Gold Coast: how to get there and around
Airports, stations, ports, where the hotels are and what the numbers say, from public data rather than a brochure.
Gold Coast is a city of 640,778 people in Australia (Queensland), 12 m (39 ft) above sea level. The nearest large airport is Gold Coast Airport (OOL), 20 km (12 mi) from the centre. Our booking partner lists 1,887+ places to stay.
Key facts
Open Gold Coast in Google Maps
Daylight in Gold Coast runs from about 10 h 24 min a day in late June to 13 h 58 min in late December (computed for -28° latitude), which matters more than the forecast when a day is built around one flight or one crossing.
Getting there
Gold Coast is served by 4 airports with scheduled flights within 100 km. The closest large one is Gold Coast Airport (OOL), 20 km (12 mi) from the centre, with a longest runway of 8,176 ft, which limits it to short and medium-haul aircraft. The alternatives are Brisbane International Airport (BNE, 75 km), Ballina Byron Gateway Airport (BNK, 93 km), Lismore Airport (LSY, 94 km).
Flights to Gold Coast: every airport, routes and times
Buses to Gold Coast · Driving and car hire
Where to stay
Our booking partner lists 1,887+ places to stay in Gold Coast (statistics below are from the first 1,000). Of the 736 with a star rating, the largest group is 4-star (335), and 72 are five-star. Across 478 properties with at least 50 reviews, the average guest score is 8.4 out of 10. Guests have left 514,665 reviews in total.
Hotels in Gold Coast: the full picture, and book
Our booking partner lists 12 hostels in Gold Coast, out of 1,887 places to stay of every kind — 0.6% of everywhere it lists in the city, a small share: this is a city where nearly everything on offer is a hotel or an apartment. Across 10 hostels with at least 50 reviews, the average guest score is 8.2 out of 10, 0.2 below the 8.4 its hotels average. Guests have left 15,546 reviews across them.
Hostels in Gold Coast: the full picture, and book
Nearby cities, and how to get between them
- Brisbane, 71 km — trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Sunshine Coast, 153 km — flights · buses · car rental · tours
- Logan City, 51 km — buses · car rental · tours
- Toowoomba, 153 km — flights · buses · car rental · tours
Twin towns and sister cities: Dubai, Netanya, Corfu, Taipei, Nouméa, Medellín, Kanagawa Prefecture, Tainan, Guadalajara, Cirebon, Fort Lauderdale, Zhuhai.
Common questions
Which airport serves Gold Coast?
Gold Coast Airport (OOL), 20 km (12 mi) from the centre, plus 3 other airports with scheduled flights within 100 km.
How big is Gold Coast?
About 640,778 people live in Gold Coast, across 1,402 km² (GeoNames and Wikidata).
What time zone is Gold Coast in?
Australia/Brisbane, currently UTC+10.
What currency is used in Gold Coast?
The Dollar (AUD). Traffic drives on the left.
Are there hostels in Gold Coast?
12 of them, bookable on this site. Hostels in Gold Coast.
How many hotels are there in Gold Coast?
Our booking partner lists 1,887 or more places to stay in Gold Coast, bookable on this site.
Which cities are near Gold Coast?
Brisbane (71 km), Sunshine Coast (153 km), Logan City (51 km), Toowoomba (153 km).
Where these facts come from
- GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, elevation, time zone, postal codes
- Wikidata (CC0): area, sister cities, visitor numbers, heritage listings, stations and ports
- OurAirports (public domain): airports, runways
- Natural Earth (public domain): map outlines
Data compiled 14 September 2026. Hotel and hostel figures are from our booking partner’s catalogue on that date. Journey times on this page are estimates from distance, not timetables; check the operator before you rely on one.