Gold Coast: Attractions

One of the best part about travelling to Gold Coast were the attractions.  We didn't manage to go to every single one of them but we did make our way to a few.

AquaDuck

Website: http://www.aquaduck.com.au/

Photo source: buildingconservationtour.blogspot.com

The first day we were there, we went on the AquaDuck tour to get acquainted with the area.  Since this was pretty much a last minute decision, we bought out tickets at Centro and the hop on location was a short walk away.  If you've been on a Duck Tour in Singapore, I imagine it's pretty much the same concept.  The vehicle, like a duck, takes you around Surfers Paradise on land and in the water on the Nerang River.

Check out the multimillion dollar house (one of many)
with the heli at the Nerang River

Sea World

Website: http://www.seaworld.com.au/

For Seaworld, we purchased the VIP pass online from their website which allows unlimited entries to 3 of their theme parks (Sea World, Movie World and Wet N Wild).  The offers for the VIP tend to vary throughout the year so check out their website to see what kind of promotions they have at the time you plan on going.  Bring the printed email received for the tickets purchased at the entrance and make your way to their guest services to get your photo taken for your VIP pass.

To get there, we took the bus to Seaworld from the stop opposite our hotel.  The return bus' path was right next to our hotel too which was great!

We went to see the shows and performances and had a lot of fun going round the park being all tourist-y and snapping photos of the animals there.

Visit their website for more information on park attractions and things to do.

Movie World
Website: http://movieworld.myfun.com.au/

Movie World for me was the best of all the theme parks we'd gone to.  We took the TX2 bus from the stop at Appel Park which was across the road and through Circle on Cavill.  Buses with TX prefixes are the Theme Park Express buses that cater to visitors of Wet N Wild, Movie World, Australian Outback Spectacular and Dreamworld.  However, the last buses to the theme parks are scheduled before noon so if you miss them, you will need to take a different bus there.

We didn't go on most of the rides though because we were too busy snapping photos, going to the shows and performances, playing games and shopping for souvenirs.  Haha.  If you're planning on checking out the shows and performances, be sure to plan out your time and work around it.

The Stunt Driver show was definitely the best one that we've gone to and made a point to not miss it.  Amazing how those drivers maneuvered at high speed through tight spaces.  Be forewarned, it might get a bit hot. Hehe.  We practically rushed from the restaurant to the show and got there in the nick of time!  Rick's Cafe Americain (the restaurant across) was delish!!  It's an all you can eat buffet and you can come back to eat as many times during your visit for the day until 3pm (when they close).  And yes, it's certified Halal and has a nice Moroccan style decor too.

More information on park attractions is available on their website.

Dreamworld
Website: http://www.dreamworld.com.au/

Dreamworld (and WhiteWater World) tickets can be purchased online as well and that's exactly what we did.  I was honestly disappointed with the place in general though and maybe going during their "slow season" as they describe it had something to do with how drab I felt the place was.  Some of the rides were undergoing scheduled maintenance and for the most part the park didn't seem as well kept.

I did enjoy the AVPX laser tag game though despite barely hitting 200 points.  It was my first time playing laser tag and it was interesting.  We went on the V8 Driving Experience too and I don't know how my 2 brothers managed to play 3 rounds of it cos seriously, I was getting motion sickness just sitting in the car.  Haha.  Terrible suspension but the brothers had a lot of fun racing.  The park was a lot more mellow than the other 2 we had visited.  It had a sort of mini zoo (Tiger Island, The Lair, Australian Wildlife Experience) where we saw 1 tiger, a whole bunch of kangaroos, a wombat, a few koalas, a few crocs and some species of birds.

Of course there were rides that were open which I left my brothers to explore.  There was a ride called the Giant Drop which reminded me of the Solero Shot ride at Genting only a less scary version.  And then there's the Tower of Terror 2 30 second ride which looked similar to the Superman ride at 6 Flags in LA only not as high but the concept was the same.

I'm not sure if it was only for the sleepy season but eateries were all closed by 2pm.  I was hungry and unhappy let me tell you that.  And we ended up postponing lunch to dinner time.

Ripley's Believe It Or Not!
Website: http://www.ripleys.com/surfersparadise/

Ripley's was just in the building next to Centro so went to check it out one night.  I remembered when we were there those many years back I'd wanted to go but was a tad timid so we skipped on it.  That being said, it was the usual oddities and if you've been to the ones in say Genting or London, I say skip this one.  It's not as big and they have some of the same things anyways.

SkyPoint
Website: http://www.skypoint.com.au/

We weren't exactly aware of SkyPoint but when we bought our tickets online for Dreamworld, there was an offer to purchase tickets for SkyPoint as well at a discounted price.  After checking out the website, I thought it would be nice to visit.  It's sort of like the Sands Sky Park in Singapore but indoors and in only 1 building (the Singapore Sky Park spans over 3 buildings).  It gives you a nice 360 degrees view of Gold Coast with lookouts and some reading material for more background information.  There's also a restaurant where you can dine while overlooking the Coast.  Being somewhat acrophobic, my knees were trembling and legs felt weak.  Haha.  My 2 brothers were fine though.  I could only calm down when I was literally hugging one of the many trusses there.  Hahaha.  We went at night though but I felt the day time would've offered an amazing view.

Surfers Paradise Night Market


Here's something we found out from the AquaDuck tour, there's a night market by the beach on Wednesdays and Fridays (if I'm not mistaken).  We almost forgot though and would've missed it too had we not seen the tents as we left the restaurant after dinner.  If you're looking for handmade items and unique knick knacks, do drop by and walk around.