CarolineSwan

Hi there

Just wanted to ask a question or ten about the Sunshine Coast if that is OK?

We currently are NZ citizens and have happily lived here for 7 years this December. My husband is working in Dubai at this point flying in and out when he gets his time off (Or we fly to him)

Anyway we love our trips to QLD and for years I have said I would love to live there, however we have only ever stayed in Brisbane and Palm Beach.

With my husbands work being based over seas anyway we have reached a point that we could move to QLD as Gary will just fly in and out any way.

The thing is I feel the Gold Coast is probably too busy, though Palm Beach is quieter but still I feel from what I have read that the Sunshine coast is probably a nicer/better place to stay.

We have an 8 year old daughter who loves to be out side and is a total fish, she would also need somewhere that does dancing classes etc as she is very active.

Other things that I would look for is a gym close by that offers classes, also cafes etc.

My question is to anyone that does stay there, what areas would you say are best for an 8 year old, for schooling etc.

I am looking to book a flight for mid July during our school holidays to come and do a recce.

Areas I have been told that are nice are Caloundra (Moffat Beach) and Moloolaba.

I want to be close to a beach, has to be walking distance I think.

Any advice is welcome.

Thanks in advance.

ajhanna18

I live in Mooloolaba and love it. The mooloolaba beach is great and there are endless beaches that stretch the whole of the Sunshine Coast, all of which are excellent, not only that but you can use the beaches all year round and I swim in the water for probably 8 months of the year. Mooloolaba also has tons of cafe's that do great coffee so no worries on that one.

Lots of gyms around here, my fiancee goes to gym classes every morning before work, the gym is called ezyfit (if you want to google it), it is a big modern gym with first class facilities.

I much prefer the Sunshine Coast to Gold coast, although it is a lot quieter but I guess unless you are in to going night clubbing or anything like that it wouldn't be an issue.

Not too sure on the schooling but there are plenty of school's around here, Mountain Creek is a suburb only a few minutes outside mooloolaba that has a couple of school's that I have been told are good.

CarolineSwan

Thanks for that, yea I would say with having an 8yr old my clubbing days are over, give me a glass or ten of wine any day of the week in my jammies reading a book LOL.

I did see Mountain Creek school on one of the rental searches.

When in Mooloomba is it fairly easy to get everywhere? could I do a lot of walking? I love walking and am spoiled right now that in the nice weather I barely use the car. (not that it nice right now at all haha)

Oh and is the humidity better than Brisbane? I know the Gold Coast is way better.

ajhanna18

Yes mooloolaba is easy to get everywhere it is right in the centre of the Sunshine Coast. Lot's of nice walks along the beach paths. Humidity is about the same as Brisbane but you do usually get the coastal breeze here which makes it a bit more bearable but I do find December-March very hot and muggy.

CarolineSwan

Yea the sea breeze can make a difference for sure.
Just looking up schools just now, so much to look up.

Hoping the real estate place will show me a few rentals just to get a feel for the area.

Have also found a good dance school for my daughter so that will keep her happy. Need to find a swim club but I am sure that will not be a problem, also as long as she can swim a lot she will be happy.

Bix

Also check out beachside of areas around Buddina - Parrearra if you want walking distance to a variety of facilities.

The area is less congested than the centres of Noosa, Maroochydore, Mooloolaba or Caloundra all of which can be parking nightmares.

Kawana Shoppingworld on the doorstep along with other businesses close by including a gym. Several cafes around. Lots of businesses along the length of the Nicklin Highway.

It's one lovely long beach from Port Cartwright South to Currimundi and beyond. Not busy if you like beach walks.

Kawana Surf Life Saving Club is very good and would be something you could sign up the daughter to do.

Mooloolaba is great and only about 10 minutes away. However it is a very big holiday destination so I would not recommend it for family life. We loved driving to The Spit or Point Cartwright for walks but could rarely find parking in the main hub of Mooloolabah.

Don't know anything about schools but there is a very good looking one at Brightwater which is only about 10-15 minutes from Buddina. That may be the same one AJH was talking about at Mountain Creek as they roll into one.

Bix

Aquatic Centres and Pools - Sunshine Coast Council

Parkers

Hi there!

We have recently moved to the Sunshine Coast and we absolutely love it! When we first arrived we stayed in a holiday let on Golden Beach in Caloundra, which is really nice for families, with parks etc, the beach is very calm and there is a dance club on bulcock street. It looks good.

Then we stayed in Buddina which is fantastic! The beach is amazing and the Kawana shopping world is great.
My son goes to Buddina State School, its a really nice school just on the beach. There's a real family feel to the school and they really made my 9 year old son Jak feel very welcome. He has been there 7 weeks now and he is really happy and has lots of friends 😊

We stayed in Holiday lets for the first six weeks when we first arrived and it was great as it allowed us to explore and see what area we liked best.
We really love Buddina but struggled to find a rental property there so we are now renting in Kawana Island which is lovely and just a short drive to Buddina School and beach.
There is a dance class at Buddina school after school but I'm not sure of the details. There is a surf club behind the school, hopefully Jak will start little nippers in August.


Mooloolaba is really nice as the resturants are lovely on the beach front and a really nice harbour. Not sure about the schools in that area but it is a great place.

Sunshine Coast was a great choice for us!

Good luck 😊

jad n rich

Buderim.

Green, lush, quiet, safe, own bustling large village, restuarants, parks, pockets of rainforest, 5-10 mins up mountain from Mooloolaba and ALexandra headland beach.

Huge family area, state primary school, ( state high schools are chancellor or mt creek ) and the top private schools on the Sunshine coast . A new university set in lush grounds, full of kangaroos and architectural buildings, Huge Tafe/college campus.

Every kids club from dance to basketball you could think of, surf, swimming, diving, kayak etc for the water kids.

10 mins to 2 major shopping centres, own village with supermarkets, banks, restuarants, etc etc. 50 mins to brisbane on weekend, add 30 mins to that in peak though. Domestic and NZ airport 10 mins away.

CarolineSwan

Thanks so much everyone, these all just came through on my email.
Heading out but will respond once home

CarolineSwan

thanks for that, I never thought about parking and it is awful when you can't find anywhere.

Will check this area out thanks

CarolineSwan

Thanks , I will check out clubs for her

CarolineSwan

Can I ask what the classes hold roughly? my daughters school now is on average of around 30. Will google the school and the place you living now, it sounds lovely. So nice to hear you have settled

CarolineSwan

Buderim really sounds lovely, just the kind of place we are looking for, right now we in a little town of 3000 outside the bigger city and it is perfect. Doesn't have a uni though or many restaurants but a small village feel.

Does it take you long to drive to beach?

CarolineSwan

Just another thought, we never did a recce when coming to Nz we just chanced it and were lucky enough to love where we are.

We are a bit dubious about doing it this way again as we are sure we will not be that lucky twice.

What do you reccoment seeing/doing on a recce.

I am thinking so far:

schools
housing (We are in no rush to buy, in fact I quite like the idea of renting and not being stuck to a place) (we still own property in the UK that we earn an income from)
General feel (I go a lot with how I feel in a place)
Traffic
Shopping (Though not really important if one town so close to the next)
A good wine shop (not really, yes really LOL)
Dance schools
Swimming pools (For squad teams)
Things to do/parks/walking/biking etc

Anything else?