Gold Coast Day 5 - Infinity

TAMBORINE RAINFOREST SKYWALK

In my final (*bawls*) day in Gold Coast, I took some time off to visit Tamborine Rainforest Skywalk. This is a new lookout point for tourists to appreciate the flora and rain forests in Australia. About an hour's drive from Surfer's Paradise, this place turned out to be a bit of a disappointment after all the hype. As I drove past the quaint village and cafes and shops at Eagles Heights in anticipation of a marvelous view at the Skywalk, I was really very sorely disappointed. The place is located near the foot of the mountain so there was no view whatsoever, contrary to its name. Admission tickets were priced at $19.50 so you would kinda expect some bang for your buck. 

There was a small cafe with some displays of butterflies and other indigenous insects, and some natural history before we reached the metal bridge with grills on the floor. The walk was really uneventful and there weren't even animals or many birds in view. Our brisk walk took 45mins and we were done.

This is as scenic as it gets

My advice: Don't waste time on this 'attraction'.

GLOW WORMS CAVE

I would recommend a visit to the Glow Worms cave instead at Cedar Creek Estate. It is basically a scenic vineyard with wine tasting sessions, a beautiful garden with swans, fish and tortoises in their pond, but the highlight is the man-made cave full of glow worms. It seemed that there were about 10000 of them in the darkness, emanating gentle green and whitish lights. There is a very experienced guide who would give the rundown of how they maintain the troop inside. Educational and enjoyable at the same time. Plus, who would mind visiting such a pretty vineyard?

Iguanas like these made their discreet presence known occasionally

INFINITY

The evening was spent around Surfer's Paradise within the Chevron Towers itself at Infinity. Definitely something not to be missed, this unique attraction is a cross between an escape-room, a maze and a theme park. The challenge in each room was to find the hidden exit.

Innovative use of light, sound, mirrors, changing temperatures make this place intriguing. The first room stumped us as we struggled to find the exit into the next room. One of the rooms was terrifying as we were in absolute darkness and there were gusts of wind and sudden movements in the ground, coupled with slimy walls and fabrics in our faces. I liked the one where there were laser lights across the room. I felt like Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible was I straddled, crawled and did some yoga moves to get to the other end. Each time you hit a laser beam, water shot out at you.

My ride to dinner.....if only!

If you are not exhausted after more than an hour inside Infinity, go for part 2 at the Dracula's House of Horrors. This has several levels of horror, each one themed differently. No grotesquely-dressed actor will charge out at you, but instead, all the scaring was mechanized. For brave souls only.

want a go on the electric chair anyone?

In conclusion, Gold Coast is really a great holiday destination with endless things to do. Perhaps a week would be good to cover all grounds. I would recommend renting a car as getting around by public transport may be a challenge. If you have an iPhone with iMaps, there is no need to rent a GPS as well. Just make sure you have plenty of backup power banks, or get one for the car itself. I wish I had more time this round. Would have loved to visit the beach and just watch the waves or visit the Surf Competition that was on at that time. So, goodbye Australia and see you soon.