Dicky Beach

Dicky Beach

Dicky Beach QLD

The Beach and Surrounding Areas:

The Sunshine Coast is home to many beautiful beaches with calm, warm waters. I chose to look at Dicky Beach in particular because of the iconic wreck of the SS Dicky which can be found on it's shores. The area itself is home to a large caravan park, a small strip of shops and restaurants, a skate park and the Dicky Beach Surf Life Saving Club. The beach is patrolled and the SLSC won the DHL Queensland Surf Life Saving Club of the Yeah in 2009, so you can feel safe in their hands. You can sometimes get a good swell if surfing is in your schedule, but for the general swimmer or families the waves are gentle and great to learn to swim in. An added benefit of this beach is that it is quite flat, great for those interested in some skimboarding.

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Transport:

As there is no train line going to the Sunshine Coast, this area relies mainly on buses for public transport, there are a few taxis around as well. If travelling into the area from Brisbane, the easiest way to get here is via a train to Landsborough and then catching a Sunbus to the coast. Brisbane Rails train schedule can be found here and the Sunbus timetables can be found here!

Shops:

There is a small strip of shops just up from the beach which include surf shops, cafes, restaurants, a pharmacy and a great little fish'n'chips place called The Fishmongers Wife, they do a great fish and chips for a reasonable price. 

Nightlife:

The Sunshine Coast has a few spots where the parties go well into the night, Dicky Beach, unfortunately, isn't one of them. Apart from a few restuarants, most of the area closes down as the sun goes down. If you are looking for a bit more of an exciting night, you can head down the coast about 5 minutes towards Caloundra, where you will find a number of pubs, clubs and taverns that are open 'til late. Otherwise you can head north towards Mooloolaba where at the Esplanade you can find numerous clubs, check our the Wharf Tavern if you head there, usually goes off.

What Else:

The big seller for Dicky Beach is the closeness of accommodation, with the caravan park being 500m from the beach. It makes holidaying in this area easy and comfortable, for more information about this holiday park please visit this link. One final must when visiting Dicky Beach is to visit the wreck of the SS Dicky, as sadly one day it will have completely washed away, and I know in my repeat visits to this beach I have noticed a slow reduction in size of the wreck.

Conclusion:

All in all I find this beach to be a fun, relaxing beach, with calm waters and a good feel to it. The only possible reason I can find to give it less than five stars is it's lack of nightlife, but this can be found just around the corner in other suburbs. I give Dicky Beach 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Cheers,

Pat

Snapper Rocks- Rainbow Bay

Snapper Rocks- Rainbow Bay

Gold Coast QLD

The Beach and Surrounding Areas:

Rainbow Bay is the south most beach in Queensland.  It is a patrolled beach, and is home to the ASP world tour (surfing championships).  It is for this reason, this beach is extremely well known for its waves and heritage in surfing culture.  Various professional surfers such as Mick Fanning and Joel Parkinson often surf this wave on a regular basis.   About 200 metres north of rainbow bay is Coolengatta and Kirra, which is known for its shops and local culture.  In NSW (approximately 300 metres south) is Durran Bah beach, which is also a very famous surf spot.  If you are not into riding waves, Rainbow bay also boasts beautiful beaches, a great shopping experience as well as various tourist attractions.  One can walk up to the border of NSW and QLD, and observe at point Danger.  Or they may enjoy a leisurely stroll from Snapper Rocks to Kirra (though the path does extend all the way up past snapper rocks which is about 20 Km away).  All in all, Rainbow Bay caters for a veriety of tastes, and makes for a very enjoyable holiday or visit.

Transport:

Rainbow Bay is difficult to reach, however there is a bus service that leads here from various landmarks to Coolangatta.  there is also an airport approximately 1 Km from Rainbow Bay.  for more information on bus services click here.  For Information about the airport click here.

Shops:
Though Rainbow bay itself doesn't offer a wide shopping experience, if one wants to, they can travel to Coolangatta which is about 300-500 metres away.  This offers a basic strip shop style experience.  One can also travel to pacific fair which is about 30 min via car.  However there is an amazing burger joint at rainbow bay.  it can be found on the corner of Boundary street and Ward street next to the newsagent.


Nightlife:
aside from the RSL and Surfclubs, there doesn't appear to be much of a nightlife in this area.  If you travel to surfers Paradis Approx. 45 min on bus, you will find an abundance of nightclubs and bars.


The beach:

Usually i would not include this segment, but today i have.  This is because, though this beach is well-known, the quality of surfers on it is truly astonishing.  Even from an observers perspective, it is very entertaining to watch.  The foreshore is extremely pretty and very family friendly.  There is plenty to discover, whether it be the giant frog painted on a rock on the adjacent beach, or playing on the giant rolling grassy hills.

What else:
the Gold coast is a tourism hotspot in Australia, and there is plenty to see and do.  However a couple of things i would recommend include visiting the Currumbin wildlife sanctuary, and also visiting Byron bay.  However more information about the things to see and do can be found here.


Conclusion and Review:
In concluding, Rainbow Bay and the surrounding area is extremely pretty, and has very good surf.  However it does lack local attractions. None the less I would still recommend it too anyone wanting to visit the area.  It is for this reason, i give this beach 4.5 stars

By Sam B