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Surfing Australia"Unfortunately, things got worse from there . . . a lot worse." I was looking forward to surfing Australia. What US surfer wouldn’t like this place? An entire nation that speaks English and is surrounded by surf.
My wife and I finally had a couple weeks vacation time saved up, So we decided on Australia for our honeymoon. We picked Surfers Paradise because it seemed like it had a lot to do for a couple that didn’t want to rent a car and drive all over a huge country on the wrong side of the road. It had shopping, beaches, nature tours, bars, restaurants. Oh, and did I mention the surf? Since I work for the airlines, we scored seats in business class for almost free and spent the flight from San Fran to Sydney sipping champagne and watching movies. This trip was off to a great start. From Sydney we bought tickets to the Gold Coast and then got a taxi to Surfers Paradise. There we found accommodations at a high-rise hotel with a partial (almost full) ocean view. Flying standby, I usually book things at the last minute or just walk up to the desk.
After that we were off to Sydney to check out Bondi Beach. I was still hopeful I might find waves but only found the same crappy surf. It’s a great place if you’re really into hemp. We're not. From there we cut the trip short and went home. Of course the surf was firing home in San Fran the whole time we were gone. I didn't do so hot surfing Australia.
I don’t mean to sound TOO negative. The people and scenery were great. We went on some cool nature tours and found some decent nightlife. We had fun and I'd love to go back for a longer trip. The surf was lousy but that’s the way it goes. The food sucked remarkably, but maybe we just had bad luck and I’m spoiled. I’m still kicking myself for not taking my wife’s advice and checking out the Great Barrier Reef. I should have just let go of the idea that I would be surfing Australia.
It was on this trip that I learned you just have to relax and take the experience for what it’s worth. I applied this lesson when surfing New Jersey with a total lack of expectation. The surf won’t always work out and it’s still nice to get a change of scenery. But damn that surf was bad.
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Mate...
Australian beach guide and surfing info. Directory of Australian beachfront accomodations. Return from Surfing Australia to Surfing Vacations.
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I was looking forward to a lot of things on my honeymoon, but one of the main ones was the surf . . . I just can’t help myself. For years, I’d heard how great it is surfing Australia. So my next priority was renting a board. The first day I surfed some semi-blown-out 3-4 foot waves. Not horrible, I thought, especially since it’s bound to improve. 
We went south to Coolangatta, the place that’s always featured in surf magazines and videos for its great surf. We stayed directly in front of a well-known surf spot, Snapper Rocks. When we arrived, it looked just like Lake Tahoe, CA . . . on a windy day. We had a great place with a great view, but more of the same lousy food we’d had our entire trip. And frankly there was more to do in Surfers Paradise.
