A great place to holiday

Someone from interstate asked me if Caloundra was a nice place to visit so I thought I would write a blog post about what has been the annual holiday destination since our children were born back in the 1980s.

Although it is becoming a lot busier than it used to be, Caloundra is still quieter than the beaches further up the Sunshine Coast and is a great place for families to visit as Bulcock Beach, with its calm water, is perfect for the littlies while Kings Beach, which is only a short walk via the Boardwalk, has surf which the older children usually prefer. The Boardwalk is also purpose built for anglers if fishing is on your mind when on holidays. Check out the Coastal Pathway if you are a keen walker or jogger.

We usually book our unit through Caloundra Holiday Centre and have always been more than pleased with the service we have received.. They have lots of units or holiday houses to choose from so check out their website if you are planning a holiday. We have stayed at over 10 different units over the years and recently found a gem which is right beside the water and has its own private jetty. Pumistone Lodge costs $485 per week during the off season minus a discount for Seniors. You do need to bring your own sheets and towels but if you don't want to there are lots of other units to stay in although they would be more expensive such as Centrepoint Holiday Apartments or La Promenade and a friend stayed at Belaire Place which was quite nice as well. The Indiyum Indian Restaurant is on the ground floor there and has yummy food if you are into Indian cuisine. 

 

We could watch the ships sailing up the Pumistone Passage from our unit and if I zoomed in as they moved quickly past...

 

...I could take a photo of them framed by the balcony window in the unit next door :-)  It takes them 

3 1/2 hours to sail up the passage to the Port of Brisbane and our booking agent gives us a newsletter with the times that the cruise ships will be sailing by but this year they were all going past in the dark so we didn't see them but there are many container ships going up and down all day.

 

The bushes in the foreground are on the uninhabited part of Bribie Island which looks close enough to be able to swim across to from our unit.  There is info in this post about how to navigate the Pumistone Passage if you have a boat and are keen to do some fishing. 

Over the last couple of years when we have stayed at Pumistone Lodge I have taken a few photos of the jetty next door... 

 

 ...and at a certain time of the day I see lots of birds resting on the wires but I always thought they were sparrows...

 

...until I zoomed in with my camera an noticed they have an orange breast. Do you have any idea what type of bird they are? They also take turns flying over the swimming pool and dipping their head or tail in so I wonder if they are having a bath as I wouldn't think the water would be too good for drinking. They are quite fascinating. 

 

We have been going to the beach in winter for the past couple of years and I have been amazed that the poinsettias were in bloom until I was told that this is the normal time for them to bloom and not at Christmas. On a gardening program on TV I saw how they are forced to bloom in time for Christmas and it was fascinating.  If you want to give it a try have a read of this post How to Grow Festive Poinsettia. 

Just a short walk from our unit was Tripcony Jetty and if you would like to take a short cruise up to Pelican Waters you can book through Caloundra Cruises. Right next door is the Big4 Caloundra Holiday Park where grey nomads can park their motorhome or caravan and explore the area.

On Sunday from 8am to 1pm the Caloundra Markets are held and they are extremely popular with the many tourists. This year a young girl was there from Reptiles 2 U with snakes and lizards which was a bit scary as I am not fond of snakes...poisonous or not!

 It seems that you can book the reptiles for a party, etc. I am not sure I could cope with that but to each his own I guess.

 

Only a short drive from the Caloundra CBD is the beautiful Moffat Beach. I have never known it to be so busy as we were there on a Tuesday and could hardly get a park. There were also quite a few surfers in the water and considering it is winter I thought they were very brave. 

The day before we left I was really longing for a home cooked meal and noticed a sign in Bulcock Street for buffet lunches so had to investigate. Wow, what a gem of a place! If only I had found it at the beginning of our holiday. At Home Cookin' Eats you can have a buffet breakfast on Sunday for $10 and from Tuesday to Friday a buffet lunch will cost you $12 which includes what you can fit on a plate, plus juice, plus a small dessert plus tea or coffee and the service is absolutely outstanding. If you can find the Night Owl in Bulcock Street just walk up the arcade and you will find Shop 18. You will love it. It is as close to home cooking as you will find.

There are many, many other activities to do and places to see that I haven't mentioned but I can assure you that Caloundra is well worth a visit if you are planning a holiday. The weather is usually fantastic and if you visit in summer you are treated to sunsets....

 ...like this! Stunning eh?

I hope these tips have been helpful to anyone wondering what Caloundra is like as a holiday destination. If you do visit I am sure you won't be disappointed.