Okay Gold Coasters, here’s the chance for you to express yourself and we’re not referring to the Madonna banger. In case you haven’t heard the word on the street, a little Beach Club trial has been underway in downtown Broadbeach that could add a whole new genre of entertainment to the Coast’s ever-growing list of attractions and activities.

We’re not just talking food. Or beverages. Or live entertainment. Or even the beach (and yes, this pretty much rounds up our fave things here at Inside GC). Oh no friends, we’re talking ALL of the above rolled into one. Yup, you picked it, we’re referring to the Kurrawa Beach Club and more specifically, the suitability for this concept to be rolled out at some of our fave local beachy haunts.

As there has been a lot of interest about the possibility of beach clubs, City of Gold Coast selected hospitality group Australian Venue Co. to host the GC beach club trial over summer. Its intentions were twofold; firstly to explore how the concept sits with us Coasty folk, and secondly, to boost our City’s visitor economy and support local employment.

Being an eternal crowd pleaser and boasting a central location, our beloved Kurrawa Beach was ‘the chosen one’, with a temporary beach club erected for locals, visitors and tourists wanting to try the idea on for size.

Now that the trial has finished, the time has come to cast your vote…which sounds a little like we’re about to decide the fate of a Big Brother housemate. So, if you want to see the beach club again for more fun times or maybe it just didn’t tickle your fancy at all, either way, your thoughts matter, so follow this link to share yours before Sunday 20^th March 2022: https://survey.ysquares.com.au/ys/211138A

You never know, your feedback might be the deciding factor on whether beach clubs become the new ‘thing’ here in our own backyard or not.

Words by Bianca Trathen

City of Gold Coast is pulling out all the free entertainment stops, and we’re Here.For.It! With two epic activations you need to put in your calendar stat, this confirms what we already knew – that we live in THE best place in Australia. But let’s not be coy because when we say Australia, we really mean the whole wide world.

CBD Sundown: Twilight Markets
No we’re not referring to really good looking vampires, we mean actual twilight – as in the soft, glowing light right before sunset. Just add a CBD location (Southport) and markets, complete with unique finds, delicious vegan eats and live entertainment, and it’s a winner winner (vegan) chicken dinner.

May’s CBD Sundown: Twilight Markets are penned for Friday 27^th and this is your opportunity for a nosh up with the freshest and best vegan chook, beef and bacon courtesy of Queensland Vegan Markets. The perfect event for those wanting to give cruelty-free food a crack and learn the A to Z of veganism, whilst snapping up a bargain at a suitcase rummage. If you’ve not experienced this phenomenon, vendors bring a suitcase (or two) stuffed to the brim with treats and treasures. Selling all the things from vibrant vintage, artwork, bric-a-brac, clothing, books and jewellery to hand-made goods, shoes, records, cards and more, you may need a suitcase of your own to cart all your finds back to the car/the G. Think of it as a line-up of suitcase-sized op shops, and get ready to pop some serious tags #ImmaTakeYourGrandpasStyle. You can even bring your pooch!

So go and immerse yourself in the surprise and delight of creative pop-ups, live art, musicians, performers and local food and bars showcasing their talents. And we just gotta say, we love that culture is the GC’s new middle name! Find out more about the event here.
Where: 3 – 36 Nerang Street, Southport
When: 5pm to 9pm Friday 27^th May (and last Friday of each month)

City of Gold Coast’s Monster Machinery Day
Calling all families on the hunt for something wheely great to entertain the ankle biters. Not only will the littlies have truckloads of fun, they’ll also be really tyre-d afterwards and isn’t that always the end goal? City of Gold Coast’s free Monster Machinery Day is back on Sunday 29^th May at Broadwater Parklands and as a motor of fact, the big kids will love it just as much!

Now in its 18th year and supported by 102.9 Hot Tomato, this family friendly affair continues to be one of the Coast’s most popular annual events. In addition to giving the mini-me’s a truly memorable experience getting up close and personal with everything that digs, scoops, cleans and beeps, it also allows locals to see the fleet of machinery transforming and maintaining our city.

Inviting all attendees, big and small, to imagine themselves as a landscaper, lifeguard (sans Baywatch style slow-mo rescue run), beach cleaner, construction worker or dune protector, it’s tow-riffic fun. There are over 40 city vehicles on display, including excavators, tip trucks, road sweepers, beach tractors and even a flood boat, and literally every kid just spontaneously combusted with excitement.

There’s also a lot of free activities on offer, like live machinery demonstrations, a Hot Wheels display, a sustainability workshop, and the eternal kid crowd pleaser; a giant sand pit. Your all-time fave trucks – food trucks – will be there cooking up a storm to give you and your little diggers energy all day long. So gear up folks because it’s set to be one helluva ride!

Where: Broadwater Parklands Southern Lawn, Marine Parade, Southport
When: 9am to 3pm Sunday 29^th May

Words by Bianca Trathen

SPONSORED BY CITY OF GOLD COAST

Somebody once said that everything is more fun when the sun sets. Okay nobody officially said those exact words but whatever, it’s totally true and we love coining new phrases. We also love helping our beautiful city show off its assets and step it up a notch in the arts, culture and entertainment space because when these three things are mulled together, it’s a recipe for something truly spesh. We’re clearly vibing with City of Gold Coast on this as these prolific forward-thinkers have launched the experience-rich CDB Sundown activation series. If you haven’t heard, it’s a new event concept showcasing our CBD (Southport) live music venues and forgotten spaces where folk from near and far can immerse themselves in creative pop-ups, live art, musicians, performers and local food and bars. Held on the last Friday of the month (weather permitting of course), this is a game-changing initiative and in case you hadn’t picked it, we’re in fist-pump mode.

Here’s a little snapshot of what you can expect over the coming few weeks… 

CBD Sundown: Laneway Cabaret
Okay so it’s had a couple of false starts (cheers weather gods – nawt), but third time’s a charm and next Friday night 29^th April, Laneway Cabaret is coming in hawt. Speaking of, who doesn’t get a little bit heated at the mere mention of a cabaret coz even the family friendly variety (like this one) offer all kinds of awe-inspiring awesomeness. With aerialists, acrobatics, juggling, roving performers and local DJ’s, what’s not to love and yes, this is a rhetorical question.

With three different cabaret show times to choose from at 6:20pm, 7:20pm and 8:20pm, heck why not go to all of them because once again, third times a charm!

For more info, search CBD Sundown: Laneway Cabaret on Facebook.

CBD Sundown: Twilight Markets
Twilight. Markets. Name a better duo. We’ll wait.

CBD Sundown’s Twilight Markets scheduled for Friday 27^th May will be extra, well, extra, because Queensland Vegan Markets will be on deck bringing in a drool-worthy variety of vegan chow and cruelty-free shopping. Also making a very welcome appearance will be @ishouldcocoicecream, serving up Soft Serve Ice Cream in a cone with Biscoff Spread and Biscoff Sauce (worth every last calorie). #sorrynotsorry

@grassfedplantbased will also be on standby with Loaded Curly Fries with a mix of vEEF (vegetarian beef for those playing along), chick’en, vegetarian bacon and vegan cheese topped with aioli, sriracha aioli and BBQ sauce and again we repeat, worth the calories. Wash it all down with a refreshing iced tea from @icedteaco, and grab a cupcake or 10 from @pippas.pantry for the road.

There’ll also be live music, entertainment, and op-shoppers listen up because there’s a cracker of a suitcase rummage for you to hunt for clothing, books, bric-a-brac, artwork…the list goes on. If you’ve recently done some spring cleaning and would like to sell your own wares, book your space at suitcaserummage.com.au/queensland

Plus, the best part potentially… doggos are welcome! So, BYO pooch!

There is also a CBD Sundown event planned for Friday 24^th June; so watch this space because we’ll fill you in on all the need-to-know deets when they arise!

Entry to CBD Sundown events is completely free so you’ll have moolah come 9pm to explore the CBD’s fave watering holes and eats joints, like Mr PP’s Deli & Rooftop Bar, Vinnie’s Dive Bar, Last Night on Earth, Hello K-Pop Karaoke, Cecil Hotel, CBD Live and Pacific Hotel. Cheers to that! Also, getting there is a cinch as you can catch the G:Link every 15 minutes to Southport Station.

So what are you waiting for? Call in your clan and block off Friday nights because us GC folk love a good homegrown event, and the CBD Sundown activations are what our multi-faceted city is all about.

CBD Sundown: Laneway Cabaret | Where: 15 Regent Lane, Southport
When: 6pm to 9pm, Friday 29th April

CBD Sundown: Twilight Markets | Where: 3 – 36 Nerang Street, Southport
When: 5pm – 9pm Friday 27th May

Words by Bianca Trathen.

STORY SPONSORED BY CITY OF GOLD COAST