Pack your swimmers – and your appetite – for the ultimate romantic escape with this bespoke Gourmet Traveller itinerary.
The Darling, The Star, Broadbeach
For an upscale city-smart take on beach accommodation. This 17-storey tower have 57 suites within, a stunning rooftop restaurant and pool with dramatic views, a land bridge that connects to The Star Grand casino, with eateries. Guests can also access The Dorsett’s Isoletto Pool Club for cabana cocktails.
ROOFTOP OASIS
qtQT Cabins Gold Coast, Surfers Paradise
Your rooftop tiny home-from-home awaits your escape and yet still within strolling distance to the action. The recently made-over QT Gold Coast has six new cabins retreats, perfect for couples, each with a private deck and a temptingly equipped minbar.
CASUAL BEACH LIFESTYLE
Bujerum Apartments, Burleigh Heads
Book Bujerum Apartments for a romantic stay that’s a more low-key, smart-casual event. Pine-fringed ocean views from your deck, this compact walk-up complex sits directly across from Burleigh Beach and is on the doorstep of the Burleigh Heads dining and shopping hub.
Hit the sand for an easy saunter into Surfers Paradise via the beach. Or if you’d prefer, book a bike and explore more of the 36-kilometre Gold Coast Oceanway. This series of paths and cycleways connects Coolangatta in the south with the Gold Coast Seaway in the north, providing ever-changing views. Try QT’s Bazaar for a blowout interactive buffet brekky. Head for Mermaid Beach to The Milkman’s Daughter if you’d prefer something lower key.
Mid-morning to lunch - Lunch and lazing by the pool - Soak up the sun at Main Beach
After breakfast, make your way to Main Beach. La Luna, a chic overwater enclave that sits off a pontoon at Marina Mirage. This is chill-out time before a late lunch. Slip across to alfresco MĀRE by La Luna for something sparkling and delicious seafood. For a lunch option with less sun on Fridays and Saturdays, try the Lucky Menu at Eddy + Wolff, a pocket-sized modern Asian restaurant hidden in plain sight at Robina.
Afternoon to dinner - Out and about + drinks and dinner
Climb on the Hopo Gold Coast Ferry at Marina Mirage for a scenic 27-minute trip to HOTA, Home of the Arts for their new blockbuster The Pop Masters: Art from the Mugrabi Collection, New York. It runs until 4 June 2023, between 10am-4pm daily. Drink in more views at The Exhibitionist, atop HOTA’s colourful building. As evening draws closer, head back to your accommodation to get ready for a plunge in The Spring poolside precinct, then pre-dinner drinks at neighbourhood tapas hole-in-the-wall, Cantina.
Dinner, head to under-the-radar Anekawa for big-flavoured Japanese dishes in the unlikely location of Mudgeeraba. For a more local twist hop to The North Room for low-fi wines and a native and local bounty centred set menu.
Start with breakfast at Palm Springs as you dig into a well-filled Cali breakfast burrito or sparklingly fresh Nourish bowl. If you prefer crisp-layered creamy patisserie, you can’t go past Bam Bam Bakehouse in Mermaid Beach.
Then, drive inland to Witches Falls in Tamborine National park. You’ll find several hikes here, including the Witches Falls Circuit.
Mid-morning to lunch - Spoiled for choice local produce + alfresco delights
Head to North Stores in North Tamborine, at Picnic Real Food Bar, you’ll lunch well with a glass of kombucha, or an Aussie low-intervention wine alongside. Afterwards, browse dreamy artworks together, check out Potta Studio’s ceramics and visit Kriket Broadhurst’s shop to see her delicate recycled sea glass and silver jewellery.
If you’re pining for the coast already, zip back for a cooling ocean dip and stroll to Currumbin’s Tommy’s Italian. Pre-book the banquette on the first-floor alfresco deck for a late lunch and the best vistas.
Afternoon to dinner - Craft beer on the mountain + the coast’s hottest eateries
If you stayed on the mountain, take a craft beer paddle at Mt Tamborine’s Fortitude Brewing Co. If gin’s more your thing, pre-book a 2.5-hour gin-making class at Cauldron Distillery.
Back on the coast, shop designer stores at Pacific Fair or Tugun’s boutique Cornerstone Stores. Or simply explore the ocean at Broadbeach, then dedicate the afternoon to cocktails at Isoletto Pool Club.
Whatever you decide, be sure to reserve a table for dinner at Labart, the Gold Coast’s top-rated eatery. Likewise, book early at hot-spot Vietnamese, Jimmy Wah’s.
Enjoy a final day beach swim at Burleigh Beach before heading to breakfast. French-inspired Tarte Bakery & Café accepts walk-ins only. The owner used to work at Paddock Bakery, which is still going strong and is another good breakfast option.
Mid-morning to lunch - Beautiful walks and plenty of lunch options
Stroll around Burleigh Headland for the incredible vistas as this path delivers you to Tallebudgera Creek. Burleigh Hill, along the way, is the perfect spot come sunset. In the meantime, track back into Burleigh Heads for a nostalgic roast chook roll, hand cut chips and gravy, with an icy vanilla shake at Freddy’s Chicken Shop. Or after Tally, scoot into Palm Beach for a visit to the tiny-but-mighty Scott’s Luncheonette & Bar for a pét-nat and the signature Philly Cheesesteak sanga melt.
Afternoon to dinner - Soak away the afternoon + visit bar of the year
Spend an afternoon at Currumbin Ecovillage’s Ground Bathhouse beneath the fig tree soaking up magnesium-rich minerals or let the jets of the hydrotherapy pool free up any last kinks.
Across the road from Bujerum, Head to Burleigh Pavilion for sundowners and book a balcony table at The Tropic for dinner. Or visit the retro Paloma Wine Bar for cracking small plates and boutique drops. Prefer new-wave antipasto and pizza? Head to Coolangatta and groovy Bar Evelyn for more snacks and final drinks to toast the end of a beautiful three-day escape.
Where to Stay
CLASSICThe Darling, The Star, Broadbeach
For an upscale city-smart take on beach accommodation. This 17-storey tower have 57 suites within, a stunning rooftop restaurant and pool with dramatic views, a land bridge that connects to The Star Grand casino, with eateries. Guests can also access The Dorsett’s Isoletto Pool Club for cabana cocktails.
ROOFTOP OASIS
qtQT Cabins Gold Coast, Surfers Paradise
Your rooftop tiny home-from-home awaits your escape and yet still within strolling distance to the action. The recently made-over QT Gold Coast has six new cabins retreats, perfect for couples, each with a private deck and a temptingly equipped minbar.
CASUAL BEACH LIFESTYLE
Bujerum Apartments, Burleigh Heads
Book Bujerum Apartments for a romantic stay that’s a more low-key, smart-casual event. Pine-fringed ocean views from your deck, this compact walk-up complex sits directly across from Burleigh Beach and is on the doorstep of the Burleigh Heads dining and shopping hub.
DAY 1 - Explore Your Surrounds from Surfers Paradise
Wake up to breakfast - AM: Surfers Paradise - Beachside delightsHit the sand for an easy saunter into Surfers Paradise via the beach. Or if you’d prefer, book a bike and explore more of the 36-kilometre Gold Coast Oceanway. This series of paths and cycleways connects Coolangatta in the south with the Gold Coast Seaway in the north, providing ever-changing views. Try QT’s Bazaar for a blowout interactive buffet brekky. Head for Mermaid Beach to The Milkman’s Daughter if you’d prefer something lower key.
Mid-morning to lunch - Lunch and lazing by the pool - Soak up the sun at Main Beach
After breakfast, make your way to Main Beach. La Luna, a chic overwater enclave that sits off a pontoon at Marina Mirage. This is chill-out time before a late lunch. Slip across to alfresco MĀRE by La Luna for something sparkling and delicious seafood. For a lunch option with less sun on Fridays and Saturdays, try the Lucky Menu at Eddy + Wolff, a pocket-sized modern Asian restaurant hidden in plain sight at Robina.
Afternoon to dinner - Out and about + drinks and dinner
Climb on the Hopo Gold Coast Ferry at Marina Mirage for a scenic 27-minute trip to HOTA, Home of the Arts for their new blockbuster The Pop Masters: Art from the Mugrabi Collection, New York. It runs until 4 June 2023, between 10am-4pm daily. Drink in more views at The Exhibitionist, atop HOTA’s colourful building. As evening draws closer, head back to your accommodation to get ready for a plunge in The Spring poolside precinct, then pre-dinner drinks at neighbourhood tapas hole-in-the-wall, Cantina.
Dinner, head to under-the-radar Anekawa for big-flavoured Japanese dishes in the unlikely location of Mudgeeraba. For a more local twist hop to The North Room for low-fi wines and a native and local bounty centred set menu.
Day two - Make Your Way to the Naturally Stunning Hinterland
Morning: breakfast and beyond - Coast to Hinterland so much to discoverStart with breakfast at Palm Springs as you dig into a well-filled Cali breakfast burrito or sparklingly fresh Nourish bowl. If you prefer crisp-layered creamy patisserie, you can’t go past Bam Bam Bakehouse in Mermaid Beach.
Then, drive inland to Witches Falls in Tamborine National park. You’ll find several hikes here, including the Witches Falls Circuit.
Mid-morning to lunch - Spoiled for choice local produce + alfresco delights
Head to North Stores in North Tamborine, at Picnic Real Food Bar, you’ll lunch well with a glass of kombucha, or an Aussie low-intervention wine alongside. Afterwards, browse dreamy artworks together, check out Potta Studio’s ceramics and visit Kriket Broadhurst’s shop to see her delicate recycled sea glass and silver jewellery.
If you’re pining for the coast already, zip back for a cooling ocean dip and stroll to Currumbin’s Tommy’s Italian. Pre-book the banquette on the first-floor alfresco deck for a late lunch and the best vistas.
Afternoon to dinner - Craft beer on the mountain + the coast’s hottest eateries
If you stayed on the mountain, take a craft beer paddle at Mt Tamborine’s Fortitude Brewing Co. If gin’s more your thing, pre-book a 2.5-hour gin-making class at Cauldron Distillery.
Back on the coast, shop designer stores at Pacific Fair or Tugun’s boutique Cornerstone Stores. Or simply explore the ocean at Broadbeach, then dedicate the afternoon to cocktails at Isoletto Pool Club.
Whatever you decide, be sure to reserve a table for dinner at Labart, the Gold Coast’s top-rated eatery. Likewise, book early at hot-spot Vietnamese, Jimmy Wah’s.
Day Three - Head South To Relax On Your Final Day
Morning: breakfast and beyond - French-style breakfast with a swim to cool offEnjoy a final day beach swim at Burleigh Beach before heading to breakfast. French-inspired Tarte Bakery & Café accepts walk-ins only. The owner used to work at Paddock Bakery, which is still going strong and is another good breakfast option.
Mid-morning to lunch - Beautiful walks and plenty of lunch options
Stroll around Burleigh Headland for the incredible vistas as this path delivers you to Tallebudgera Creek. Burleigh Hill, along the way, is the perfect spot come sunset. In the meantime, track back into Burleigh Heads for a nostalgic roast chook roll, hand cut chips and gravy, with an icy vanilla shake at Freddy’s Chicken Shop. Or after Tally, scoot into Palm Beach for a visit to the tiny-but-mighty Scott’s Luncheonette & Bar for a pét-nat and the signature Philly Cheesesteak sanga melt.
Afternoon to dinner - Soak away the afternoon + visit bar of the year
Spend an afternoon at Currumbin Ecovillage’s Ground Bathhouse beneath the fig tree soaking up magnesium-rich minerals or let the jets of the hydrotherapy pool free up any last kinks.
Across the road from Bujerum, Head to Burleigh Pavilion for sundowners and book a balcony table at The Tropic for dinner. Or visit the retro Paloma Wine Bar for cracking small plates and boutique drops. Prefer new-wave antipasto and pizza? Head to Coolangatta and groovy Bar Evelyn for more snacks and final drinks to toast the end of a beautiful three-day escape.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY
Destination Gold Coast acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we are situated, the Kombumerri families of the Yugambeh Language Region.
We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging, and recognise their continuing connections to the lands, waters and their extended communities throughout Southeast Queensland.