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During this time, it is hard to keep the website fully up to date with all the changes. In the meantime here are some resources for visitors. Our main booking partners for hotels and for tours, tickets, theme parks and activities are keeping everything up to date, so please use those resources in the meantime.
Travel Information for Queensland Visitors - Queensland Tourist Safety Information - regularly updated, official website.
COVID-19 FAQ's For Activities, Tours, Cruises & Theme Park Tickets - General Ticket & Pass FAQs and COVID-19 Travel Update.
Thank you for your understanding and patience at this really difficult time.
Best Time To Visit Gold Coast June or December
by Farah
(Singapore)
Which the best time to visit Gold Coast - June or December?
I'm from Singapore and keen to bring my 3 kids (4, 9 and 14 years old) to Goldcoast for the first time.
I want them to enjoy the Gold Coast theme parks and do some sightseeing in Australia.
We are planning to vist Australia during the Singapore school holidays either in June or November to December. We definitely need to avoid the hot weather in Australia.
Please advise us on the best time to visit Australia and also which other places to visit that is nearby to Gold Coast. For example is Cairns near the Gold Coast?
The Gold Coast is a great place to visit with children and they would definitely enjoy the Gold Coast theme parks. Your 14 year old will probably enjoy Movie World the most but I think they will all enjoy Sea World!
June is the beginning of our winter on the Gold Coast. It is not really cold, but will be cooler than Singapore at that time of the year. You will need warmer clothes to visit at this time of the year. If you select June, check out my suggestions for what to pack which also has suggestions for Gold Coast winter. It is very useful for you travelling from Singapore (and also great for Malaysians and other visitors from the northern hemisphere).
June is a great month to visit as we have Whale Watching at that time of the year. If you plan to go whale watching you will definitely need warm clothes for that one as it can get quite cold on the water.
I know you probably don't get such a long holiday in June, but it is a great month to visit when it is not too hot, but you can still enjoy lots of things in the Gold Coast. Try to avoid our own school holidays towards the end of June and early July.
November is our last Spring month and December our first Summer month. In terms of weather they are probably not too different from your Singapore weather in Summer but perhaps a little less humid.
If you visit the Gold Coast in November it is best to avoid schoolies week which is not the best time to come to Surfers Paradise with younger children. Schoolies are the Queensland school leavers celebrating the end of their school life and then tend to party! This mostly affects Surfers Paradise.
Early November can be nice weather and not too busy on the Gold Coast. December gets VERY busy at Christmas and through New Year. These are our main summer holidays running through to the end of January.
If you pick your time right (usually early to mid December) or early to mid November, you can enjoy a great time in Gold Coast without too many crowds. There won't be any whale watching, but you may enjoy the theme parks, water parks and other activities. You may find the weather quite warm, but it might be nice for you, as at that time of the year it will be a bit cooler in Singapore.
As for visiting Cairns it is a fantastic place to visit with plenty to do up there such as rainforests, beaches, Great Barrier Reef etc. It is NOT close to Gold Coast, so you would need to add it into your itinerary as a seperate place to stay - definitely NOT a day trip!
Personally, I prefer staying in Port Douglas (1 hour drive north of Cairns) because it is a nicer more village like atmosphere, but we hire a car and drive to Cairns regularly to do things.
Cairns is a two hour plane ride further north in Queensland from Brisbane/Gold Coast – so it is not near to the Gold Coast. The weather up there is a bit different to ours, it is tropical and so warmer and more humid.
In the summer months in northern Queensland you have to be aware of marine stingers at the beaches etc, so we usually go in the cooler months June, July and August when that is not a problem.
When our youngest daughter was only 7, we visited Cairns and Port Douglas in June/July. She swam in the very warm 24°C water when we were at the reef and she HATES the cold!
If you want places nearby to Gold Coast you can go to Byron Bay (2 hours drive south), Brisbane – Capitol city of Queensland (1 hour drive north), Sunshine Coast – Beaches, Australia Zoo etc 2½ to 3 hours drive north of Gold Coast. Here are some tours from Gold Coast that you might find give you ideas and a bit more perspective on the things you can do.
I know it is confusing with so many choices, however if you have any more questions you can always contact me directly.
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