Gold Coast/Main Beach

Main Beach is a coastal suburb of the Gold Coast, just north of Surfers Paradise. While it isn't known that well as its southern neighbour, it is still a very popular upscale tourist spot known for its Sea World resort and its long beach.

27°57′37″S 153°25′35″E

Map of Gold Coast/Main Beach

The main road to get into Main Beach is the Main Beach Parade from Surfers Paradise.

If you're using public transit, the -27.98206153.423471 Main Beach light rail station of the Gold Coast's G:link LRT network is on the southern fringes of Main Beach. It's a bit of a walk to the rest of Main Beach, but it should take no more than 30 minutes for the average walker at the very max.

Hopo Gold Coast provides ferry services from G:link stations in Surfers Paradise and Southport to -27.9678153.42512 Marina Mirage Wharf and -27.9606153.42413 Sea World Wharf.

• -27.9559153.42571 Sea World, Seaworld Dr. Daily 9:30AM–5PM. A marine theme park mainly catering injured marine wildlife, the park has several rides, attractions, shows and many marine attractions showcasing marine Australasian wildlife  (updated Feb 2022)
• -27.95153.4282 Federation Walk Coastal Reserve. A coastal reserve with a mix of subtropical landscape including littoral rainforest, native grasslands, and pockets of wetlands and many of the wildlife found in these biomes.  (updated Feb 2022)

• -27.9686153.42611 Marina Mirage (Marina Mirage Shopping Centre), 74 Seaworld Dr, ☏ +61 7 5555 6400, [email protected]. 10AM–6PM. An upscale shopping mall with boutique stores and waterfront dining. It's, unfortunately, a bit car-centric. Still, it's walkable from the nearest G:link stop (≈20 mins) – however, the Hopo GC Ferry between Sea World and Surfers Paradise stops by Marina Mirage, but services are infrequent.  (updated Jul 2023)

Tedder Avenue between Hughes and Cronin Avenues is home to an upscale shopping and dining precinct with boutique stores, cafes, and restaurants. Although not pedestrianised, it's still a very pedestrian-friendly street (for Australian standards outside Sydney) and is connected to the bus network via the 704.

• -27.9795153.42511 Domanis Cafe Restaurant Bar, 1/19-21 Tedder Ave, ☏ +61 7 5571 0091. Su Tu–Th 11AM–10PM; M 5PM–9PM; F Sa 11AM–midnight.  (updated Jul 2023)
• -27.9798153.4252 Hot Shott, 3/17 Tedder Ave, ☏ +61 451 847 370. Daily 5:30AM–4PM. A spacious cafe and restaurant – has everything essential an Australian restaurant needs to have.  (updated Jul 2023)
• -27.975712153.4275393 Lark Cafe, cnr Stafford Ave & Main Beach Parade, ☏ +61 7 5532 8441. 5:30AM–2PM. Another ordinary Australian cafe.  (updated Feb 2022)
• -27.9803153.42494 Le Jardin Cafe Restaurant, 13 Tedder Ave, ☏ +61 7 5564 0100. Daily 6AM–5PM. A cafe with a large outdoor garden and patio. Plenty of good Australianised French and Belgian food.  (updated Jul 2023)
• -27.9791153.42495 Main Beach Fish Grotto, 10/20 Tedder Ave, ☏ +61 457 779 712, [email protected]. Daily 11AM–8PM. A small fish and chips takeaway shop.  (updated Jul 2023)
• -27.9802153.42466 Milan On Main, 4/14-16 Tedder Ave, ☏ +61 7 5591 6661, [email protected]. Daily noon–9PM. Upscale Italian restaurant and cafe – and despite its name, the restaurant specialises in Napoli cuisine, not Lombard cuisine.  (updated Jul 2023)
• -27.9796153.42487 Senza Nome Italian Restaurant, 8/20 Tedder Ave, ☏ +61 7 5564 0900. Daily noon–9PM. Italian mid-range restaurant that's spacious.  (updated Jul 2023)
• -27.97945153.42478 Shuck Restaurant, 20 Tedder Ave, ☏ +61 7 5528 4286, [email protected]. W–S noon–midnight. Perhaps the most splurge seafood restaurant on Main Beach, with lots of fresh local oysters and fish.  (updated Jul 2023)
• -27.9791153.42529 Xenia Main Beach, 30 Peak Ave, ☏ +61 480 384 535. Daily noon–3PM, 5–8:30PM. A Greek restaurant.  (updated Jul 2023)

• -27.969663153.42581 Fisherman’s Wharf Tavern, Shop 40, 60-70 Seaworld Dr, ☏ +61 7 5571 0566, [email protected]. M–F 10AM–11PM, Sa Su 10AM–12:30AM. A rather unusual westward facing coastal tavern, open till late.  (updated Feb 2022)

Accommodation at Main Beach tends to be expensive and the only accommodation that can be found here often are above $200 the very minimum – for more budget options, some of the inland suburbs will have a lower price range, but at a compromise of losing very convenient access to the nearby beach.

• -27.980688153.42941 Beachside Tower, 3545 Main Beach Pde, ☏ +61 7 5591 7033, [email protected]. Check-in: 2PM, check-out: 10AM. Has a large range of apartment-style accommodation, most of which has some view of the beach. The buildings might look a little bit old though. approx $300 per night.  (updated Feb 2022)
• -27.975338153.4279812 De Ville Apartments, 3645 Main Beach Parade, ☏ +61 7 5591 6322, [email protected]. Check-in: 2PM, check-out: 10AM. Upscale apartments with good views of Surfers Paradise and the rest of the city.  (updated Feb 2022)
• -27.9674153.42643 Imperial Hotel Gold Coast (Palazzo Versace Gold Coast), 94 Seaworld Dr, ☏ +61 7 5509 8000, [email protected]. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: 11AM. An independent waterfront hotel with over 200 rooms and suites. It also claims to be the world's first fashion-designer 5-star hotel in the world.  (updated Jul 2023)
• -27.9798153.42764 Maldives Resort, 46–52 Pacific St, ☏ +61 7 5557 7500, [email protected]. Check-in: 2PM, check-out: 10AM. A mid-scale hotel with good views of the sea and the beach. Parking is limited, though.  (updated Jul 2023)