Theme parks from Tugun: how to plan the day
The theme parks are at the northern end of the Gold Coast, and we are at the southern end. The trade is a quiet beach for a longer drive. Here is how to make the drive worth it.
Honest drive times
From Tugun on the M1: Sea World at Main Beach is about 35 to 40 minutes; Movie World and Wet'n'Wild, side by side at Oxenford, about 45 minutes; Dreamworld and WhiteWater World, next to each other at Coomera, about 50 minutes. Add time in school holidays and on wet days when everyone has the same idea.
Which park for whom
- Sea World for younger children: dolphins, penguins, the Nickelodeon rides, and the shortest drive.
- Movie World for ride-hungry older kids and adults: the big roller coasters and the DC superhero precinct. Check the height limits before you promise anything.
- Dreamworld for a bit of everything: thrill rides, Tiger Island, a wildlife section and a toddler zone, with WhiteWater World through a connecting gate.
- Wet'n'Wild for summer: slides and wave pools, and an easy pairing with Movie World next door.
Tickets
Buy online before you go; gate prices are higher and some days sell out in holidays. Movie World, Sea World, Wet'n'Wild and Paradise Country are run by one company and share multi-park passes; Dreamworld and WhiteWater World are run by another and share theirs. Multi-day passes almost always beat single days if you plan two park days, and prices change often, so compare on the parks' own sites.
Timing the day
Parks open at 9.30 or 10am. Leave Tugun by about 8.15am, be at the gate as it opens, and do the popular rides in the first hour while the queues are short. Either leave by 3pm or stay until close; the M1 between 3.30 and 6pm is the slowest part of the day. Pack hats, sunscreen, refillable bottles and a change of clothes for the water rides.
Without a car
It is possible by bus and tram but it is a two-hour trip each way. Theme park shuttle companies collect from the southern Gold Coast; ask us when you book and we will point you to the current operators. A rideshare for four is often comparable.
Back in Tugun
The best part of staying south is the end of the day: a swim between the flags 50 metres from the apartment, dinner on Golden Four Drive, and a quiet beach instead of a theme-park hotel. Two park days with a beach day between them is the pattern our families settle on.
Good to know
How far are the theme parks from Tugun?
Sea World about 35 to 40 minutes, Movie World and Wet'n'Wild about 45 minutes, Dreamworld and WhiteWater World about 50 minutes, all via the M1.
Which theme park is best for toddlers?
Sea World, for the animals, the Nickelodeon rides and the shortest drive. Dreamworld has a dedicated toddler area too.
Can we do two parks in one day?
Movie World and Wet'n'Wild are next door to each other, and Dreamworld connects to WhiteWater World, so a split day works at either pair. One full day per park is more relaxed.
Do we need a car?
Realistically, yes, or a shuttle or rideshare. Public transport takes about two hours each way from Tugun.
Keep reading
Things to do in Tugun and Currumbin with kids
Most of what children want from a beach holiday is within a ten-minute walk of our front door: a patrolled beach, still creek water, a wildlife sanctuary and a bakery.
Best cafés and restaurants in Tugun
More than 20 places to eat sit within a two to five minute walk of the apartments, strung along Golden Four Drive behind the beach.
Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary: a visitor guide from Tugun
The Sanctuary is the reason many of our guests choose Tugun over the rest of the coast.