DOGGONE CHILLY AS WINTER WEATHER FINALLY BITES
IT’S official – winter has arrived on the Gold Coast with temperatures predicted to be 4C below average for the first week of the season.
Gold Coasters braved the cold as they woke to temperatures around 11C yesterday for the last day of autumn.
Things were even chillier in the Hinterland, with some suburbs shivering through single digits including Tamborine Mountain, where temperatures plunged to 9C.
The cold weather will keep Gold Coasters rugged up for the next few mornings at least with temperatures around 11C forecast for the rest of the week.
The mercury is expected to rise by the weekend, with a minimum of 13C and maximum of 21C forecast on Saturday and Sunday.
Weatherzone Meteorologist Tom Hough said the average temperature for this time of year was 15C.
He said the last time the mercury dropped below 11C on the Coast was October 18.
The cool change is good news for traders in the Gold Coast Hinterland.
St Bernards Hotel manager Anita Soster said bookings typically skyrocketed in the cold as people sought a “full winter experience.”
“In the winter people sometimes come here purely to have lunch and sit by the fire,” she said.
“July gets booked quite quickly for Christmas in July and that’s when you really feel the weather changing.”
Canungra Valley Vineyards wine club co-ordinator Sam Dusting said the Hinterland retreat traditionally received more group bookings in winter.
“There’s just a different social aspect when you’re sitting by the fire, all rugged up, with a glass of wine, “he said.