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Gold Coast

Built for pleasure and remaining a place dedicated to sun, surf and the body beautiful, this strip of coast is possibly Australia’s most iconic holiday destination. Its shimmering high-rises can, when glimpsed from afar, resemble a make-believe city, and its reputation for tackiness is occasionally deserved. But this is far outstripped by the area's youthful spirit and startling physical beauty: some 52km of pristine sand with countless epic surf breaks, stunning sunsets, blissful water temperatures and 300 sunny days a year.

While Surfers Paradise’s malls and mega-clubs entertain the party-hard kids, the other neighbourhoods have distinct charms of their own, from booming culinary scenes and coastal chic to retro beach holiday nostalgia and laid-back local flavour. Not to be overlooked is the lush, misty subtropical rainforest of the hinterland – a good place to get in touch with the spirit of the traditional owners of this land, the Yugambeh people.

Top attractions

These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Gold Coast.

  • See

    Purling Brook Falls

    Just off Springbrook Rd, the feathery Purling Brook Falls drops a rather astonishing 106m into the rainforest: worth braving the vertigo-inducing lookout. From here you can walk the Purling Brook Falls Circuit.

  • See

    Tamborine National Park

    Queensland’s oldest national park comprises 13 sections stretching across an 8km plateau. Pick up a map at the information centre in North Tamborine for easy-to-moderate walking trails to features such as the Witches Falls and Cameron Falls. In the Joalah section of the park, a 1.1km return walk through pretty rainforest leads to the Curtis Falls, tucked just below a busy road; look out for lyrebirds and platypuses. From the Cedar Creek car park it's a short walk past a picnic area to the Cedar Creek Falls lookout. The track continues down through a rock-walled gorge to natural pools at their base. You can swim here, but follow the instructions on the signs. Note, the waterfalls are at their most impressive after heavy rains; they reduce to little more than a trickle in drought conditions.

  • See

    SkyPoint

    For an eagle-eye view of the coast and hinterland, zip up to this 230m-high observation deck near the top of Q1; at 322m, it's the world's tallest residential building. Save money on Friday and Saturday nights when it turns into a cocktail bar from 8pm to 11pm (admission $10). You can also tackle the SkyPoint Climb (sunrise/day/twilight/night $107/77/97/87) up the spire to a height of 270m.

  • See

    Best of All Lookout

    True to its name, the Best of All Lookout offers phenomenal views from the southern edge of the Springbrook Plateau to the lowlands below. The 300m trail from the car park to the lookout takes you past a clump of gnarled, and incredibly rare, Antarctic beech trees: you’ll only find them around this Scenic Rim region.

  • See

    Goomoolahra Falls

    At the end of Springbrook Rd, there’s a superb lookout beside the 60m Goomoolahra Falls, giving views across the plateau and all the way back to the coast. There's a pretty creek-side picnic area here, too, with toilet facilities. The falls are 100m from the car park and the path is wheelchair accessible.

  • See

    Natural Bridge

    The scenic Natural Bridge, off the Nerang–Murwillumbah road, has a 1km paved walking circuit leading to a huge rock arch spanning a water-formed cave – home to a luminous colony of glowworms, best seen on summer evenings. Listen out for the uncanny call of the catbird around here.

  • See

    Canyon Lookout

    Canyon Lookout affords jagged views through the valley all the way to Surfers Paradise. This is also the start of a 4km circuit walk to Twin Falls, which is part of Springbrook's longest trail, the 17km Warrie Circuit.

  • See

    Budds Beach

    Budds Beach is the narrow, riverside beach on Surfers Paradise's Nerang River. It's great for kids and beginner stand-up paddleboarders. Go Vertical Stand Up Paddle offers lessons.