When the weather doesn't want to play nice.
When the weather doesn't want to play nice.
The Gold Coast is renowned for sunny weather, but it is also home to some pretty impressive thunderstorms and humidity! To avoid any bad weather frustrations here’s a list of 13 things to do on the Gold Coast when it’s raining.
Arcades
This one is a no-brainer, Timezone has been on the Gold Coast since… forever and is the perfect activity for when you can’t be at the beach. The recently refurbished Timezone Surfers Paradise boasts a bumper car track on a 200 sqm track, an open plan prize shop filled with enticing toys, lollies and collectibles, a laser tag arena to get your adrenaline pumping, an onsite café. Oh and don’t forget Zone Bowling right next door!
The ultimate triple threat, Hijinx Hotel, Archie Brothers and Holey Moley in Surfers offer the perfect opportunity to while away a rainy day. With immersive game rooms, all your fave arcade games, bumper cars and mini golf, this epic entertainment precinct is a game-changer for fun-seekers Located under the supremely popular Cali Beach, Surfers Paradise. Click here for your discounted Archie Bros fun bundle.
Where: Paradise Centre, 2 Cavill Avenue, Surfers Paradise and 3197 Surfer Paradise Blvd, Elkhorn & Surfers Paradise Boulevard, Surfers Paradise
Infinity Attraction
Infinity Attraction in Surfers Paradise is a crowd pleaser, a super fun activity to do with your friends! Infinity’s maze is both challenging and mind blowing. It’s an extraordinary series of 20 multi- sensory environments filled with unique special effects, emotive atmospheric sound fields, sensuous aromas, ultra-groovy music and spectacular illusions that appear to go all the way to infinity! Get 10% off entry with our coupon code (“infoinsidegc”) here.
Where: Shop 31, Chevron Renaissance, Surfers Paradise Blvd, Surfers Paradise
Go see a Cabaret show
Dracula’s, The Pink Flamingo and Australian Outback Spectacular all offer nights of total entertainment! Drac’s combines burlesque, contemporary music, comedy and dining, all in one incredible venue! But be aware, Drac’s is MA15+ show, so leave the kids at home and get ready to be entertained! 10% off the Dracula’s show here. Pink Flamingo welcomes hundreds of guests each week and is home to three resident productions; Zirque La La, Ripped and Forbidden. Get your 20% off discount code here. The Australian Outback Spectacular is a family friendly Australiana dinner and show package featuring many Australian animals, songs and of course bush tucker.
Where: Dracula’s, Hooker Blvd, Broadbeach, The Pink Flamingo, Corner of 88 Surf Parade & Victoria Ave, Broadbeach and Australian Outback Spectacular, Pacific Motorway, Oxenford
The Star Gold Coast
The Star Gold Coast is an adult’s playground and the perfect entertainment destination for those bad weather days. You can have a feast at one of the award-winning restaurants, watch a show or concert at the theatre or just see and be seen with your friends.
Where: The Star Gold Coast, Casino Drive, Broadbeach
Miami Marketta
Every Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 5pm onwards you can be part of Miami Marketta’s food stall craze. Mouthwatering food stalls, shopping and live music all in one spot and all undercover. It’s the perfect rainy-day date-night spot.
Where: 23 Hillcret Parade, Miami
Shooting
Southport Indoor Pistol Club is a good time if you’re keen to experience real firearms and ammo without needing licenses or previous experience. They offer rifles, pistols, shotguns to tactical weapons, from small to very large, the hardest thing you have to do is pick one! Click here for their latest discounted offer.
Where: Southport Indoor Pistol Club, 1/76 Ferry Road, Southport
Catch a movie
Keen to channel your inner movie buff and check out the latest blockbuster flicks? Perhaps you’re arty and prefer international films from arthouse and foreign productions? Or, maybe you just want to take the kids somewhere where they’ll actually sit still for a couple of hours these school holidays? All roads lead to one destination… and that’s the Dendy Cinema in Southport’s Queen Street Village. Click here to grab your 20% discount on tickets.
Where: Queen Street Village, Nerang Street, Southport
Ripley’s Believe it or not!
Believe it or not, but Ripley’s is a great indoor attraction for you, your family and yes, even your friends. It’s a museum full of odd, unique and incredible artefacts, art, photographs and stories of the 200+ countries Mr Ripley has visited over the years. They’ve just added several new attractions, read about them here. Click here for an exclusive offer.
Where: Cavill Mall, Surfers Paradise
The Wax Museum
The Wax Museum is one of the longest-standing attractions on the Gold Coast. Head in for a guided tour and discover some of the more gruesome torture methods that were used in ancient times. Or prepare to be starstruck, get up close and personal with some of Hollywood’s biggest names or grab a photo with royalty. For 10% off entry, click here.
Where: 56 Ferny Avenue, Surfers Paradise
Shopping
Rain = the perfect excuse to go shopping undercover. The Gold Coast is a haven for indoor shopping centres, so if you’re in Broadbeach hit up Pacific Fair Shopping Centre or The Oasis Shopping Centre, if you’re in Surfers Paradise, the Paradise Centre or Australia Fair Shopping Centre in Southport.
Escape Rooms
Get a group of friends together, ditch the mobile phones for an hour and go have some fun! Choose from Escape Hunt in Southport or Fox in a Box, Eclipse Escape Rooms and Padlock’d in Surfers Paradise. Note that you will have to use your brain. 60 minutes to use the clues provided to solve the puzzles and escape! Click here for discounts. The newly opened Other World HQ in Surfers provides an unparalleled and thrilling escapade. The first experience introduced is Saboteurs, which invites individuals into the real-life world of “Among Us.” Not technically an Escape Room, but if you’ve got some rage to unleash try Rage Cage in Southport. Click here for a discount.
Where: Southport and Surfers Paradise
Go Karting
Slideways Go Karting Centre in Nerang is Go Karting is just 10 minutes from Surfers Paradise is a uniquely designed track and surface to allow karts to drift and get Slideways! Their go kart track is indoors and not affected by the weather – open rain hail or shine! They have 20 European state-of-the-art Sodi karts, powered by de-governed, 9hp, four stroke Honda kart engines, which means it will take some skill to achieve a good lap. Get 20% off a 20 minute session here.
Where: 10 Spencer Road, Nerang
Head to a day spa
Sometimes a little self-love is needed, particularly when it’s raining and you want to be all cosied up inside. A day at the spa sounds like heaven to us, check out our list of faves here.
Words by Kirra Smith.
Us Gold Coasters can find ourselves a little, well, lost when the rain falls and the mercury drops below 25.4 degrees. Occasionally the whole “beautiful one day, perfect the next” theory can exit stage left (for like, 4 days per year…or 304 days per year if it’s 2023). When you find yourself looking to fill your to-do list, we have some feel-good rainy day activities coming your way!
We’ve done the hard yards and compiled a list of failsafe ideas to keep you dry, entertained and smiling when you’re missing that natural vitamin D and reaching for your brolly. These activities prove that the drizzly days on the GC can be just as fun as the sunny days!
Eat your weight in pasta
If the cooler weather makes us want to do one thing, it’s eat pasta. And lots of it. So if you can’t be stuffed DYI-ing (us), head out to one of our many local Italian nosheries for some epic pasta pigouts! We’re dreaming of marinaras and carbonaras, but you can see our full list of soul-satisfying Gold Coast pastas here.
Eat your way through chocolate desserts
Ok so we’re still on the topic of eating but at the risk of sounding food-obsessed (we plead guilty), come on – who doesn’t love themselves a comforting choccy dessert on a wet wintery day and/or night. Whether it’s a slab of morish mud cake, choc dipped churros, or a decadent chocolate éclair, find your death by chocolate experience here.
Catch up with friends at a watering hole
Okay so this is something we’re partial to irrespective of what the weather’s doing, but on a rainy day or night, there’s added appeal to bunkering down in a bar with your mates. Whether you’re channeling a shiraz, pint of Guinness or a mojito so you can pretend it’s summer, hit up top spots to sink a brew or a grab a drink.
Snuggle by the fire
Nawww, does this not make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Possibly not if you’re single or phyrophobic, but we digress, because we’re not talking significant others or raging bushfires, we’re referring to the many cozy GC restaurants boasting a homely fireplace ambience. Find them here.
Get your soak and float on
Are your muscles and joints giving you grief in this rainy weather? At the risk of sounding like a bunch of middle-aged whining Karen’s, is it just us, or do your joints and muscles seem to cease up and ache way more when the temperature drops and the rain sets in? Cause same! And we think we have to treat ourselves to a little R&R to give you back that pep in your step! Check out a wellness centre or be pampered at a spa – either way, we are in!
Visit a winery
Look, wineries, like watering holes, speak to us all year round, but a drive (or Uber…) out to one of our beautiful local grape farms for a feed and a tipple is the perfect way to spend a rainy day. We’re feeling reds and moscatos to wash down a mouth-watering lunch infused with local ingredients. Don’t know where to go? Call off the search, because we have your one-stop-shop to wineries here.
Get creative
Fancy yourself as a bit of an artist? Why not explore your arty-farty side and what better time of year to do it! Whether you’re into sculpting, pottery, photography, drawing, jewellery making, painting, painting whilst wining (ding ding!), or gallery hopping, you can do all that and more in your own backyard. Check out your list of paint & sip classes here.
Make a charcuterie board and chill out with your friends
You had us and cheese, deli meats and antipasto. And look, basically anything that appears on a charcuterie board belongs in our stomachs. The rain makes it seem totally acceptable to indulge in such guilty pleasures so why not call in your squad and a make day of it.
Try a new workout class
With all this talk of chocolate, cheese, watering holes and wine, we’re thinking it’s wise to add a new workout class to your rainy-day must-try list. There are plenty of places to get your deep burn on, and donning your activewear is still entirely acceptable when it’s a bit frosty (bonus – excuse to buy that LSKD sweater you’ve been eyeing off).
Words by Bianca Trathen
