Gold Coast's newest hotels

It's a great time to travel inside Australia, with may new and exciting hotels opening. Enjoy the thrill of freshly decorated rooms in the latest fashions, discovering new dining expereinces and world-class facilities. If you like the new stuff here are the two latest editions to the beautiful holiday spot the Gold Coast in south east Queensland.

                       

Sea Temple, Surfers Paradise

Sea Temple  located in Surfers Paradise opened its doors late last year with 50 self contained beach view apartments. Each room is designed with floor-ceiling windows to admire the views and provide natural light. The rooms also feature large balconies, perfect for outdoor living. Spend your mornings reading the paper upon the day bed and sitting down for lazy breakfast at the outdoor dining setting.

Sea Temple, Surfers Paradise

The hotel has a number of facilities to keep your days busy from an outdoor pool, barbeque area, gymnasium, spa, sauna and steam room. With 1, 2 and 3 bedroom apartments available Sea Temple offers stylish accommodation in a great location. 

Sea Temple, Pool

Hilton Surfers Paradise

The Hilton Surfers Paradise  is located in the heart of Surfers Paradise. The hotel opened in November 2011 and offers 1, 2 and 3 bedroom fully contained holiday apartments. Each room is luxurious, modern and spacious, offering all you would need for a business or leisure stay.

Hilton Surfers Paradise

There is a range of restaurant and bars available for guests including the impressive Salt Grill restaurant by celebrity chef Chef Luke Mangan. Spend lazy days making the most of the hotel's facilities; four pools, sauna, outdoor podium, private pavilion and terrace. 

One Bedroom Apartment

Location, Location, Location

The Gold Coast is full of fun and adventurous attractions as it is home to many theme parks. The beachside suburbs each offer their own attractions with fantastic shopping and dining available in Broadbeach, Main Beach and Surfers Paradise. 

Our Staff share their favourite Australian Holiday Experience

The staff at Sunlover Holidays have travelled extensively around Australia and are full of travel ideas, making them the perfect people to share with us their 'favourite Aussie holiday experience'.

Monique from Reservations

“Tangalooma Island Resort is one of my favourite ‘best kept secrets’!  Each time I go there I’m always amazed that this piece of paradise is just off the coast of Brisbane. I always feel as though I am in the Whitsundays!  Crystal clear water and perfect white sand. A unique highlight is the nightly feeding of the wild dolphins!”



Tangalooma Island Resort, Moreton Island via Brisbane 



Daniel from Sales

“I love Byron Bay in Northern NSW. It offers an eclectic blend of beach culture, rural farming, with the modern conveniences found in a thriving town. The people are the binding element to this area, from the characters you will meet at the Byron farmers market to the international visitors that are drawn here from all over the globe. Just in case you have not been tempted enough, the sheer natural beauty of Byron’s coastline and beaches will leave you feeling refreshed, inspired and wanting a taste for more.”

Lourdes from Sales Support

“My favourite holiday experience was Tasmania; Cradle Mountain in particularly, the place was simply out of this world, totally in tune with nature, the accommodation, the animals and just the general ambiance fantastic!”

Cradle Mountain - Tasmania



Breeze from Reservations

“The Whitsundays is my favourite holiday spot. From the pristine white sand that covers Whitehaven beach to one of the 74 magical islands, they all offer a different adventure to be had or a hammock to laze away your days.”

Whitehaven Beach

Julie from Sales

“I love Sydney! It is such a beautiful place to visit with so much on offer. Whether it be festivals, markets, shopping, dining or touring activities. You can either do as much or as little as you like. Did I mention the choice of accommodation options? Where do you begin? From budget to 5 star the choice is yours.”



Sydney City



Brooke from Reservations

“My favourite holiday experience in Australia would have to be Port Douglas. Not too big, not too small, great mix of fine dining and casual eating experiences. Four Mile Beach, backed by the beautiful Daintree Rainforest, is one of the jewels in Australia’s sandy crown! The Great Barrier Reef with its amazing marine life, pristine Cape Tribulation and the farmlands of the Atherton Tablelands are easy day trips from Port Douglas, all must-sees when you are in Topical North Queensland.”

Port Douglas

Hannah from Sales

“Last weekend I travelled to Broome which was incredible; the highlight being the day tour with Kimberley Wild, up the coast of Cape Leveque – stunning colours of the beache, red earth, white sand and blue skies of course! A must do for anyone travelling to Broome. Cable Beach Resort is excellent with fantastic facilities and I must say sipping cocktails watching that famous sunset was hardly tough work on a Saturday evening!”

Kimberly Wild Tour - Cape Leveque

Roylene from Reservations

"My favourite holiday destination in Australia is Palm Cove – no particular hotel, just the whole township. As soon as I drive in, along the Esplanade, I automatically feel like I’m on holidays and feel relaxed. The sea air, the relaxed feeling of the locals, the fact that it’s Australia’s Day Spa capital :) it just feels like holidays! The fact that it is so close to Cairns to restaurants and nightlife and also easily accessible to all day tours that operates in the fantastic Tropical North Queensland makes it the ideal holiday destination for me!"

15 Tips for travelling with kids

Travelling with your children can be a tonne of fun, but also hard at times. So to help you be as prepared as possible for your next family getaway, here are a 15 tips to make the trip much easier for you and more entertaining for them!

1. When you are choosing accommodation, consider staying in self-contained apartments or villas. This allows you to cook meals rather than pay for expensive takeaway, wash clothes and close bedrooms doors during nap times. It will feel like a home away from home.

2. Be prepared for the possibility your children may suffer from motion sickness. Frequent rest stops, watching the road meet the horizon and lots of air circulation in the car will help reduce the risk.

3. Pack small play equipment items like a frisbee, skipping rope or football to play on the grass with during a rest stop to keep the kids entertained.

4. Be prepared for accidents or illness and pack a medical kit containing basic items such as pain killers, bandaids, oral rehydration preparation, antiseptic and anti-itching lotion.

5. Keep a change of clothes for each child for the trip. Depending on the season, you might also want to take hats or something warm to put on. 

6. On the plane, try feeding your children during take off and landing. The swallowing and chewing helps to reduce any pressure build-up that causes discomfort in your child’s ears.

7. Reduce the mischief in the backseat with a game of ‘ABC’. The first child starts off with “I went to the market and bought an apple”, the second then has to name a product from the market beginning with the letter B, and so forth. Whoever says the last word wins!

8. Portable DVD players or iPads are also a great entertainment option – just remember to charge the battery before you leave home!

9. ‘Draw it’ is a great way to pass the time away during your travels. One person is the ‘drawer’ and has to think of something and draw it within 30 seconds. Then, the others have to guess what it is. The first one to guess correctly wins and gets to be the drawer next round.

10.  Children today are very technologically savvy. So why not let them use a disposable camera or your camera if it’s not too valuable, to take photos of the trip through their eyes. It can be like their personal holiday diary.

11.  Have fun with a game of ‘Monsters’. Fold the paper into six sections. The first begins the drawing the monster’s head then folds the paper over so you can’t see what has been drawn. The second person draws the monsters shoulders, the third the chest/arms and so on. The fun part is seeing how the monster looks when the paper is unfolded!

12.  Play the guessing game, for example, ‘I'm thinking of an animal that’s thin, slimy and slithers’. 

13. The kids will be excited about the holiday, so to avoid any extra hyperactivity steer the kids away from soft drinks and give them water instead.

14.  ‘Spot it’ is a simple and fun game to keep the kids out of mischief. Have a couple of boards in the car and have a competition of who can mark off the most items on the board first e.g. a kangaroo, a stop sign.

15.  Handy items to bring with you in the car include: fruit to snack on, water, re-freshening wipes, a rug and pillow for each child, plastics bags for rubbish or dirty clothes and sun protection for the window to allow for restful sleep.