldn't bother hiring your own 4wd, far too tricky driving. Get on a 4wd bus and stay overnight and maybe even go up in the plane that lands on the beach. Dingoes can be seen here but don't go in the sea, it's very sharky.
leave. the gold coast is like a shit version of las vegas mixed with a cargo cult of Florida.