The Gold Coast attracts thousands of visitors every year making it one of the best holiday destinations in Australia. 99% of those visitors don’t leave until they’ve visited at least one of the Gold Coast Theme Parks.
Are you like me and LOVE those Adrenalin rides? Perhaps you have kids and are looking for a place that you can keep them entertained? The Gold Coast Theme parks are definitely the right place to come.
There are lots of theme parks with lots to do. The aim of this article is to make sure you get the most from your visit.
Which theme park is right for you?
There are four main theme parks to choose from. You need to work out what you like and then pick the best ones that suit your needs.
The first is Sea World. Perfect for smaller children and anyone who likes Polar Bears, Whales and dolphins
Movie World. Whilst there are a few rides here, the focus is on action heroes, car stunts and well known cartoon characters.
DreamWorld. Hold onto your stomachs. This is the place for you if you are a thrill seeker. Home to all the big adrenalin rides.
Wet N Wild A classic water park with all the slides and flumes you can imagine.
There are two others
White Water World. The new kid on the block. This is another water park designed to take on Wet n Wild.
Outback Spectacular. A show and Aussie Barbeque depicting life in the Outback. Only open in the evenings.
If you are an adult or have teenage children then I’d go for Dream World and White Water World.
The other parks are better for younger families or anyone mad about movies or marine life.
Getting the Right Ticket
The parks are owned by two companies so you need to work out which parks you want to visit.
This means you can do White Water World and DreamWorld together or
Choose to visit Movie World, Sea World and Wet n Wild.
How much time do you want to spend at the parks? Do you want to have time to do other things in the Gold Coast? Be wise. Don’t think that you can do all 2 or all 3 parks in just one day. The shows, the queues and the fact that your group might all want to do different things make it quite impossible.
Before you even leave for your trip, book your tickets on line It will save you lots of time as there is no queuing when you get to the park entrance. You can just use the e-ticket express gates.
Below is a list of the types of tickets available:
Sea World, Wet n Wild, Movie World
Super pass. A 14 day pass that you can use at all 3 parks. Valid for a year. This is the best value for money if you think you’ll come back within the year. ($189 for adults; $129 for kids) (Kids are classed as being between 4-13 years old)
Fun Pass. Access to 3 parks over a 5 day period. It’s limited to only one visit per park. Good if you want to do all 3 parks but not over 3 consecutive days ($149 for adults; $95.95 for kids)
Escape Pass. Allow entry to 2 parks over 5 days (one day only per park) ($119 for adults; $75.95 for kids)
The other two – Dream World and White Water World
Two Day World Pass $102 for adults and $68 for kids
Two day Family and Friends World Pass (2 adults and 2 kids) $306
One Day World Pass $79 and $57 for kids
The parks are not all close together although Dreamworld and White Water World are pretty close. If you want to do more than one park, go for at least a 2 day pass. If you want to do 3 parks, go for a 3 day pass.
If you intend to go to Dream World, I’d strongly recommend getting the following ad ons to your ticket
Early Entry. To get into the park an hour earlier than the crowds, you will need to pay an additional $10. They usually have at least 2 of the big rides available but sometimes they have all 5. Well worth it to avoid those queues. As you would expect, tickets are strictly limited so book ahead.
Q4U. Whilst you will have to pay an extra $30 for a family of 4, this will be worth it. You get the freedom to walk around the park until it’s time for you to ride the ride. No standing in line getting bored and weary. You get a buzzer, a bit like the ones you get in a restaurant that tells you when your food is ready.
www.myfun.com.au is the best place to get tickets for Sea World, Movie World and Wet n Wild. Once you’ve booked, they are valid for up to one year. Go to www.dreamworld.com.au for the other two.
Getting to and from the parks
There are buses available that will take you to the parks so you don’t need to hire a car. Surfside Shuttle Buses offer the best service and they have brochures in most key places such as tourist offices, the airport and of course, on their buses.
Theme Parks Main Attractions
Don’t run out of time. Plan your trip carefully by looking at the online Theme Park Maps. Work out which of the attractions you really want to do and find out the times of the shows. That way, you are less likely to run out of time.
Sea World
There’s lots of animals to see and a few rides too. The “Not to Miss” items are
The Imagine Show at Dolphin Cove, The Polar Bear exhibition and the Water Ski Wipe Out Show.
Why not book one of the Animal Adventures. You can scuba dive with a shark or swim with a dolphin. Book well in advance for these.
The best rides here are probably the new Jet Rescue and the Corkscrew Roller Coaster. They both have height restrictions.
Movie World
Your favourite film characters will be wandering the streets so go look for them – Wonder Woman, Bat Man, Shrek and of course some Cartoon Characters
The big attractions are
Hollywood Stunt Driver where you can see car stunts and lots of action in this 20 minute show Shrek Adventure, which is a 3D Movie (you get to wear those silly glasses) and there’s a few other things that go on to liven your senses including chairs that move. For the younger kids Looney Tunes Musical is a must. It will have them bopping in the aisle and shakin their tale feather. (11.30am daily)
The two best rides are The Superman Escape – a classic roller coaster ride and The Batwing Space Shot – A rapid 4.5g vertical launch followed by a 60 meter tower drop….only for the brave!
Wet n Wild
The park isn’t too big so you adults can relax in the sun and still keep an eye on the kids. There’s plenty of flumes and slides.
Kamikaze – With speeds up to 50km/h this is a fast ride for 2 people.
Tornado – ride on a dingy like tube down a huge flume
Black Hole – it’s always more exciting in the dark
Mach 5 – lots of twists and turns in the open air
Dreamworld
The biggest and best adrenalin rides are
Cyclone is more of a classic roller coaster;
Claw is like a big ferris wheel whisking you upside down;
Wipe Out is the giant boat that tips you up and over and side to side;
Tower of Terror is a very fast roller coaster;
And Giant Drop is another vertical drop leaving your stomach far behind.
These rides are very popular so expect to queue for well over an hour. These are the rides you want to use your Q4U buzzer or rush to if you do the early entry.
There are other things to see here though. The more family friendly rides such as the Log Flume and Rapids are very popular. For the animal lover, there is Tiger Island where you get to see white and gold Bengal Sumatran Tigers.
Most kids like the Nickelodean Slime Time Live. Check it out if you have the time.
Don’t forget to bring your swimmers and have a go at the Flowrider. A machine that helps you surf. You’ll get a real feel for what it’s like to surf your own wave.
White Water World
This newcomer is as good if not better than Wet n Wild. There’s heaps of cool slides with something for all ages.
The Green Room is set to be one of the biggest attractions on the Gold Coast. A huge flume, towering 20m above the ground.
The Hydro Coaster will blast you 18m in your own rocket dinghy.
Cave of Waves is more like a swimming pool with a wave machine. So there’s no need to worry about rips or sand banks. Why not do a learn to surf lesson here. The lessons last 2 hours and are between 8 and 10am. Book ahead though as they only run 3 times a week and cost $115.
More Tips for getting the most from the Theme Parks
Take a packed lunch to save on expensive drinks and meals (permitted at all of the parks except Dream World and White Water World)
You can put your things in a locker but choose the right location so that you don’t have to retrace your steps too far.
Take your mobile phones if you intend to split up and meet back at certain times. Keep each other informed of queue times so that you aren’t leaving half your party waiting and wondering how long you are going to be.
There’s so much more to the Gold Coast than the Theme Parks. Make sure your holiday to the Gold Coast takes in some of the other attractions including the Hinterland (The Green behind the Gold.)
Tags: australia travel, entertainment, films, Gold Coast, recreation, theme parks, Travel, travel australia, travel destinations
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