Frommer's Australia from $50 a Day 13th Edition - To Parent Directory

THE GOLD COAST HINTERLAND: BACK TO NATURE 357
transport to Mt. Tamborine on request. She also runs a food and wine tour, with
pick-ups every Thursday at the Gold Coast, and an antiques tour on Fridays.
VISITOR INFORMATION Stop at the Gold Coast Tourism Bureau (see
“Visitor Information” for the Gold Coast, above) for information and tourist
maps before you head out. Brisbane Tourism outlets (See “Visitor Information”
in chapter 5) also have information. Once you arrive, the Tamborine Mountain
Information Centre is in Doughety Park, where Geissmann Drive becomes
Main Western Road in North Tamborine (& 07/5545 3200). It’s open daily
from 10:30am to 3:30pm.
EXPLORING THE MOUNTAIN
With a map in hand, you are well equipped to drive around Mt. Tamborine’s roads
to admire the wonderful views over the valleys and to poke around in the shops.
New Age candles, homemade soaps, maple pecan fudge, framed tropical watercolors,
German cuckoo clocks, and Aussie antiques are some of the things you can
buy in the mountain’s crafts stores. The best place to shop is the quaint strip of galleries,
cafes, and shops known as Gallery Walk on Long Road, between North
Tamborine and Eagle Heights. Eagle Heights has few shops but great views back
toward the coast. North Tamborine is mainly a commercial center where you still
find the odd nice gallery or two. Mt. Tamborine itself is mainly residential.
The cool air has lent itself to winemaking, still in its infancy in this neck of the
woods, but you can spend a pleasant day visiting some or all of the wineries in the
region. Most cellar doors are open for free tastings from 10am to 4pm daily.
Allow time to walk some of the trails that wind through forest throughout the
villages. Most are reasonably short and easy. The Tamborine Mountain Information
Centre has maps marking them.
WHERE TO STAY: A RAINFOREST B&B
Tamborine Mountain Bed & Breakfast Tony and Pam Lambert’s restful
timber home has stunning 180-degree views to the ocean from the breakfast balcony.
Laze by the open fire in the timber-lined living room, or out on the lovely
veranda where rainbow lorikeets, kookaburras, and crimson rosellas flit about
over the bird feeders. The ferny gardens have four purpose-built rustic timber
rooms, each individually decorated in cottage style and linked to the house by
covered walkways. The rooms are heated in winter. No smoking indoors.
19–23 Witherby Crescent, Eagle Heights, QLD 4721. & 07/5545 3595. Fax 07/5545 3322. www.tmbb.com.
au. 4 units (all with shower only).A$127 (US$83) double midweek;A$149 (US$97) double at weekends. Rates
include continental breakfast Mon–Fri and full breakfast at weekends. MC, V. Free parking. No children under
12. In room: A/C, TV/VCR, small fridge, coffeemaker, iron.
LAMINGTON NATIONAL PARK
70km (42 miles) W of Gold Coast; 115km (69 miles) S of Brisbane
Subtropical rainforest, 2,000-year-old, moss-covered Antarctic beech trees, giant
strangler figs, and misty mountain air characterize Lamington’s suddenly ascending
peaks and plunging valleys. It’s one of the most important subtropical parks
in southeast Queensland, and one of the loveliest. The park has 160km (96
miles) of walking trails that track through thick forest, past ferny waterfalls, and
along mountain ridges with soaring views across green valleys. The trails vary in
difficulty and length, from 1km ( 1 /2 mile) strolls up to 23km (14-mile) treks.
The park is a haven for bird lovers who come to see and photograph the rosellas,
bowerbirds, and other species that live here, but that’s not the only wildlife
you will see. Groups of small wallabies, called pademelons, graze outside your