Erosion caused by ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred, which battered Gold Coast beaches in March, has disrupted the Queensland holiday hotspot's calendar of events.
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See subscription options* PACIFIC AIRSHOW
- Organisers blamed erosion in May when they pulled the pin on the major ticketed event, which would have filled Surfers Paradise beach with crowds across three days in August.
- First held in 2023, the air show was a major money spinner for local businesses, drawing 270,000 spectators to Surfers across three days in 2024 and generating more than $33 million in estimated overnight visitor expenditure.
* OUT 2 LUNCH
- The huge two-day music festival, co-produced and headlined by local DJ Fisher, was moved from Coolangatta Beach to Southport foreshore in May due to erosion and storm damage.
* SURFERS PARADISE SEAFIRE
- Unsafe seas that prevented barges travelling through the seaway were cited for a last-minute decision to call off the Surfers Paradise leg of the popular fireworks display in May.
- The event, which went ahead at alternative locations at Broadbeach, Southport and Evandale Parklands, usually attracts thousands of spectators onto the sand in Surfers.
* SWELL SCULPTURE FESTIVAL
- Cyclone damage has forced September's 23rd annual Swell Sculpture Festival to move most of its 80 outdoor artworks off the sand along a 1km stretch of Currumbin Beach onto the Oceanway, which sits alongside rock walls exposed by the recent erosion.
- In an update to residents in July, local councillor Gail O'Neill said protective works - including construction of a small rock bag seawall at Currumbin - were being carried out to "safeguard the Oceanway from further erosion threats".
* GOLD COAST PRO
- The WSL surf event was relocated from iconic Snapper Rocks on the southern Gold Coast to Burleigh Heads in May due to significant erosion.
* BEYOND THE SAND
- With restoration work ongoing from Coolangatta to The Spit, council is yet to announce new dates for the free sculpting event, held beachside in Surfers Paradise but postponed in March.
* BLEACH FESTIVAL
- It's business as usual on one major beach at least, with the 11-day program for the city's signature arts and culture festival Bleach* climaxing with Cavalcade - an equestrian dressage meets opera and orchestra performance on Kurrawa Beach, Broadbeach, August 9-10.
* NEW YEAR'S EVE
- Council is yet to say whether erosion will impact the city's huge NYE celebrations including the state's largest fireworks show from Paradise Point to the NSW border that brings huge crowds to Surfers Paradise and Coolangatta beaches.
* SCHOOLIES
- The annual November/December event in Surfers Paradise includes a fenced alcohol and drug-free zone on the beach.
- While 2025 celebrations are going ahead, eroded beaches could yet impact arrangements.
* MAGIC MILLIONS BARRIER DRAW
- Thoroughbreds canter along Surfers Paradise beach for the annual draw each January - sand replenishment work could determine if the 2026 leg stays on track.
Australian Associated Press
