Make the most of the GOLD COAST!

Sebastian van der Zwan soaks up the good times in Queensland

With 7.1% of the Gold Coast's population born in Aotearoa, W many of us have friends and whānau living in Queensland's second-largest city, and when we visit, it can be so easy to just hang out and not make the most of the sights.

But when I jetted over recently for a dear friend's wedding - congrats, Morgan and Brenton! - I was determined to get active and play tourist after weeks of being cooped up by wet weather back home.

Having semi-recovered from the nuptials thanks to my buffet breakfast at the beachy fourstar Dorsett Gold Coast hotel (dorsetthotels.com), I headed to one of the city's hidden gems, Budds Beach, where I met a guide from Go Vertical SUP & Kayak (govertical.com.au) for a peaceful paddle along the Nerang River.

They sometimes see dolphins, but I was happy simply cruising along the lagoons in my kayak, perving at the posh waterfront mansions set against the dramatic Surfers Paradise skyline while getting some exercise in the sun - it shines here nearly 300 days a year and still gets up to 22°C in winter!

We stopped off at the Home of the Arts precinct, where a bustling farmers' market (6-11.30am every Sunday) was chocka with locally grown tropical fruits, dog treats made out of crocodile feet and shark cartilage, and all sorts of delicious goodies that were so tempting to try but for the fact I'd made a pig of myself at brekkie.