In
my travels I’ve visited the Gold Coast of Australia on two
different occasions and Surfers Paradise is one of my favourite
places in Australia for three reasons:
Reason 1: The nightlife
Surfers Paradise is a young crowd kind of place because
of its night life, copious amounts of shopping, amusement
parks and all around active lifestyle it has an average age
of 38, and a population of 18,000 people. Home to 56+ bars
and pubs when night falls this town is bumping and everything
stays open late. Pizza shops, mini golf, theme park rides,
bowling alleys along with all the bars.
Reason 2: You can hold Koalas
In
parts of Australia, like New South Wales it is actually illegal
to hold or touch a Koala, however it isn’t in Queensland.
20 minutes down the road from the center of Surfers Paradise
is the Curumbin Wildlife
Sanctuary and aside from Kangaroos and wallabies that
you can feed, dingoes and gynormous crocodiles that you can
watch from afar they also have tons of Koalas and you can
hold them here. There are strict rules for the Koalas, each
one is only allowed to work a small amount of time a week.
Definitely a great experience.
Reason 3: BEACHES!!!
Well
technically it is all one long beach and at different points
along it it has been assigned a different name depending
how far you walk down the beach there is Surfers, Mermaid
beach, Palm beach and more. People literally surf here from
sunrise to sunset. You will see beginners, every day hobbyists
to seasoned pros there are also a few places where you can
take lessons and of course rent a board.
These beaches have powerful, powerful waves but are also
safe for swimming as long as you stay between the flags.
This is extremely important as they are the only areas with
lifeguards and these areas are chosen specifically for being
the safest areas with smaller waves, no surfers around and
less chances of being caught in a rip tide. But they are
also great for just laying out and getting a nice tan, but
be sure to wear your sun tan lotion, the Australian sun is
nothing to play around with. Surfers Paradise Beach was voted
as one of the top beaches in Australia and judge as one of
the cleanest.
Surfers is definitely a place to visit for at least a night
or two if not longer. Aside from my reasons listed above
there is also tons of shopping, there is a big Casino near
by, a theme park, you can go kayaking, sky diving, Paragliding,
fishing you name it they have it and it is definitely worth
a stop. Perhaps fly into their airport and drive your way
further north for the coming Eclipse?
Travel safe! ~Cailin
Cailin is first a traveler, then a filmmaker. She has traveled mostly solo for the past 3 years to 23 countries, blogging and filming along the way. In 2009 she fulfilled her biggest dream by producing/directing/editing/hosting and funding the filming of the first episode of her travel TV show Travel Yourself. Currently in post production, Cailin now balances editing the show with freelance work in film and TV in her home town of Halifax, Nova Scotia while fitting in more travels every chance she gets.
2012 eclipse facts
The centre line of the eclipse moves from west to east north of Cairns. I will be offshore, close to the central line on the morning
of the 14th of November. First contact is at 0544 at 1° of
altitude. Totality commences at 0638 at 14° and lasts for
2 minutes. Final contact is at 0740.
I will be travelling with Journeys
Worldwide - a Brisbane based firm I've used for previous
eclipses in Libya and China.
For the cruise, I will be aboard the P&O
Princess Dawn.
Surfers Paradise - Three things I loved about Surfers Paradise
Guest post by Cailin O'Neil
Reason 1: The nightlife
Surfers Paradise is a young crowd kind of place because of its night life, copious amounts of shopping, amusement parks and all around active lifestyle it has an average age of 38, and a population of 18,000 people. Home to 56+ bars and pubs when night falls this town is bumping and everything stays open late. Pizza shops, mini golf, theme park rides, bowling alleys along with all the bars.
Reason 2: You can hold Koalas
Reason 3: BEACHES!!!
These beaches have powerful, powerful waves but are also safe for swimming as long as you stay between the flags. This is extremely important as they are the only areas with lifeguards and these areas are chosen specifically for being the safest areas with smaller waves, no surfers around and less chances of being caught in a rip tide. But they are also great for just laying out and getting a nice tan, but be sure to wear your sun tan lotion, the Australian sun is nothing to play around with. Surfers Paradise Beach was voted as one of the top beaches in Australia and judge as one of the cleanest.
Surfers is definitely a place to visit for at least a night or two if not longer. Aside from my reasons listed above there is also tons of shopping, there is a big Casino near by, a theme park, you can go kayaking, sky diving, Paragliding, fishing you name it they have it and it is definitely worth a stop. Perhaps fly into their airport and drive your way further north for the coming Eclipse?
Travel safe! ~Cailin
Cailin is first a traveler, then a filmmaker. She has traveled mostly solo for the past 3 years to 23 countries, blogging and filming along the way. In 2009 she fulfilled her biggest dream by producing/directing/editing/hosting and funding the filming of the first episode of her travel TV show Travel Yourself. Currently in post production, Cailin now balances editing the show with freelance work in film and TV in her home town of Halifax, Nova Scotia while fitting in more travels every chance she gets.