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A Gold Coast beach holiday will allow you to sample from many distinctive Gold Coast beach scenes; which will you choose? The atmosphere of Surfer’s best nightclubs down on the sand; one that will provide visitors with some welcome time out from the high energy that hums through the Sunshine Coast; a fun filled family holiday at world class theme parks or one of uber sophistication at an outstanding international hotel on the Gold Coast of Queensland?
Surfers Paradise Beach plays host to an impressive number of events attended by athletes and enthusiasts throughout the year. Surf Life Saving competitions are a staple on a Gold Coast beach holiday events calendar, as well as the famous Coollangatta Gold race, which fills the sand with a stampeding rush of bronzed bodies. All year round beachgoers can be spotted paddling kayaks and coaxing kite surfers through the swell.
Sheltered from the ocean by a sandbar called The Spit, Southport occupies a residential enclave just four kilometres north of Surfer’s Paradise. This quiet beach allows for contemplative fishing trips along the sand bar, a great activity during your family holiday. Contrast the tranquility on your Gold Coast beach holiday with the energy of Sea World theme park located opposite at Main Beach.
Main Beach unfolds at the beginning of the high rise area, and is separated from Surfer’s by a section of beach called Narrowneck, which hosts regular surfing competitions. The Scottish Prince shipwreck has created a fascinating dive site nearby, ripe for exploration by divers. For the snorkeler, a Gold Coast beach holiday is enhanced by an artificial reef in the area for snorkellers who prefer to stay closer to the surface. Other beachside diversions include a park and barbeque facilities. Bring a spare change of clothes for a quick transformation, before skipping over to the up market dining and nightlife on offer along Tedder Avenue during your romantic break.
Broadbeach draws families with the intention of relaxing outside of the main party areas, who appreciate the safe swimming ensured by surf lifesaver patrols. Shops and cafes line Broadbeach Mall and Surf Parade, while colourful beachfront markets contribute to the laidback atmosphere down at the shore.
The southern beach of Burleigh Heads experiences strong southeasterly winds which encourage excellent surfing conditions for the perfect beach holiday on the Gold Coast for experienced surfers. The bay collects a high volume of water, so can present a challenging swell. Beachcombers can climb up the cliff at the Burleigh Heads National Park to see the view of the coast unfold. Large Norfolk Pines dot the view from above; down on the sand their shade presents wonderful relief from the sun and an ideal picnic spot.
Follow Pacific Parade down to Currumbin Beach, where unusual rock formations lie at Currumbin Alley. There are a number of lookouts and a clubhouse deck from which photographs of the beach can be taken, framed by the skyline of Surfer’s Paradise. The beach is patrolled by the intrepid members of the Currumbin Vikings Surf Club, ensuring safe swimming for families in Queensland’s warm waters enjoying their beach holiday on the Gold Coast.
The holiday town of Coolangatta is half an hour removed from the pace of Surfer’s. It features a rolling Esplanade where families can keep the kids entertained at a playground.
Experienced surfers will appreciate the powerful tides that create decent swell here. Fishers also regularly haul in catches of bream and dart. Tweed Heads beach sidles alongside Coolangatta, offering a relaxed extension to a wonderful Gold Coast beach holiday in beautiful Queensland.
Cairns Beach Holiday
Lauded as a thriving backpacker’s town, and increasingly frequented by luxury travellers from all over the world, a Cairns beach holiday gives the opportunity to experience picture perfect bays, the warm waters of nearby islands and internationally acclaimed diving on the Great Barrier Reef. Inland, tropical rainforest huddles behind impressive stretches of sand.
A holiday on Cairn’s northern beaches has waterfront landscapes with a mixture of experiences; glamorous, long beaches stretching out from luxury resorts, others holding secrets of untouched bays from developers. Dotted throughout you will find excellent surfing spots.
The Cairns Esplanade features a man made lagoon, and provides a focal point for both locals and visitors. Enjoy the energy of the waterfront promenade with kids on skateboards, families walking and lovers walking hand in hand with the Coral Sea to one side and a wide grassed area bordered with lazy cafes. Take a free fitness session offered weekly beside the beach, where participants stretch their way through Pilates or Aqua Aerobics happily contributing to the area’s energy.
Travelling north, on a Cairns beach holiday, see Machan’s Beach a laidback strip often playing host to football games and beach cricket. Nearby Holloway’s Beach is situated within a low key, residential area dotted with some luxury resorts where the narrow beach encompasses some lovely secluded areas along its stretch, making it the perfect destination during a romantic holiday.
Separated from Holloway’s Beach by a sand bar, Yorkney’s Knob is a white sand beach nestled within the crescent shaped Half Moon Bay. The picturesque marina holds some 200 boats and consistent winds through the Bay make for great kite and wind surfing conditions.
Yorkney’s is conveniently placed for onward travel to the rainforest immersion experience at Skyrail, or an indigenous encounter at Tjapukai to complement a beach holiday in Cairns.
Hire a catamaran or sea kayak to experience Trinity Beach during your Cairns beach holiday. Blissfully unspoilt by development, Kewarra Beach is home to a proud local identity the Surf Life Saving Club. The swimming area extends to a great depth, while the smooth waters are protected from the winds interference by a rocky headland. The clean beach is ideal for families with children with beachside picnic tables and a playground to hand.
Untouched and boasting uninterrupted views, those that wish to bathe without the shadows of high rise’s cast over them will appreciate the sands of Clifton. This laid back beach is home to a large population of burrowing pippies, small molluscs that gather at the shoreline before being collected for bait by fishermen enjoying a beach holiday in Cairns.
For a glamorous Cairns beach holiday, Palm Cove is a curvaceous bay with the wide sandy beach often dotted with the coconuts from the elegant coconut palms that fringe the bay and pretty patterns created in the damp sand by unseen marine creatures with off shore islands completing the tropical beach holiday paradise . Starry eyed honeymooners and those seeking to indulge wander down to the white sands from their luxury resort along Williams Esplanade. Ellis Cove is a long, thin beach, perfect for a family picnic playground.
A rocky outcrop at the southern end of the Cove and it’s proximity to the mass of Double Island allows visitors to enjoy the beaches spectacular views. From the calm of this sheltered bay, begin your adventure along the idyllic coastal drive that leads to Port Douglas and to more northern beaches. See sugar cane plantations, roadside tropical rainforest and huge gum trees, awesome kite surfing and stupendous pebbles as you enjoy a perfect beach holiday in Cairns, far north Queensland.
Perth Beach Holiday
A Perth beach holiday on some of some of the world’s best beaches suits families with sheltered safe swimming for the littlies and rollicking surf spots on the open Indian Ocean a short distance away and all easily accessible along the pretty coastal drive, the West Coast Highway. Many have the advantage of being patrolled, and all showcase the best of Perth’s laidback culture. It is hard to beat a beach holiday where you can end the day watching the sun set over Cottesloe Beach from the Ocean Beach Hotel, having breakfast at upmarket City Beach or Floreat Beach after an early morning dip, or catching your first break at Scarborough Beach; all minutes away from Perth CBD.
Dotted with pine trees, the expanse of lawn that rolls down to the sands of Cottesloe Beach is awash with sunbaking teenagers, families enjoying fish and chips, and children wiping their ice cream smeared hands on the grass. Swimmers retire to a spot on one of the tiered levels, while new chums battle for beach volleyball championship titles below.
After working up an appetite swimming in the protected curve of Cottesloe Beach, a number of coveted restaurants along Marine Parade present excellent options for a late brunch, fine dining or a romantic dinner looking out to Rottnest Island and watching the sun set below the Indian Ocean to complement the perfect Perth beach holiday experience . A short walk to the north of Cottesloe Beach, Swanbourne Beach is Perth’s only nude beach, allowing naturalists to swim without eyebrows being raised, but a walk along this stretch will also reveal incredible wide, crisp sands and calm swimming conditions.
Serious surfers who book a Perth beach holiday package should monitor the swell daily before heading to either Scarborough Beach or Trigg Beach. The wide golden sands and gin clear water of the Indaian Ocean at Scarborough Beach is sometimes honoured as the venue of the annual Australian Surf Life Saving Championships, the ‘Aussies’. With a number of nearby laidback cafes providing sustenance to hungry swimmers, the Scarborough Beach Amphitheatre makes an excellent outdoor venue for summer concerts and leads onto the sands and the grassy esplanade that provide makeshift cricket pitches for the holidaymakers that visit ‘Scarbs’. To the north of Scarborough, North Beach and nearby Mettam’s Pool is an easily accessible snorkeling spot within a protected Marine Park.
Floreat Beach is great for families, thanks to the installation of a barbeque area with a children’s playground. Pack your own picnic and make use of outdoor picnic tables, or try brunch at The Kiosk, a fabulous breakfast spot and Floreat institution. Crowds gather here to enjoy a vista frequently interrupted by dolphins, as well as barbeque fresh food outdoors and stage day long cricket competitions. Similarly, up market City Beach, with a shaded lawn esplanade and stupendous amenities, and is patrolled by Surf Life Savers, making it the ideal place to visit on a family Perth beach holiday.
The cosmopolitan port city of Fremantle is vibrant with buskers, fishermen, artists and artisans creating a laid back lifestyle as well as Leighton Beach, Port Beach and South Beach. A short, enjoyable train trip through the wealthy western suburbs of Perth and along the coast, the visitor enjoying a Perth beach holiday is rewarded with magnificent views, spotting wind and kite surfer’s and the Indian Ocean before arriving at the historic ocean side city.
Sydney Beach Holiday
Aussies and international tourists in pursuit of a Sydney beach holiday are be spoilt for choice with a plethora of sheltered coves, exciting surf beaches and promenades hosting Sydneysider’s on beaches competing for attention on the edge of the city. Loosely grouped into Northern, Southern and Eastern suburbs beaches, the coastline ensures a beach holiday in Sydney that will appeal to everybody.
The iconic Bondi Beach is the most coveted of all Sydney’s beaches; renowned for its excellent swell, and named for the Indigenous word for ‘surf’, Bondi Beach is one of the most photographed beaches in the world and is the closest beach to Sydney’s city centre. Set in a perfect semi circle of cliff tops, upmarket homes, the Pacific Ocean and wide golden sand, with the famous Iceberg Restaurant and Swimming Club pool to the right, wrapped around a wide grassed esplanade and completed with a café strip interspersed with boutiques, historic shop fronts and modern accommodation. The world’s ideal Sydney Beach holiday.
North Shore Beaches include Reef Beach, Clontarf Beach, and Chinaman’s Beach. Balmoral Beach is overhung with the branches of fig trees, while the vista displays yachts and views over to Sydney Harbour National Park. The northern section of the beach contains a shady park behind an old club building, and visitors on a Sydney beach holiday can follow the Boardwalk to the netted swimming area dubbed the Balmoral Baths. Excellent dining can be had along the Esplanade strip, and the Balmoral Rotunda hosts Shakespeare by the Sea.
Some twenty northern beaches extend up the coast from Manly, covering a 30 km stretch of laidback suburbs. Pine trees rim the edges of golden sands, and the waters are serviced by ferry. The Corso travels from the wharf to Manly, and features excellent shopping and dining. From Manly, walk to Fairy Bower and Shelley Beach.
Watson’s Bay hosts an idyllic collection of restored fisherman’s cottages, churches and heritage buildings. A sheltered bay on the western side features views to the Sydney Harbour Bridge, and a cliff face called the Gap fronts the eastern side of Watson. Wonderful coastal walks with views travel alongside the bay and through parkland. Aboriginal rock carvings at Camp Cove point to activities of early inhabitants who collected shellfish here, while the Cove itself is a photogenic Sydney holiday beach.
Shark Bay is a tidal beach with minimal swell, ensuring peaceful swimming thanks to a shark proof net. Nielsen and National park vegetation crowd the edges of the Bay, and a small café overlooks the water. The presence of barbeque and picnic areas make this spot an easy day out for families travelling to a Sydney beach holiday.
A ferry trip away for the visitor seeking an upmarket beach holiday in Sydney, the eastern suburbs beaches ensure excellent swimming at Rushcutter’s Bay, Rose Bay and Vaucluse. A dip at Vaucluse can be followed by a visit to Sydney’s last 19th century Harbourside estate, set within ten hectares of formal gardens. Within Double Bay is the Redleaf Pool complete with sun deck. Adjacent to the beach are the beautiful Blackburn Gardens, as well as the most fashionable boutique shopping in the capital.
Further south are Maroubra and Cronulla, both clean, well patrolled surf beaches. Maroubra’s namesake comes from an Aboriginal word meaning ‘place of thunder’, and strong winds often whip through the bay. Safe swimming can be enjoyed at Mahon Pool to the north of the beach near Mistral Point. This beach boasts two surf clubs and a skate park, and a number of large parklands with playgrounds and barbeque facilities idea for families on a Sydney Beach holiday. Cronulla Beach has a reef break which creates enviable surfing conditions with the local Surf Life Saving Club is one of the strongest in the awesome Australian Surf Life Saving Association movement proudly housed in a magnificent Art Deco clubhouse building.
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