Travel writer, Zoë Maddock, shares her summer spent in Queensland where she enjoyed watersports, wildlife and whale watching
This summer, I spent three weeks in Queensland, Australia. The trip quickly made me understand why so many Brits move there; the people, experiences, and scenery make it a beautiful home away from home.
Week 1
After meeting my friend at Brisbane Airport, we travelled an hour down to the Gold Coast, a city with a mix of high-rise buildings and long stretches of beaches. The Gold Coast was expensive in terms of accommodation and restaurants, so we opted for cooking our own food rather than eating out most days. However, the city is a hub of activity; from a weekend airshow to the life-saving world championships, we were always entertained. The beaches and streets were very clean, and we felt safe during our time there.
We went on a day trip whale watching at the local Marina, which was, by far, the best part of my trip. We spent £50 on a two-hour tour, watching Humpback whales up close on their yearly migration through the ‘humpback highway’, as well as dolphins. If you ever find yourself in Queensland, whale watching is a must!
The city is a hub of activity; from a weekend airshow to the life-saving world championships, we were always entertained
Week 2
After a week, we took the quick tram journey down to Surfers Paradise, a slightly older town that is much more catered towards young travellers, due to its affordable shops, bars and lively clubs. While here, we hired surfboards for roughly £10 for two hours. If you are a beginner, I would recommend getting a lesson as the waves are more intense than the ones in the U.K. However, being able to surf without a wetsuit and in clean water made the entire experience a lot more enjoyable.
Surfers Paradise had a lot of other activities on offer, so we also went on a guided paddle boarding tour with a group of other young travellers. This involved a quick lesson on how to stand and paddle, and a tour down the river that runs through the town, briefly stopping at an island about two kilometres downstream to see the local wildlife.
Week 3
We then spent two days just south of Surfers Paradise in the beautiful Burleigh Heads, which offers lots of amazing food and views along the coast, such as at the Burleigh Pavilion or Paddock Bakery. Again, we saw lots of animals native to Australia at the David Fleay Wildlife Park, a small animal park with a conservation-based ethos.
We saw lots of animals native to Australia at the David Fleay Wildlife Park, a small animal park with a conservation-based ethos
Our last two days before flying home were spent in the city of Brisbane. We enjoyed our evening sitting at Streets Beach, a fake beach located right in the centre of the city, in front of a backdrop of the skyline and river. In comparison to the rest of the Gold Coast, we felt that Brisbane had less to do, nonetheless, it was a nice city and felt very safe.
The only issue we ran into while in Queensland was transportation. The tram and train systems were fantastic and cheap, however we felt that a car was needed at times. For example, getting directly to Byron Bay and Burleigh Heads was difficult or transport simply did not exist. Hiring a car can be expensive in Australia, especially when you are under 25 and on a budget, so I recommend factoring this into your finances if you are planning to explore the region.
Overall, I loved Queensland. It has so much to offer travellers in way of activities, accommodation, and food. The people that we met and interacted with were incredibly kind and willing to help. As female travellers, we felt very safe for the majority of our trip and never ran into any major issues. If you want to explore Australia, Queensland is a great place to start as you do not run out of things to see and do.
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