Gold Coast

The Gold Coast is Australia’s favourite playground and it is always a hit with families, with its world-class theme parks, fun-filled attractions, beautiful beaches and lush national parks.

Aqua Duck (www.aquaduck.com.au)

Enjoy a land and water tour of the Gold Coast on the amphibious Aqua Duck. Drive through the bustling Surfers Paradise then cruise along the glittering waterways.

Australian Outback Spectacular (www.outbackspectacular.com.au)

Get a taste of the rugged outback at this unique night attraction, complete with daring stunts, wild horses and stampeding cattle. Enjoy a 3-course dinner as you feast your eyes on the action.

Paradise Country (www.paradisecountry.myfun.com.au)

Enjoy an Aussie experience at this farm-themed attraction. Catch horsemanship displays by stockmen, cuddle koalas, feed kangaroos and watch sheep shearing demonstrations. Enjoy damper and billy tea by the campfire, and have barbecue lunch with live Aussie entertainment and bush dancing.

Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary (www.currumbin-sanctuary.org.au)

Get up close to all kinds of native animals in the natural settings, including kangaroos, koalas, possums, dingoes and rainbow lorikeets. This lovely wildlife park is also open at night. Take a Wildnight Adventure and discover the various nocturnal animals. You can also enjoy a fascinating Aboriginal cultural show.

Catch-a-crab cruise (www.catchacrab.com.au)

Enjoy a picturesque river cruise. Trap Queensland’s mud crabs for lunch, have a go at yabbie pumping and feed wild pelicans! You can also visit an oyster farm.

Whale Watching Cruise

Between June and November, you can also enjoy whale watching cruises and look out for the magnificent humpback whales. Get a free amphibious tour on the Adventure Willy with every whale watching cruise ticket purchased.

Dracula’s Haunted House

This unqiue attraction, opening on 31 October 2007, is a five-storey walk-through house of fright featuring optical illusions, 4D cinema, interactive gimmicks and loads of laughs for all. It is located in Surfers Paradise and is open daily from 10am to 10pm.

Dreamworld (www.dreamworld.com.au)

This award-winning theme park is a wonderland of rides and attractions for both young and old. Try some of the world’s tallest and fastest thrill rides, cuddle a koala, or get up close to Nickelodeon favourites such as SpongeBob SquarePants.

Infinity (www.infinitygc.com.au)

Have a blast at Infinity, a futuristic attraction that takes you on a mind-blowing journey through spectacular mazes! Walk across a bottomless abyss, wander through a chamber of stars and more.

QDeck (www.qdeck.com.au)

Visit Q1 Resort, the world’s tallest residential tower.

Head to QDeck, its observation deck on the 77th and 78th floors and enjoy spectacular views of the Gold Coast, its endless stretch of beaches, the lush forests and mountains in the distance.

Sailing

Go sailing (www.champagnesailingcruises.com) on the Broadwater and enjoy lovely views of the city skyline. You may even spot some dolphins.

Or go tall ship sailing (www.tallship.com.au) and have fun at South Stradbroke Island.

Sea World (www.seaworld.com.au)

Get up close to dolphins, seals and polar bears at Australia’s number one marine zoological park. Don’t miss Shark Bay, the world’s largest shark lagoon.

Tropical Fruit World (www.tropicalfruitworld.com.au)

Visit Australia’s largest tropical fruit plantation, with more than 500 varieties of fruit. Ride a tractor train through the orchards and try exotic fruits such as chocolate pudding fruit and miracle fruit.

Warner Bros. Movie World (www.movieworld.com.au)

Experience the movie magic, as you cosy up to your favourite superheroes and cartoon characters, including Batman, Wonder Woman and Bugs Bunny. You can also enjoy exciting rides and entertaining shows.

WhiteWater World (www.whitewaterworld.com.au)

Visit the Gold Coast’s newest theme park, launched by the award-winning Dreamworld. This water park features exciting rides as well as a colourful Nickelodeon-themed kids zone.

Binna Burra Mountain Lodge (www.binnaburralodge.com.au)

Stay in a cosy log cabin for a back-to-nature experience.

Explore 160km of nature trails, zip through the treetops on a flying fox, and join in a campfire at night.

Glow Worm Tour (www.ariestours.com)

Take an enchanting night tour of Springbrook National Park and discover Australia's largest colony of glow worms, amid lush forest, lakes and waterfalls.

O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat (www.oreillys.com.au)

Stroll along a treetop boardwalk or go bird watching, then spend the night at this mountain retreat set in a World Heritage-listed national park.

Mount Nathan Winery (www.mtnathanwinery.com.au)

More than just a winery, this family attraction has a yard where you can feed lambs, a bee observation area where you can see how honey is extracted from the hives, and a pond where you can catch yabbies.