The Gold Coast is located in the state of Queensland and is Australia’s sixth largest city. Among other things, the locals also call this city as the capital of vacationers, as thousands of Australians from cities such as Brisbane, Sydney, or Melbourne come here every year for a holiday in addition to tourists.
We fell in love with this coastal town at first sight. What we liked the most was the great and positive atmosphere. People are happy with a smile on their faces. They have been actively playing sports since morning and enjoying a great coffee and breakfast. Almost every second person has a four-legged pet as a partner and everything somehow works here without any stress. Amazing! So let’s talk a little bit more about that.
Getting around the Gold Coast
Public transport on the Gold Coast works very well indeed. Even though there is no subway, the bus and tram services are working perfect. However, to travel easily and relatively cheaply by public transport, you need a GO CARD, which you can buy directly at the airport at the WH Smith shop opposite the baggage claim. Without this card, the bus driver won’t let you on the bus – in other words, you can’t pay with your card or buy a single ticket directly from the driver.
When it comes to the GO CARD, you have two choices – you can either buy a one-day card with a 10 AUD credit, or you can buy a long-term card for 30 AUD, but you have a 20 AUD credit on it and you pay 10 AUD as a deposit in case you lose the card.
If you are travelling to the Gold Coast for multiple days, we definitely recommend the second option. You can easily top up your credit at almost any tram or bus stop, and if you have any remaining balance, you can simply cash it in at the same outlet at the airport, along with the deposit you paid at the start.
However, if you don’t want to take public transport, you also have the choice of LIME e-bikes. Just download the app and wualaa. You can discover the charm of this beautiful coastal town.
Another option is to rent a car or scooter. However, you should take into account that many accommodations do not have a parking space available, so parking alone may end up costing you more than the car rental fee. We didn’t end up renting a car or motorbike, but according to our research, you can rent one from €30 per day.
Where to stay on the Gold Coast
The most famous part of the whole Gold Coast is Surfers Paradise. It is the city centre where most of the restaurants and bars, the best nightlife and the most famous Surfers Paradise beach can be found.
However, if you want to avoid the tourist crowds but don’t want to live too far from the city, we recommend Broadbeach area. The centre can be reached within 10 minutes by tram. It’s a much quieter area, but it also offers many great restaurants and cafes, shopping malls and a beautiful beach where people workout from five in the morning.
We also find the Burleigh area to be a very attractive and popular part of the Gold Coast. You’ll find plenty of fancy shops and cafes with amazing breakfast and brunch options.
The most beautiful beaches on the Gold Coast
Surfers Paradise
All along the Gold Coast you’ll find a beautiful coastline that offers visitors great conditions for watching the sunrise, relaxing on the beach, walking or surfing. As we have already mentioned, the most famous and most populated beach is Surfers Paradise, which can be found right in the city centre.
Broadbeach
Our favourite beach was also Broadbeach, which was only 5 minutes from our accommodation. When you come to this beach, you will enjoy a beautiful view of the skyscrapers and also ideal conditions for a relaxing day at the beach, which is not too crowded. We also experienced a beautiful sunrise and were amazed at how active the locals are.
We arrived at the beach at 4:55 and even though we expected to be there alone we were shocked. People ran, swam, surfed, practiced kayaking, walked their four-legged pets, or even enjoyed a cup of coffee. Yes you hear right, at five o’clock in the morning almost all the cafes were open. Everything works the other way around on the Gold Coast 😀 The cafes open at 5am and close at 2pm. Interesting, isn’t it?
Palm Beach
Another beach that caught our hearts was Palm Beach. From the city you can reach it by direct bus number 700 or 777, which also goes to the airport. Get off at the 19th Avenue stop.
Palm Beach is almost completely empty during the day and it really has its own charm. In the distance you can see the entire Gold Coast skyline. You will meet most people here after 4 pm, when it stops being so hot. The beach also offers ideal surfing conditions.
Currumbin Beach
Definitely our favourite beach is Currumbin Beach. This beach is very close to the airport, so if you want to travel to it from the city centre, it will take you about an hour.
We recommend that you first take the tram to Broadbeach South and then change to the 700 bus line which will take you to the Tomewin St at Honeyworld stop. From there, it’s about a 10-15 minute walk and you’re there. It’s definitely the best place for beginner surfers, as the ocean is not so rough. And last but not least, you will see the most beautiful sunset from here.
The Spit Beach
A beach we’ve heard a lot about, but due to bad weather we didn’t get a chance to visit, is The Spit Beach. There is a beautiful pier where you can also watch the sunsets. It’s a bit outside the town and there is no bus going directly to this beach. You can only get there by car, motorbike or bicycle. It will take you about 25 minutes by bicycle from the city centre. One day we will definitely have to go back there just to visit this place!
Skypoint Gold Coast
One of the most famous attractions is a visit to the Skypoint observation tower, located at a height of 230 metres and offering a 360-degree view of the entire city. We visited it during sunset and the view was definitely worth it!
Skypoint is open every day from 7:30 to 21:00. There are several types of tickets to choose from. Either you can buy a standard ticket for 19€ per person. Another option is to purchase the so-called climbing ticket for 56€. With this ticket, the guides will take you to the very top of the tower.
If you want to enjoy a great breakfast with a view of the city, you can also buy a buffet breakfast for 27€, which also includes a ticket for the sightseeing tour. Tickets for breakfast can only be purchased on site. You can also buy other tickets online at this link. We recommend coming for the sunset, where you can also enjoy the views of the Gold Coast at night after dark, which are spectacular.
There is also a bar and restaurant at the top. Even though one would expect the prices in a restaurant in such a place to be exorbitantly high, this was not the case. You will pay about 10€ for a pizza and 7€ for a glass of wine or beer. These are even lower prices than in the average restaurant with no view. Drinking water is free at the viewpoint. It should also be remembered that if you visit the restaurant on the view during the holiday, 20% will be added to the price. It’s like that in almost all gastropubs on the Gold Coast.
Gastronomy and cafes on the Broadbeach Gold Coast
As Australia is quite an expensive country, we often tried to look for cheaper alternatives of eating out. Since we had an equipped kitchen at the apartment, we usually ate breakfast and lunch at home.
What we enjoyed to the fullest, however, were the great cafes. As we used to live near Broadbeach, it’s the cafes in the area that we’re most familiar with.
Our favourite was the NO NAME LANE cafe, which was only 1 minute from our apartment. The long queues at 5 o’clock in the morning will convince you that they have really great coffee.
Another great place for breakfast, brunch and coffee is the ELK Espresso Bar. Located just off Broadbeach in the Oasis shopping centre.
Another tried and tested café that offers great coffee is Oasis Co Coffee, located just a short walk from the aforementioned ELK Espresso Bar. It’s a tiny café that serves mostly coffee to go and is also open from the early hours of the morning.
One of the most famous Australian dishes is fish & chips. We tried this dish at the Urban Fish Market restaurant and it was really great. We paid less than 10€ per person for the meal.
Our single favourite meal was sushi from Woolworth’s, which we would take to go and eat in the park or on the beach. The sushi is very tasty, fresh and you pay a really ridiculous amount for it.
Gold Coast has definitely grown close to our hearts and we will always love to go back! We believe that it will evoke the same feelings in you. Enjoy!
