Queensland Gold Coast Australia Holidays
Queensland & the Gold Coast
Holidays
The Sunshine State — the Gold Coast's surf beaches and theme parks, Brisbane's world-class food scene, the Sunshine Coast's hinterland villages and the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef and the Daintree
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Flight Time
22–24h from London via Dubai, Singapore or Hong Kong to Brisbane (BNE) or Gold Coast (OOL)
Best Time
June to October (dry season — warm, sunny, low humidity, ideal for beaches and outdoor activities); December to February is peak summer (hot, humid, school holidays — busiest and most expensive)
Country
Australia
Suppliers
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Queensland & the Gold Coast Holiday Guide
Queensland is a large state and most visitors focus on one or two regions. The Gold Coast (3–4 nights) is the best base for beaches and theme parks. Brisbane (2–3 nights) is the best base for culture, food and day trips to the Sunshine Coast and Lamington National Park. Noosa Heads (2–3 nights) is the best base for a relaxed beach holiday on the Sunshine Coast. For the Great Barrier Reef, fly to Cairns (2.5 hours from Brisbane) and combine with the Whitsundays.
Getting there: Direct flights from London to Brisbane (BNE) with Singapore Airlines (via Singapore, 22 hours) and Qantas (via Singapore or Dubai, 22–24 hours). Budget airlines (Jetstar, Tigerair) fly from Brisbane to the Gold Coast (30 minutes) and Cairns (2.5 hours). The Gold Coast Airport (OOL) has direct flights from Sydney (1.5 hours) and Melbourne (2.5 hours).
Getting around: A hire car is the most convenient way to explore Queensland — the distances between attractions are large and public transport is limited outside Brisbane. The Gold Coast has an excellent light rail (G:link) connecting the airport, Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach.
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Popular Areas in Queensland & the Gold Coast
Average Temperatures
Jan
29°C
Feb
29°C
Mar
28°C
Apr
25°C
May
22°C
Jun
20°C
Jul
19°C
Aug
20°C
Sep
23°C
Oct
25°C
Nov
27°C
Dec
28°C
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Call 01282 960 460Top 8 Things To Do in Queensland & the Gold Coast
The surf beaches, the theme parks, the koalas, the sand island and the extraordinary subtropical energy of Australia's Sunshine State.
Gold Coast Beaches — 57km of World-Class Surf
The Gold Coast has 57km of surf beaches — from Coolangatta in the south to Main Beach in the north — that are consistently rated among the best surf beaches in Australia. The main beaches: Surfers Paradise (the most famous and most crowded — a long, wide beach backed by high-rise hotels and the neon lights of Cavill Avenue), Burleigh Heads (the most beautiful — a headland beach with excellent surf, a national park behind it and the best café scene on the Gold Coast), Coolangatta (the most relaxed — a twin-beach town at the Queensland-New South Wales border, with excellent surf and a laid-back atmosphere) and Currumbin (the most family-friendly — a calm, patrolled beach with the famous Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary nearby). All Gold Coast beaches are patrolled by surf lifesavers — always swim between the flags.
Gold Coast Theme Parks — The Best in Australia
The Gold Coast has the best concentration of theme parks in Australia — Warner Bros. Movie World (the best theme park in Australia, with rides based on DC Comics characters, Harry Potter and Looney Tunes), Dreamworld (the largest theme park in Australia, with the best thrill rides), Sea World (marine life shows, roller coasters and the best water park in Queensland), Wet'n'Wild (the best water park in Australia) and WhiteWater World (adjacent to Dreamworld). Multi-park passes are available and represent excellent value — a 3-park pass (Movie World, Sea World and Wet'n'Wild) costs approximately £100–120 per adult. The theme parks are best visited on weekdays (shorter queues) and in the cooler months (June to September — more comfortable for outdoor rides and water parks).
Brisbane — Australia's Most Exciting City
Brisbane is Australia's fastest-growing city and arguably its most exciting — a subtropical city of 2.5 million people on the Brisbane River that has transformed itself from a provincial backwater into a world-class destination over the past 20 years. The South Bank Parklands (on the south bank of the Brisbane River) are the heart of the city's cultural life — a 17-hectare riverside park containing the Queensland Museum, the Queensland Art Gallery, the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA — the largest gallery of modern and contemporary art in Australia), the Queensland Performing Arts Centre and Streets Beach (a free public swimming beach in the middle of the city). The Fortitude Valley neighbourhood is the heart of Brisbane's nightlife and restaurant scene. The Howard Smith Wharves (a riverside precinct under the Story Bridge) is the best place to eat and drink in Brisbane.
Noosa Heads — The Most Stylish Resort Town in Queensland
Noosa Heads is the most stylish and sophisticated resort town in Queensland — a small town of 20,000 people on the Sunshine Coast, 150km north of Brisbane, with a beautiful main beach (Noosa Main Beach), a national park (Noosa National Park, with excellent walking trails and koalas in the trees), a world-class restaurant and café scene (Hastings Street is one of the best restaurant streets in Australia) and a relaxed, upmarket atmosphere. Noosa is the favourite destination of Brisbane's wealthy residents and is popular with families, couples and food lovers. The Noosa Everglades (a pristine river system in the Noosa Biosphere Reserve) is one of the most beautiful natural areas in Queensland — kayaking through the everglades at dawn is one of the best experiences on the Sunshine Coast.
Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary — Cuddle a Koala in Brisbane
The Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary (15km from Brisbane CBD, accessible by ferry or bus) is the world's first and largest koala sanctuary — home to over 130 koalas, as well as kangaroos, wallabies, wombats, Tasmanian devils, platypuses, echidnas and over 100 other Australian animal species. The sanctuary allows visitors to hold a koala (one of the few places in Australia where this is permitted) — a koala encounter costs approximately £20 in addition to the entry fee. The kangaroo feeding area allows visitors to hand-feed eastern grey kangaroos and wallabies. The platypus enclosure (one of the few places in the world where platypuses can be seen in captivity) is a highlight. The sanctuary is open daily from 9am to 5pm.
Fraser Island (K'gari) — The World's Largest Sand Island
Fraser Island (K'gari in the language of the Butchulla people) is the world's largest sand island — a UNESCO World Heritage Site 200km north of Brisbane, accessible by ferry from Hervey Bay (3 hours from Brisbane by bus or car). The island is 120km long and 25km wide, and is made entirely of sand — yet it supports a diverse ecosystem of rainforest, freshwater lakes (including the extraordinary Lake McKenzie, with its pure white silica sand and crystal-clear water), mangroves, heathland and beach. The island is home to the purest strain of dingo in Australia (the dingoes of Fraser Island have not interbred with domestic dogs) and is the only place in the world where rainforest grows on sand. The 75 Mile Beach (the eastern beach of the island) is a designated highway — 4WD vehicles drive along the beach at low tide.
Lamington National Park — Ancient Rainforest & Wildlife
Lamington National Park is 1.5 hours south of Brisbane — a UNESCO World Heritage wilderness area of ancient subtropical rainforest in the McPherson Range, with over 160km of walking trails, extraordinary wildlife (including the Albert's lyrebird, the paradise riflebird and the regent bowerbird — three of the most spectacular birds in Australia) and the famous O'Reilly's Rainforest Retreat (a guesthouse in the heart of the park that has been welcoming visitors since 1926). The Tree Top Walk at O'Reilly's (a series of suspension bridges through the rainforest canopy) is one of the best wildlife experiences in Queensland — the birds come to feed at the guesthouse and can be photographed at extremely close range. The Border Track (21km, one way) connects O'Reilly's with Binna Burra — one of the great day walks in Queensland.
Sunshine Coast Hinterland — Glass House Mountains & Montville
The Sunshine Coast Hinterland is 1–1.5 hours north of Brisbane — a beautiful landscape of volcanic plugs (the Glass House Mountains), rainforest, dairy farms and charming hinterland villages that is a complete contrast to the beaches of the coast below. The Glass House Mountains (a series of 11 volcanic plugs rising dramatically from the flat coastal plain) are the most distinctive natural landmark in southeast Queensland — visible from the coast and from the air. The hinterland villages of Montville, Maleny and Mapleton are the most charming in Queensland — craft galleries, cafés, restaurants and guesthouses in a beautiful rural setting. The Kondalilla Falls (in Kondalilla National Park, near Montville) is the best waterfall in the Sunshine Coast Hinterland — a 90m waterfall in a beautiful rainforest gorge.
Explore Queensland & the Gold Coast on the Map
Key areas, beaches and attractions across the island.
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