Holiday Advice (Australia)

[francozola 2,040]

I know we have plenty of Australian members here so I thought I'd ask for some advice. I'll be heading to Australia for a short holiday in a couple of weeks. Will be in Gold Coast for about 6/7 days and Brisbane for 1/2 days.

I'll be in Gold Coast for the Champions League final so can anyone recommend a pub or something where I can watch the match? It'll be at around 5am there so most pubs probably won't even be open (?). Is there a special football pub that anyone knows about? I'm sure there'll be plenty of places in the bigger cities like Brisbane, Perth etc that will show the match but really not sure about Gold Coast...

Apart from football....

Basically we're going to visit Dreamworld & Seaworld (and check out Movie World if we have the time) and also visit some of the wildlife parks (Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary etc). I'm also interested in doing some adventure stuff like jet skiing, sky diving etc.

Any recommendations/tips? I've already done some research and found companies who do those adventure things but would be great to get some direct recommendations if possible.

Thanks!

[Spike 12,049]

It depends on where you are staying. I am really struggling to think of a Pub that will be open at 5 am. The Gold Coast tends to lean towards Nightclubs and not pubs, but you may find a stroke of luck at the Surf Clubs. Don't count on it though.

If you want a flutter there is the casino, which is close to the beach.

If you want to go shopping there are a few places like Australia Fair, Pacific Fair and Robena Shopping Mall. Robena has grown in popularity in the last few years but my favourite place is Pacific Fair.

Seaworld is only good for the animals. It is really a better place for young kids...

There is the usual laser skirmish, paintball skirmish and indoor rockclimbing.

There is an AFL team (Gold Coast Suns) and a Rugby League team (Gold Coast Titans), so maybe you could catch a live game.

Stat of Origin is on May 23rd, you should really watch this. State of Origin is Rugby League series that features New South Wales against Queensland. They are they only games in Australia that have a 'Derby' like feel to them.

When I was 16 I went kayaking on this lake onto this island. I forget what it was called but there were a few Indigenous guys with us that gave tours. I didn't care much for it because I heard all the stories before just with different names. But if you don't know anything about Indigneous Australian culture, it could be great. Don't be offended it they call you 'white fella' as is it more endearing than 'white cunt'. But they were a freindly bunch of lads and they were nice.

If you can understand all that , I'll be surprise.

Don't forget to have a Dingo's Dinner.

[capriccioso 2,545]

Forget Queensland, you should come to NSW

Other advice that Spike failed to give you is to treat any spider or snake or whatever other nasty you may come across as lethal- avoiding getting bitten is more important than getting rid of the thing. And you've chosen probably the best time to visit Australia, it's not cold in Queensland in May, nor is it insanely hot like it would be during the summer months. Regardless of the temperature, make sure you've got sunscreen on as UV here can be pretty brutal even in the winter months. The beaches, in particular are brilliant around April-May; water temperature is perfect at this time of year so take advantage! However, if you see a beach with this sign:

Steer clear of it.

Also, you can't leave here without sampling some kangaroo meat, great tasting stuff. With regards to your football-inquiries, if you can find a British or European pub, football will most likely be shown on TV, if not, the CL final will be shown at 4:45 AM on free-to-air TV. I've never been to a specific football pub, and I live in the biggest city in the country, so the chances aren't great of there being a specific pub in a smallish city like Gold Coast. It's largely academic anyway, as Spike says, I'm pretty sure no pubs are open that late/early.

[Spike 12,049]

More often than not a person can survive jellyfish, spider, snake bites/stings but when a Blue-Ringed Octopus gets to you...well you are as good as dead. Don't listen to Cap, chances are you won't even see any of these things.

The weather is also fickle as hell, it can go from extreme to extreme in half a day. Piss down raining than incredibley hot in a few hours.

[capriccioso 2,545]

Don't listen to Cap, chances are you won't even see any of these things.

Sshh! We have to trick foreigners into believing we're all like Mick Dundee

[francozola 2,040]

Thanks guys!

It depends on where you are staying. I am really struggling to think of a Pub that will be open at 5 am. The Gold Coast tends to lean towards Nightclubs and not pubs, but you may find a stroke of luck at the Surf Clubs. Don't count on it though

Yeah, thought so. I'll be staying on Surfers Paradise. I've already emailed a few of the pubs there and they replied saying they won't be showing the match.

If you want a flutter there is the casino, which is close to the beach.

If you want to go shopping there are a few places like Australia Fair, Pacific Fair and Robena Shopping Mall. Robena has grown in popularity in the last few years but my favourite place is Pacific Fair.

Seaworld is only good for the animals. It is really a better place for young kids...

There is the usual laser skirmish, paintball skirmish and indoor rockclimbing.

There is an AFL team (Gold Coast Suns) and a Rugby League team (Gold Coast Titans), so maybe you could catch a live game.

Stat of Origin is on May 23rd, you should really watch this. State of Origin is Rugby League series that features New South Wales against Queensland. They are they only games in Australia that have a 'Derby' like feel to them.

When I was 16 I went kayaking on this lake onto this island. I forget what it was called but there were a few Indigenous guys with us that gave tours. I didn't care much for it because I heard all the stories before just with different names. But if you don't know anything about Indigneous Australian culture, it could be great. Don't be offended it they call you 'white fella' as is it more endearing than 'white cunt'. But they were a freindly bunch of lads and they were nice.

If you can understand all that , I'll be surprise.

Don't forget to have a Dingo's Dinner.

Thanks for all of that. Will definitely check some of those places/activities out.

Forget Queensland, you should come to NSW

Other advice that Spike failed to give you is to treat any spider or snake or whatever other nasty you may come across as lethal- avoiding getting bitten is more important than getting rid of the thing. And you've chosen probably the best time to visit Australia, it's not cold in Queensland in May, nor is it insanely hot like it would be during the summer months. Regardless of the temperature, make sure you've got sunscreen on as UV here can be pretty brutal even in the winter months. The beaches, in particular are brilliant around April-May; water temperature is perfect at this time of year so take advantage! However, if you see a beach with this sign:

Steer clear of it.

Also, you can't leave here without sampling some kangaroo meat, great tasting stuff. With regards to your football-inquiries, if you can find a British or European pub, football will most likely be shown on TV, if not, the CL final will be shown at 4:45 AM on free-to-air TV. I've never been to a specific football pub, and I live in the biggest city in the country, so the chances aren't great of there being a specific pub in a smallish city like Gold Coast. It's largely academic anyway, as Spike says, I'm pretty sure no pubs are open that late/early.

Oh! It's on free-to-air TV? So would I get to watch it in the hotel room itself then?

More often than not a person can survive jellyfish, spider, snake bites/stings but when a Blue-Ringed Octopus gets to you...well you are as good as dead. Don't listen to Cap, chances are you won't even see any of these things.

The weather is also fickle as hell, it can go from extreme to extreme in half a day. Piss down raining than incredibley hot in a few hours.

Yeah I read that about the weather :/ hope it doesn't rain too much especially since all activities require us to be outdoors.

[Spike 12,049]

Oh! It's on free-to-air TV? So would I get to watch it in the hotel room itself then?

Yeah, it will be on SBS One and yes it will be live. There should be a repeat later that day on SBS Two. Unless your hotel room doesn't have a TV you should be able to watch it there.

[francozola 2,040]

Yeah, it will be on SBS One and yes it will be live. There should be a repeat later that day on SBS Two. Unless your hotel room doesn't have a TV you should be able to watch it there.

Ahhhh that's fantastic then! :D Didn't know it would be on free-to-air TV there.

[capriccioso 2,545]

If you're really bothered, FZ, you can watch Napoli take on Juventus in the Coppa Italia the next morning

[francozola 2,040]

If you're really bothered, FZ, you can watch Napoli take on Juventus in the Coppa Italia the next morning

Will look out for it but probably won't have the time!

Also - do you think I'll have a better chance finding a pub (with proper Chels fans) in Brisbane? Since it's only an hour or so away from Gold Coast, I wouldn't mind travelling if it meant that I would get to watch it in a good place.

[Spike 12,049]

Will look out for it but probably won't have the time!

Also - do you think I'll have a better chance finding a pub (with proper Chels fans) in Brisbane? Since it's only an hour or so away from Gold Coast, I wouldn't mind travelling if it meant that I would get to watch it in a good place.

You will have more of a chance seeing that Brisbane has about three million in population. But don't count on it. If anywhere you would have the best chance in Melbourne, those guys are nuts about every and any sport.

[capriccioso 2,545]

Yep, Melbourne's the best bet. I think you can watch at a sportsbar/betting place, those are usually open all night. It probably won't be filled with Chelsea fans though.

[francozola 2,040]

There's this place called Jupiter's Casino that's apparently going to be showing the match in one of their bars. It's only 10mins from my hotel so I think I'm going to check the place out a few days before and if it's decent I'll watch it there Thanks for the help!

[BluesChick 1,260]

Remember the part about sunscreen! You want to protect your skin and the sun is different than UK. Wear it on cloudy days too and apply often. (sorry it is the mom in me)

[francozola 2,040]

What's the best & fastest way of travelling from Gold Coast (Surfers Paradise) to Brisbane (Eagle Street, City)? Would there be any trains/buses available after midnight? We might be travelling to Brisbane just to catch the CL final at a pub there lol

[Spike 12,049]

What's the best & fastest way of travelling from Gold Coast (Surfers Paradise) to Brisbane (Eagle Street, City)? Would there be any trains/buses available after midnight? We might be travelling to Brisbane just to catch the CL final at a pub there lol

All the buses to Brisbane end up at Roma Steet. From there catch a taxi to your pub. If you can't find anything out on their site you may have to contact them. Alternatively you could just hire a car.

http://www.queenslandrail.com.au/ALLSTATIONS/Pages/AllStations.aspx?StationName=Roma%20Street