Rental revives a bygone beach era
A retro cottage at Mermaid Beach is bringing the Gold Coast’s golden days back to life for holidaymakers
DESIGNER Danni Murray has transformed a dilapidated surf shack into one of Airbnb’s most popular properties.
The successful stylist behind @teepeecreative, who lives in Sydney’s northern beaches with her husband and four boys, said she was inspired by her Gold Coast childhood when she embarked on a retro renovation of Chippewa Cottage.
“The Gold Coast was somewhere I had always wanted to create a space – it’s my home town, and filled with that unreal vibe of a bygone beach era,” Mrs Murray said.
“The Meter Maids, the onthe-beach spray-on suntan oils, surf comps, and rocking around in cool curtain-adorned cruiser cars as a kid all remind me of happy carefree days growing up.
“When the building in Mermaid Beach came up for sale I was very excited.
“It was super decrepit and there was not much interest at all in it, but I could see through the cracked paint and the journey of bringing my vision to life of a modernised beach shack began.”
Mrs Murray spent a year flying from Sydney to the Gold Coast once a week to oversee the build and fit out.
“It was a fabulously fun job sourcing pink flamingoes and vintage beach decor,” she said.
“It was also liberating being my own client.”
Hitting the holiday market on Airbnb Plus, the ’50s-flavoured three-bedroom shack soon started feeling the love from high-profile guests.
Its “Instagrammable spaces” are also available for day shoots.
“The cottage is uber offstreet private and has attracted some pretty cool music industry stays already as a result,” Mrs Murray said.
“Some of my favourite features are the black and white checkerboard tiled plunge pool, the pop-up alfresco cubby bar, and the colourful tiles in the three bathrooms.”
The attention to detail extends to local organic amenities, handcrafted tea packs and a welcome bar set up with an Everleigh cocktail pack.
Guests can check in with a host for a bucketlist of restaurants, bars and activities, with local tips on tap for the duration of their stay.
“We can organise our guests push bikes to ride to Burleigh beach to take in the coolest rooftop bars, the Burleigh markets or a fish and chip dinner on the hill by Nobbys Fish Co,” Mrs Murray said.
“Mermaid Beach itself is literally one block walk away and we offer big, beautiful towels and beach umbrellas for the day.
“BSKT is just around the corner and holds yoga classes followed by some of the best organic vegan food on the Gold Coast.”
MEMBERS of the Kirra Surfriders Club will on Friday evening call the winners of the weekly meat tray raffles for the last time at the old Kirra Beach Hotel.
The 65-year-old hotel will close on Sunday ahead of a $380 million redevelopment that will include 198 apartments, 78 hotel rooms and a new retail precinct.
The popular venue on the foreshore of one of the Gold Coast’s best surfing breaks has been used as a fundraising ground by the Kirra Surfriders Club for nearly 20 years.
President Paul Sheehan has spent the past 19 years selling raffle tickets to hotel patrons every week to support the club’s grommets and it will be no different this Friday.
“We’re going to stick with tradition and do the usual four trays and we have a special surprise for our regulars to show our thanks for their support over the years,” he said.
“We’re not sure yet where we’ll sell tickets in the interim, but we do want to go back to the Kirra once it’s done.”
Kirra Beach Hotel publican Greg Hodge said he felt nostalgic about the existing venue but looked forward to the “bigger and better” hotel planned for the site.
“It’s a bit nostalgic, a little bit sad, but these old hotels are in a bit of disrepair and it was always earmarked for development, it has been for the last 20 years,” Mr Hodge said.
“We tried to create a big country pub atmosphere on the beach and I think we’ve done that and the new venue will be the same.”