Gold Coast Accommodation - Australia

The annual Gold Coast holiday has been an Australian institution for generations. The Gold Coast is Australia's favourite beach destination with a skyline of high rise resorts and self contained apartments that extend from Southport in the north all the way to Coolangatta on the NSW border.

It seems logical to assume that with so many properties to choose from, there will always be plenty of accommodation available and the need to book early is a myth perpetuated by the Gold Coast accommodation industry.

Assume that and you would very very wrong! A quick check shows that the accommodation actually available for casual bookings is only small part of the total.

- Upwards of 60% of the visible accommodation is occupied by permanent residents. Those apartments are never in any letting pool.

- Many apartments are pre-booked for the following season, especially by families who are locked into school holiday dates for their annual vacations.

- Blocks of apartments are committed to major tour group operators and travel wholesalers and are locked-out from casual bookings.

- Gold Coast event and festival organisers commonly place large block bookings for event participants, team members, sponsors and support organisations

So the reality is that at certain times of the year, it can be extremely difficult to find any casual Gold Coast accommodation at all. The most common reason why holidaymakers fail to find accommodation on the Gold Coast is that their enquiry was too late. This is especially the case for Surfers Paradise accommodation and the much sought after Broadbeach accommodation

High Season is the Xmas - New Year holiday period and dates vary between different Gold Coast locations and between different properties. The high season is usually shorter in the areas with lower demand and longer in the high demand areas. Dates are generally around the 20th Dec to 20th Jan. Book at least 4-5 months in advance for this season with some recommening even sooner for the larger family sized apartments in the very popular locations such as Broadbeach and Surfers Paradise.

Mid Season is the Easter long week end as well as the September - October school holidays. Some properties also include the June-July school holidays but that is no longer all that common. It is recommended that you ook at least 3-4 months in advance for this season. The Indy 300 Motor Race carnival in October is usually charged at mid-season rates on the northern end of the Gold Coast although some track-side properties charge premium rates.

Low Season is all other dates. While availability is usually not a problem at these times, bookings 60 days in advance is recommended. There are numerous festivals and events throughout the year that result in increased demand for lodgings. Special offers are usually only available during the low season and the most common money saving offer involves a free night on the basis of "stay 5 pay 4" or "stay 4 pay 3".

There are a small number of Gold Coast hotels in and around Surfers Paradise that offer the conventional hotel suite and on-site restaurant. However, the majority of Gold Coast holiday accommodation is self catering, fully self contained which means "home away from home" apartment style lodgings.

Guests need only bring their foodstuffs, clothing and personal effects. Everything else necessary for the vacation is included with the accommodation. The following inclusions are typical of fully self contained apartments although some variations may occur between different properties.

- Electric stove (range), oven, refrigerator and microwave
- All kitchen cookware, cutlery, crockery and glassware
- Tea and coffee making facilities
- Bedroom, bathroom and kitchen linen
- Laundry washer and dryer
- Clothes iron and ironing board
- Clothes hangers
- Brooms, dust pan and cleaning utensils
- Color TV and remote control
- Radio
- Hairdryer (from reception if not in apartment)

Servicing of apartments is usually done on a 7 or 10 day cycle with more frequent servicing available by arrangement with management for an extra cost.

Most properties are now air-conditioned. While some apartments have ducted air-con throughout the apartment, others only provide it to the lounge/dining area. There are still Gold Coast properties that have no air conditioning at all, but the numbers are dwindling. If air conditioning is essential for your comfort always read the published features carefully and ask questions at the time of making your enquiry.

The peak of summer heat on the Gold Coast occurs from early January to early March but fresh sea breezes, sliding patio doors and screened windows are usually all that is required to keep room temperatures at a comfortable level.

Most apartments now include DVD players and the hire of movies from the front desk. Nearly all properties now offer cable or satellite TV services, and an increasing number of properties are providing internet connections. Some provide connectivity in the guest apartment and others provide an internet kiosk facility.

All reception desks will offer guests a booking service for local tours, entertainment, car hire and airport transfers. This is a always a complementary service.

The accommodation properties do not provide airport transfer services, although there are a very small number of exceptions. Airport transfers to and from the Gold Coast airport at Coolangatta have the option of a taxi cab, limousine or mini bus shuttle service. Maxi taxis are available for larger families/small groups but need to be booked in advance. Always check with the accommodation provider at time of booking for their recommendations on the options available and likely costs.

Visitors traveling between Brisbane and the Gold Coast can board an AirTrain service in front of both the domestic and international airport terminals and arrive on the Gold Coast 1hr 15 min later. Taxi cabs can take you to your accommodation from the Gold Coast rail station.

If you are an independent traveler and plan to visit the whole of the Gold Coast and the beautiful hinterland areas, then you should seriously consider a Gold Coast car rental

If you are going to need airport transfers, bear in mind they are charged per person so Mum, Dad and a few kids can incur a hefty expense getting to and from the airport, especially if you are arriving at Brisbane.

That same money can go towards a rental car which means you are totally independent from the time you arrive at the airport. You have total control over your itinerary and travel where you want with your own timetable.

There are lots of discount accommodation websites and they provide a very valuable service that connects the price conscious buyer with the lowest cost accommodation, usually subject to short term time limitations. However, you can't use these sites to book your annual vacation 6 months in advance for dates at the peak of the high season and still get discounted rates. That is never going to happen.

In the majority of cases the discount "price above all else" buyer will be perfectly satisfied with the accommodation provided. However, there are some potential pitfalls that can trap the unwary buyer in this market.

Every property has units that are hard to sell such as ground floor or first floor units without views, or back of house units that overlook the adjoining property, or poorly maintained units where the owner has not spent any money. Yet the owners still expects a return on their investment but it is hard to sell those units to a public paying the full tariff. One solution is to market these units on the discount websites able to reach a wide audience.

The key thing for the discount buyer to understand is that heavily discounted apartments are, for whatever reason, unsold stock. For dates in low season, there is probably no limitation on the allocated apartment as there will be lots of empty apartments. But for dates in mid or high season it is quite possible you will be allocated a unit that is unsold for a reason. Low level floor, dated and worn furnishings and fittings, lack of maintenance, no air conditioning are all possible reasons why some units end up in the discount pool.

Guests paying full tariff always get the best apartments to encourage them to come back next year and to provide word of mouth referrals. A discount buyer is not going to be allocated a prime apartment if it means displacing a guest paying full tariff.

By all means continue to shop for the best bargains but do so with eyes wide open.