Located just 66 kilometres southeast of Brisbane, the Gold Coast is Queensland's second-largest city and the sixth-largest in Australia. With a population of over 640,000 residents, it holds the distinction of being the most populous non-capital city in the country. Spanning a 60-kilometre stretch of coastline, the city merges seamlessly with Greater Brisbane to the north and extends south to the New South Wales border.

The Gold Coast's urban hub is centered around the suburb of Southport, but the cityscape spreads across iconic locations like Surfers Paradise, Broadbeach, and Burleigh Heads. Known affectionately as the “Goldy” or the “Glitter Strip,” the city is famed for its gleaming skyline, surf beaches, and bustling tourism industry.

Originally inhabited by the Yugambeh people, European settlement began in the mid-19th century, with Nerang being one of the earliest established townships in 1865. From the 1920s, tourism became a driving economic force, setting the stage for rapid development. The city was officially declared in 1959, and a wave of high-rise construction followed, defining the Gold Coast’s modern identity.

The 1980s marked a defining era with the rise of the so-called “white-shoe brigade” — flamboyant developers who reshaped the skyline with bold projects amid a backdrop of glitz, neon, and a shadowy underworld involving international crime syndicates like the Yakuza and the Russian mafia.

In more recent decades, the Gold Coast has diversified its appeal. It became a hotspot for theme parks, such as Warner Bros. Movie World and Sea World, and a sought-after location for international film productions. With a subtropical climate, average highs of 25.4°C, and nearly 1,300mm of annual rainfall, the Gold Coast offers an enviable lifestyle that blends natural beauty with cosmopolitan living.

Today, the Gold Coast continues to shine as a dynamic hub of culture, entertainment, and innovation — a coastal city that celebrates both its heritage and its global future.