Freewheeling on Moreton Island: Tangalooma day tripping without a care in the world
Don’t you love it when you have a choice and aren’t restricted to the same activities as everyone else on an organised holiday or day trip?
When you alight from a luxury catamaran onto Moreton Island on the Self-Drive Tangalooma Day Trip Including Activities, you get full use of the Tangalooma Island Resort facilities plus a choice of three pre-paid activities from a selection of eight.
The activities list contains so many fun adventures, it’s hard to know what to pick or where to start.
Young families might might be interested in 1. banana boat and tube rides (15 minutes), 2. guided snorkelling at the Tangalooma wrecks (1.5 hours) and 3. beach bike hire (1 hour).
The kids will experience a slice of the action in a pristine natural environment and, afterwards, there should be time left over to do your own thing (like relax on the beach).
Those on a mission to fish are able to hire a fishing rod for the whole day and try their luck at hauling in flathead, whiting and bream.
Kayak, snorkel gear and westsuit hire for three hours gives you the chance for some independent adventuring into the heavenly blue waters around the wrecks off the resort.
There’s also stand-up paddle board hire (check out what all the fuss is about), beach segway instruction and a tour, and a fish feeding tour and sightseeing cruise.
Spoilt for choice!
Book accommodation at Scarborough Beach Resort. Perfect for a family holiday to Queensland, it’s just 35 minutes drive from Brisbane airport, offering a selection of 1, 2 and 3 bedroom fully-self contained holiday apartments and onsite facilities including swimming lap pool, large heated spa and more. BOOK YOUR SCARBOROUGH BRISBANE ACCOMMODATION NOW
Five things to do that don’t require a day on the road
It’s hard to come up with five definitive ‘must sees’ in South East Queensland because we are so spoilt for choice in the scope of attractions that range from natural wonders through to cultural and indigenous heritage.
To make things easier, we’ve narrowed down the drive time from Scarborough to five things that are “do-able” in a day.
We’ve gone off the beaten track for some while others are an easy cruise for a big day out.
1. Mt Tempest on Moreton Island National Park: Moreton Island is the ultimate ‘must see’ destination on our list. And if you want to make the most of your visit, the 2.5 kilometre hike to the island’s highest sand dune Mt Tempest is well worth it. On a clear day, the view from the top takes in 360-degree views of the island and the Glasshouse Mountains on the mainland. Less challenging hikes are available if the two-hour return trip appears daunting.
2. Coastal drive or bike ride from Scarbrough to Shorncliffe: You can drive or ride a bicycle along this scenic route that passes through local coastal villages on the Redcliffe Peninsula. Cross the Ted Smout Memorial Bridge – at 2.7 kilometres in length, it is claimed to be Australia’s longest bridge – and cruise through Sandgate with its heritage-listed houses. At Shorncliffe, check out Shorncliffe Pier (see photo), which reopened in 2016 after a full refurbishment.
3. Deception Bay: Walk the four-kilometre heritage trail along the boardwalk and over mudflats at Deception Bay. Look out for the heritage-listed sea baths, rare surviving examples of 19th century tidal baths built for health and recreational purposes by landowner Dr Joseph Bancroft, who is recognised as a founder of medical research in Australia.
4. D’Aguilar National Park: It takes less than an hour by car to get to the Walkabout Discovery Centre at D’Aguilar National Park. The cool mountain tops and forest flats are home to a huge variety of native plants and animals. There are plenty of options for getting around including bush walking, mountainbike riding and trail rides on horseback.
5. St Helena Island National Park: Visit the 166ha island, the location of the state’s first penal settlement from 1867-1932. Take a guided tour to get educated on the colourful history of the island and to gain access to the restricted area that includes the remains of fragile structures such as the butcher shop and bakery. Seek out the middens and shell scatters left behind by indegenous people who visited the island for thousands of years.
Book accommodation at Scarborough Beach Resort. Perfect for a family holiday to Queensland, it’s just 35 minutes drive from Brisbane airport, offering a selection of 1, 2 and 3 bedroom fully-self contained holiday apartments and onsite facilities including swimming lap pool, large heated spa and more. BOOK YOUR SCARBOROUGH BRISBANE ACCOMMODATION NOW
No more excuses: get back on track in our gym
Who doesn’t dread the end of winter when well-intended New Year’s resolutions have well and truly dissipated and there is no longer the option to hide under the doona (after reading a good book accompanied by a chocolate bar)?
But there is a solution to the ‘winter body’ woes!
It is called an on-site gym. We have one here at Scarborough Beach Resort – and it is equipped with everything you need to get back on track in the fitness game.
Treadmills, stationary bikes, a rowing machine and a multi-station gym give you a selection of workout options.
Floor-to-ceiling mirrors run the length of one wall so you can monitor and correct your form – they are not there to make you feel guilty about the chocolate!
If you are already there in terms of cultivating the body beautiful, the gym is a quiet place to maintain those defined abs and to enhance the six-eight pack.
The gym is handy if you’re staying with us for a conference and need that morning workout before heading to an early meeting. Or after a day spent sitting in a conference, it is a great way to re energise.
Book accommodation at Scarborough Beach Resort. Perfect for a family holiday to Queensland, it’s just 35 minutes drive from Brisbane airport, offering a selection of 1, 2 and 3 bedroom fully-self contained holiday apartments and onsite facilities including swimming lap pool, large heated spa and more. BOOK YOUR SCARBOROUGH BRISBANE ACCOMMODATION NOW
Cirque Du Soleil’s Toruk: the first flight – James Cameron’s Avatar reimagined
WHEN: October, 2017
WHERE: Brisbane Entertainment Centre
It has been described as an “odyssey in sound and light and acrobatics” and an “immersive experience”.
One thing is for sure, Toruk: the first flight is not your usual fare from the artistic performance company that has turned the concept of circus on its head since forming in Canada in 1984.
Cirque Du Soleil’s latest production is unlike anything that has come before it.
It is the first time a Cirque Du Soleil show has been inspired by a movie – James Cameron’s 2009 epic Avatar – and the first time a narrator has guided the storyline of three N’avi teenagers who set off on a journey to save their planet Pandora. Their quest leads them to Toruk, the mighty red and orange predator that rules the Pandora sky.
Toruk: the first flight is set on Cameron’s fictional planet of Pandora 3000 years before the events that took place in the movie.
Since its debut in Canada in 2015, Toruk: the first flight has entranced and enthralled audiences across Planet Earth.
This incredible production is coming to the Brisbane Entertainment Centre in October so get ready to be thrilled by spectacular sets, props, puppets, sound, lighting and performances from some of the world’s most talented and skilled acrobats.
(Cirque Du Soleil has always fashioned its shows towards families – however, in this production there is a note that loud noises and darkness may frighten some children).
Book accommodation nearby at Scarborough Beach Resort. Perfect for a family holiday to Queensland, it’s just 35 minutes drive from Brisbane airport, offering a selection of 1, 2 and 3 bedroom fully-self contained holiday apartments and onsite facilities including swimming lap pool, large heated spa and more. BOOK YOUR SCARBOROUGH BRISBANE ACCOMMODATION NOW
Tick it off the bucket list: Moreton Island helicopter flight
It’s one of those amazing experiences we would all love to have, even if just once – to soar in a helicopter over some of the most stunning scenery that coastal Queensland has to offer.
We are privileged to have one of nature’s miracles, Moreton Island, just across the way from us. It’s one thing to travel there by ferry, which we highly recommend.
But imagine drinking in the whole vast expanse of this protected sand island from the vantage point of a helicopter?
Woo hoo! It’s goosebumps territory.
A Moreton Island Scenic Helicopter Flight is a “once in a lifetime” “let’s just do it” adventure.
The flight takes you from Brisbane, flying across an aquamarine ocean, to Moreton Island where you will have bird’s eye view of the many wrecks scattered along its coastline like ancient relics.
Have your camera at hand as you might be lucky enough to spot marine life such as whales, rays, dolphins and sharks.
The chopper will glide to low altitudes and head around the island’s lighthouse at Cape Moreton before returning to Brisbane along the sparkling coast fringed by beaches.
What are you waiting for?
Book accommodation nearby at Scarborough Beach Resort. Perfect for a family holiday to Queensland, it’s just 35 minutes drive from Brisbane airport, offering a selection of 1, 2 and 3 bedroom fully-self contained holiday apartments and onsite facilities including swimming lap pool, large heated spa and more. BOOK YOUR SCARBOROUGH BRISBANE ACCOMMODATION NOW
Celebrate this beaut place! Redcliffe Festival gets bigger and better in 2017
WHEN: August 26-September 10, 2017
It is arguably the BIGGEST event on the Moreton Bay region calendar (we think so), and every year Redcliffe Festival grows bigger and better.
In previous posts we have plugged some of the amazing events locked into the celebration of the people and places of the Redcliffe Peninsula across three weekends in August and September.
Catch up on our blog posts on Redcliffe Kite Fest, Scarborough Sounds, What’s Cooking in the Gardens and Redcliffe Jetty Fiesta.
It would be remiss of us not to mention a new event and the massive not-to-be-missed grand finale.
The Legends Lunch from 12 noon on Friday, September 8, is a new event that is bound to inspire: Join swimming legend Geoff Huegill, actor and author William McInnes, poet Rupert McCall and two-time Australian ironwoman champion Rebecca Creedy for a two-course lunch that celebrates their achievements and special connection to Redcliffe. The lunch venue is Redcliffe Leagues Club and bookings are essential for the lunch and drinks package.
Redcliffe Remembers: What better way to celebrate the final weekend of the festival than with an indigenous welcome from the Gubbi Gubbi people, the traditional custodians of the land, and a re-enactment of the first landing in September, 1824.
The day will salute the past and celebrate the present – with an optimistic eye on the future of this amazing part of the world.
Redcliffe Parade will be buzzing with buskers and street performers and a huge market plus custom car display. There will be musical tributes to the 1950s and a chance to step back in time through the Penny Arcade.
Miss Redcliffe Festival Pin Up Pageant is sure to be a highlight, with rockabilly fashionistas lining up to become the face of the Redcliffe Festival 2018/2019 (Be quick if you would like to enter as the cut-off date is Friday, August 18).
Book accommodation nearby at Scarborough Beach Resort. Perfect for a family holiday to Queensland, it’s just 35 minutes drive from Brisbane airport, offering a selection of 1, 2 and 3 bedroom fully-self contained holiday apartments and onsite facilities including swimming lap pool, large heated spa and more. BOOK YOUR SCARBOROUGH BRISBANE ACCOMMODATION NOW
Redcliffe Jetty Markets: in the heart of the community
When: Every Sunday from 8am to 2pm
Where: Anzac Parade Parklands, Redcliffe Parade, Redcliffe
From little things big things grow.
This can be said of Redcliffe Jetty Markets, which started as a teeny weeny street market four years ago. It has grown to become “Redcliffe’s premier peninsula market” – deservedly so.
The market offers an eclectic spread of fresh farm produce, beautiful handcrafted items that are both locally sourced and from overseas, fashion items that cover clothing and accessories, jewellery, yummy takeway food stalls, fresh coffee (of course) and live entertainment.
What’s more, it is located against the divine natural backdrop of Moreton Bay.
The market organisers are also firmly earthed in community as strong supporters of the Salvation Army’s Red Shield Appeal.
It’s not a half bad way to spend your Sunday.
Free parking is available in adjacent car parks.
Book accommodation nearby at Scarborough Beach Resort. Perfect for a family holiday to Queensland, it’s just 35 minutes drive from Brisbane airport, offering a selection of 1, 2 and 3 bedroom fully-self contained holiday apartments and onsite facilities including swimming lap pool, large heated spa and more. BOOK YOUR SCARBOROUGH BRISBANE ACCOMMODATION NOW
A two day mini break gives you time to re-energise
What a difference two days make – 48 little hours away from the the stress of the working week can be enough to put a spring back in your step.
We have suggested a laid-back 48-hour itinerary that doesn’t run you ragged but offers a nice balance of light exercise, local sight-seeing and serious rest and relaxation.
Day One
AM: Take a walk past Bee Gees’ house. The walk from Scarborough to Redcliffe Jetty is regarded as one of the best in the Moreton Bay Region. It is highly recommended but there is an alternative. Heading in the other direction, from Scarborough Beach to Newport, you will discover numerous highlights.
It is eight kilometres of level walking (return). On the way, you pass a humble abode at 12 Fifth Ave. For several years, this was the home of the Gibb family, who emigrated to Australia from the UK in 1958.
Follow the path along the seaside to Moreton Bay Boat Club through Thurecht Park and on to Endeavour Park, which has views across Deception Bay and glimpses of the Glasshouse Mountains. Endeavour Esplanade leads to the canal suburb of Newport.
On the way back, stop at Morgans Seafood Market and Takeway and choose from a selection of locally caught seafood, or enjoy sushi and oysters in a pleasant and relaxed setting.
PM: Scarborough Beach Resort has a large rooftop entertainment deck with ocean views. It is equipped with barbecue facilities where you can cook up a fresh seafood feast as the sun sets in spectacular fashion (weather permitting!) across Moreton Bay.
Day Two
AM: Sleep in.
Stretch. Consider the day ahead.
Do some casual laps in our heated pool, relax in the spa or opt for a workout in the fully equipped gym before heading out for a light (or heavy – depending on the nature of your workout) breakfast at one of numerous local cafes.
We can recommend Cafe 3 Eight Nine and Sea Salt and Vine but there are plenty more that offer great local fare and wonderful coffee.
PM: Get a bit active. Hire a pedal boat or, for the more adventurous, kayak or stand-up-paddle board (sup) from Floatin’ Fun.
Packages are available, which include lifejackets and instruction. The local family-run business operates on the beach, just across the road from Scarborough Beach Resort.
Afterwards, either pick up supplies to whip up your own culinary masterpiece in your self contained apartment or indulge in a night out at Pines Bar and Restaurant, located right on our doorstep.
This established eatery is wheelchair friendly and has a versatile menu with gluten free and vegetarian options.
Book accommodation nearby at Scarborough Beach Resort. Perfect for a family holiday to Queensland, it’s just 35 minutes drive from Brisbane airport, offering a selection of 1, 2 and 3 bedroom fully-self contained holiday apartments and onsite facilities including swimming lap pool, large heated spa and more.BOOK YOUR SCARBOROUGH BRISBANE ACCOMMODATION NOW
Hit the road for a day trip: we offer free parking!
It’s reassuring to know that when you stay at Scarborough Beach Resort your vehicle is safe and sound in our free, secure undercover car park.
This gives you the freedom to leave the car behind to wander on foot, exploring the immediate local area and attractions or travelling across the water to mesmerising Moreton Island.
We are also in a fantastic location – conveniently positioned within driving distance of numerous day-trip destinations.
While we have an undeniably picturesque beach on our doorstep, the coastline drive is refreshing. You might like to drive south along the short peninsula route to Redcliffe Jetty, checking out Woody Point on the way.
Or head north for a longer drive (it only takes around an hour) through Beerburrum and Beerwah State Forests to Mooloolaba.
Alternatively, a one-and-a-half hour drive into the hinterland will get you to the aptly named Mount Glorious in the D’Aguilar Range.
There’s so much choice so why not get your motor going!
Book accommodation nearby at Scarborough Beach Resort. Perfect for a family holiday to Queensland, it’s just 35 minutes drive from Brisbane airport, offering a selection of 1, 2 and 3 bedroom fully-self contained holiday apartments and onsite facilities including swimming lap pool, large heated spa and more.BOOK YOUR SCARBOROUGH BRISBANE ACCOMMODATION NOW
Taking it to the streets at the Redcliffe Jetty Fiesta
When: Saturday, September 9, 2017, 3-9pm
Where: Redcliffe Parade, Redcliffe
How much free fun can you have in one night?
The only way to find out is to get yourselves over here for the Jetty Fiesta, a huge street party that transforms Redcliffe Parade into a juke-joint jumpin’ pedestrian precinct complete with fire twirlers, beach performances and other surprises.
Arrive early to sample yummy local cuisine from the twilight markets and food stalls.
Dance off to Latin American and Mexican mariachi bands, and more, on the main stage.
Be dazzled by a fireworks display at 8pm, which casts a kaleidoscope of colours across the water and Redcliffe Jetty.
This year, ‘Bay of Boats’ is being “launched”. This wonderful initiative encourages seaworthy vessel owners to festoon their boats in fairy and solar powered lights for an extra magical light show. *To participate, complete the registration form on the website*
Book accommodation nearby at Scarborough Beach Resort. Perfect for a family holiday to Queensland, it’s just 35 minutes drive from Brisbane airport, offering a selection of 1, 2 and 3 bedroom fully-self contained holiday apartments and onsite facilities including swimming lap pool, large heated spa and more. BOOK YOUR SCARBOROUGH BRISBANE ACCOMMODATION NOW