Mark your calendars and travel during these few months to get the best deals on the Queensland coast.
Australian holidays and budget-friendly tend not to go hand-in-hand. But if you know when to book, they sure can. We share our tips on when to travel to Surfers Paradise, Broadbeach, Coolangatta and more with our guide to finding the cheapest time to visit the Gold Coast.
TL;DR
The absolute cheapest time: August (except for school holiday periods). (Read more to see why)
The best-value time: April and May. (Read more to see why)
Our latest Gold Coast travel deals
When is the cheapest time to travel to Gold Coast?
May and August are generally the cheapest times to travel. We researched prices for a couple of Australian cities to the Gold Coast with Jetstar, Virgin Australia and newcomer Bonza to see when the lowest prices were. (For Sydney, we looked at Rex instead of Bonza) Here’s what we found:
Range of flight price from Melbourne to the Gold Coast
August is the cheapest time to fly to the Gold Coast from Melbourne.
| Jetstar | Virgin Australia | Bonza | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | $71-$133 | $105-$165 | Not yet available |
| February | $72-$133 | $105-$165 | Not yet available |
| March | $168 | $105-$195 | Not yet available |
| April | $71-$121 | $105-$146 | $79-$89 |
| May | $71-$121 | $105-$126 | $79-$89 |
| June | $71-$188 | $105-$241 | $79-$149 |
| July | $71-$180 | $105-$226 | $79-$149 |
| August | $71-$114 | $105-$195 | $79 |
| September | $71-$161 | $105-$241 | $79-$149 |
| October | $71-$133 | $105-$225 | $79-$149 |
| November | $81-$133 | $105-$165 | Not yet available |
| December | $82-$254 | $105-$299 | Not yet available |
Note: Bonza only lets you book flights six months in advance. Since we last updated this post in April, we’re only able to see pricing data until November.
Range of flight price from Sydney to the Gold Coast
We found May to be the cheapest time to fly to the Gold Coast from Sydney.
| Jetstar | Virgin Australia | Rex | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | $65-$110 | $89-$135 | $109-$175 |
| February | $65-$90 | $89-$135 | $109-$195 |
| March | $137 | $89-$149 | $109-$145 |
| April | $65-$232 | $89-$199 | $109-$165 |
| May | $65 | $79-$125 | $109-$175 |
| June | $65-$90 | $79-$135 | $109-$165 |
| July | $65-$90 | $79-$169 | $109-$195 |
| August | $65-$90 | $79-$135 | $109-$195 |
| September | $65-$90 | $79-$229 | $109-$195 |
| October | $65-$137 | $79-$125 | $109-$175 |
| November | $65-$193 | $79-$229 | $109-$289 |
| December | $65-$193 | $79-$229 | $109-$289 |
We also looked at flight aggregator Kayak’s data. It offers the average price of flights found on its platform. It shows that August is the cheapest time
While the numbers are a bit different, flight prices are dynamic. So, what we’re finding at the time of writing this aren’t necessarily reflective of an overall average, like Kayak has found.
Looking at the graphs though, it’s safe to say that the winter months, overall, is the cheapest time to visit the Gold Coast.
Search for flights to the Gold Coast
How much will it cost to travel to Gold Coast at the time?
Based on the data displayed above, you should be able to find flights to the Gold Coast for around $65-$70 if you’re flying from Sydney or Melbourne.
We looked at those two cities because the majority of flights into the Gold Coast Airport are coming from those two cities.
Kayak data isn’t available from Adelaide, so we’ve turned to another favourite aggregator of ours: Skyscanner.
We’re finding flight prices from both Adelaide and Perth to be pretty steady throughout the year.
But… is this going to be the worst time to go to Gold Coast?
Well, that depends what you qualify as a bad time to go.
If you’re going for the beaches: It may be a bit chilly to sunbathe on the beach or swim in the ocean. Temperatures on the Gold Coast average just 22C this time of year, with the sea sitting at 21C. By comparison, in January temperatures sit at about 29C and the ocean is 26C.
If you’re going for the theme parks: Winter is actually a great time to visit the Gold Coast’s theme parks. While you may not want to splash around at Wet ‘n’ Wild, 22C is a perfect temperature for spending the day walking around Movie Wold or Dreamworld. The sun also isn’t quite as strong in winter, so you’ll also be less likely to burn. (Still wear that sun cream though!)
If you’re going for the hinterland: If hiking is on your agenda, the winter months can be more comfortable and tend to be drier, which makes for much less muddy adventures. For some walks, like the multi-day Great Walk, it’s actually recommended to go during the cooler months.
When is the best-value time to visit the Gold Coast?
April and May, outside the school holiday periods.
We found flight prices to still be low, and the weather is still pleasant. In April, the Gold Coast weather averages to 26C and the sea a comfortable 25C.
We also checked out hotel deal sites like Luxury Escapes and Groupon and found mid-April and May generally had the same pricing available as during the winter months.
When have we been to the Gold Coast?
January and February.
February was, by far, a much more affordable time to visit. We stayed in a lush two-bedroom apartment in February for less than the price of one night at a hotel in January.
Unfortunately, we can’t compare the price of flights as our stay in January was part of a larger road trip.
Looking for a Gold Coast deal? Check out our latest offers.
