Don’t be caught on the hop at Easter
THE odds of being caught if you break the law have never been higher on the Gold Coast than they will be this Easter.
With more than 3000 extra police officers in town ahead of the April 4-15 Commonwealth Games, QPS South East Region Assistant Commissioner Brian Codd said the Coast was well resourced for the Easter long weekend.
“We’ll be monitoring behaviour on the water and the roads,” he said.
The Easter bunny was spotted a hop, skip and a quick jet-ski ride from Marina Mirage yesterday as the centre gets set to welcome tropical oasis the Live Lounge from Saturday to April 15. Visitors will be able to watch live Games’ action on the big screen while they enjoy a coffee, cocktail or snack from a lounge dining menu provided by Ristorante Fellini and Bar.
A free air-conditioned shuttle bus will loop from the centre to the park opposite Tedder Avenue G-Link Station at Main Beach from 6am to 10pm each day.
With the Games expected to make Gold Coast Airport “a bit busier than usual” this Easter, spokesman James Gough said the travellers were advised to book short and long-term parking at the Coolangatta terminal online in advance
“We’re not expecting to reach the peak January 7 numbers, when he had 25,000 people through in one day, but we could get close,” he said.
Village Roadshow Theme Parks are also preparing to welcome big crowds.
“Sea World Resort also has solid booking numbers for the period with a high occupancy rate,” VRTP executive general manager Bikash Randhawa said.
Weather wise, Easter looks set to be better for surfers than beachgoers.
The weather bureau expects conditions to be mostly cloudy across the weekend, with a chance of showers most days, temperatures of up to 29 degrees and swells of at least 1.5m to 2m..
However, if ex-tropical cyclone Iris crosses the Queensland coast further south than currently predicted, south east Queensland can expect windier, wetter conditions.
The weekend will also come with a timely reminder — daylight savings ends at 2am on Easter Sunday.
Mr Codd urged Gold Coasters to keep an eye out for “those doing it tough in our community” at Easter.
“Easter in some ways is like Christmas. It’s a holiday period where some people do it tough, particularly the vulnerable,” he said.