Gold Coast destination guide
The Gold Coast is a city in South East Queensland, on Australia's east coast and 66 kilometres south of Brisbane, according to Experience Gold Coast, the city's destination body. The city has surf beaches along its coast and theme parks at its northern end, and its hinterland holds rainforest national parks, including Lamington and Springbrook, which are part of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area.
The Kombumerri and Yugambeh peoples are the traditional owners and custodians of the Gold Coast, according to Experience Gold Coast, and places such as Tallebudgera, Coolangatta and Coombabah are still known by their Aboriginal names. The body divides the city into the Northern Gold Coast, Central Gold Coast, the Hinterland and the Southern Gold Coast.
What to see and do on the Gold Coast
Beaches and the red and yellow flags
The City of Gold Coast's rule is to swim at a patrolled beach, between the red and yellow flags: "No flags = no swim." The council also says never to swim at night or after eating food or drinking alcohol, bans surfing between the flags, and does not allow dogs within 200 metres of the flags in either direction. Its lifeguards and beach safety page points to lifeguard patrol times and tower locations for each beach, and to the City alerts page for beach closures.
The Queensland Government says that if a shark is spotted, lifesavers sound a siren or ring a bell, put up a red-and-white flag and tell swimmers to leave the water.
The northern Gold Coast and the theme parks
Experience Gold Coast calls the northern Gold Coast "Australia's theme park capital". Around Coomera and Oxenford it names Dreamworld, White Water World, Warner Bros. Movie World, Wet'n'Wild, Paradise Country and Australian Outback Spectacular.
The same page points to the boating and golf precinct at Sanctuary Cove, the Coombabah Lakelands Conservation Area, which it rates among the best places on the coast to spot wildlife, the Broadwater Parklands at Southport, and Main Beach.
The central and southern Gold Coast
Experience Gold Coast describes the central Gold Coast through its cafes, craft breweries, shopping centres and live music venues, and the southern Gold Coast through "a world famous point break, sprawling beaches". It also points visitors to the Jellurgal Aboriginal Cultural Centre, on the banks of Tallebudgera Creek.
Whale watching on the Gold Coast
Tourism and Events Queensland says whale season on the Gold Coast runs from June to November, with peak numbers in July and August. It names Burleigh Heads, Miami, Greenmount Point and Point Danger, which sits on the Queensland and New South Wales border, as coastal spots to watch from, and it also points to whale-watching tours.
Schoolies Week and the Gold Coast Marathon
The Queensland Government's Safer Schoolies site gives Gold Coast Schoolies Week as 21 to 27 November 2026. Year 12 students register for a wristband to get into the Schoolies Hub in Surfers Paradise.
The Gold Coast Marathon's organiser lists the 2027 event for Saturday 3 and Sunday 4 July 2027, and says 2027 entries open in early December.
Weather and seasons on the Gold Coast
The Bureau of Meteorology defines the Australian summer as December to February and winter as June to August. Experience Gold Coast says the summer heat combined with humidity can be intense, that February is the wettest month, and that short tropical storms are common in the late afternoon and early evening.
In the hinterland, the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service (QPWS) says the Springbrook plateau can be quite cool even in summer and that most of its rain falls between December and March. It advises carrying a raincoat and warm clothing at all times of the year.
QPWS's Springbrook page asks visitors to check the park alerts before they visit. The alert for cyclone damage in Lamington National Park is listed to 31 December 2026 (see Side trips below), and QPWS's Woonoongoora Walkers Camp facility upgrades alert, which applies to Lamington National Park, Springbrook National Park and the Gold Coast Hinterland Great Walk, runs from 29 September to 30 November 2026.
Flying to the Gold Coast
Gold Coast Airport (OOL) is at Bilinga and operates on Queensland time all year. Domestic and international flights use the same terminal, and the airport puts Surfers Paradise about 30 minutes away by car. The airport has no train station and is not on the light rail line; the airport page covers the buses, taxis and rideshare that serve it.
Direct domestic flights recorded from Gold Coast Airport go to the places below, with the airlines recorded on each route. Schedules change, so check with the airline before planning around a route.
| Destination | Airlines recorded |
|---|---|
| Adelaide | Jetstar, Virgin Australia |
| Cairns | Jetstar |
| Canberra | Jetstar, Virgin Australia |
| Hobart | Jetstar |
| Melbourne (Avalon Airport) | Jetstar |
| Melbourne (Melbourne Airport) | Jetstar, Qantas, Virgin Australia |
| Newcastle | FlyPelican, Jetstar |
| Perth | Jetstar |
| Sydney | Jetstar, Qantas, Virgin Australia |
Getting around the Gold Coast
Stage 3 of Gold Coast Light Rail (G:link) opened to passengers in August 2026, connecting Broadbeach and Burleigh Heads, and G:link's operator says trams operate between Helensvale and Burleigh Heads from Sunday 9 August 2026. The Queensland Government lists the new stations as Mermaid Beach, Mermaid Beach South, Nobby Beach, Miami North, Miami, Christine Avenue, Second Avenue and Burleigh Heads.
Experience Gold Coast lists bus, train, tram and ferry services, taxis, Uber and other rideshare. Queensland Rail's Gold Coast line runs from Brisbane and ends at Varsity Lakes. The HOPO ferry stops include Surfers Paradise, Marina Mirage, Broadwater Parklands and Sea World, according to the same body.
QPWS gives road directions to Springbrook National Park from the Pacific Motorway. It describes both bitumen roads up to the Springbrook plateau as steep, winding and narrow, says no fuel is available near the park, and warns that mobile phone reception may be unreliable there.
Side trips from the Gold Coast
Lamington National Park
Lamington National Park is part of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area, which its World Heritage listing describes as "the major remaining areas of rainforest in southeast Queensland and northeast New South Wales". QPWS puts the park about 110 kilometres, or a two-hour drive, south of Brisbane, and lists an information centre, lookouts, toilets, picnic tables and tent camping. Its Binna Burra and Green Mountains sections are joined by the Border track, and QPWS says the World Heritage Area it belongs to includes the most northern extent of cool temperate rainforest of Antarctic beech.
QPWS's Severe Weather Damage alert for Lamington National Park, listed from 14 March 2025 to 31 December 2026, says some areas are closed until declared safe because of damage from Tropical Cyclone Alfred. Its last update, on 14 May 2026, lists the eastern side of the Illinbah circuit and parts of the Coomera and Albert River circuits as closed, suspends camping permits for closed areas, and keeps commercial tour operators out of them.
The same update lists the Gold Coast Hinterland Great Walk track, the Border track between Binna Burra and Green Mountains, and circuits including the Rainforest circuit, Caves track, Centenary track and Morans Falls track as open. The Lamington National Park alert is the page to read on the day.
Springbrook National Park
Springbrook National Park is part of the same World Heritage Area, and QPWS puts it about 100 kilometres south of Brisbane. From the Pacific Motorway, the Springbrook plateau is 24 kilometres from Mudgeeraba or 36 kilometres from Nerang; the Natural Bridge section is reached via Nerang and the Nerang-Murwillumbah Road, and the Mount Cougal section via Currumbin Creek Road. There is no through-road access to New South Wales from the plateau, QPWS notes.
The park is open 24 hours a day, but QPWS says to walk in daylight hours only, unless viewing the glow-worms at Natural Bridge. QPWS prohibits swimming in the creek at Natural Bridge, including inside the cave, and going onto the creek bank, at all times, with penalties, and says entering the creek bank vegetation and swimming in the creek harms the glow-worm and microbat population.
The top and base of Purling Brook Falls are unstable and prone to rockfalls, according to QPWS, and the restricted areas marked on its maps are closed to access at all times. Its alerts list the toilets at the Tallanbana trailhead as closed from 23 January 2026 to 29 January 2027, and it says walking tracks may close after heavy rain.
Byron Bay
Byron Bay, in New South Wales, is about 45 minutes by car from Gold Coast Airport, by the airport's estimate.
Gold Coast questions
Does the Gold Coast observe daylight saving?
No. Queensland does not observe daylight saving, and neither do Western Australia and the Northern Territory, while New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and the Australian Capital Territory do, according to the New South Wales Government.
Is there a train or tram to Gold Coast Airport?
Gold Coast Airport has no train station and is not on the G:link light rail line. The Queensland Government stopped planning a light rail extension to the airport on 1 September 2025.
When is whale season on the Gold Coast?
Tourism and Events Queensland gives June to November, with peak numbers in July and August.
Can you swim at Natural Bridge in Springbrook National Park?
No. QPWS prohibits swimming in the creek, including inside the cave, and access to the creek bank at all times, and penalties apply.
When is Schoolies Week on the Gold Coast in 2026?
The Queensland Government's Safer Schoolies site gives 21 to 27 November 2026. Year 12 students register for a wristband to get into the Schoolies Hub in Surfers Paradise.