Travellers spend an average of more than 30 hours planning a summer holiday, according to the results of a recent UK study. That’s the equivalent of four working days. Worse still, this planning time is typically spread over a period of five weeks – far longer than the average holiday.
Some smaller surveys with Australian audiences have found time frames are similar here. So how can your planning be minimised or streamlined? And, importantly, how can you ensure your planning and booking process doesn’t spread itself into the holiday itself?
Elite Holiday Homes presents you five holiday hacks to maximise your next summer holiday on the Gold Coast – and shows you how My Holiday Concierge can help you achieve them.
What is My Holiday Concierge?
My Holiday Concierge, available to guests of Elite Holiday Homes, is a service designed to make your holiday easier. Elite Holiday Homes offers a range of Gold Coast properties with incredible features like pools, large living and outdoor spaces, entertainment rooms, indoor cinemas and spacious bedrooms. My Holiday Concierge gives guests access to catering, transfers, car hire, equipment hire, housekeeping and nanny services, tours, packages and more, with the intention of enhancing your Elite Holiday Home experience.
1. Stay close to everything
One way to get the most out of your holiday is to minimise your travel time. You can do this by ensuring you don’t have to travel far to the attractions you chose – and, fortunately, there are plenty of Elite Holiday Homes close to the heart of the Gold Coast. Elite Holiday Homes has properties in Broadbeach, Burleigh, Surfers Paradise and Main Beach which are within walking distance of the beach, world-class dining scenes, shopping, the city’s light rail line and conferencing and events facilities.
For those attractions you do have to travel to – like the city’s famous theme parks – My Holiday Concierge can help by providing you with transfers or a hire car. Transfers are also a particularly convenient option when arriving at or departing from the airport.
2. Don’t cook – but consider catering instead of dining out
Cooking eats up time from your holiday, especially if you have a large group to serve. Dining out is an alternative and many Elite Holiday Homes are positioned within walking distance of the Gold Coast’s best dining precincts.
However, if you have a family, it can be a tricky balancing act. You will want to find something that fits your budgetary constraints, offers something interesting for the kids, meets everyone’s dietary requirements (or preferences) and does not leave wasted food. Eating out can spiral out of control financially if there is no restraint at all – but who wants to have to enforce the budget militarily?
My Holiday Concierge’s catering service is the perfect fix from every perspective. A team of skilled, qualified chefs can come to your holiday home and cook anything from a humble barbecue to a mouth-watering two course feast, or a menu that you’ve put together yourself. It’s a solution that gives you a delicious meal meeting the kids’ dietary needs, within firm constraints, allowing everyone to eat as much as they want – and it takes advantage of the marvellous kitchen your Elite Holiday Home features. My Holiday Concierge can also offer a beverages and cocktails service, and can create special cakes on request.
Best yet, the team takes the cooking out of your hands and gives you more time to unwind and enjoy yourself.
3. Don’t focus on the chores
Unfortunately, life does not stop for holidays. If you have your family with you, it will soon become clear that holidays can be particularly messy.
If your Elite Holiday Home needs its sparkle restored, you can organise it with a quick call to My Holiday Concierge. Cleaners can also provide additional linen or guest amenities like shampoo and conditioner if you need them, and they take your preferences into account when delivering the service.
My Holiday Concierge also provides access to a range of fully-qualified nannies and childcare workers who can look after the kids from three hours to longer periods, freeing you up to have a date night or even just a quick surf or walk in the park together.
While you’re on holiday, celebrations can be a bit of a chore to organise – and holidays often coincide with birthdays, anniversaries, proposals, engagements or other milestones. You can easily call – or even email – My Holiday Concierge to handle the details, like cakes, celebration baskets, flowers and wine.
4. Skip the queues
Many of the Gold Coast’s attractions are popular and there is the chance you could spend significant time in queues or might miss out completely if you don’t plan ahead. You might have put aside a day to visit a particular attraction, only to find on the day that it is booked out. Planning ahead prevents you from being disappointed on the day and scrambling to find something else to keep the family entertained.
An even better idea is to delegate that planning to somebody else – somebody who is an expert on the Gold Coast and can help you put together an incredible holiday plan for the best possible price. My Holiday Concierge can organise outings to the big theme parks, thrill seeking activities like jet skiing, parasailing, skydiving, zip lining, jet boat rides, jet pack adventures or the iconic Skypoint Climb. And the team can give you a sample of the city’s best shows, like Dracula’s, the Outback Spectacular or those at Star Casino.
The My Holiday Concierge team can use its local knowledge to cater for children too, with games package hires, 7D movies, Infinity, ice skating, Timezone and child-friendly restaurants. On the other hand, if you’re planning some pampering, My Holiday Concierge can book a range of beauty treatments and massages.
If you want to get out and see what the Coast has to offer instead of staying in one place, My Holiday Concierge can arrange tours of the Gold Coast hinterland, Mt Tamborine, breweries, wineries, golf courses or take you offshore for deep sea fishing or snorkelling.
5. Hire equipment – don’t lug it around with you
Carrying all your heavy paraphernalia to the Gold Coast with you not only makes the trip more expensive, it takes time to pack and it makes any car ride more uncomfortable. Then, on the return trip, you have to allocate time to ticking off all the luggage you brought and re-pack it.
Save the time and energy by hiring all your equipment from My Holiday Concierge. The service can provide you with boogie boards, surf boards, beach towels, eskies and shade tents for as long as you want at competitive rates, along with the kayaks and bikes that you wouldn’t be able to bring on a plane. If you have a newborn or infant, My Holiday Concierge can also provide a range of items including capsules, car seats, prams, boosters, strollers, high chairs and cots, meaning you can easily care for your little one on holiday and save your luggage allocation!
To find out more about what My Holiday Concierge offers, visit the website. To peruse the portfolio of Elite Holiday Homes, click here. For more information on either Elite Holiday Homes or My Holiday Concierge, you can contact us today on +61 7 5592 3881 or info@eliteholidayhomes.com.au.