Come and ride the G: from Broadbeach to Gold Coast University Hospital

The G: carried its first passengers, albeit non-fare paying ones, in a celebratory day on Sunday, July 21.

Thousands of Gold Coast locals and visitors took the ride on the 13km track from Broadbeach South Station to Gold Coast University Hospital station throughout the inaugural day.

Official paid services commenced the day after. I boarded the tram on both days, and this video is an overview of the journey.

The Gold Coast Light Rail is now a fully operational service providing a popular and valuable service for Gold Coast commuters.

Enjoy the ride!

Riding the monorail at Broadbeach

Now that I have changed my hometown from Brisbane to the Gold Coast expect to see more sounds and vision of this beautiful part of Australia.

For many years the Broadbeach monorail has run from two stations within The Oasis shopping centre to Jupiters Casino/Hotel across the busy Gold Coast Highway.

It currently costs $3.00 per ride to do either the one way journey or the complete roundtrip.

The monorail isn't the fastest mode of transport you'll ever enjoy - it falls well short of being a 'thrill ride'. However, it's a Gold Coast icon that is worth preserving.

I recently took the roundtrip with my trusty Sony Handycan aimed out of the window. The above video is the result of this excursion.

Surfers Paradise is looking much better!

Ever since first visiting the Gold Coast in the early 1960s, I have seen the gradual decline in Surfers Paradise as being a family-friendly destination.

In more recent years it has become a holiday haven for drunks and louts and it hasn't been a good spot to find a quality restaurant either. Broadbeach, just one suburb southwards,  has easily overtaken Surfers in recent years in all those departments.

However, there has been (and still is) much work going on reshaping the Surfers skyline and beachfront - so I eagerly look forward to revisiting Surfers more regularly before too long in the hope that the change in the air is permanent or at least, long lasting.

I spent a day in Surfers Paradise between Christmas and New Year 2011, when the surf was well and truly up (too big to swim in, thanks to king tides coupled with a recent cyclone in the Pacific Ocean) but that didn't stop people heading for the beach to watch the spectacle more reminiscent of an Hawaiian landscape!

I had my trusty camcorder at hand and produced this video for my youtube channel.

Back from Broadbeach and raring to go...

I'm back from a two week break in beautiful beachside Broadbeach (Queensland) enjoying the occasional sunshine amongst the heavy showers of rain. Ready for a new series of ATW Travelradio Australia with the first show for the new year 'on air' and online now. Here's details of the segments: John Crook reviews Windowrie wines from NSW. Frances Beasley discusses the Meditteranean diet. From the US studio, Michael Cervin and Martha Bull chat about visiting Baja, Mexico. John Crook interviews Dion Turner, wine manager of Piper Brook, Tasmania.

Click this link to listen to podcast

Gold Coast dreaming...

PICTURE: My favourite attraction at Dreamworld is still Tiger Island, but there's plenty more to see and do...

I have never been good on heights - even looking over the edge of a high rise apartment/hotel balcony gives me the creeps. It was therefore an easy decision to 'pike out' on the chance to enjoy the Tower of Terror's 'Giant Drop' at Dreamworld on a recent weekend. My travel partners all braved the ride (some of them will probably not do a repeat performance on their next Dreamworld visit though), but I kept my feet firmly on the ground. I did enjoy getting drenched on the log ride (after already copping a dose of aqua spray on the whitewater rafting ride), but water dries up - my nerves don't do the same in a hurry! Despite some of its horrific rides, Dreamworld is still my favourite of the theme parks in south east Queensland.

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Talking about theme parks, there's some controversy going around in this part of the world about major local attractions not allowing patrons to bring in their own food and having to buy refreshments on site (at quite loaded prices, of course). Take note - there is one exception, namely Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary. You are still welcome to bring your own food and drinks. Best not to feed it to the animals though - their diet is a bit more restricted!

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Last weekend we enjoyed a budget-priced stay at our favourite Surfers Paradise hotel, Vibe. This establishment offers the greatest vistas you'll ever find (anywhere in the world) with most rooms perched high above a bend in the Nerang River and overlooking Chevron Island. In past lives this was the Chevron Hotel and later The Concorde...but since becoming part of the Vibe stable and being completely refurbished, it's become one of the best addresses at Surfers. We've stayed there quite a few times (even before it was refurbished) and we keep on going back!

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Finally, still on a Gold Coast theme - Surfers is nice (although still a bit too tacky for our tastes) but Broadbeach is the best - it's jumped miles ahead of its better known cousin (just a bit north) in the sophistication stakes and has the best collection of restaurants and bars anywhere on the Coast. There's more than 100 to choose from, so if you like food...this is paradise (just not Surfers Paradise, which is more McDonald's territory by comparison).