The Gold Coast is an Australian tourist mecca. Almost 12 million visitors a year are drawn to this 57 kilometre stretch of coastline and like me, many return again and again. I was just sweet 16 when I first visited after convincing my Mum to take one of my friends and I up for a week of fun in the sun. In those days flying domestically in Australia was prohibitive and for most ‘normal’ families a homegrown holiday meant a good old fashioned road trip and sleeping in a caravan park. My Mum however, was quite a new (and nervous!) driver and was less than thrilled about driving the 12 or so hours to our destination, so we took the train. The next time I visited it was on my very first couples trip with my now husband. We were 19 and not so nervous about driving so we packed up my bright yellow Datsun 200B and hit the road. When my kids were little they loved the place and for a while we were visiting every year until I longed for a change of scenery on vacation. For many young Australians the Gold Coast is their first taste of freedom and holidaying without the ‘rents when they attend the madness that is Schoolies Week. The Gold Coast is brash, bold and quite frankly a little tacky but I wouldn’t have it any other way. With so much on offer it can be daunting navigating the possibilities but never fear as I’m going to share everything I have learned as an (almost) 30 year veteran visitor. Read on for all the details …
