# Gold Coast school holidays with kids: the family planner > A family-holiday plan built around Viscount's beachfront base in Surfers Paradise: a beach and surf lesson, a theme-park day, a free afternoon in the gardens and a rainy-day backup, all reachable without a hire car. - Tag: Travel tips - Published: 2026-07-08 --- School holidays with kids on the Gold Coast work best when the base needs no driving and the days fill themselves in around it. First Avenue puts Viscount on the Beach across the road from Surfers Paradise Beach and right at the start of the Oceanway, so a beach morning, a surf lesson and a free park are all a walk from the door. This is the planner: where to base the trip, then a menu of days, each with a link to the fuller guide. ## The base: an apartment built for a family trip The **Superior 3 Bedroom Ocean View** is the flagship layout for a family taking the whole apartment together: 120 sq m, two bathrooms, sleeps six, on an upper floor with lift access. Every apartment is fully self-contained, full kitchen and laundry included, so mealtimes and washing don't have to run around the holiday. Outside, the **heated pool sits at 27°C year-round** and is the feature families with young kids come back for. At ground level there's a separate **garden BBQ**, the option worth booking if you want the kids roaming the lawn while dinner cooks rather than penned in at a rooftop table. Cribs and strollers are available. The address itself is the other half of the pitch: walk-everywhere at the quiet end of Surfers Paradise, no schoolies bookings accepted, so the neighbourhood stays a family one through the holidays. See the [Superior 3 Bedroom Ocean View](/broadbeach-accommodation/3-bedroom-superior-ocean-view/index.md) for the full layout and photos. ## A beach day, with a surf lesson Surfers Paradise Beach is the sand directly across First Avenue, patrolled and an easy first stop with younger kids. For a surf lesson, walk (or ride) the Oceanway roughly 15 minutes south to Kurrawa/Broadbeach, where both **Go Ride A Wave** and **Broadbeach Surf School** run beginner lessons meeting at the Kurrawa Surf Life Saving Club carpark, in patrolled water. For the full rundown on all three nearby beaches, patrol hours and the Oceanway itself, see [Surfers Paradise beaches and the Oceanway](/experience/blog/surfers-paradise-beaches-and-oceanway/index.md). ## One day at the theme parks Budget one day, pick one park, and don't try to stack two. Movie World, Dreamworld and Wet'n'Wild all sit roughly 20 minutes' drive north around Oxenford and Coomera; Sea World at Main Beach is the closest, about 10 minutes. Full comparison, what each park suits and how to choose between them, in [Gold Coast theme parks](/experience/blog/gold-coast-theme-parks/index.md). ## A backup plan for the rainy day Keep one indoor option in the back pocket for the day the weather turns: arcades, escape rooms, an ice rink and an observation deck are all a short walk into Surfers Paradise from the apartment. The full list, with what suits which age group, is in [Rainy day Gold Coast](/experience/blog/rainy-day-things-to-do-surfer-paradise/index.md). ## A free afternoon: gardens, markets and the Oceanway Not every day needs a ticket. **Cascade Gardens**, a free public park between Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach, has BBQ and picnic facilities, a children's playground and walking paths through a bird and flying-fox sanctuary, roughly 15 minutes along the Oceanway. The **Beachfront Markets** run three nights a week on the Surfers Paradise esplanade, free to browse. Both, plus more free and nearby options, are rounded up in [Things to do near Viscount](/experience/blog/free-things-to-do-surfer-paradise/index.md). ## Putting it together None of this needs a hire car for the whole week. Beach and surf lesson on foot down the Oceanway, one day out at a theme park, a free afternoon at Cascade Gardens or the markets, and a rainy-day list ready if needed, all built around an apartment with room to spread out and a pool warm enough to use every day of the stay. [Check availability](/broadbeach-accommodation/index.md) for the school holidays: every apartment is ocean-facing and self-contained for the whole family under one roof.