August 8, 2024 • 55 mins
Is the Gold Coast Australia’s playground? You bet! This region in Queensland is renowned for its stunning beaches, vibrant nightlife, and thrilling attractions. With iconic spots including Surfers Paradise and laidback Burleigh Heads, it’s a favourite playground for both locals and travellers alike.
Join Kate Fulton from Experience Gold Coast and Don Forster as they discuss all that the Gold Coast has to offer, from a quick visit to a long stay escaping the North American winter.
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Episode Transcript
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you
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Hello everyone, welcome to Go Way Pro Travel Tales.
Hear stories from industry experts, travelers, explorers, and globetrotters who willinspire you to dream bigger, explore further, and discover a new world.
Today I'd like to welcome Kate Fulton coming to us live from the Gold Coast.
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Kate not only lives on the Gold Coast, that's correct, you actually live there?
Okay, but she represents the Gold Coast under the entity of experience Gold Coast and asyou can guess today We're to talk about the Gold Coast By looking at your business address
Kate on your email.
I see that you're Literally across the road from the famous beach or actually technicallybeaches if you look at the Gold Coast Which we'll get into in a minute the stretches along
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the Gold Coast in surface paradise Which is not only an app name, but it's also thecolloquial name of the area
as well.
Often referred to as Australia's favorite playground, the Gold Coast can be compared to inpopularity as Florida and its beaches, sorry, can be compared in popularity as Florida and
its beaches are to North Americans and spring breakers.
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I'm not sure if that's changed.
When I was a kid, that was a sort of good high school getaway for a lot of high schoolkids.
I'm not sure.
Has that changed or is that still one of the...
No, definitely still the same.
It's almost like a rite of passage for many Australians to come and have a holiday
Yeah, often you talk to people and they bring up fond memories of coming to the Gold Coastas a kid or as a family and It's kind of nice to have that kind of nostalgic angle to the
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destination Yeah, 100 % Now before we get into more detail about the Gold Coast Kate, canyou tell us a bit about yourself and how you ended up?
Becoming involved as a representative of the Gold Coast.
Yeah, sure.
And so I've been with experience Gold Coast
almost 10 years now, in June it'll be 10 years.
And I've always worked in our international marketing team.
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So at the moment I oversee our marketing efforts across our Western markets.
So that being North America and also New Zealand is a very big market for the Gold Coastbecause we've got direct flights into the Gold Coast from New Zealand.
I've been living here for probably almost 20 years.
I'm actually originally from Victoria.
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I saw the light and decided I couldn't do another winter if it's very cold in Melbourne.
And I moved up here and I studied up here on the Gold Coast and I actually did a Bachelorof Business in Tourism Management.
I that and here I am, I'm still here and I absolutely love it.
It's incredible lifestyle.
Yeah, it is a great area and many people from the country moved there as my grandparentsdid.
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They retired
So I've actually spent a lot of time in around the Gold Coast.
My mother lived in a very small town called Numanbar.
Many names in Australia have Aboriginal origin.
And Numanbar is very close to the Gold Coast and also a really beautiful natural sitecalled the Natural Bridge, which is a waterfall that goes through, like it's over the
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millennia, dug its way through the rock.
So it goes through a hole in the ground now, or in the rock, into a beautiful...
almost bottomless, I wouldn't say billimong, basically swimming area.
So that's all very accessible from the Gold Coast as we discuss it.
Now, Kate prior to our little interview today sent me a couple of infographics and I'mgonna just start off with the basics.
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I'm gonna read from this and I'll throw it up on the screen for those that are watching.
These are some of the key things and these are some of the basics but I'll let Kate expandon it.
So the population is about 732 ,000 in the area and we'll discuss what the Gold Coast isfrom a regional point of view.
It hosted the 2018 Commonwealth Games and co -partner of Brisbane's 2032 Olympic andParalympic Games.
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Top 10 most welcoming cities on Earth in 2023.
100 ,000 hectares, what would that be in acres, any idea?
I think it's 100 ,000.
It's too early in the morning here to use that Yeah, exactly.
And it's too late at night here.
Put it this way, it's a lot of nature reserves, world heritage sites and subtropicalrainforests.
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That's very key too, because we will refer to beaches, but just nearby, like where mymother lived, her actual backyard face onto a national park, some rainforest.
What's very important here is two international airports, Gold Coast and Brisbane.
So Kate mentioned direct flights from New Zealand in, but of course there areinternational direct flights.
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I don't think into the Coast, but definitely into Brisbane.
So getting to the Gold Coast is very easy from North America directly and doesn't have tobe by Sydney or Melbourne.
There's a whole lot of other things here, which I'll throw up on the screen, but I don'twant to take, or still Kate's thunder.
So let's go with the basics, Kate.
Where is the Gold Coast?
Yeah, so the Gold Coast, we're at the very southern tip of Queensland.
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about an hour's drive south of Brisbane.
As we mentioned before, Brisbane is our key international gateway airport into Queensland.
So really easy to get to if North Americans are traveling into Brisbane Airport direct.
We're just an hour drive south of that.
Or you can take a train as well.
For those that are traveling into other states like flying into Sydney or Melbourne, forexample.
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We do have an airport on the Gold Coast as well.
So if they're spending a few nights in Sydney, Melbourne, wherever they might be inAustralia, they can connect straight up to Gold Coast Airport after that.
So it's a very easy flight.
It's about an hour's flight from Sydney and roughly a two hour flight from Melbourne.
So very easy place to get to.
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We've got a brand new airport at Gold Coast Airport, brand new international terminalthere.
during the pandemic they spent about $500 million on the airport there.
So it is considered a regional airport, but if you're flying through there, it feels likeyou're going through a key gateway, but it's a very quick and seamless process, not like
coming in through a capital city.
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So I guess that kind of works for our advantage.
Yeah.
Now, when you say Gold Coast Airport, is that Kulungatta?
Yes, that's right.
So the airport code is OOL.
Thank you.
That was my next question.
So it's OOL for Kulungatta.
But it's officially called Gold Coast Airport?
That's right.
Okay.
And Brisbane is B and E for those who may need to know that one.
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So again, it's recommended if you're focusing on Queensland, all of it or some of it tofly directly into Brisbane.
But as Kate mentioned, connecting, because most people will probably combine the New SouthWales or the centre with Queensland, Tasmania even.
Other direct flights from Tasmania into either Brisbane or Gold Coast Airport?
Yes, there is.
So pretty much anywhere in Australia you can get directly into Brisbane and or Kulangattaor Gold Coast Airport.
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Now the Gold Coast Airport, Kulangatta, which I believe will be...
I don't know.
I've been there.
how many times.
I'm assuming Kulangatta by the sound of it is an Aboriginal word.
Yes.
Kulangatta is also a little town and that is literally on the border, it shares the borderwith New South Wales.
So we have a lot of people who will visit Australia and do a self drive.
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So getting into the Gold Coast is also easy driving.
just, you you go to the top of North of New South Wales, the North and just drive straightin to the Gold Coast area as well.
So is the Gold Coast the same as the Sunshine Coast?
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There are a lot of similarities.
Obviously we're two completely separate regions.
We're South of Brisbane.
and Sunshine Coast is north of Brisbane.
So it's only a couple of hours drive away.
There are a lot of similarities between the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast.
We're both beachside destinations.
We've also both got a beautiful hinterland rainforest area out to the west.
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But I guess the differences would be we do have more of a city landscape on the Gold Coastcompared to the Sunshine Coast.
So surface paradise and Broad Beach, are two of our kind key tourist towns on the GoldCoast.
When I refer to surface paradise, I kind of said that's kind of like our downtown.
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It's definitely more of a city feeling, city by the sea.
We do have a few sky rises, which when people see a photo of the Gold Coast, it's kind ofprobably the first image that would come to mind when they're thinking of the Gold Coast
is that surface paradise skyline.
So that would probably be our big difference.
comparing us to the Sunshine Coast.
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Right, so from a technical point of view, do you represent the Sunshine Coast or you'repretty much south of Brisbane down to the border?
two completely separate regions.
Okay, fine.
And again, as Kate was mentioning with the high -rise for our North American viewers, it'snot to the same extent, but it's a very similar look to Florida and the sort of beach line
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high -rise condos and apartment near Miami.
and we'll touch on some of the options in regards to apartments and condos in a minute.
Okay, so we were just touching, if you're already there.
So we mentioned road getting into Queensland and or the Gold Coast.
There is a rail line I know which runs through Queensland and also connecting in from NewSouth Wales.
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So if people are into rail travel, you can also get to Brisbane's and Gold Coast viatrain?
Yes, you can.
There is a train that goes out to our west.
which is quite popular.
For those that are flying into Brisbane Airport, there is a train called the AirTrain,which brings passengers straight down to the Gold Coast right outside the terminal.
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So that's also an option for people who don't want to do a self -drive or don't want tobook a transfer, and they're quite comfortable in doing public transport.
It's very easy, literally.
So the train leaves right from Brisbane Airport?
Yes, right outside the terminal.
and there will be a couple of stops along the way between Brisbane and the Gold Coast.
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And then that also connects with our light rail system, which is kind of, guess, the bestway of describing it's like a tram, but a very modern version of it.
So we have that on the Gold Coast at the very northern end of the city.
So for those coming on the train, they can disembark at the light rail, jump onto thelight rail, and that'll bring you right through the heart of the Gold Coast, so through
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Surfers Paradise.
through Broad Beach and at the moment they're continuing the construction all the way downto the southern end of the Gold Coast.
So that's all happening at the moment.
My drive to work, I do have to go through a bit of road work, but it's all for the greatergood of the city, so I don't mind.
So it's just a really great option for people who are wanting to get around and maybe notfeel comfortable driving.
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We've got some incredible public transport options.
Okay, so that's a good point in that.
If someone is sort of more independent, they want to get from Brisbane to their respectiveaccommodation, you can do it via, or you could get a taxi, of course.
You can pick up your self -drive or you could take the train now.
Dragging your bags around might be a bit of a discouragement for that.
So definitely the train into the northern part of the Gold Coast and then we can go awaybeing weak and organize a private transfer to your accommodation of choice.
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obviously getting around Brisbane.
Sorry, around the Gold Coast independently sounds very, very easy.
So as an extension of that, obviously taxis are around, Uber, et cetera would be around,plus any organized tours at GoA would organize for your clients as well.
Okay, we just tapped on, I'm just looking at my questions as we go through this.
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So, yeah, I was gonna - it's pretty popular too.
We've got the electric bikes.
It's like a public transport type system where
So they're called line bikes.
So if you come to the Gold Coast, you'll see them everywhere.
I'm not sure if they've got something similar over there.
Yeah, yeah.
That's quite popular in all the big cities around here.
Yeah.
Use your phone and it's just an app and you just basically tap on and you pay for theduration or the distance that you're wanting to ride the bike for.
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We've got a lot of great footpaths around the Gold Coast.
So a lot of people just, you know, basically cruise around the Gold Coast on a bike.
It's a really easy way to get around and see a lot more.
Yeah, that again for people who may be interested in that or just getting around by footin the Gold Coast area for the most part it's like coastal it's flat.
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So it's I remember again I haven't been to surface paradise or surface as strength willcut everything in half surface for a long time.
But yeah it was always to me it's just nice and flat near the beach.
Now if you go inland a bit to the hinterland and stuff then you're to start getting tosome hills if you're into biking or otherwise.
just for pottering around the big areas, then bikes would be a really, really good option.
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So the big attraction domestically was one of reasons you said you moved there was one,the lifestyle which a lot's to do with, I think it's on one of the infographics you gave
me about how much sunshine there is.
300 plus days of sunshine each year.
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And of course the famous beaches now.
Well, I'll be throwing out some imagery here to really inspire people.
outside of that really cool lifestyle, and it is a big retirement area for a lot ofAustralians, is it still the same draw that it used to be?
I know back in the day, my father also retired there and he did it because, well, onereason, he liked to golf, which is, look, okay, I'm bouncing all over the place here.
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There's lots of really good golfing in the area.
don't know how many golf courses are, I'm sure.
How much?
Eight, eight zero?
Eight zero.
Wow.
So golfers out there.
So lot of people call it the Gulf Coast as well.
okay.
But one of the attractions before, and this is really more a domestic conversation, wasthere were no death duties in Queensland.
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Is that still a thing?
Because in New South Wales, the time when you passed away, you had to pay tax basically.
And Queensland at the time, my dad, and again, we're going back a while,
didn't happen in the state because we have, you in Australia like the US and Canada, wehave federal rules, we have state rules.
And that was one of the draws to people retiring to Queensland.
that a thing anymore?
To be honest, that's the first By your reaction, don't think, never heard of the firsttime I've heard of it.
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really?
I'm going to have to do some research after this.
Yeah.
You know, I guess my understanding was that people retire here because of the weather andthe warm climate.
Definitely not for the tax.
Okay, well I'd say by your action that yeah, that might be something that was a thing butto support your case of people retiring there it's now just for the lifestyle or not just
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the lifestyle but that's a big influence on it.
So okay, so apart from the beaches which is a big attraction for international anddomestic travelers, what else is there to do in the Gold Coast, know, Surfers Paradise,
Broad Beach, etc?
There's so much to do.
So the Gold Coast is a really big city.
I guess when a lot of people think of the Gold Coast, they often think of surfaceparadise, which is that kind Okay, so can I just interrupt for one second?
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So you just said Gold Coast as a city.
Is it technically a city?
it is.
So it's not a, cause it's always to me, it was always like an area which contained surfaceparadise and broad beach, et cetera.
It is.
It's, I guess the best, it is a city and it also is a region.
So I guess the best way of kind of describing it would
you know, associating it to the likes of an LA where it's quite a big region, quite a bigcity and within that you've got your smaller towns.
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So you've got, you know, we've got surface paradise, Broad Beach, Burley Heads,Koolangatta.
So it covers around 415 square kilometres, which is about 260 square miles.
I did my maths before the call.
So a really, really big area and that obviously encompasses our hinterland area as wellout to the west.
So a really big city and it's a very diverse city as we mentioned before.
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So very popular for our beautiful beaches which you can swim at year round.
We have lifeguards that patrol our beaches every single day of the year.
They're paid by our local councils.
So really safe to swim at.
We don't get all the jellyfish and the crocs that you get further north in Queensland.
So very safe to swim at.
And you've also got the hinterland out to the west that we mentioned before.
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we get a lot of people that'll go out and do a day trip out there.
Or they'll do like a, a few nights out in the hinterland as well.
We get a lot of families that come to the Gold Coast because we do have the biggestconcentration of theme parks in the Southern Hemisphere.
So that's kind of a big draw card for families.
It's not something that I tend to rave on about to the North American market becauseyou've got some incredible theme parks over there, obviously.
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So for us it's about - But North America does not have Australia Zoo, does
Doesn't have the zoo.
We've and we do have, we've got Karimum Wildlife Sanctuary too, which is very popular.
that's a not -for -profit.
You know, you can come and feed the kangaroos and it's one of the only places in Australiawhere you can hold a koala.
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You know, all of the proceeds go back into the hospital there.
So it's one of the busiest wildlife hospitals in the world at Karimum.
and it's very close to Gold Coast Airport.
So a lot of people often fly into the Gold Coast if they've got a bit of time to sparebefore they check into their accommodation, they'll often go to Corumbin and spend a few
hours there.
It's really popular for families, but also really popular for anyone who's wanting to havethat really nice interaction with our native wildlife.
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It's a very big property, so you can wander around.
It's a really relaxing place to go actually.
So really diverse and then obviously out in our water too, there's so much to explore outthere.
have whale watching every year from May to November.
We have over 30 ,000 Humbat whales that go up the East coast of Australia.
So whale watching cruises are really popular.
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And the great thing about doing that on the Gold Coast, you're only on the boat for about30 minutes and you've already got these massive, beautiful majestic creatures going along
beside you.
So you're not out on the boat all day.
It's something that you can do, you know, just to feel a morning and then you've got thewhole rest of the day to kind of get out and explore the rest of the city.
So there's a lot to see and do.
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The list goes on and on.
We've got a start at the moment, which is around we've got over 150 experiences within a30 minute radius on the Gold Coast.
So whatever you can think of, more than likely you can do it on the Gold Coast, I wouldsay.
Yeah, it is a very
That's, I guess, one of the attractions about it is that it's got sort of all the modernamenities, like theme parks, Australia's zoo zoos, wildlife encounters, beach, et cetera.
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But then you've got the cultural stuff, which we'll touch on as well, but also the naturestuff, the hinterland.
Because it's amazing how, and again, when I was home about a year and a half ago, I droveback to where my mom used to live.
And it hasn't changed a great deal.
It's still very, very rural.
And to give you an idea of what it was like, it hasn't seemed to change much.
So my mom was way up on a hill.
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on the farm we called it.
And her neighbors was probably half a kilometer away just down the hill.
And the neighbors used to shout at each other in a friendly way to communicate.
They'd shout across the valley.
And one of our neighbors had a, now you don't get this all over Australia, this is a rarething, but they had a pet kangaroo.
So you'd go to their house, visit, and the kangaroo would be lying on the couch as theywould watch TV.
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So it was very rural, but this is only a very, I know, the natural bridge I think ismaybe.
correct me on the distance, in maybe an hour from the Gold Coast or surface paradise to goand see.
So it's amazing how quickly it changes from this sort of modern cosmopolitan region cityto stunning ancient hinterland rainforest as well.
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In respect to the water activities, is there diving in the Gold Coast area?
Yeah, we've actually got a relatively brand new dive site which opened up last year on theGold Coast called Wanda Reef.
So that's just located off our coastline.
It's around nine submersed, I guess you would call them sculptures under the water.
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So it's the first of its kind in the world.
You do have to have your dive certification to go out there, but we do have some
dive operators that will do like a three day course for people to get their PADIcertification.
Yeah, do your PADI list.
Yeah.
And then on the last day, they'll take you out to Wanda Reef and you get to do that dive,which is pretty incredible.
So that's something just a little bit different and unique.
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And then we also have down the southern end of the Gold Coast, you can go snorkeling withturtles, which is pretty unique.
Yeah, that's cool.
And then I guess something which is completely different altogether, but for those thatare looking to do the Great Barrier Reef,
It is a bit of a bucket list item for people that are coming over to Queensland.
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We have a day tour option from the Gold Coast to Lady Elliot Island, which is in thesouthern Great Barrier Reef.
So that departs from Gold Coast Airport.
And you fly out there up to Lady Elliot Island for the day.
You get to swim in the southern Great Barrier Reef, swim with the turtles and the mantarays.
You spend the day out there.
And then you fly back in the late afternoon and you're back at your hotel in time fordinner, which is pretty incredible.
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And I, I rave about that tour because to be honest, it's some of the best snorkeling Ithink I've ever done in Australia.
I've snorkeled up north in the Great Barrier Reef up from Cairns.
I've been out to the Ningaloo in Western Australia and Lady Elliot Island is justabsolutely stunning.
It's, still very pristine.
The water is incredibly clear because it's in the Southern Great Barrier Reef.
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So the water is slightly cooler.
So the clarity is just incredible.
So that's something that I would put on the bucket list for people, especially if they'reshort on time, if they don't have the opportunity to get further north up to the Great
Barrier Reef out to, you from Cairns or Port Douglas, we do have that day tour option fromthe Gold Coast.
Or you can spend the night at Lady Elliot Island or a couple of nights.
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do have a conversation.
We'll just do the day tour.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Okay.
That's, I'm glad you brought that up because I was I was going to segue into justclarifying for our viewers listening and otherwise.
that the Gold Coast is not near the Barrier Reef.
The Great Barrier Reef is sort of mid Queensland and further north.
And I was about to say that that option is not there, but you've just corrected me insaying that there is that option to get to the Southern Barrier Reef from the Gold Coast.
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So that is a big plus, as you mentioned, particularly for people who are on a bit of atime crunch trying to cram a lot of Australia or a lot of Queensland into an itinerary.
That's a really cool option, actually.
When is the best time to visit?
Now we said, or you've told me, I know 300 plus days a year of sunshine, so I know theanswer is pretty much any time of the year.
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But for our travel professionals, there will be high season, slow season, so can you justgo over that for them, please?
Yeah, sure.
I guess if I'm talking from a personal point of view, my favourite time of the year is themiddle of the year in winter.
So now we're coming, we're in autumn.
It's beautiful outside.
I'm looking outside at the moment and it's probably about 26 degrees outside.
(24:12):
Blue skies and sunny, it's absolutely stunning.
Winter, get beautiful sunsets.
It's still warm enough to go for a swim at the beach, but then you don't have thathumidity that you would get during summer.
Given where we are, we are a subtropical climate.
So summer, we tend to get a little bit more rain.
It's not monsoonal.
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We don't have
heavy downpour that you would get further north.
But I think the middle of the year would have to be my favourite time of the year.
And then I guess I would say to look at the Australian school holiday calendar.
Obviously we are busier in those periods.
We do have four school holiday breaks during the year and then over Christmas, January isthe biggest break.
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So we tend to get a little bit busier over those times.
But as you mentioned before, just with our climate and the weather that we have, as yousaid, year round is a great time to visit the Gold Coast.
There's no bad time to visit basically.
Kate, you mentioned school holidays now.
It needs to be pointed out that the school calendar year in Australia is very different toNorth America.
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Here it's pretty much, for the most part, know, fall, winter into early spring, and thenthe kids have a full summer off.
Just very briefly, I know there's a reasonable good break over Christmas, which obviouslyis gonna be very high season.
Easter is the other time as well?
Yes, so at the moment as we're talking, we're in the middle of our school holiday periodat the moment.
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And each of the different states of Australia have different school holiday periods, justto throw another banner in the mix.
Yeah, but basically they have four school holiday breaks during the year, roughly everytwo to three months.
So after the Christmas break, there's school holidays around April.
There's one in the middle of the year in winter, so around June, July.
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Then another one around September, October.
And these school holiday breaks are two weeks, by the way, so they're not month on end.
And then come Christmas time, so from probably mid -December through to basically the endof January.
So it's about four to six weeks there is there's summer break.
So that's the longest school holiday period there over that time.
(26:29):
Yeah, and again, it's because of all the attractions that the Gold Coast has and Brisbaneitself.
It becomes very, very popular regionally as well.
for those out there planning, know, again, it's not a thing, don't go there, it will bemuch, it'll be much busier, particularly at theme park, because all the kids from
everywhere moving in to check it out.
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So we mentioned the Gold Coast itself, the sort of cosmopolitan modern aspect of it, thehinterland,
the nature.
Most people want to go to Australia and again if let's just say they're limited only tothe Gold Coast region, one of the bucket listings I think for lot of North Americans that
putting words in their collective mouths is having experience with the Aboriginal culture.
(27:16):
So are there options for that in and around the Gold Coast or the hinterland to have anAboriginal encounter that might not be the right terminology but has some interaction or
exposure to the Aboriginal culture?
Yeah, definitely.
We have an operator on the Gold Coast called its Jelligul Aboriginal Cultural Centre.
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So they're located down the southern end of the city in Burleigh Heads.
So very close by again to the airport.
Very easy to get to.
And they offer guided walks through Burleigh Headland, which is right on a creek calledTalabajira Creek.
It's a little, it's becoming more popular.
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it's probably one of the best spots you can swim out on the Gold Coast too.
It's beautiful, beautiful kind of turquoise waters.
So Jellig will do, it's called a walkabout tour, where they will tell you a little bitabout the Aboriginal history of the area, certain important sites along that walk as well.
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They'll tell you, so depending on who your guide is, you know, the males and the femalescan tell different stories.
So there's some things that are quite sacred that only a female can talk about.
For example, I've done that tour about five or six times and each time I've done it with adifferent guide.
And I've never heard the same story more than once.
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So they all have a different story to tell, which is just fascinating.
They can do some really nice interactive experiences too.
So if you have some very important clients that are coming to the Gold Coast, they can puta welcome to country.
kind of ceremony together for them when they arrive.
They can do like an ochre ceremony during the walk as well.
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So there's some really nice things that you can incorporate into that.
You know, it is the oldest living culture in the world.
So it's really quite fascinating to hear how they used to hunt for their food and justsome...
some of the dream time stories that they'll tell you about from the area.
So it's definitely something that I would highly recommend doing when you hear.
(29:26):
Yeah, yeah, 100%.
And just a few, just for our North American audience who may not know, one of theexpressions Kate used was a walkabout.
That's an Aboriginal term for, well, I was taught it was for generally a young persongoing into adulthood, generally the males, they'd go off into the bush and, you know, it
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was a passage,
Yeah, rite of passage type thing.
Rite of passage, sorry, to adulthood.
So it's become a common term in Australia.
If you go walk about, you basically disappear for a while.
Dream time would be the Aboriginal sort of spiritual beliefs.
And there's a whole lot of things in there, like the serpent.
I remember all this from school and trips to the opera house where we were taught a list.
(30:11):
There's a rainbow serpent and all this stuff.
It is very, very interesting.
And what I'm very proud of, even though I haven't been home for a long time, is howAustralia is now finally embracing and acknowledging the Aboriginal peoples, their rights,
the acceptance that it was their land before ours.
So the welcome to country that Kate mentioned is that it's a, you you are visiting, we asAustralians and any international business are visiting their country and it's that
(30:38):
welcome to country.
ceremony I guess that they can offer you as part of that experience that Kate's referringto.
So highly recommended for anyone going to Australia, be it Brisbane, be it Queensland,Gold Coast, anywhere if you can have some touch point with the Aboriginal culture, it's
definitely worthwhile.
So I'm gonna just jump back around a few things that popped up in my head.
(31:05):
The region, surfers paradise, surfers, surfing lessons I think are a big.
draw to a lot of people there as well.
So surfing lessons are available throughout and it's pretty tame surf.
So it's a good place to learn surf.
Is that a fair statement?
Yes.
Yeah.
There's definite pockets where you can learn to surf that are a bit more protected, Iguess you would say.
(31:27):
We've got some really nice little coves like Karumbinalli.
We've got a lot of different surf schools that do lessons all throughout the year.
Even during winter, you just have to put a wetsuit on during winter.
So yeah, it is a really great place to learn to surf.
We've got some of the world's best surf breaks on the Gold Coast.
Snapper Rocks is very popular.
(31:49):
Every year we host one of the big World Surf League events here on the Gold Coast.
We do have some of the best surfers in Australia actually live here on the Gold Coast too.
So the likes of Mick Fanning.
I know that Kelly Slater, he has a holiday house here on the Gold Coast.
Joel Parkinson, these are just a couple of like, you know.
big names in the surfing world that call the Gold Coast homes or on a temporary basis whenthey're not out surfing the rest of the world.
(32:15):
So yeah, it's very popular for surfing.
Yeah, yeah.
And for what it's worth on the surfing subject, my little brother was a surfer.
Then he got into the marketing side of the surfing world, very well connected.
And he has a place at Tweed Heads, which is just sort of south of the Gold Coast.
And he's there because of just the reason you mentioned his world, surfing world.
It's a very vibrant happening.
(32:37):
center for surfers.
So we haven't touched on it yet, but let's do it now.
There are lots of accommodation choices in and around the Gold Coast.
So I'm going to preface by saying I assume there's anything from five star down to budget,hostelly type thing.
And one thing I'll expand on a minute is the condo rentals or apartment rentals for longstays.
(33:03):
Is there anything else you'd like to expand on in regards to accommodation?
Yeah, as you said, we've got a mix of all different types of accommodation options, rightfrom your budget, hostels, motels style, all the way up to four and five star.
We've actually had an increase in the more luxury side of things.
(33:24):
We've got a Langham which opened up about a year or two ago.
And then we've got a couple more brand new hotels which are under construction at themoment.
We've got a Ritz Carlton.
Anas and Regis coming to the Gold Coast in the next two to three years, which is quiteexciting.
So yeah, we definitely have a lot more in that kind of luxury side of offerings.
There's definitely a more sophisticated side of the city, which is quite exciting.
(33:47):
And a mix of hotel stays and apartment style stays too.
We do find we get a lot of the longer stays tend to stay down the southern end of the GoldCoast.
We call
you know, the snowbirds that will either come from overseas probably through, I know thatGo Away has some groups that come through and stay down in Coolingatta and they'll spend a
(34:09):
month or two down there in an apartment, which is a really great place to stay.
We get people coming up from Melbourne and Sydney during winter to escape from the coldand they'll come and stay on the Gold Coast for two or three months during the middle of
the year.
So that's also a really popular option.
I think we're quite spoiled with a choice on the Gold Coast.
You know, we've got
a huge amount of accommodation options available.
(34:31):
We've got a lot of inventory available there.
So, you know, the options are quite endless.
And for those that are wanting to spend a few nights out in our hinterland too, we've gotsome beautiful retreats, bed and breakfast style accommodation available out there too.
So O 'Reilly's Rainforest Retreat, which is in the Lamington National Park.
(34:51):
It's about an hour and a half drive from the coast.
That's been in operation for over 100 years.
So it's quite an interesting place to go and stay.
They've got a beautiful accommodation out there.
You can do some lovely guided walks through there.
They've got glow worms.
They've got a beautiful day spa and infinity pool that overlooks the valley below.
(35:14):
So that's also a really popular option for people who just want to break up their beachstay and get to immerse themselves in a subtropical rainforest for a couple of days.
That's a really nice option.
Yeah, and again, it's all close to each other.
So it's not a big deal to do that as well.
So just want to highlight one thing too that we touched on there, the apartment condorental and the snowbirds go away in sort of 80s, at least in North America sort of
(35:41):
pioneered that concept of snow, not snowbirds.
We have that going down in Florida all the time, but turning the snowbirds who wouldnormally go south in the US or to the southern US going further south all the way to
Australia.
So
It was very, very popular in the eighties, early nineties.
It sort of dropped away a bit, but now it's back.
So it's really good option for those who want to get away for an extended period of timefrom the, the Northern parts of the U S and Canada in the winter, where it gets really to
(36:08):
an Australian still been here 20 odd years.
It's still nasty from a cold weather point of view.
so lots of options in the gold coast is perfect because it's, it's got a similar again,vibe as we've touched on to the Florida.
So it's culturally too different.
but it's still very Australian.
So you do know you're in Oz.
It's got all the amenities.
(36:31):
It's good.
It's a good way to spend an extended period of time away.
Everyone speaks English.
It's a very weird form of English, but still English nonetheless.
So it's quite comfortable culturally and physically to look at a long stay, particularlyin the Gold Coast region.
And as Kate just mentioned, you've got these options to...
(36:53):
to quite easily go into the cultural aspect and the nature aspect of it.
And we haven't touched on it, but you can get really adventurous anywhere in Australia,but obviously in this area too.
There's lots of trekking and mountain biking, type of stuff as well.
Now as an extension to a cultural interaction, food, or not Australian food, culinaryoptions in Australia, but let's talk culinary options in around the Gold Coast.
(37:14):
What are your options?
Anything from meat pies through
five -star restaurants, I guess.
Yeah, we've got a great mix.
So I guess our surf club environment's quite popular and it's quite synonymous with thedestination.
for those that haven't been to a surf club before, well, we call them our life -savingclubs.
(37:35):
So it's where all our lifeguards go to train.
They patrol the beach on a weekend.
As you're growing up, we call them nippers.
little kids, go down on a Sunday morning and they learn all the skills to swim at thebeach, to navigate the water, to navigate the waves and eventually as they grow up how to
(37:56):
actually do surf and rescue.
So those particular surf clubs on the Gold Coast, most of them will have a restaurant onsite.
You don't need to be a member if you're visiting from overseas or from interstate, youjust have to sign in.
It's kind of like a, I'm not sure if you have something similar in the States, but we have
leagues clubs here it's kind of like a something where you just sign in as a visitor andthey have it's kind of pub style food there but you get incredible views you know you're
(38:26):
literally on the sand overlooking the beach you know you can't put a price on that view sothe surf clubs are a great way to get a real feel it's where the locals go and eat and
drink you know they do the meat raffle
most nights of the week.
That's very Australian.
Very Australian thing to do.
(38:46):
So that's something I would recommend.
Yeah, just to tell you, a meat raffle is like, it's a raffle, the prize is a meat tray andthen often very huge amounts of meat.
So steak and meat and chicken, everything else is obviously a big thing.
Sorry Kate.
Yeah, for that barbecue.
People take it home and that'll last them a few weeks to have a barbecue.
(39:09):
But then we've also got some incredible cafes and restaurants dotted all across the GoldCoast.
And I guess the beauty of the pandemic in some way, we had a lot of people migrate fromMelbourne and Sydney to come and live on the Gold Coast.
They couldn't do it anymore.
They moved up to the Gold Coast and a lot of them had some incredible hospitalitybackgrounds.
(39:32):
So they started up their own restaurants and cafes here.
And we've definitely benefited from that.
So we've got a really thriving dining scene now, a great coffee scene too.
I don't want to boast, but I think we've got some incredible coffee here in Queensland inparticular.
We like to give Melbourne and Sydney a run for their money.
(39:54):
And then some beautiful fine dining options as well.
this year we were awarded.
we have 21 chef hatted restaurants on the Gold Coast.
So that's similar to, guess, a Michelin star rating.
So we've got 21 of them across the coast, which is not bad for a regional city.
So they've been awarded the chef's hat based on their service and the quality of food.
(40:18):
And every year they have to reapply through that process to gain their hat again.
So yeah, that's something I would definitely recommend.
And we've got some beautiful restaurants right on the beach as well.
So we've
The Tropic, we've got Rick Shores, there's some of our more popular restaurants here onthe Gold Coast for people that are coming.
You literally ride on the beach there enjoying some beautiful fresh seafood.
(40:42):
Seafood's really popular on the Gold Coast.
We do have a fisherman's co -op where you can go literally up to the trawlers as they comein from the ocean with their catch of the day and you can buy prawns, fish straight off
the trawler and take that home and cook that up.
But then we've also got some incredible seafood restaurants.
(41:02):
If you don't feel like doing that, just go to one of our beautiful restaurants and they'vegot an incredible menu that you can enjoy too.
Right.
So you can see by this, again, I use the colloquial meat pies, but you got everything fromlike pub fare, which is affordable, very local.
Like you can see all the local people in the pubs.
There's another one that's called an RSL, which is Returned Servicemen League, which Ithink you need to be signed in by a member, but still.
(41:27):
So there's that, there's the Surf Life Saving Clubs, there's the cafe restaurants, and asKate's mentioned, Australia has become quite famous for its coffee and cafe, coffee shops
everywhere as well, all the way up to the fine dining.
So if you're there for a short time, you can select all that, particularly if you're therefor a long stay, you can basically eat like a local, live like a local, and also splurge
(41:49):
for that special night or nights out as well.
Now, we'd sort of started off with mentioning
when I was younger and it's still happening that a lot of groups, school kids, cetera,sports clubs, et cetera, come to the Gold Coast for end of year parties or just to get
away.
So that leads into my question of anyone out there in the go away world, travel partnerswho work with groups, incentives, et cetera.
(42:13):
So the Gold Coast would be a good spot for conferences, weddings, obviously beachweddings, destination weddings, or even weddings in the hinterland.
and events in general so the Gold Coast is ready and able to handle small to super largegroups.
100%.
We've actually got a dedicated team here at Experience Gold Coast that just looks afterbusiness events.
(42:35):
So all of those big incentive groups, corporate groups, we've got a team that's basicallydedicated to attracting them to the region.
So they can definitely help you out in that regard.
We've got a massive convention centre here on the Gold Coast.
So we host quite a lot of big events and expos and conferences here.
(42:55):
And then we've got the accommodation and experiences to support that with.
So they come for business and then they stay for the fun and for the leisure and the play.
Yeah, so it's a great destination for that.
And for weddings too, as you mentioned, for people wanting to have a beach holidayexperience or have that rainforest experience.
(43:16):
You know, we've got the 80 plus golf courses as well.
So for people who want to you know, have that kind of a wedding and there's kind ofthere's something for everyone really And just on that note something for everyone unless
it's gone.
I believe the Gold Coast has a casino still we do Yeah, we do have the casino in BroadBeach.
I think the good thing about the casino, which is within the star Gold Coast So there isaccommodation there quite a lot of accommodation actually they're building a brand new
(43:45):
tower as we speak
It's not like when you go to Vegas and it's in your face.
The casino is kind of tucked away within the hotel.
Yeah, it is, yeah.
Well, it was, but I actually worked there for a short period of time washing dishes.
That was fun.
So that option's there for people who like to have a bit of a flutter, as we say.
(44:06):
They can go to the casino.
And then you've got some incredible dining options within that precinct as well.
It's literally across the road from where my office is today.
So the beach is across the road.
It's not like it's glaringly in your face, like you would walk down the strip in Vegas.
It's kind of tucked away.
We've just got the one little casino in there.
But that's also a great option too.
(44:28):
Okay, so just one little thing.
This is just more of a trivia bit as well.
Unless it's change, correct me if I'm wrong, but in New South Wales, we have daylight, orwe, that's where I come from.
There is daylight saving.
Queensland does not observe daylight savings.
That's still the way it is.
So we mentioned before, Coolingadda and getting across into the border of New South Walesis easy.
(44:50):
Like they're a stone's throw from each other.
But just remember if you do that, that there will be time changes because one state doesnot recognize daylight saving.
So as we start to wrap this up, is there anything new and exciting that you'd like tobring to the attention of our travel partners about
the Gold Coast and the region that's happening there or upcoming?
(45:11):
There's so much new stuff happening.
Where to begin?
I guess there's always hotels that are popping up.
As I mentioned before, we've got some of those more five -star hotels that are underconstruction at the moment, the Ritz Carlton and St Regis.
We've also got a Mondrian, which is under construction in Burleigh, which is down thesouthern end of the Gold Coast, which is great to have a five -star offering down there.
(45:37):
our theme parks are always investing.
So we've got a lot of new rides opening up over the next year.
And there's a Wizard of Oz Precinct opening up at Movie World later this year.
So, it's worth pointing out too that there are big movie studios in the Gold Coastregions.
That's where one of the big film production areas of Australia is now.
Warner Brothers Studios is there.
(45:58):
We often get some of the big celebrities staying on the Gold Coast.
The hotel actually next to my office, we get quite a lot of them staying there.
So often when I'm getting my morning coffee, we might cross paths.
Chris Amsworth has been downstairs a few times waiting for his coffee.
We Morgan Freeman a couple of times.
So yeah, we do get Johnny Depp with you too, filming Pirates of the Caribbean.
(46:22):
So we
quite a lot of those kind of big name movies being filmed on the Gold Coast, having thatstudio there, which is fantastic.
Yeah, Okay, so let's wrap this up with some travel related questions.
What would be good length of time to hang in and around the Gold Coast?
(46:43):
Anything from like, let's say, obviously a long stay is as long as you want to be, butlet's say the average person who's including the Gold Coast as a broader
itinerary, let's just for the sake of conversation, what's popular would be something inSydney to the centre and then Queensland doesn't have to that order.
So Gold Coast should be given how many days within that sort of context?
(47:05):
Look, ideally, I would say ideally a three nights day would be a good amount of time as aminimum, just to be able to get a good feel for the destination.
You know, obviously,
Five Nights would be fantastic.
It's a really great place to base yourself and go and explore other parts of the city.
When we were talking about the snowbirds before that based themselves here for two monthsor so, as I said, the flight down to Sydney is only an hour away.
(47:34):
So more often than not, we get people that will go away for a long weekend just down toSydney.
Gold Coast Airport is literally just around the corner.
So yeah, I would say a three to five nights stay is ideal.
knowing that the vacation time that people have to be able to get away and obviouslytravel to Australia.
(47:54):
And they want to see other destinations too.
So, probably two or three cities whilst they're here.
But yeah, three to five nights would be fantastic if they can manage it.
Okay, so there you go.
Three to five nights on average.
But again, the Gold Coast in particular is like just prime for that longest stay, be
(48:17):
two weeks, two months.
And as we've, I think, highlighted, Koolengeta itself and Brisbane Airport is a gateway tonot only international, well, Koolengeta not, but Brisbane International, but they're both
regional getaways.
So you can literally, as Kate has mentioned, it's only an hour to Sydney, I guess,probably two hours to Melbourne.
Cairns is what, two hours, I think, from Brisbane?
(48:37):
Yeah, just over two hours.
And to the centre, to Alice or?
I think that's around two hours as well.
Two hours.
Yeah, it's not that far.
So you could probably spoke in HUB out of Koolungatta, particularly if you're there for along stay.
Generally, when we're combining states, would sort of be a loop into Brisbane, let's say,Brisbane Gold Coast, sent us Sydney and home or back to Brisbane, et cetera.
(49:05):
But again, you can use it, as Kate mentioned, as a base, even if you're there for ashorter period of time as well.
Okay, so Kate, is there anything else you'd like to tell our travel partners out thereabout the Gold Coast, other than help their clients go to the Gold Coast?
Yeah, I guess any support that people might be looking for, I'm always just an email or aphone call away.
(49:28):
Can you give us your email address and phone number, please?
Yeah, I sure can.
Would you like me to give it to you now?
Yeah, if you do it verbally, I will put up...
up a graphic underneath.
So more than welcome to reach out to me directly.
I'm happy to pass on recommendations and some resources.
(49:49):
So my email is cait .fulton .com and then my phone number is you'll have to do a plus sixone calling Australia and seven double five eight four six double two nine will come
direct through to me.
But probably best just to send me an email and we can connect.
(50:11):
And I've got some great resources that I can share for people that are just kind ofupskilling or maybe getting some baseline knowledge of the destination.
We do have a trade website, which I'll share with you as well, which has got some sampleitineraries on there.
We do have a Gold Coast Guide, which we've just put in a digital format earlier this year.
So that's got some of our new hotels, some of the best restaurants and recommendationsthat you can make to your clients as well.
(50:36):
So just as an extra planning tool to be able to use or to share as well.
Okay, perfect.
Now, without taking any away from Kate's organization and structure, we have all thatinformation obviously here at Go Away as well.
But we do work in partnership with our tourism boards or tourism representatives as well.
So that's why we're more than happy to give out direct contacts because, know, Kate.
(50:58):
and her office can also supply any marketing materials that you may need.
On that point, we also have in our Go Way Pro Travel Academy, we have a training module onBrisbane itself.
I know we're talking Gold Coast, but also on our Queensland modules, we do go into theGold Coast in quite a lot of depth because it is such a popular destination.
So for those out there who wanna learn more about the destination, you can go to our GoWay Pro Travel Academy.
(51:22):
Of course, for those listening, hopefully you do know, but you should know that we haveour Go Way.
destination specialists in -house.
Many of them are Aussies, and if they're not, they've been trained all about Australia andhave lived and traveled there extensively.
So they've got most of the inside information that we discussed today on options for theGold Coast, and we can do it however you or your clients need it be fully escorted the
(51:48):
entire time, small group, big group, private transfers, long stays, independent, all theabove.
a combination of them all.
We can work it all out for you.
We can work with Kate and some of the local operators in regards to cultural experiences,trekking.
So basically everything we discussed today, GoA can make it happen for you and yourclients.
(52:09):
If there's something you want to do, which we didn't bring up today, just ask us and ninetimes out of 10, we can make it happen for you and your clients as well.
So as we wrap up, I just like to reiterate, as an Aussie, I spend a lot of time on theGold Coast due to family and
just traveling there, because it is Australia's playground.
It's an awesome area to hang out in, be it a short time or a long time.
(52:31):
It should definitely be part of any Australian itinerary.
And what I learned today too is you can actually, again, you can touch the barrier reeffrom southern Queensland, which actually would save a ton of time as well by dedicating
that time to other areas of Australia, because it's such a big country and it's hard toget it all in one trip.
(52:51):
So Kate, is there anything else you'd like to...
let our listening and viewing public know about the Gold Coast.
I think we've covered off most of it.
As I said, happy to be here as support if you ever need and if you're ever coming to theGold Coast, reach out to me.
We'd love to catch up and show you around.
OK.
OK, so on that note, I'd like to thank Kate.
(53:13):
What time is it there?
It is 10 o 'clock in the morning.
10 o 'clock in the morning.
It's late.
Well, not that late.
It's about 7 .30, 8 o 'clock here at night in Toronto.
But thank you for coming to us live from the Gulf Coast.
That's really cool.
Anyone out there, if you have any questions, please reach out to GoA via GoAgent .com.
And again, through Kate's direct information for any direct questions about the GulfCoast.
(53:37):
And again, everyone, thank you for your time today.
And again, thank you, Kate, very much for your time from the sunny state of Queensland andthe Gulf Coast.
Thanks very much.
Okay, see you everyone.
(55:13):
you
you
(00:25):
Hello everyone, welcome to Go Way Pro Travel Tales.
Hear stories from industry experts, travelers, explorers, and globetrotters who willinspire you to dream bigger, explore further, and discover a new world.
Today I'd like to welcome Kate Fulton coming to us live from the Gold Coast.
(00:46):
Kate not only lives on the Gold Coast, that's correct, you actually live there?
Okay, but she represents the Gold Coast under the entity of experience Gold Coast and asyou can guess today We're to talk about the Gold Coast By looking at your business address
Kate on your email.
I see that you're Literally across the road from the famous beach or actually technicallybeaches if you look at the Gold Coast Which we'll get into in a minute the stretches along
(01:13):
the Gold Coast in surface paradise Which is not only an app name, but it's also thecolloquial name of the area
as well.
Often referred to as Australia's favorite playground, the Gold Coast can be compared to inpopularity as Florida and its beaches, sorry, can be compared in popularity as Florida and
its beaches are to North Americans and spring breakers.
(01:35):
I'm not sure if that's changed.
When I was a kid, that was a sort of good high school getaway for a lot of high schoolkids.
I'm not sure.
Has that changed or is that still one of the...
No, definitely still the same.
It's almost like a rite of passage for many Australians to come and have a holiday
Yeah, often you talk to people and they bring up fond memories of coming to the Gold Coastas a kid or as a family and It's kind of nice to have that kind of nostalgic angle to the
(02:01):
destination Yeah, 100 % Now before we get into more detail about the Gold Coast Kate, canyou tell us a bit about yourself and how you ended up?
Becoming involved as a representative of the Gold Coast.
Yeah, sure.
And so I've been with experience Gold Coast
almost 10 years now, in June it'll be 10 years.
And I've always worked in our international marketing team.
(02:23):
So at the moment I oversee our marketing efforts across our Western markets.
So that being North America and also New Zealand is a very big market for the Gold Coastbecause we've got direct flights into the Gold Coast from New Zealand.
I've been living here for probably almost 20 years.
I'm actually originally from Victoria.
(02:46):
I saw the light and decided I couldn't do another winter if it's very cold in Melbourne.
And I moved up here and I studied up here on the Gold Coast and I actually did a Bachelorof Business in Tourism Management.
I that and here I am, I'm still here and I absolutely love it.
It's incredible lifestyle.
Yeah, it is a great area and many people from the country moved there as my grandparentsdid.
(03:14):
They retired
So I've actually spent a lot of time in around the Gold Coast.
My mother lived in a very small town called Numanbar.
Many names in Australia have Aboriginal origin.
And Numanbar is very close to the Gold Coast and also a really beautiful natural sitecalled the Natural Bridge, which is a waterfall that goes through, like it's over the
(03:37):
millennia, dug its way through the rock.
So it goes through a hole in the ground now, or in the rock, into a beautiful...
almost bottomless, I wouldn't say billimong, basically swimming area.
So that's all very accessible from the Gold Coast as we discuss it.
Now, Kate prior to our little interview today sent me a couple of infographics and I'mgonna just start off with the basics.
(04:05):
I'm gonna read from this and I'll throw it up on the screen for those that are watching.
These are some of the key things and these are some of the basics but I'll let Kate expandon it.
So the population is about 732 ,000 in the area and we'll discuss what the Gold Coast isfrom a regional point of view.
It hosted the 2018 Commonwealth Games and co -partner of Brisbane's 2032 Olympic andParalympic Games.
(04:29):
Top 10 most welcoming cities on Earth in 2023.
100 ,000 hectares, what would that be in acres, any idea?
I think it's 100 ,000.
It's too early in the morning here to use that Yeah, exactly.
And it's too late at night here.
Put it this way, it's a lot of nature reserves, world heritage sites and subtropicalrainforests.
(04:50):
That's very key too, because we will refer to beaches, but just nearby, like where mymother lived, her actual backyard face onto a national park, some rainforest.
What's very important here is two international airports, Gold Coast and Brisbane.
So Kate mentioned direct flights from New Zealand in, but of course there areinternational direct flights.
(05:12):
I don't think into the Coast, but definitely into Brisbane.
So getting to the Gold Coast is very easy from North America directly and doesn't have tobe by Sydney or Melbourne.
There's a whole lot of other things here, which I'll throw up on the screen, but I don'twant to take, or still Kate's thunder.
So let's go with the basics, Kate.
Where is the Gold Coast?
Yeah, so the Gold Coast, we're at the very southern tip of Queensland.
(05:37):
about an hour's drive south of Brisbane.
As we mentioned before, Brisbane is our key international gateway airport into Queensland.
So really easy to get to if North Americans are traveling into Brisbane Airport direct.
We're just an hour drive south of that.
Or you can take a train as well.
For those that are traveling into other states like flying into Sydney or Melbourne, forexample.
(06:02):
We do have an airport on the Gold Coast as well.
So if they're spending a few nights in Sydney, Melbourne, wherever they might be inAustralia, they can connect straight up to Gold Coast Airport after that.
So it's a very easy flight.
It's about an hour's flight from Sydney and roughly a two hour flight from Melbourne.
So very easy place to get to.
(06:22):
We've got a brand new airport at Gold Coast Airport, brand new international terminalthere.
during the pandemic they spent about $500 million on the airport there.
So it is considered a regional airport, but if you're flying through there, it feels likeyou're going through a key gateway, but it's a very quick and seamless process, not like
coming in through a capital city.
(06:43):
So I guess that kind of works for our advantage.
Yeah.
Now, when you say Gold Coast Airport, is that Kulungatta?
Yes, that's right.
So the airport code is OOL.
Thank you.
That was my next question.
So it's OOL for Kulungatta.
But it's officially called Gold Coast Airport?
That's right.
Okay.
And Brisbane is B and E for those who may need to know that one.
(07:03):
So again, it's recommended if you're focusing on Queensland, all of it or some of it tofly directly into Brisbane.
But as Kate mentioned, connecting, because most people will probably combine the New SouthWales or the centre with Queensland, Tasmania even.
Other direct flights from Tasmania into either Brisbane or Gold Coast Airport?
Yes, there is.
So pretty much anywhere in Australia you can get directly into Brisbane and or Kulangattaor Gold Coast Airport.
(07:30):
Now the Gold Coast Airport, Kulangatta, which I believe will be...
I don't know.
I've been there.
how many times.
I'm assuming Kulangatta by the sound of it is an Aboriginal word.
Yes.
Kulangatta is also a little town and that is literally on the border, it shares the borderwith New South Wales.
So we have a lot of people who will visit Australia and do a self drive.
(07:52):
So getting into the Gold Coast is also easy driving.
just, you you go to the top of North of New South Wales, the North and just drive straightin to the Gold Coast area as well.
So is the Gold Coast the same as the Sunshine Coast?
(08:12):
There are a lot of similarities.
Obviously we're two completely separate regions.
We're South of Brisbane.
and Sunshine Coast is north of Brisbane.
So it's only a couple of hours drive away.
There are a lot of similarities between the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast.
We're both beachside destinations.
We've also both got a beautiful hinterland rainforest area out to the west.
(08:36):
But I guess the differences would be we do have more of a city landscape on the Gold Coastcompared to the Sunshine Coast.
So surface paradise and Broad Beach, are two of our kind key tourist towns on the GoldCoast.
When I refer to surface paradise, I kind of said that's kind of like our downtown.
(08:57):
It's definitely more of a city feeling, city by the sea.
We do have a few sky rises, which when people see a photo of the Gold Coast, it's kind ofprobably the first image that would come to mind when they're thinking of the Gold Coast
is that surface paradise skyline.
So that would probably be our big difference.
comparing us to the Sunshine Coast.
(09:17):
Right, so from a technical point of view, do you represent the Sunshine Coast or you'repretty much south of Brisbane down to the border?
two completely separate regions.
Okay, fine.
And again, as Kate was mentioning with the high -rise for our North American viewers, it'snot to the same extent, but it's a very similar look to Florida and the sort of beach line
(09:37):
high -rise condos and apartment near Miami.
and we'll touch on some of the options in regards to apartments and condos in a minute.
Okay, so we were just touching, if you're already there.
So we mentioned road getting into Queensland and or the Gold Coast.
There is a rail line I know which runs through Queensland and also connecting in from NewSouth Wales.
(09:59):
So if people are into rail travel, you can also get to Brisbane's and Gold Coast viatrain?
Yes, you can.
There is a train that goes out to our west.
which is quite popular.
For those that are flying into Brisbane Airport, there is a train called the AirTrain,which brings passengers straight down to the Gold Coast right outside the terminal.
(10:20):
So that's also an option for people who don't want to do a self -drive or don't want tobook a transfer, and they're quite comfortable in doing public transport.
It's very easy, literally.
So the train leaves right from Brisbane Airport?
Yes, right outside the terminal.
and there will be a couple of stops along the way between Brisbane and the Gold Coast.
(10:41):
And then that also connects with our light rail system, which is kind of, guess, the bestway of describing it's like a tram, but a very modern version of it.
So we have that on the Gold Coast at the very northern end of the city.
So for those coming on the train, they can disembark at the light rail, jump onto thelight rail, and that'll bring you right through the heart of the Gold Coast, so through
(11:04):
Surfers Paradise.
through Broad Beach and at the moment they're continuing the construction all the way downto the southern end of the Gold Coast.
So that's all happening at the moment.
My drive to work, I do have to go through a bit of road work, but it's all for the greatergood of the city, so I don't mind.
So it's just a really great option for people who are wanting to get around and maybe notfeel comfortable driving.
(11:29):
We've got some incredible public transport options.
Okay, so that's a good point in that.
If someone is sort of more independent, they want to get from Brisbane to their respectiveaccommodation, you can do it via, or you could get a taxi, of course.
You can pick up your self -drive or you could take the train now.
Dragging your bags around might be a bit of a discouragement for that.
So definitely the train into the northern part of the Gold Coast and then we can go awaybeing weak and organize a private transfer to your accommodation of choice.
(11:59):
obviously getting around Brisbane.
Sorry, around the Gold Coast independently sounds very, very easy.
So as an extension of that, obviously taxis are around, Uber, et cetera would be around,plus any organized tours at GoA would organize for your clients as well.
Okay, we just tapped on, I'm just looking at my questions as we go through this.
(12:22):
So, yeah, I was gonna - it's pretty popular too.
We've got the electric bikes.
It's like a public transport type system where
So they're called line bikes.
So if you come to the Gold Coast, you'll see them everywhere.
I'm not sure if they've got something similar over there.
Yeah, yeah.
That's quite popular in all the big cities around here.
Yeah.
Use your phone and it's just an app and you just basically tap on and you pay for theduration or the distance that you're wanting to ride the bike for.
(12:47):
We've got a lot of great footpaths around the Gold Coast.
So a lot of people just, you know, basically cruise around the Gold Coast on a bike.
It's a really easy way to get around and see a lot more.
Yeah, that again for people who may be interested in that or just getting around by footin the Gold Coast area for the most part it's like coastal it's flat.
(13:08):
So it's I remember again I haven't been to surface paradise or surface as strength willcut everything in half surface for a long time.
But yeah it was always to me it's just nice and flat near the beach.
Now if you go inland a bit to the hinterland and stuff then you're to start getting tosome hills if you're into biking or otherwise.
just for pottering around the big areas, then bikes would be a really, really good option.
(13:34):
So the big attraction domestically was one of reasons you said you moved there was one,the lifestyle which a lot's to do with, I think it's on one of the infographics you gave
me about how much sunshine there is.
300 plus days of sunshine each year.
(13:54):
And of course the famous beaches now.
Well, I'll be throwing out some imagery here to really inspire people.
outside of that really cool lifestyle, and it is a big retirement area for a lot ofAustralians, is it still the same draw that it used to be?
I know back in the day, my father also retired there and he did it because, well, onereason, he liked to golf, which is, look, okay, I'm bouncing all over the place here.
(14:17):
There's lots of really good golfing in the area.
don't know how many golf courses are, I'm sure.
How much?
Eight, eight zero?
Eight zero.
Wow.
So golfers out there.
So lot of people call it the Gulf Coast as well.
okay.
But one of the attractions before, and this is really more a domestic conversation, wasthere were no death duties in Queensland.
(14:43):
Is that still a thing?
Because in New South Wales, the time when you passed away, you had to pay tax basically.
And Queensland at the time, my dad, and again, we're going back a while,
didn't happen in the state because we have, you in Australia like the US and Canada, wehave federal rules, we have state rules.
And that was one of the draws to people retiring to Queensland.
that a thing anymore?
To be honest, that's the first By your reaction, don't think, never heard of the firsttime I've heard of it.
(15:08):
really?
I'm going to have to do some research after this.
Yeah.
You know, I guess my understanding was that people retire here because of the weather andthe warm climate.
Definitely not for the tax.
Okay, well I'd say by your action that yeah, that might be something that was a thing butto support your case of people retiring there it's now just for the lifestyle or not just
(15:33):
the lifestyle but that's a big influence on it.
So okay, so apart from the beaches which is a big attraction for international anddomestic travelers, what else is there to do in the Gold Coast, know, Surfers Paradise,
Broad Beach, etc?
There's so much to do.
So the Gold Coast is a really big city.
I guess when a lot of people think of the Gold Coast, they often think of surfaceparadise, which is that kind Okay, so can I just interrupt for one second?
(15:58):
So you just said Gold Coast as a city.
Is it technically a city?
it is.
So it's not a, cause it's always to me, it was always like an area which contained surfaceparadise and broad beach, et cetera.
It is.
It's, I guess the best, it is a city and it also is a region.
So I guess the best way of kind of describing it would
you know, associating it to the likes of an LA where it's quite a big region, quite a bigcity and within that you've got your smaller towns.
(16:24):
So you've got, you know, we've got surface paradise, Broad Beach, Burley Heads,Koolangatta.
So it covers around 415 square kilometres, which is about 260 square miles.
I did my maths before the call.
So a really, really big area and that obviously encompasses our hinterland area as wellout to the west.
So a really big city and it's a very diverse city as we mentioned before.
(16:49):
So very popular for our beautiful beaches which you can swim at year round.
We have lifeguards that patrol our beaches every single day of the year.
They're paid by our local councils.
So really safe to swim at.
We don't get all the jellyfish and the crocs that you get further north in Queensland.
So very safe to swim at.
And you've also got the hinterland out to the west that we mentioned before.
(17:13):
we get a lot of people that'll go out and do a day trip out there.
Or they'll do like a, a few nights out in the hinterland as well.
We get a lot of families that come to the Gold Coast because we do have the biggestconcentration of theme parks in the Southern Hemisphere.
So that's kind of a big draw card for families.
It's not something that I tend to rave on about to the North American market becauseyou've got some incredible theme parks over there, obviously.
(17:37):
So for us it's about - But North America does not have Australia Zoo, does
Doesn't have the zoo.
We've and we do have, we've got Karimum Wildlife Sanctuary too, which is very popular.
that's a not -for -profit.
You know, you can come and feed the kangaroos and it's one of the only places in Australiawhere you can hold a koala.
(17:58):
You know, all of the proceeds go back into the hospital there.
So it's one of the busiest wildlife hospitals in the world at Karimum.
and it's very close to Gold Coast Airport.
So a lot of people often fly into the Gold Coast if they've got a bit of time to sparebefore they check into their accommodation, they'll often go to Corumbin and spend a few
hours there.
It's really popular for families, but also really popular for anyone who's wanting to havethat really nice interaction with our native wildlife.
(18:26):
It's a very big property, so you can wander around.
It's a really relaxing place to go actually.
So really diverse and then obviously out in our water too, there's so much to explore outthere.
have whale watching every year from May to November.
We have over 30 ,000 Humbat whales that go up the East coast of Australia.
So whale watching cruises are really popular.
(18:48):
And the great thing about doing that on the Gold Coast, you're only on the boat for about30 minutes and you've already got these massive, beautiful majestic creatures going along
beside you.
So you're not out on the boat all day.
It's something that you can do, you know, just to feel a morning and then you've got thewhole rest of the day to kind of get out and explore the rest of the city.
So there's a lot to see and do.
(19:10):
The list goes on and on.
We've got a start at the moment, which is around we've got over 150 experiences within a30 minute radius on the Gold Coast.
So whatever you can think of, more than likely you can do it on the Gold Coast, I wouldsay.
Yeah, it is a very
That's, I guess, one of the attractions about it is that it's got sort of all the modernamenities, like theme parks, Australia's zoo zoos, wildlife encounters, beach, et cetera.
(19:37):
But then you've got the cultural stuff, which we'll touch on as well, but also the naturestuff, the hinterland.
Because it's amazing how, and again, when I was home about a year and a half ago, I droveback to where my mom used to live.
And it hasn't changed a great deal.
It's still very, very rural.
And to give you an idea of what it was like, it hasn't seemed to change much.
So my mom was way up on a hill.
(19:58):
on the farm we called it.
And her neighbors was probably half a kilometer away just down the hill.
And the neighbors used to shout at each other in a friendly way to communicate.
They'd shout across the valley.
And one of our neighbors had a, now you don't get this all over Australia, this is a rarething, but they had a pet kangaroo.
So you'd go to their house, visit, and the kangaroo would be lying on the couch as theywould watch TV.
(20:21):
So it was very rural, but this is only a very, I know, the natural bridge I think ismaybe.
correct me on the distance, in maybe an hour from the Gold Coast or surface paradise to goand see.
So it's amazing how quickly it changes from this sort of modern cosmopolitan region cityto stunning ancient hinterland rainforest as well.
(20:45):
In respect to the water activities, is there diving in the Gold Coast area?
Yeah, we've actually got a relatively brand new dive site which opened up last year on theGold Coast called Wanda Reef.
So that's just located off our coastline.
It's around nine submersed, I guess you would call them sculptures under the water.
(21:08):
So it's the first of its kind in the world.
You do have to have your dive certification to go out there, but we do have some
dive operators that will do like a three day course for people to get their PADIcertification.
Yeah, do your PADI list.
Yeah.
And then on the last day, they'll take you out to Wanda Reef and you get to do that dive,which is pretty incredible.
So that's something just a little bit different and unique.
(21:29):
And then we also have down the southern end of the Gold Coast, you can go snorkeling withturtles, which is pretty unique.
Yeah, that's cool.
And then I guess something which is completely different altogether, but for those thatare looking to do the Great Barrier Reef,
It is a bit of a bucket list item for people that are coming over to Queensland.
(21:50):
We have a day tour option from the Gold Coast to Lady Elliot Island, which is in thesouthern Great Barrier Reef.
So that departs from Gold Coast Airport.
And you fly out there up to Lady Elliot Island for the day.
You get to swim in the southern Great Barrier Reef, swim with the turtles and the mantarays.
You spend the day out there.
And then you fly back in the late afternoon and you're back at your hotel in time fordinner, which is pretty incredible.
(22:14):
And I, I rave about that tour because to be honest, it's some of the best snorkeling Ithink I've ever done in Australia.
I've snorkeled up north in the Great Barrier Reef up from Cairns.
I've been out to the Ningaloo in Western Australia and Lady Elliot Island is justabsolutely stunning.
It's, still very pristine.
The water is incredibly clear because it's in the Southern Great Barrier Reef.
(22:37):
So the water is slightly cooler.
So the clarity is just incredible.
So that's something that I would put on the bucket list for people, especially if they'reshort on time, if they don't have the opportunity to get further north up to the Great
Barrier Reef out to, you from Cairns or Port Douglas, we do have that day tour option fromthe Gold Coast.
Or you can spend the night at Lady Elliot Island or a couple of nights.
(22:58):
do have a conversation.
We'll just do the day tour.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Okay.
That's, I'm glad you brought that up because I was I was going to segue into justclarifying for our viewers listening and otherwise.
that the Gold Coast is not near the Barrier Reef.
The Great Barrier Reef is sort of mid Queensland and further north.
And I was about to say that that option is not there, but you've just corrected me insaying that there is that option to get to the Southern Barrier Reef from the Gold Coast.
(23:25):
So that is a big plus, as you mentioned, particularly for people who are on a bit of atime crunch trying to cram a lot of Australia or a lot of Queensland into an itinerary.
That's a really cool option, actually.
When is the best time to visit?
Now we said, or you've told me, I know 300 plus days a year of sunshine, so I know theanswer is pretty much any time of the year.
(23:50):
But for our travel professionals, there will be high season, slow season, so can you justgo over that for them, please?
Yeah, sure.
I guess if I'm talking from a personal point of view, my favourite time of the year is themiddle of the year in winter.
So now we're coming, we're in autumn.
It's beautiful outside.
I'm looking outside at the moment and it's probably about 26 degrees outside.
(24:12):
Blue skies and sunny, it's absolutely stunning.
Winter, get beautiful sunsets.
It's still warm enough to go for a swim at the beach, but then you don't have thathumidity that you would get during summer.
Given where we are, we are a subtropical climate.
So summer, we tend to get a little bit more rain.
It's not monsoonal.
(24:32):
We don't have
heavy downpour that you would get further north.
But I think the middle of the year would have to be my favourite time of the year.
And then I guess I would say to look at the Australian school holiday calendar.
Obviously we are busier in those periods.
We do have four school holiday breaks during the year and then over Christmas, January isthe biggest break.
(24:57):
So we tend to get a little bit busier over those times.
But as you mentioned before, just with our climate and the weather that we have, as yousaid, year round is a great time to visit the Gold Coast.
There's no bad time to visit basically.
Kate, you mentioned school holidays now.
It needs to be pointed out that the school calendar year in Australia is very different toNorth America.
(25:22):
Here it's pretty much, for the most part, know, fall, winter into early spring, and thenthe kids have a full summer off.
Just very briefly, I know there's a reasonable good break over Christmas, which obviouslyis gonna be very high season.
Easter is the other time as well?
Yes, so at the moment as we're talking, we're in the middle of our school holiday periodat the moment.
(25:45):
And each of the different states of Australia have different school holiday periods, justto throw another banner in the mix.
Yeah, but basically they have four school holiday breaks during the year, roughly everytwo to three months.
So after the Christmas break, there's school holidays around April.
There's one in the middle of the year in winter, so around June, July.
(26:07):
Then another one around September, October.
And these school holiday breaks are two weeks, by the way, so they're not month on end.
And then come Christmas time, so from probably mid -December through to basically the endof January.
So it's about four to six weeks there is there's summer break.
So that's the longest school holiday period there over that time.
(26:29):
Yeah, and again, it's because of all the attractions that the Gold Coast has and Brisbaneitself.
It becomes very, very popular regionally as well.
for those out there planning, know, again, it's not a thing, don't go there, it will bemuch, it'll be much busier, particularly at theme park, because all the kids from
everywhere moving in to check it out.
(26:52):
So we mentioned the Gold Coast itself, the sort of cosmopolitan modern aspect of it, thehinterland,
the nature.
Most people want to go to Australia and again if let's just say they're limited only tothe Gold Coast region, one of the bucket listings I think for lot of North Americans that
putting words in their collective mouths is having experience with the Aboriginal culture.
(27:16):
So are there options for that in and around the Gold Coast or the hinterland to have anAboriginal encounter that might not be the right terminology but has some interaction or
exposure to the Aboriginal culture?
Yeah, definitely.
We have an operator on the Gold Coast called its Jelligul Aboriginal Cultural Centre.
(27:36):
So they're located down the southern end of the city in Burleigh Heads.
So very close by again to the airport.
Very easy to get to.
And they offer guided walks through Burleigh Headland, which is right on a creek calledTalabajira Creek.
It's a little, it's becoming more popular.
(27:57):
it's probably one of the best spots you can swim out on the Gold Coast too.
It's beautiful, beautiful kind of turquoise waters.
So Jellig will do, it's called a walkabout tour, where they will tell you a little bitabout the Aboriginal history of the area, certain important sites along that walk as well.
(28:18):
They'll tell you, so depending on who your guide is, you know, the males and the femalescan tell different stories.
So there's some things that are quite sacred that only a female can talk about.
For example, I've done that tour about five or six times and each time I've done it with adifferent guide.
And I've never heard the same story more than once.
(28:38):
So they all have a different story to tell, which is just fascinating.
They can do some really nice interactive experiences too.
So if you have some very important clients that are coming to the Gold Coast, they can puta welcome to country.
kind of ceremony together for them when they arrive.
They can do like an ochre ceremony during the walk as well.
(29:04):
So there's some really nice things that you can incorporate into that.
You know, it is the oldest living culture in the world.
So it's really quite fascinating to hear how they used to hunt for their food and justsome...
some of the dream time stories that they'll tell you about from the area.
So it's definitely something that I would highly recommend doing when you hear.
(29:26):
Yeah, yeah, 100%.
And just a few, just for our North American audience who may not know, one of theexpressions Kate used was a walkabout.
That's an Aboriginal term for, well, I was taught it was for generally a young persongoing into adulthood, generally the males, they'd go off into the bush and, you know, it
(29:46):
was a passage,
Yeah, rite of passage type thing.
Rite of passage, sorry, to adulthood.
So it's become a common term in Australia.
If you go walk about, you basically disappear for a while.
Dream time would be the Aboriginal sort of spiritual beliefs.
And there's a whole lot of things in there, like the serpent.
I remember all this from school and trips to the opera house where we were taught a list.
(30:11):
There's a rainbow serpent and all this stuff.
It is very, very interesting.
And what I'm very proud of, even though I haven't been home for a long time, is howAustralia is now finally embracing and acknowledging the Aboriginal peoples, their rights,
the acceptance that it was their land before ours.
So the welcome to country that Kate mentioned is that it's a, you you are visiting, we asAustralians and any international business are visiting their country and it's that
(30:38):
welcome to country.
ceremony I guess that they can offer you as part of that experience that Kate's referringto.
So highly recommended for anyone going to Australia, be it Brisbane, be it Queensland,Gold Coast, anywhere if you can have some touch point with the Aboriginal culture, it's
definitely worthwhile.
So I'm gonna just jump back around a few things that popped up in my head.
(31:05):
The region, surfers paradise, surfers, surfing lessons I think are a big.
draw to a lot of people there as well.
So surfing lessons are available throughout and it's pretty tame surf.
So it's a good place to learn surf.
Is that a fair statement?
Yes.
Yeah.
There's definite pockets where you can learn to surf that are a bit more protected, Iguess you would say.
(31:27):
We've got some really nice little coves like Karumbinalli.
We've got a lot of different surf schools that do lessons all throughout the year.
Even during winter, you just have to put a wetsuit on during winter.
So yeah, it is a really great place to learn to surf.
We've got some of the world's best surf breaks on the Gold Coast.
Snapper Rocks is very popular.
(31:49):
Every year we host one of the big World Surf League events here on the Gold Coast.
We do have some of the best surfers in Australia actually live here on the Gold Coast too.
So the likes of Mick Fanning.
I know that Kelly Slater, he has a holiday house here on the Gold Coast.
Joel Parkinson, these are just a couple of like, you know.
big names in the surfing world that call the Gold Coast homes or on a temporary basis whenthey're not out surfing the rest of the world.
(32:15):
So yeah, it's very popular for surfing.
Yeah, yeah.
And for what it's worth on the surfing subject, my little brother was a surfer.
Then he got into the marketing side of the surfing world, very well connected.
And he has a place at Tweed Heads, which is just sort of south of the Gold Coast.
And he's there because of just the reason you mentioned his world, surfing world.
It's a very vibrant happening.
(32:37):
center for surfers.
So we haven't touched on it yet, but let's do it now.
There are lots of accommodation choices in and around the Gold Coast.
So I'm going to preface by saying I assume there's anything from five star down to budget,hostelly type thing.
And one thing I'll expand on a minute is the condo rentals or apartment rentals for longstays.
(33:03):
Is there anything else you'd like to expand on in regards to accommodation?
Yeah, as you said, we've got a mix of all different types of accommodation options, rightfrom your budget, hostels, motels style, all the way up to four and five star.
We've actually had an increase in the more luxury side of things.
(33:24):
We've got a Langham which opened up about a year or two ago.
And then we've got a couple more brand new hotels which are under construction at themoment.
We've got a Ritz Carlton.
Anas and Regis coming to the Gold Coast in the next two to three years, which is quiteexciting.
So yeah, we definitely have a lot more in that kind of luxury side of offerings.
There's definitely a more sophisticated side of the city, which is quite exciting.
(33:47):
And a mix of hotel stays and apartment style stays too.
We do find we get a lot of the longer stays tend to stay down the southern end of the GoldCoast.
We call
you know, the snowbirds that will either come from overseas probably through, I know thatGo Away has some groups that come through and stay down in Coolingatta and they'll spend a
(34:09):
month or two down there in an apartment, which is a really great place to stay.
We get people coming up from Melbourne and Sydney during winter to escape from the coldand they'll come and stay on the Gold Coast for two or three months during the middle of
the year.
So that's also a really popular option.
I think we're quite spoiled with a choice on the Gold Coast.
You know, we've got
a huge amount of accommodation options available.
(34:31):
We've got a lot of inventory available there.
So, you know, the options are quite endless.
And for those that are wanting to spend a few nights out in our hinterland too, we've gotsome beautiful retreats, bed and breakfast style accommodation available out there too.
So O 'Reilly's Rainforest Retreat, which is in the Lamington National Park.
(34:51):
It's about an hour and a half drive from the coast.
That's been in operation for over 100 years.
So it's quite an interesting place to go and stay.
They've got a beautiful accommodation out there.
You can do some lovely guided walks through there.
They've got glow worms.
They've got a beautiful day spa and infinity pool that overlooks the valley below.
(35:14):
So that's also a really popular option for people who just want to break up their beachstay and get to immerse themselves in a subtropical rainforest for a couple of days.
That's a really nice option.
Yeah, and again, it's all close to each other.
So it's not a big deal to do that as well.
So just want to highlight one thing too that we touched on there, the apartment condorental and the snowbirds go away in sort of 80s, at least in North America sort of
(35:41):
pioneered that concept of snow, not snowbirds.
We have that going down in Florida all the time, but turning the snowbirds who wouldnormally go south in the US or to the southern US going further south all the way to
Australia.
So
It was very, very popular in the eighties, early nineties.
It sort of dropped away a bit, but now it's back.
So it's really good option for those who want to get away for an extended period of timefrom the, the Northern parts of the U S and Canada in the winter, where it gets really to
(36:08):
an Australian still been here 20 odd years.
It's still nasty from a cold weather point of view.
so lots of options in the gold coast is perfect because it's, it's got a similar again,vibe as we've touched on to the Florida.
So it's culturally too different.
but it's still very Australian.
So you do know you're in Oz.
It's got all the amenities.
(36:31):
It's good.
It's a good way to spend an extended period of time away.
Everyone speaks English.
It's a very weird form of English, but still English nonetheless.
So it's quite comfortable culturally and physically to look at a long stay, particularlyin the Gold Coast region.
And as Kate just mentioned, you've got these options to...
(36:53):
to quite easily go into the cultural aspect and the nature aspect of it.
And we haven't touched on it, but you can get really adventurous anywhere in Australia,but obviously in this area too.
There's lots of trekking and mountain biking, type of stuff as well.
Now as an extension to a cultural interaction, food, or not Australian food, culinaryoptions in Australia, but let's talk culinary options in around the Gold Coast.
(37:14):
What are your options?
Anything from meat pies through
five -star restaurants, I guess.
Yeah, we've got a great mix.
So I guess our surf club environment's quite popular and it's quite synonymous with thedestination.
for those that haven't been to a surf club before, well, we call them our life -savingclubs.
(37:35):
So it's where all our lifeguards go to train.
They patrol the beach on a weekend.
As you're growing up, we call them nippers.
little kids, go down on a Sunday morning and they learn all the skills to swim at thebeach, to navigate the water, to navigate the waves and eventually as they grow up how to
(37:56):
actually do surf and rescue.
So those particular surf clubs on the Gold Coast, most of them will have a restaurant onsite.
You don't need to be a member if you're visiting from overseas or from interstate, youjust have to sign in.
It's kind of like a, I'm not sure if you have something similar in the States, but we have
leagues clubs here it's kind of like a something where you just sign in as a visitor andthey have it's kind of pub style food there but you get incredible views you know you're
(38:26):
literally on the sand overlooking the beach you know you can't put a price on that view sothe surf clubs are a great way to get a real feel it's where the locals go and eat and
drink you know they do the meat raffle
most nights of the week.
That's very Australian.
Very Australian thing to do.
(38:46):
So that's something I would recommend.
Yeah, just to tell you, a meat raffle is like, it's a raffle, the prize is a meat tray andthen often very huge amounts of meat.
So steak and meat and chicken, everything else is obviously a big thing.
Sorry Kate.
Yeah, for that barbecue.
People take it home and that'll last them a few weeks to have a barbecue.
(39:09):
But then we've also got some incredible cafes and restaurants dotted all across the GoldCoast.
And I guess the beauty of the pandemic in some way, we had a lot of people migrate fromMelbourne and Sydney to come and live on the Gold Coast.
They couldn't do it anymore.
They moved up to the Gold Coast and a lot of them had some incredible hospitalitybackgrounds.
(39:32):
So they started up their own restaurants and cafes here.
And we've definitely benefited from that.
So we've got a really thriving dining scene now, a great coffee scene too.
I don't want to boast, but I think we've got some incredible coffee here in Queensland inparticular.
We like to give Melbourne and Sydney a run for their money.
(39:54):
And then some beautiful fine dining options as well.
this year we were awarded.
we have 21 chef hatted restaurants on the Gold Coast.
So that's similar to, guess, a Michelin star rating.
So we've got 21 of them across the coast, which is not bad for a regional city.
So they've been awarded the chef's hat based on their service and the quality of food.
(40:18):
And every year they have to reapply through that process to gain their hat again.
So yeah, that's something I would definitely recommend.
And we've got some beautiful restaurants right on the beach as well.
So we've
The Tropic, we've got Rick Shores, there's some of our more popular restaurants here onthe Gold Coast for people that are coming.
You literally ride on the beach there enjoying some beautiful fresh seafood.
(40:42):
Seafood's really popular on the Gold Coast.
We do have a fisherman's co -op where you can go literally up to the trawlers as they comein from the ocean with their catch of the day and you can buy prawns, fish straight off
the trawler and take that home and cook that up.
But then we've also got some incredible seafood restaurants.
(41:02):
If you don't feel like doing that, just go to one of our beautiful restaurants and they'vegot an incredible menu that you can enjoy too.
Right.
So you can see by this, again, I use the colloquial meat pies, but you got everything fromlike pub fare, which is affordable, very local.
Like you can see all the local people in the pubs.
There's another one that's called an RSL, which is Returned Servicemen League, which Ithink you need to be signed in by a member, but still.
(41:27):
So there's that, there's the Surf Life Saving Clubs, there's the cafe restaurants, and asKate's mentioned, Australia has become quite famous for its coffee and cafe, coffee shops
everywhere as well, all the way up to the fine dining.
So if you're there for a short time, you can select all that, particularly if you're therefor a long stay, you can basically eat like a local, live like a local, and also splurge
(41:49):
for that special night or nights out as well.
Now, we'd sort of started off with mentioning
when I was younger and it's still happening that a lot of groups, school kids, cetera,sports clubs, et cetera, come to the Gold Coast for end of year parties or just to get
away.
So that leads into my question of anyone out there in the go away world, travel partnerswho work with groups, incentives, et cetera.
(42:13):
So the Gold Coast would be a good spot for conferences, weddings, obviously beachweddings, destination weddings, or even weddings in the hinterland.
and events in general so the Gold Coast is ready and able to handle small to super largegroups.
100%.
We've actually got a dedicated team here at Experience Gold Coast that just looks afterbusiness events.
(42:35):
So all of those big incentive groups, corporate groups, we've got a team that's basicallydedicated to attracting them to the region.
So they can definitely help you out in that regard.
We've got a massive convention centre here on the Gold Coast.
So we host quite a lot of big events and expos and conferences here.
(42:55):
And then we've got the accommodation and experiences to support that with.
So they come for business and then they stay for the fun and for the leisure and the play.
Yeah, so it's a great destination for that.
And for weddings too, as you mentioned, for people wanting to have a beach holidayexperience or have that rainforest experience.
(43:16):
You know, we've got the 80 plus golf courses as well.
So for people who want to you know, have that kind of a wedding and there's kind ofthere's something for everyone really And just on that note something for everyone unless
it's gone.
I believe the Gold Coast has a casino still we do Yeah, we do have the casino in BroadBeach.
I think the good thing about the casino, which is within the star Gold Coast So there isaccommodation there quite a lot of accommodation actually they're building a brand new
(43:45):
tower as we speak
It's not like when you go to Vegas and it's in your face.
The casino is kind of tucked away within the hotel.
Yeah, it is, yeah.
Well, it was, but I actually worked there for a short period of time washing dishes.
That was fun.
So that option's there for people who like to have a bit of a flutter, as we say.
(44:06):
They can go to the casino.
And then you've got some incredible dining options within that precinct as well.
It's literally across the road from where my office is today.
So the beach is across the road.
It's not like it's glaringly in your face, like you would walk down the strip in Vegas.
It's kind of tucked away.
We've just got the one little casino in there.
But that's also a great option too.
(44:28):
Okay, so just one little thing.
This is just more of a trivia bit as well.
Unless it's change, correct me if I'm wrong, but in New South Wales, we have daylight, orwe, that's where I come from.
There is daylight saving.
Queensland does not observe daylight savings.
That's still the way it is.
So we mentioned before, Coolingadda and getting across into the border of New South Walesis easy.
(44:50):
Like they're a stone's throw from each other.
But just remember if you do that, that there will be time changes because one state doesnot recognize daylight saving.
So as we start to wrap this up, is there anything new and exciting that you'd like tobring to the attention of our travel partners about
the Gold Coast and the region that's happening there or upcoming?
(45:11):
There's so much new stuff happening.
Where to begin?
I guess there's always hotels that are popping up.
As I mentioned before, we've got some of those more five -star hotels that are underconstruction at the moment, the Ritz Carlton and St Regis.
We've also got a Mondrian, which is under construction in Burleigh, which is down thesouthern end of the Gold Coast, which is great to have a five -star offering down there.
(45:37):
our theme parks are always investing.
So we've got a lot of new rides opening up over the next year.
And there's a Wizard of Oz Precinct opening up at Movie World later this year.
So, it's worth pointing out too that there are big movie studios in the Gold Coastregions.
That's where one of the big film production areas of Australia is now.
Warner Brothers Studios is there.
(45:58):
We often get some of the big celebrities staying on the Gold Coast.
The hotel actually next to my office, we get quite a lot of them staying there.
So often when I'm getting my morning coffee, we might cross paths.
Chris Amsworth has been downstairs a few times waiting for his coffee.
We Morgan Freeman a couple of times.
So yeah, we do get Johnny Depp with you too, filming Pirates of the Caribbean.
(46:22):
So we
quite a lot of those kind of big name movies being filmed on the Gold Coast, having thatstudio there, which is fantastic.
Yeah, Okay, so let's wrap this up with some travel related questions.
What would be good length of time to hang in and around the Gold Coast?
(46:43):
Anything from like, let's say, obviously a long stay is as long as you want to be, butlet's say the average person who's including the Gold Coast as a broader
itinerary, let's just for the sake of conversation, what's popular would be something inSydney to the centre and then Queensland doesn't have to that order.
So Gold Coast should be given how many days within that sort of context?
(47:05):
Look, ideally, I would say ideally a three nights day would be a good amount of time as aminimum, just to be able to get a good feel for the destination.
You know, obviously,
Five Nights would be fantastic.
It's a really great place to base yourself and go and explore other parts of the city.
When we were talking about the snowbirds before that based themselves here for two monthsor so, as I said, the flight down to Sydney is only an hour away.
(47:34):
So more often than not, we get people that will go away for a long weekend just down toSydney.
Gold Coast Airport is literally just around the corner.
So yeah, I would say a three to five nights stay is ideal.
knowing that the vacation time that people have to be able to get away and obviouslytravel to Australia.
(47:54):
And they want to see other destinations too.
So, probably two or three cities whilst they're here.
But yeah, three to five nights would be fantastic if they can manage it.
Okay, so there you go.
Three to five nights on average.
But again, the Gold Coast in particular is like just prime for that longest stay, be
(48:17):
two weeks, two months.
And as we've, I think, highlighted, Koolengeta itself and Brisbane Airport is a gateway tonot only international, well, Koolengeta not, but Brisbane International, but they're both
regional getaways.
So you can literally, as Kate has mentioned, it's only an hour to Sydney, I guess,probably two hours to Melbourne.
Cairns is what, two hours, I think, from Brisbane?
(48:37):
Yeah, just over two hours.
And to the centre, to Alice or?
I think that's around two hours as well.
Two hours.
Yeah, it's not that far.
So you could probably spoke in HUB out of Koolungatta, particularly if you're there for along stay.
Generally, when we're combining states, would sort of be a loop into Brisbane, let's say,Brisbane Gold Coast, sent us Sydney and home or back to Brisbane, et cetera.
(49:05):
But again, you can use it, as Kate mentioned, as a base, even if you're there for ashorter period of time as well.
Okay, so Kate, is there anything else you'd like to tell our travel partners out thereabout the Gold Coast, other than help their clients go to the Gold Coast?
Yeah, I guess any support that people might be looking for, I'm always just an email or aphone call away.
(49:28):
Can you give us your email address and phone number, please?
Yeah, I sure can.
Would you like me to give it to you now?
Yeah, if you do it verbally, I will put up...
up a graphic underneath.
So more than welcome to reach out to me directly.
I'm happy to pass on recommendations and some resources.
(49:49):
So my email is cait .fulton .com and then my phone number is you'll have to do a plus sixone calling Australia and seven double five eight four six double two nine will come
direct through to me.
But probably best just to send me an email and we can connect.
(50:11):
And I've got some great resources that I can share for people that are just kind ofupskilling or maybe getting some baseline knowledge of the destination.
We do have a trade website, which I'll share with you as well, which has got some sampleitineraries on there.
We do have a Gold Coast Guide, which we've just put in a digital format earlier this year.
So that's got some of our new hotels, some of the best restaurants and recommendationsthat you can make to your clients as well.
(50:36):
So just as an extra planning tool to be able to use or to share as well.
Okay, perfect.
Now, without taking any away from Kate's organization and structure, we have all thatinformation obviously here at Go Away as well.
But we do work in partnership with our tourism boards or tourism representatives as well.
So that's why we're more than happy to give out direct contacts because, know, Kate.
(50:58):
and her office can also supply any marketing materials that you may need.
On that point, we also have in our Go Way Pro Travel Academy, we have a training module onBrisbane itself.
I know we're talking Gold Coast, but also on our Queensland modules, we do go into theGold Coast in quite a lot of depth because it is such a popular destination.
So for those out there who wanna learn more about the destination, you can go to our GoWay Pro Travel Academy.
(51:22):
Of course, for those listening, hopefully you do know, but you should know that we haveour Go Way.
destination specialists in -house.
Many of them are Aussies, and if they're not, they've been trained all about Australia andhave lived and traveled there extensively.
So they've got most of the inside information that we discussed today on options for theGold Coast, and we can do it however you or your clients need it be fully escorted the
(51:48):
entire time, small group, big group, private transfers, long stays, independent, all theabove.
a combination of them all.
We can work it all out for you.
We can work with Kate and some of the local operators in regards to cultural experiences,trekking.
So basically everything we discussed today, GoA can make it happen for you and yourclients.
(52:09):
If there's something you want to do, which we didn't bring up today, just ask us and ninetimes out of 10, we can make it happen for you and your clients as well.
So as we wrap up, I just like to reiterate, as an Aussie, I spend a lot of time on theGold Coast due to family and
just traveling there, because it is Australia's playground.
It's an awesome area to hang out in, be it a short time or a long time.
(52:31):
It should definitely be part of any Australian itinerary.
And what I learned today too is you can actually, again, you can touch the barrier reeffrom southern Queensland, which actually would save a ton of time as well by dedicating
that time to other areas of Australia, because it's such a big country and it's hard toget it all in one trip.
(52:51):
So Kate, is there anything else you'd like to...
let our listening and viewing public know about the Gold Coast.
I think we've covered off most of it.
As I said, happy to be here as support if you ever need and if you're ever coming to theGold Coast, reach out to me.
We'd love to catch up and show you around.
OK.
OK, so on that note, I'd like to thank Kate.
(53:13):
What time is it there?
It is 10 o 'clock in the morning.
10 o 'clock in the morning.
It's late.
Well, not that late.
It's about 7 .30, 8 o 'clock here at night in Toronto.
But thank you for coming to us live from the Gulf Coast.
That's really cool.
Anyone out there, if you have any questions, please reach out to GoA via GoAgent .com.
And again, through Kate's direct information for any direct questions about the GulfCoast.
(53:37):
And again, everyone, thank you for your time today.
And again, thank you, Kate, very much for your time from the sunny state of Queensland andthe Gulf Coast.
Thanks very much.
Okay, see you everyone.
(55:13):
you
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