Australia’s Gold Coast has an endless playground for families and has become a mecca for theme park junkies. If you are looking to challenge some of the tallest and fastest rides in the world, interact with nature’s best animals, or just looking for an aquatic adventure, you won’t be disappointed.
Australia’s theme park capital boasts the largest and most diverse selection of theme parks in the southern hemisphere. Walk with a Bengal tiger, defy the laws of gravity or swim with dolphins. The Gold Coast’s variety of fun and adventure options is endless and promises to leave you with long memories and even bigger smiles. Here is my overview of what is on offer.
World of dreams
Keep your breakfast going while you tackle the “big 7”. You will need nerves of steel and you will overcome your fear to face the exciting highest and fastest rides in Australia. To earn your rite of passage, you will scream louder than ever and you will need the courage of an astronaut on a mission to the moon. You will defy gravity as you hang upside down, be propelled faster than a bullet and launch yourself from the sky at breakneck speeds.
If white knuckle rides aren’t your “cup of tea,” stroll through the new DreamWorks experience to see as many themed rides, live shows, and attractions as your excited little ones can handle. Meet Shrek, Princess Fiona and Puss in Boots at Shrek’s Faire Faire Away. Join the fun as King Julien rules his kingdom in Madagascar Madness or catch the legendary Po in Po’s Garden.
Animal lovers can watch a Bengal tiger climb 20-foot tall trees or catapult 10 feet into the air while demonstrating its remarkable agility. With 2 daily presentations on Isla del Tigre, you will be able to observe the tigers up close as they swim, play and fight with their keepers.
Location: 17 kms north of Surfers Paradise; Admission: Adults – AUD 79.99 Children – AUD 49.99
Sea World
Discover an aquatic world of fun and fun at Sea World. Dare to swim with sharks in Shark Bay in the world’s largest man-made shark lagoon system. Take a picture with sea lions Buddy & Clawde, the mischievous stars of “Fish Detectives”. Witness the grace and agility of the dolphins as they playfully interact with the audience or get up close to the world’s largest land carnivores at Polar Bear Shores. There’s also Penguin Encounter, Ray Reef, and much more to ensure you have an action-packed day watching our friends from the ocean!
Location: 2.8kms north of Surfers Paradise; Admission: Adults – AUD 79.99 Children – AUD 49.99
White water world
Pack your Speedos, “Boardies” or “Swimmers” and get ready for a day of “meat and fiberglass” at White Water World. Join the long line of teenage lemmings as the hatch of White Water World’s latest trip, “The Wedgie,” opens and sends bodies plummeting 5 stories vertically.
Expect some “Irish luck” as your 4-leaf clover tube propels you into an oversized funnel in “The Green Room” or get caught in the tentacles of the world’s only eight-lane Octopus Racer. The blue-ringed octopus (or better known as BRO to the locals) will transform you and your friends into frenzied competitors as you race to glory. If you’re afraid of the dark, save your best high-pitched screeches for The Little Rippers. Close your eyes and feel the force of a water-propelled corkscrew before diving into the pool that awaits you.
White Water World also caters to the less adventurous and budding stunt performers. Wiggle Bay offers a safe, wet haven for protected youth to let off steam with water cannons and mini water slides as they splash and play under the watchful eyes of lifeguards. .
Location: 17 kms north of Surfers Paradise; Admission: Adults: AUD 49.99 Children: AUD 29.99
Warner Bros Movie World
Meet your favorite superheroes and movie stars in a world of fun and fantasy. Buckle up and hold onto your hat as Warner Bros. Movie World challenges the weakest of hearts. Fight your darkest fears and prepare for a stomach-churning journey when you meet The Joker in Arkham Asylum. Experience the steepest drop in the southern hemisphere in The Green Lantern or speed to 100 kilometers per hour in less than 2 seconds in Superman Escape.
Mingle with Bugs Bunny and other Loony Tunes characters as you roam the Movie World’s kids’ WB Fun Zone. Hop in a Tijuana taxi, hop aboard Yosemite Sam, or ride Australia’s only family-friendly roller coaster. Don’t miss the smell of burning rubber or the sound of brakes screeching on Hollywood Stunt Drive as you join the set of the Hollywood film production. danger and a sense of adventure on a 4D journey to the center of the earth.
Location: 13 km north of Surfers Paradise; Admission: Adults – AUD 79.99 Children – AUD 49.99
Wet and wild
Begin your adventure on a rubber tube on a slowly flowing river as you lazily circumnavigate your way around the park’s subtropical gardens.
Take on the Rocky Mountains as you glide down the river rapids or experience an annihilation on the Surfrider or if you need a bigger adrenaline rush, dive 11 meters at 50 kilometers per hour in the Kamikaze. Fly 40 meters into the Tornado as you fight in the eye of a storm or brave 200 meters of twists and turns on Mach 5 side winders.
Little pirates can hoist their sails at Buccaneer Bay. Based on a pirate theme, children enter their own aquatic world of imagination and excitement. Parents beware: keep an eye out for the giant bucket that frequently spills its load on the mischievous, giggling children below it.
Location: 13 kms north of Surfers Paradise; Admission: Adults – AUD 59.99 Children – AUD 34.99
It’s easy to see why the Gold Coast is a popular choice for families and adrenaline seekers. It challenges you to have fun. It invites you to interact with its fauna and encourages you to face your fears. Discover its charm for yourself.
