The Melbourne winter of 2015 was one of the coldest in years. For us, coming from freezing and snowy Boston, did not think it was that bad. But, there were days you had to wear gloves, and that qualifies as cold Down Under.
Luckily, it is easy to escape the winter and enjoy warmer weather. On Australia’s Gold Coast, Brisbane is definitely worth visiting. Temperatures were close to 20°C, which was a very welcome change from Melbourne.
Brisbane
Brisbane is rather compact yet still lively. We started out in the CBD area and worked our way toward the busy waterfront, lined with restaurants. Take the free red water taxi for a spin on the Brisbane river or try your hand at rock climbing at the cliffs at Kangaroo Point. The highlight for us was South Bank Parklands, which is a man-made beach sporting great views of the city. Adjacent to the beach are numerous markets selling anything from clothing to bratwurst. Grab something from the surrounding shops and enjoy it picnic-style.
We finished the day by taking a free bus up Mount Coot-Tha for a great view over Brisbane during sunset.
Surfers Paradise
Since we wanted to explore the surrounding area as well, we headed for Surfers Paradise, located about two hours south of Brisbane. We arrived on the weekend of the Gold Coast Marathon, causing the waterfront to be very busy with a mix of runners and tourists. The upscale beach feels completely different from Brisbane. Grab and ice cream and people watch at the Pacific Boulevard or walk along the beautiful white sand beach. A great end of the two-day escape to warmer weather.
