Queensland Coast - Travel Feature

The Queensland Coast stretches from the NSW/Qld border at Coolangatta/Tweed Heads, through the Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Fraser Coast and blends into Far North Queensland at Mackay, north of Rockhampton.

The Gold Coast is 100km from the state's capital city, Brisbane. Famous for its fabulous beaches, the Gold Coast enjoys nearly 70km of uninterrupted shoreline and has long been a popular holiday spot. Just offshore is Stradbroke Island and its unspoilt, tranquil beaches set amongst rainforest and banksia areas.

Surfers Paradise is the heart of the Gold Coast with its high-rise luxury resorts and apartments, restaurants, shops, malls and entertainment. However, the lesser known hinterland is a magical world of tropical rainforests, mountain villages and national parks such as the magnificent Lamington Park.

Further north towards Caloundra is the Sunshine Coast area. Again, more sunny days, white sandy beaches, untouched rainforest, national parks and peaceful lakes and mountain towns. The coastal strip includes Caloundra, Maroochydore, Coolum and Noosa. While inland there's historic homesteads, fine wines and cuisine. The Blackall ranges, Bunya Mountains and Cooloola National Park and Glass House Mountains are all magnificent.

Those with a 4WD with adore the run up the Tewantin Beach from Noosa to Rainbow Beach through the Great Sandy National Park and onto famous World Heritage listed Fraser Island from Inskip Point via a vehicular barge.

The alternative is to take the Pacific Highway through Gympie onto Hervey Bay where tours and 4WD rentals will enable you to access Fraser Island from River Heads. Or you can pick up Highway 17, the scenic alternative route which links Ipswich to Rockhampton via rural communities and excellent attractions such as Cania Gorge near Monto.

To help you explore this region, ExplorOz has a dedicated Trek Note Section for the QLD Coast, including Treks for the Conondale Range, Cooloola Coast, Cooloola Way, Fraser Island & Moreton Island.

We also stock a range of products in the Online Shop that will help you get the most out of your travels in this region:

Maps

Guidebooks

DVD's and Fishing