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Your Life
So Many Worlds
 From a child’s point of view, Dreamworld, Seaworld and Warner Movie world are definitely destinations in themselves, Worlds within worlds where you can visit the Wild West, a Wiggles World, or the icy land of the polar bears.
Then there are the more peripheral worlds which orbit around these big three such as Currumbin Sanctuary or Whitewater World, one of the newer additions to the Gold Coast. The list goes on.
While it’s fierce competition for that family holiday tourist dollar, Surfers Paradise caters a wide range of holidaymaker, from the seriously “luxe” market (think Palazzo Versace where the swimming pool has been re-created as a small beach) through to the cheap and cheerful with fast food and fast fun.
How to choose?
 Being transported to this other world is not cheap. A day pass to one theme park will set you back $64 for an adult and $42 for a child, adding up to $212 for a family of four. The three-park pass from Warner which includes Seaworld and Wet n’ wild costs $135 for an adult and $86 for a child, or a two-park pass for Dreamworld and Whitewater World costs $99 for an adult and $66 for a child.
While all the main activities are included in these passes, food and associated merchandise can put a serious dent in your hip pocket. Take some snacks if you can, not just because this will save some money, but also because the food on offer is a fairly standard fair of fish and chips and burgers. Nothing fresh, little that's healthy. A water bottle is a must if you are traveling in summer.
Budget tip
If the thought of visiting so many parks is a bit daunting, you can also save money by visiting the same park twice. All parks offer this deal. Once you have visited the park, on your way out you can extend your pass by an additional day for a discounted second-day rate.
Organisations such as NRMA and the Entertainment book offer discounted tickets if pre-paid and booked for all the Worlds.
Deals also can be had through Seaworld Nara Resort which frequently offers special packages that include resort entry, usually offered outside peak season.
Competition abounds among the hotels so it pays to shop around for what can be included with your accommodation (look for inclusions such as breakfasts and children’s meals). Some offer good deals for lone parents or carers traveling with children – it’s worth shopping around.
Which world for me?
Of course it all comes down to personal taste and age ranges. All the parks offer a few “heart stopping” signature rides from the Big 5 thrill rides at Dreamworld (The Claw, Tower of Terror, Giant Drop, Cyclone and the Wipeout); Warners has the Batwing Spaceshot and a range of roller coasters from the child-friendly Road Runner Rollercoaster, then getting faster and more furious with Wild West Falls, Scooby Doo or the Lethal Weapon Ride; Seaworld has the Corkscrew Rollercoaster and the Pirate Ship.
Warner and Dreamworld would probably win the thrill ride vote particularly for teenagers plus. For myself, who is not really a fan of these kind of thrills but had to accompany my daughter, Seaworld was about my speed. Of course Seaworld is better known for the sea animals from Penguins, dolphins and seals to sharks. A fantastic experience here is the Animal Adventures. A series of more up close and personal encounters with the animals.
My daughter went to the Dolphin adventures and while not actually swimming with the dolphins, you definitely get up close and personal. Expect to feed a dolphin, rub their tummy, give them a kiss (souvenir photo included) and you will get wet even though you wear a wetsuit.
TIP These packages are really popular so it pays to do your homework and book in advance.
The trainer led experiences as well as being a load of fun are educational.
If you want animal experiences, Dreamworld could also be the place for you. There is Tiger Island (I think this is where they send Big Brother contestants after they get voted out!), plus the Australian Wildlife experience, the Sunset Safari (guided behind the scenes tours) and the Farmyard friends.
For those of you who either like to touch the animals or are traveling with children, you can pat the kangaroos here and, if that's your thing, can have your photo taken cuddling a koala. For those of us who live down South where koala touching is usually a no, no, this is a great experience. The same applies to the farmyard creatures that you can pet and help with their feeding.
All the parks cater for the toddler plus age group with specially dedicated activities and rides.
Dreamworld has the Wiggles World. Wiggledom is practically a rite of passage now for Australian children, and here you can do the Big Red Car ride, dance with Dorothy and visit Captain Feathersword’s ship.
If you want more than all that wiggling, there is also the Nickleodeon Central rides area and the Dreamworld people have conveniently listed family rides as a category to help with your theme park visit planning. That’s a big plus.
Warner World has the Looney Tunes village for the younger age group. Seaworld has Cartoon Beach. There are also rides such as the Bermuda Triangle and The Flume Ride which are moderate.
TIP: Generally the children’s rides are mild and for those with children a little older who want more adventure, there are height restrictions on some of the rides, but no age restrictions. Check the websites for more details.
There is a multitude of activities within just these three flagship parks. However, it's worth remembering that there is much much more on offer in the surrounding areas from mini golf to the Water theme parks to Currumbin for wildlife, themed meals such as Dracula’s or an outback adventure. Plus for those grownups who do want to chill out, there are the day spas. Suffice to say, you can cram a lot of activity into one holiday.
Warners has a lot of action rides and seems to specialize in the roller coaster experience starting with the gentler Road Runner ride and working up to Lethal weapon and Scooby Doo, an indoor disco kind of roller coaster – don’t let the cute cartoon name fool you, this is a full on ride.
All of the parks have shows and other entertainment. Plus both the Warners and the Dreamworld Group have water parks. Warners have Wet’n’Wild and Dreamworld have launched the newest themepark, Whitewater world. Seaworld has a smaller Waterpark inside the theme park.
It can get hot in Surfers so these are good ways to keep cool and for when the weather drops to a chilly 20 degree average in winter, Whitewater world has heated water!
For the average person each park offers a full day’s entertainment plus. Dreamworld has a tiny edge in respect of offering something for everyone, but those Animal adventures at Seaworld also rate very highly.
Accommodation options
If you are a grown up who likes a bit of down time, you should look for the hotels with kids clubs, child minding and spas. If your hotel doesn’t have a spa, don’t fret as there are various spas in town and a couple of legitimate businesses where the masseuse visits the hotel.
Obvious choices with kids clubs are Sea World Nara Resort and the Paradise Resort (this Resort was looking a tad tired when I visited, though conceptually it is very children focused).
If you do a comparison of these two resorts the difference for me is that Paradise Resort feels more like an activity based resort with Karaoke, Polynesian Dance spectacular and Bingo nights. Seaworld is a touch more upmarket without the range of activities but it does have a small day spa. When I was there I overheard a long and heated complaint about some of the rooms at Nara, so I suspect that some rooms are better than others. Definitely don’t go expecting the same kind of finishing touches as you would find at the Palazzo Versace or the Sheraton.
Check out websites such as Trip Advisor for independent opinions from fellow holiday makers to compare the hotel glitz against real life experiences.
If you only have a few days my recommendation is not to cram too much into the time as the world’s can be exhausting. Hanging out at the resort pool can be nearly as much fun as the high voltage excitement of a theme park.
Just as an aside there were no freebies involved in any of this research, but there was definitely a very satisfied 7 year old.
Worlds
http://www.dreamworld.com.au
http://www.seaworld.com.au
http://www.movieworld.com.au
http://www.currumbin-sanctuary.org.au
http://www.whitewaterworld.com.au
http://www.wetnwild.com.au
Accommodation
http://www.seaworldresort.com.au
http://www.paradiseresort.com.au
http://www.tripadvisor.com
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