What is the best month to visit Gold Coast?

Known for its sandy beaches, surfing, and sunny days, the Gold Coast provides good weather all year round. But when is the best time to visit this coastal city?

Most of the year you’ll find the Gold Coast is sunny and has some of the best weather in Australia. But you’re here to find out the best month, which is May. May is during autumn when you’ll have pleasant weather and fewer people around compared to summer.

Regardless of the time of year you plan to visit, the weather will likely be nice with about 300 days of the year having sunshine. But here are some differences throughout the seasons in the year.

Summer

Summer on the Gold Coast is from December to February and the weather sits between 21 and 28 degrees Celsius. You can spend your days going to the beach, catching waves, or going to the major theme parks.

Aerial view of a beach

Autumn

Between March and May is the best time to visit the Gold Coast. You can expect the weather to sit between 16 and 25 degrees Celsius. This time of year is relatively quiet aside from the autumn school holidays from the end of March to the start of April.

Winter

During winter the temperature drops slightly, to 12 to 22 degrees Celsius. From June to August, you are still able to go into the water or go on a cruise to see the whales head south, but you might need to wear a wetsuit or rug up otherwise.

Spring

When spring approaches between September to November, the weather starts warming up again. You can expect the temperature to be around 14 to 25 degrees Celsius. In November it can get very busy with year 12 students celebrating schoolies.

What can I do in May?

You can join everyone else and walk along the beach, go surfing, or go to the theme parks. But if you want a day trip out of the city, here are a few ideas you can do.

Tamborine Mountain

Enjoy a different scenery from the coastal views and walk through a breathtaking rainforest. Tamborine Mountain has a stunning rainforest, small villages, art galleries, breweries and distilleries.

You can spend a day exploring Tamborine Mountain, or you can join a guided tour and explore this stunning area.

Glow worms

Discover a different taste of the Gold Coast nightlife and see the glow worms. You’ll walk through a cave and see magical glow worms light up parts of the cave.

You can find this cave out in Tamborine Mountain which is a 45-minute drive from Gold Coast. The best time to go is in the evening and you can book a guided tour if you have no other way of getting there!

Cameron Ward

Managing Director at Sightseeing Tours Australia

Cameron Ward turned his travel passion into a thriving Australian tourism business. Before he co-founded his own business, Sightseeing Tours Australia, he was enjoying being a Melbourne tour guide. Even now, Cameron delights in helping visitors from all around the world get the most out of their incredible Australian trip. You’ll see Cameron leading tours or writing about his favourite Australian places where he shares his local insights.

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