Page 53 - Holidays with Kids - Volume 62 (January 2020)

GOLD COAST, QLD

Gold
Diggers

aleney de winter and family dig into the plentiful
delights of the sun-kissed southern Gold Coast.

A rite of passage for Aussie families, the Gold immerse ourselves in the coastal vibe. At least
Coast has been luring us for decades with its it would if we could only tear my kids, Raff (11)
siren call of sunshine, sea and screaming theme and Marlo (8), and their friend Tiah (8) from the
park fun. Not a school holiday goes by without enormous lagoon-style pool that is the only
one of our kids’ friends returning with terrific thing separating our room and the sand.
tales of rollicking rollercoasters, espousing the When we do manage to drag them out to
sparkle of Surfers Paradise. explore, we find one of the world’s best surf
But on this visit we decide to skip the glitz breaks at Kirra and spy more surfers at
and glamour of Surfers, and the high-speed Snapper Rocks. But the most epic action
rides, to instead see what the southern Gold unfolds at Greenmount Beach in Coolangatta
Coast has to offer our curious crew. when Raff and Marlo meet the folks from
Walkin’ on Water Surf School. After a safety
Walking on water briefing and a quick intro to the art of surfing,
If there’s one thing the Gold Coast has no they’re both shimmying into wetsuits and
shortage of, it’s beaches. And we quickly wading into the surf with boards. To my great
discover that the further south we head, the astonishment, my Mick Fanning wannabe and
more inviting they become. Not only can we Stephanie Gilmore-in-training are up and
look back up the coastline towards the Surfers riding a wave on their very first attempts. The
Paradise skyline, all space-age and sparkling quick result is testament to the awesome
in the distance, but the breaking waves spray teachers at the surf school, and our next few
their watery welcome as we skip, sun-kissed hours float by in a sea of wet grins and salty,
and salty, from beach to beautiful beach. squealing requests for surfboards from Santa.
We’re fortunate enough to be staying Afterwards we take a hop, skip and jump
right on the beach at Royal Palm Resort in along The Strand, where I reward their stellar
a spacious, self-contained apartment with surfing efforts with three scoops of Gelato
a private balcony, perfect for soaking up the Messina’s finest.
sweeping views of sandy and spectacular
Palm Beach and beyond. Nestled between Aye Currumbin
Tallebudgera Creek and Currumbin Creek, Notwithstanding the kids’ affection for the
Palm Beach is a place where sun-blistered beach that hosted their first foray into the
beach shacks sit jauntily alongside multi- foamy surf, their favourite is Currumbin, a
million-dollar mansions. There’s also a strip of pretty, uncrowded family beach bookended by
world-class restaurants including The the dramatic Currumbin and Elephant Rocks,
Collective, a unique market-style dining where they dig in the golden sand and search
concept with five incredible kitchens serving for sea creatures in rock pools. During our visit,
up the best American, Italian, Mexican, Asian the Swell Sculpture Festival has transformed
and contemporary Australian delights. the one-kilometre stretch of sand into a
01 Royal Palm Resort’s absolute beachfront stunning outdoor art gallery, its creative
location affords us the opportunity to really installations, interactive sculptures, kids’

@holidayswithkids holidayswithkids.com.au 53