You know we’re spoiled when we turn our noses up at the Goldie. It’s a big tourist spot so it’s a bit gimmicky sometimes for us but it’s fabulous too

It was referring to the Gold Coast as having a population of half a million people, though that video is from 9 years ago, the current population is about 732, 000. The population of Brisbane is currently about 2.5 million.

This is why there are more Americans living in Australia, than there are Australians living in America.

I am currently sitting in the car park of Tallebudgera surf club, after a lovely meal with friends overlooking the ocean. This end of the Gold Coast ( Palm Beach, Currumbin,Tugun,Coolangatta) is truly paradise. It's beginning to be built up and overpriced, but if you face the ocean... there's nothing more beautiful on this planet! I wouldn't want to be anywhere else in this world! This beauty makes my soul complete. ❤️

I have lived on the Gold Coast almost my entire life.. and as a local I stick to the south end, it’s chill and more for the locals. I’m also so lucky with where I live on the GC.. I’m talking Robina, Bonogin, Mudgeeraba, Varsity Lakes area.. 2 minutes from the highway, Robina Town Centre, 2 train stations, Springbrook, 20-30 minutes from the beaches. Beyond blessed, I’m truly thankful everyday

Ryan, the Gold Coast is okay for families. The Sunshine Coast, north of Brissy is a beautiful region. Quieter with beautiful beaches and surroundings. Go further north up around Airlie Beach and you hit the Wow factor. Up around Whitehaven Beach would have to be the finest, whitest sand with crystal clear water.

As a local boy of 62 years, and have lived and travelled all over the world. This is the fucking best place on the planet.

The Gold Coast is pretty full on. A far cry from the kilometres of beautiful sand dunes it was in the 60's before development. It's okay for a holiday or a day trip if you live in Brissy.

Australia has so many beaches that if you visited a different one every day it would take you a whole year to see them all. *edit* wow was I wrong. It’s actually 32 years!

its nice sitting on the beach with the huge shade from the skyscrapers. A bit too touristy for me. Sunshine coast is much nicer imo

Most Aussies consider the Gold Coast as a holiday destination, rather than a place to live. It’s a popular place to go to get away from the cold winters in the other states. It has everything that a tourist wants and more

My home. I am a proud Queenslander and love that all this is a one hour drive. To the coast, to the mountains, to the city. More affordable than Sydney or Melbourne and a little bit more relaxed :)

it's a good place, there's a lot of pretty grimey night club's and drunk people though so look out for that (all in surfers paradise). I live in Goldy and the best part about it is the bushwalking and all the waterholes and waterfalls in the hinterland. The nicest suburb that has things going on is burleigh, full of really cool surfie people and chill bars with a bit of live music, good scene down there if you want more of a local feel.

I lived on the Gold Coast or the Goldie for 20 years. It really is a lovely place to live. Surfers Paradise, Main Beach and Broadbeach are really for the tourists except on Friday and Saturday nights when the pubs and clubs are pumping. Otherwise there isn't much reason for a local to go there. The best places for mine are the hinterland national parks. So peaceful and green and a great way to reconnect with nature. There aren't too many places where you can go for a picnic lunch in a world heritage listed rainforest then drive to the beach and watch the world's best surfers compete in a world title event but I have done just that.

Ryan there are nice areas within a few hours drive from the GC that provide a lovely lifestyle.The heart of the GC can feel overly pitched to tourists not locals.

Love the Goldie, have holiday's there frequently but it is nowhere near the best beach in Oz. Jervis Bay area in southern NSW is STUNNING!

My dad has that view from his mountain property. The ocean is beautiful. My great grandparents had it originally as their dairy farm. The place certainly looks different now 😂

I live on the Gold Coast. It is beautiful, winter now at 22-24 celcius each day. Water is cold in winter but we often see people swimming and we just know they must be from Britain or Tasmania or Melbourne. Lots of theme parks, mountains, beautiful beaches and restaurants.

As an Aussie who lives in Queensland. Gold Coast is now virtually the southern area of Brisbane. To be honest it's way to overpriced you are better off going further north

There is an understandable, constant debate about which stretch of beaches is the finest in Australia. For those who love company and lots of facilities, Gold Coast probably wins. For surfers, maybe Victoria. For those who enjoy family-friendly sand with fewer crowds and fun surfing, it must be the Sunshine Coast.

Thanks legend, for reacting to my home town, the Goldie. It really is an incredible place to have grown up surfing every day. You gotta include the Goldie on your trip down when you visit! Xx

I’m Australian, I love it I wouldn’t change it and I am glad so many want to know more about this great place.

Unfortunately due to huge development the coastline has been over run by huge high rises etc. 40 years ago it was great to go on holidays too still had that sea side vibes about it with not many high rises I think the highest was about 4 stories.. one place we avoid now too over crowded & so expensive to stay..

What you said was a river, maybe, but is part of the canal system throughout the Gold Coast - with homes having waterfronts and some have jetties - allowing you to sail from your backyard, navigating the canals to the ocean. The hinterland is spectacular. The scenic rim. Ex-volcanic

The spectacularly beautiful hinterland is enough of a reason to visit the Gold Coast, even if you never set foot on the beach. Absolutely gorgeous.

Cute, I took a deep breath of air on Tugan beach earlier; it was a little windy. I live on the GC myself (yes, it is a city, a long stretched out city). That central area in the film is Surfers Paradise, which is far from paradise in my opinion, it's a tourist trap and a party district. The Southern suburbs like Burleigh, Coolangatta and Kirra are lovely, and, yes, it is winter and the water IS warm, still barely under 20 degrees. You are right, you do NOT want to know what real estate is like here. No, you really don't... But, aside from that it is as close to paradise as anywhere I have ever lived.

And what a gloriously accurate shot of surfing in that area, when the first wave featured shows a blatant drop-in. This probably means nothing to you Ryan, but the great waves have turned into human soup.

I hope you come to Oz one day. A world of difference, beauty and wonderful place to live.

This is where I live !! It truely is paradise 🙏🏼🇦🇺🙏🏼

It was great growing up on the Gold Coast as a teenager in the 80's. I left 35 years ago to live in Victoria but recently moved back to the southern part (Coolangatta) but it's too hot for me. Also too noisy, bright and touristy. I'm now back on the wild coast of Phillip Island where you get 4 distinct seasons, amazing wildlide and a world heritage surf beach on my doorstep. We Aussies certainly are spoilt for choice though. Hope you make it over here one day Ryan!

My grandad was a bit of a playboy back in the day and was a restaurant owner with golden lobster as the big thing - he also had an affair with the mayor's wife. My grandmother was a one time owner of the pink poodle 😂

I've lived on the Gold coast theres plenty to see and do. The rainforests are beautiful. I now live in the Clarence valley N.S.W again where I grew up, which has better beaches, river and beautiful places to visit and eat. If you have the opportunity to look up the Clarence Valley, do it 😁 Beautiful Yamba, Palmers Island, Harwood Island, Maclean, Iluka etc. Love watching your videos

The thing I enjoyed most about my Gold Coast holiday was being somewhere nice and warm and going for a walk on the sunny beach, every morning, in August, when it was cold, wet, and wintry back home in Adelaide. Like most of Australia, we're blessed with some gorgeous beaches, too. In the central metro area here (where I live) we have Glenelg, Brighton, Grange, Henley, Semaphore, Somerton, Seacliff, to name just a few. The main difference is that the Gold Coast faces east, whereas our beaches face west, so theirs get the sunrise, and ours get the sunset. Personally, I prefer having the sunset because I have more time to enjoy it. The only time I get up in time for a sunrise is when I have to get ready to go somewhere (which is not usually near the beach).

I’ve spent a lot of time in the Gold Coast. The best beaches in Australia are on the Sunshine Coast. Mark my words. I’m born and bred here.

Check out Turquoise Bay near Exmouth in Western Australia. Pristine. In my opinion, this beach is much nicer than Gold Coast or Surfers which is nice enough, but crowded and touristy. If you want to visit Queensland, I would suggest Mission Beach is a beauty, mate! 😊 but you gotta take note of signs for croc habitats. We don't get crocs in our beaches in Western Australia. But higher up in Northern Territory, its croc country again. WA has miles and miles of stunning beaches with the whitest sand... AND NO CROCS! Also check out Lancelin (as well ast beautiful water, the dunes here are a must for sand surfing/dune buggies/4wd etc ), Ledge Point and Coral Bay. You won't be disappointed.

I love the Gold Coast, but I wouldn't call it Australia's BEST beach! Wouldn't even put it in top 10 😅 (Although Tallebudgera Creek is gorgeous and around Currumbin)

oh bud...I felt that moment where you got really emotional but you held it...there is beauty in so many places in the world...I hope you get to visit many when you can...

Reading so many of these comments saying that most Australians think the GC is considered a place to visit rather than live makes me laugh. I’ve lived on the GC for over 20 years and in that time I rarely visit the spots the tourists go. There is so so much more to the GC it’s truly beautiful and if you go to the places the locals go you’d experience a very different thing. I wouldn’t live anywhere else than the GC it’s chill, with a little bit of everything, rainforests, beaches and rural living. Love it!

This is where live right now and have done since 1985. My Great Grandparents are bured in the cemetary at Coolangtatta,

I've only been in that water once. And it was amazingly warm!

There’s a vote every year by tourism Australia on the top 10 best beaches Last year it went to us (WA) this year is stokes bay kangaroo island. It’s Beautiful. Have a look 👀

So I’m from Victoria and the Gold Coast is definitely lovely but for me the best beaches will always be in WA. There are so many different beaches around the state with a variety between popular tourist beaches or secluded gems. If you ever visit Australia highly recommend WA.

I live in brisbane but work in the Gold Coast, which I drive an hour to every day. I in film and tv on a crew, and we film heaps down there for American shows, I also work for the biggest radio station down there and get to be part of every cultural or fun event happening around the city. It’s pretty sick.

Ryan take a look at the three largest sand islands on earth. Just north of the GC. Moreton (my personal favourite) Stradbroke and K'garri (formerly known as Fraser). They really are breathtaking.

I've only been to Queensland once, and I stayed at Surfer's Paradise. When I went to swim there the waves were so strong (compared to Adelaide anyway!) and what surprised me was how salty the water is. Of course it's saltwater, but it stung the hell out of my eyes and I got out of the water within about five minutes. It's a beautiful place though.

Thank you so much for this video. I live on the Sunshine Coast north of Brisbane. It is expensive here, but it really is paradise. I can't wait to share your reaction with my kids. I have travelled a fair bit and they don't believe me when I tell them how truly blessed we are to be here.

No stingers, box jellyfish and we have shark nets (and helicopters that patrol the beaches). The water is perfect swimming temperature. The Gold Coast is Australia’s most popular holiday destination.

Yay! You've done a review of my town! I live in the heart of Surfers Paradise. It's as beautiful as it looks.

The best beach in Australia is in Western Australia. Turquoise Beach in Exmouth, WA. WA has some of the best beaches in Australia. Turquoise Bay Beach was actually just voted 2nd most beautiful beach in the world.

The City of the Gold Coast - and hour’s drive south of Brisbane - is a lot like a mini-Miami (it even has a suburb called Miami) - and just like Miami - it’s where Melbournians (like New Yorkers) go to die. Queenslanders are happy to keep the tourists on the Gold Coast. (There are a bunch of theme parks.) If you want to see truly beautiful surfing beaches (with turtles and whales), drive an hour north of Brisbane to the Sunshine Coast, where the lifestyle is much more relaxed, with villages nestled among ancient volcanic mountains, and everglades stretching for miles around the pristine beach towns (now suburbs) of Caloundra, Mooloolaba, Maroochydore and Noosa. (Just don’t tell the other tourists. Send them to the Gold Coast instead.)

Toddlers love Rainbow Bay just near Coolangatta & Snapper Rocks. It is a north facing bay with shallow pools to splash in. The break can be very long so surfies' paradise. Whale watching a pleasant pastime during Winter.

Local GCer here! Thanks for checking us out 😊

I live in Redland Bay, which is a 45 min drive from the Gold Coast. My daughter lives at Hope Island which is a suburb of the Gold Coast. It is a beautiful part of the world :)

I live just behind Surfers Paradise on an island in the river called Chevron Island. You are right to express disbelief at what this area has to offer, it’s an amazing place. I am lucky enough to live here and walk on the beach nearly every day. I feel blessed and rewarded for my hard efforts to live here. Yes I will stop and take that breath of pure ocean air for you tomorrow morning when I get down to the beach…

You should check out a video on the Sunshine Coast next! It's where Steve Irwin's Australian Zoo is

I’ve lived on the Gold Coast my whole and definitely take it for granted, don’t realise how good we have it sometimes

The Gold Coast is like our version of Miami

I grew up on the Gold Coast. Was amazing. Live in England now but never stopped calling Australia home

I lived there for years and still have rellies at the Coast. I'm 30 minutes north now, half way between the Goldie and Brissy, best of both worlds. Cheaper too 😊

The opposite side of my street is Surfers Paradise (10 minutes walk to the sigh) and our side is Broadbeach :) We love it here & go to the beach every morning. You should really visit sometime. Let us all know so we can meet you! People swim all year round. It is currently winter, and I was at the beach today wearing a T-shirt and shorts and there were lots of people surfing and swimming.

The Gold Coast is like the Florida of Australia. It has the same kind of weather, lots of theme parks and is a frequent holiday destination for us Aussies

This is My Home. I love it here and have lived here for 19 years ❤❤

My home. Grew up in Surfers Paradise & Southport on the Gold Coast. We call ourselves Coasties 🇦🇺👍❤️ We have a Shark net on our Beach to keep tourists safe.

Brisbane has 2.2 million people. "The Gold Coast" has half a million. It could (in a way) be compared to Orlando Florida. Tropical Hot, Humid, lots of theme parks, and like all of Queensland and Florida chock a block full of bogans. 😂

Yeah. I live on the Gold Coast in Mermaid Waters it’s a great part of the world. Genuinely beautiful so good.

you should check out Western Australia there's Perth itself but also the extensive coastline from down south near Albany all the way up to the Pilbara, Karijini national park and the gold fields . its the mining capital of australia and one of our best kept secrets .

Gday. Lived there for a few years. Only moved due to family needs elsewhere. It is as good as it looks as long as you have a decent job/wage, although inland suburbs not so $. Everywhere in this vid is within a 1 hour drive :)

If you stay for a week on the Gold Coast you can visit all these places, but you really need two weeks + to enjoy them all.

There are so many beaches that are just as beautiful as the Gold Coast in Australia.

The main river at Gold Coast is the Nerang River, further north is the Logan river and south is Tallebudgera Creek . Head south over the QLD NSW border for the Tweed River.

Im so blessed to live on the Gold Coast, water temp is around 25c ( 77F ) depending on time of the year

Hi Ryan, how's the family, hope your well. The Gold coast is not the best beach, the most commercialised beach maybe apart from Bondi. Come to Wine Glass bay in Tassie. Or practically any other piece of coastline around this colossal country. Awesome beaches all over the Aussie place.

The crappies thing about the eastern seaboard is that their beaches get covered in shade in the afternoon by all the high rises. Here in WA our beaches are all bathed in sunlight all day as we only have about 3 high rise buildings on the beach as a part of our local building ordinances. As a result we have warmer water.

I’ve been on the Goldie for 48 years. It certainly has grown since we arrived. Some days it’s a shit show others Tis amazing. We are very lucky and have much to be grateful for. And your right, you don’t wanna know the house prices. Enjoyed your reaction, thanks mate !!

The Gold Coast is my ideal holiday destination as it has everything. Think of Surfers Paradise (which was originally just a collection of shacks for Surfers to get away from it all) as like Miami, FL. The Gold Coast was originally just a region made up of smaller towns but it all got incorporated together a few decades ago once the tourism boom took off. That tall building you saw was Peppers and is is a hotel but it does have permanent accomodation too. Most of the tall buildings are hotels or holiday apartments and Peppers is the second tallest building in the city, the view was from the Q1 building which is the tallest in all of QLD. I go up there every couple of years and if I had the couple of million dollars I would move up there permanently from Adelaide as the air quality is so good and whenever I am on holiday up there I never have problems with my Asthma like I do down here.

Yes, the water is warm in summer, and the waves waves is a very special place called rainbow bay

Hey! Check out some amazing beaches in Western Australia, notably, Smiths beah in Yallingup, Cottesloe Beach and all of the coastline in Esperance 👌

Ryan, if you ever go to visit australia, I’d say visit the Gold Coast, best place in Australia I’d say, though I might be a little biast. Don’t fall for the tourist trap of surfers paradise, it’s alright but literally anywhere else in the Gold Coast is better. Go visit Tallebudgera, Currumbin, pac fair, and other cool places like the waterfalls

Coolangatta has always been my favourite spot since growing up ❤

Further north, the Sunshine Coast is less populated and just as beautiful, if not more.

Brisbane has 2.4 million people… The Gold Coast, one hour south from Brisbane is a long narrow city hugging 20 km of golden beaches. It has 500,000 people. The water is warm for swimming about 6 months of the year. If you go 1.5 hours north of Brisbane to Noosa on the Sunshine Coast (yes, it is also a long narrow city), you can swim at least 8 months of the year because it receives the north stream from the Great Barrier Reef north.

Great vid, I should get there more often

Gold Coast is beautiful ,water warm, you must come over one day. When the Gold Coast gets too hot and crowded head to the hills to cool down.

Interesting you asked about house prices - recent house on the beach near Elephant rock (mentioned in the video)just sold for $9.5 millionAUD. Loads of canals because it was all mangroves/coastal wetlands before development and canals were used to dry it out

I live 2 minutes from beach on southern end of Gold Coast.. my son and family are in process of moving up here from Sydney..My grand daughter is 13 and spent every holidays up with me and ea school holidays sine 10..she recently saw incidents at her school...public... that are worrying and told parents and as A grade student and lifestyle here so made the decision to move up..over the years she has made 2 lovely girls and have already planned things to do as teens living on the beach.Shes already got bike here and kids around here can walk or ride bikes around here safely from early age..I've just got her booked into private school that I will pay and hopefully have great teen life up here..She currently plays soccer which will keep up but summer sports at her school offers them surfing and board riding..her friend just moved up just over a mile from here and is on range over looking beach plus have horses.1 button from here to there..What a wonderful life away from Sydney ...plus have 5 cousins around her age in Brisbane and just short train ride away..Recommend Gold Coast life to raise family.

I live on the Gold coast. My daughters school is an island. The shopping centre has a beach and waterfalls.

Theres a difference between popen oceanbeaches where the water hits the beach totally uninterrupted, and bay beaches where the beach is sheltered by land on 1 or 2 sides and the efects of the wind and currents are mitigated. Beaches open to the ocean are where surf occurs

Went outside and took the breath, felt pretty good

Actually I think Newcastle NSW has the best beaches. Caves beach, Lake Macquarie is also a great tourist attraction.

Check out the Daintree, where the rainforest meets the sea.

Fun fact: the Sky Point Observation Deck is the tallest building in the southern hemisphere

Best places on the Gold Coast are the southern beaches (like Burleigh Heads and Coolangatta in the video) and the amazing Gold Coast Hinterland. I used to live in a beautiful place called Tallebudgera Valley and yes, we were almost always outdoors when we weren’t at work.

I was born here Ryan in 1966 and grew up in Coolangatta it was a Paradise growing up in the 70's and 80's back then not so much now in my opinion it has become very commercialised for the Tourists and becoming ill affordable for many people but in saying that it is still a beautiful place to live and wouldn't swap it for anywhere else

My lovely dad moved up there to Runaway Bay from Melbourne in 2000 and lived there u til we lost him in December. We went up there a lot to visit when he started to have heart issues and couldn’t fly anymore. It is lovely, the weather makes everyone be out and walking, or cycling, or anything outdoors. My son wanted to move there, but the traffic is insane and I just couldn’t do it. But that weather, wow!! I don’t want to go there anymore, too many memories of dad, and he’s not there to visit now. Will,probably never go again.

I live on the Gold Coast best place ever ❤

The Gold Coast is actually a bit strange, it's population is actually abvout 780,000 BUT with 12 million tourists each year, BUT THESE toursit numbers are spread out evenely over the year , which means it has a PERMNENT population of 1.78 million.

Anywhere on the north coast is beautiful. Great beach holidays.

Hi Ryan, I live in Brisbane, near the Hold Coast. It is winter here and we are still wearing tshirts and shorts. Come here for a holiday

I grew up living on the Gold Coast. I got to experience day to day life there in the suburbs and then also when family from out of state visited I got to experience the Tourist/holiday side. It always felt like a magical place as a child! Every birthday spent going to a theme park and even just walking down Cavill Ave in Surfers Paradise to me was so exciting. Was also the BEST place to be when finally old enough to enjoy the nightlife and clubs. As I get older sadly the shine of the Gold Coast has worn off a bit and it's no longer the same atmosphere that I remember from my childhood in the 90s, but it's still a place I would recommend international tourists visit. It really is beautiful, exciting and has it all.

I was born on the Gold Coast and brought up in mudgeeraba it's changed a lot over the years but yes, we are very lucky it's a beautiful place