Back to the Gold Coast, Australia

Our very first family vacation (involving a plane trip) was to the Gold Coast, Australia to enjoy sun, sea and some serious beach time when Tweeny was two years old. Everything was scheduled around nap times with the highlight of the trip being the Big Red Car ride at the Wiggle World Attraction at Dream World Theme Park.

This time round Tweeny is ten and tall enough for all (well most) of the rides at the theme parks!! She has made it clear pre-journey she thinks the seven day vacation would be well spent visiting each of the major four theme parks located around the Gold Coast – Dream World, Wet ‘n’ Wild, Sea World and Warner Bros Movie World. Theme Parks are not my idea of a relaxing vacation! I was hoping to spend the vacation exploring the natural beauty around the Gold Coast with scenic drives and walks around beaches and rainforests. The husband is keen for some R&R, reading a book or two in relative peace and quiet (hard to achieve with Tweeny and I around!).

If you are after a crowd pleaser, the Gold Coast certainly gets my vote for a good broad ranging family vacation (Gold Coast is such a crowd pleaser that we ran into two other Canberra families during our week there). It offered everything all three of us wanted in a vacation. There seems to be something to suit all tastes at the Gold Coast, from the crowds and attractions of the theme parks and Surfers Paradise to the quiet isolation of the rainforest.

Leaving our mark on the Gold Coast

For me the key to a successful vacation at the Gold Coast is location of accommodation. Decide as a family if you want to be right in the thick of things at Surfers Paradise or if you prefer a quieter location. I find the crowds at Surfers Paradise a little overwhelming, so we stayed a few beaches down at Mermaid Beach.

So what did we manage to fit into our seven days? Two theme parks, quite a few beach days and a day up in the rainforest and mountains.

A little bit of all of our vacation wish lists were ticked off. All in all, it was a lovely family vacation; I for one could have happily stayed for longer and will not hesitate in instigating another Gold Coast vacation in the future.