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FEBRUARY 2021
     

 


Making lives 'happier, healthier and safer'

Businesses set to battle in finals of
Queensland's Grey Nomad awards

grey nomads Have your say

FIVE Queensland attractions and seven Queensland stay options from across the state have been named finalists in the Grey Nomad Awards, cementing the Sunshine State's reputation as a bucket-list destination for mature age tourists.

The winners in each of the seven categories will be announced on March 2 at a celebratory event on the Sunshine Coast.

Awards director Kim Morgan said the awards fostered a better lifestyle for the over 50s by providing verified information that will guide their decisions on where to travel safely and what to experience along the way.

"The COVID situation has meant that some older Australians felt uneasy about travelling in 2020, with health and safety becoming an even greater factor in their decision making," she said.

"That is why the 2020 Grey Nomad Awards criteria focussed on the actions that tourism operators, caravan parks and campground managers took to make the lives of grey nomads happier, healthier and safer."

QLD Finalists for 2020 Best Attraction or Tour:
Barramundi Discovery Centre & Hatchery Karumba - Karumba, QLD
Mareeba Heritage Museum and Visitor Information Centre - Mareeba, QLD
Mary Valley Rattler - Gympie, QLD
Miles Historical Museum - Miles, QLD
Paronella Park - Mena Creek, QLD

QLD Finalists for various 2020 stay categories:
"Charlotte Plains Outback Magic" - Cunnamulla, QLD – Best Farm or Station Stay
Charters Towers Tourist Park G'day park - Charters Towers, QLD – Best Small Caravan Park
Dirranbandi Retreat & Caravan Park - Dirranbandi, QLD – Best Small Caravan Park
Groper Creek Caravan Park - Groper Creek, QLD – Best Small Caravan Park
Mt Larcom Tourist Park Mt Larcom, QLD – Best Small Caravan Park
Nindigully Tourist and Visitor Area - Nindigully, QLD – Best Council Freestay
The Wellshot Hotel - Ilfracombe, QLD – Best Pub Stay

The Barramundi Discovery Centre & Hatchery Karumba: A world-class interpretive and visitors centre, which includes the only hatchery in the world to breed the Southern Gulf strain of this iconic fish, is free and explains the history, stories and habits of these sought-after fish.

The Mareeba Heritage Museum and Visitor Information Centre: Includes interactive exhibits, a café, giftshop, booking office and function venue, features 6000 artifacts over 47 exhibits, with six artefacts being of national significance and another eight of state significance.

Gympie’s Mary Valley Rattler: Includes a museum dedicated to sharing the stories of the century-old Mary Valley Railway line and its people, a giftshop and the Rusty Rails Café, together with a daily heritage rail experience through stunning sub-tropical country Queensland passing heritage-listed railway stations.

The Miles Heritage Village Museum: Includes the Visitor Centre, booking office, Ludwig & Will Specialty Coffee van in peak times, and retro Red Rose Café group catering. It features more than 30 original and reproduction buildings positioned to faithfully recreate Miles' colonial main street.

Paronella Park: A leading Cassowary Coast multi-faceted heritage attraction which includes a café, giftshop, museum, caravan park and cabins, Queensland's first hydro-electricity plant and picnic areas.

Charlotte Plains Outback Magic: Is a Cunnamulla station that has been shortlisted in the 2020 Best Grey Nomad Farm or Station Stay category. The 27,000 hectare sheep and cattle station slightly east of Cunnamulla township on the Explorers Way provides grey nomads with an opportunity to stay on a property half the size of Singapore. Powered and unpowered sites, shearing shed showers and shearers quarters camp kitchen form the foundation of the camping experience.

The Charters Towers Tourist Park: A G'Day park only five minutes to the gold rush town centre along the Overlander Way. It offers a large array of options with grass or slab powered sites, ensuite powered sites, and unpowered grass sites. It offers a full social program with daily bush poet performance, weekly heritage talk by a local historian and meals at least three nights a week in grey nomad season. It is fully licensed for the convenience of guests.

The Dirranbandi Retreat & Caravan Park: It offers powered and unpowered sites with views across the southern Queensland outback plains, roomy amenities, laundry and free wifi.

Groper Creek Caravan Park: Located just out of Home Hill, it has been one of North Queensland's best kept secrets. Operated by the Home Hill Boat Club under a land lease arrangement with Burdekin Shire Council, the caravan park is the heart of the tiny eight-hectare Groper Creek township which celebrates its centenary this year.

Mt Larcom Tourist Park: Is conveniently located on the national highway west of Gladstone, offers nearly seven acres of manicured lawns, stunning gardens or bush in a multi-tiered setting. It a member of the nomad-friendly Kui Parks group.

The Nindigully Tourist and Visitor Area: Situated in the Balonne Shire Council area and has been shortlisted in the 2020 Best Grey Nomad Council Free-Stay category. The Nindigully campground offers free non-powered camping on the banks of the Mooney River adjacent to the Nindigully Pub, Queensland’s oldest hotel.

The Wellshot Hotel: A finalist in the Best Pub stay category and only 20 minutes from Longreach on the Matilda Way. It provides grey nomads with an opportunity to stay at a pre-1890 outback pub. Guests enjoy a boutique collection of pet-friendly powered and unpowered sites, access to quaint amenities and potable water all available immediately adjacent to the pub’s themed beer garden while fully fenced to the external roads.


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