I should have been to this place loooonnggg time ago. But just until 2014 that I got to do so. Well, better late than never.
It was our summer vacation in the land down under. We took a very early morning flight to Coolangatta Airport, and arrived in the afternoon. After immigration and custom clearance (my first experience with an adorable airport dog), we called East Coast Rentals to pick us up from the airport. The staff then came and picked us up, and took us to the Tugun branch (only 10 minutes away from the airport). We rented two Nissan Almeras (pre-booked) to accommodate all 10 of us.
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| Touched down! |
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| Driving license please. |
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| Our ride for a week. |
Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary
Before we head to city, we first stopped at Currumbin Wildelife Sanctuary (CWS). It's located not that far from the airport. So why not we meet the kangaroos first. We bought our ticket from Experience Oz (most of other tickets on this trip were bought from here too). We know CWS after watching one of the Running Man episode, where the shooting took place in Australia. Too bad, what we imagine it would be was nothing like in the Running Man episode. Most of the sections were closed for renovation. We got to see kangaroos, but just in a small area, where most of the kangaroos we overfed and sleepy.
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| I was using Boba carrier to carry my baby. Getting the inspiration after holding a koala. |
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| He didn't move a bit. |
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| Making new friend. |
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| Train ride. |
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| Sheep shearing show. |
On my last visit to Australia, I didn't get to pet a koala. Don't want to miss it this time. Koala is a super adorable creature! Holding a koala is just like holding a baby, but quiet and even less movement.
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| Shy creature. |
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| A moment after a jakun-moment of petting a koala. |
The are also many shows in CWS, like sheep shearing show, free flight bird show, lorikeet feeding session and many more. We were too tired already since we haven't get any solid rest (straight from airport to here), so we skipped few of them.
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| The big one has ran out of battery. While the small one just woke up and hungry. |
Sandcastles on the Broadwater
After having our late lunch in CWS, we drove to the city and straight to Sandcastles on the Broadwater. We booked a 3-bedroom apartment from Expedia (they had the best room rates at that moment). The unit is spacious. They even have an outside jacuzzi at the balcony. Perfect for the kids to having a splash on a hot day.
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| To the basement car park. They provided 2 parking spaces along with the 3-bedroom apartment. |
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| The view from the master bedroom's balcony upstairs. And why the sky is so blue in Australia? Aahhh.. |
After checked in, we went to Coles nearby (very close and so convinient!). We stocked up some basic groceries to be used and cooked during our stay. There's also halal butcher store, unfortunately it's closed. So no meat for the night.
After dinner, we went out to Surfers Paradise to see around the place. It's 15 minutes drive from the apartment. We shopped a little souvenir and spent the night strolling until most of the stores were closed. We went back to the apartment to rest and recharge, ready for tomorrow's big day!
Tips and tricks:
1. Dairy, meat and poultry products are strictly not allowed to enter Australia. If you have to bring it (like formula milk for children), or any other food products and medicines, kindly declare those things upon arrival.
2. Summer in Gold Coast is kinda hot. So just bring and wear normal clothes like in Malaysia.
3. Buy tickets to theme park/attraction in advance. Grab the best deal online and skip the queue at the entrance. Seriously, I rarely buy ticket at the park entrance. Everything is a click away now.
4. There are a lot more options for stay (hotel/apartment/suite) in Surfers Paradise. The nearer the better. If you don't have your own transport, staying at Surfers Paradise is a better option.
5. Prepaid data plan is rather cheap here in Australia. To have at least one in every small group (say, per couple), is convenient to everyone else and benefiting the whole trip. With data plan, the sky is the limit. Imagine Waze/Google/maps, this can definitely save you a lot of time. Losing pax in your group? They are only a WhatsApp away.
Next post >> Gold Coast: Warner Bros. Movie World (Part 2)
Tips and tricks:
1. Dairy, meat and poultry products are strictly not allowed to enter Australia. If you have to bring it (like formula milk for children), or any other food products and medicines, kindly declare those things upon arrival.
2. Summer in Gold Coast is kinda hot. So just bring and wear normal clothes like in Malaysia.
3. Buy tickets to theme park/attraction in advance. Grab the best deal online and skip the queue at the entrance. Seriously, I rarely buy ticket at the park entrance. Everything is a click away now.
4. There are a lot more options for stay (hotel/apartment/suite) in Surfers Paradise. The nearer the better. If you don't have your own transport, staying at Surfers Paradise is a better option.
5. Prepaid data plan is rather cheap here in Australia. To have at least one in every small group (say, per couple), is convenient to everyone else and benefiting the whole trip. With data plan, the sky is the limit. Imagine Waze/Google/maps, this can definitely save you a lot of time. Losing pax in your group? They are only a WhatsApp away.
Next post >> Gold Coast: Warner Bros. Movie World (Part 2)
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