Blog By Noosa

Ginger Festival draws the crowds

We had a really enjoyable afternoon at The Ginger Factory on the weekend, with the annual Ginger Flower & Food Festival on. The place was full of colour from ginger flower displays and there was live music, cooking demonstrations and roving performers for entertainment.

We picked up some tips on cooking with ginger in a lesson by top chefs Michael Jenkins and Dominique Rizzo and then had ginger ice cream and ginger beer spiders - yum!  I did resist the temptation to buy more ginger plants this time; I usually end up going home with at least one tucked under my arm.

The Ginger Factory, which is in Yandina, is worth visiting any time of year, even if it's just for a wander around the gardens and an ice cream. My kids love the Overboard ride and the train, and you can do a factory tour if you want to, but it's free entry if you just want to have a look around.

Noosa's favourite sport

The annual Noosa Festival of Surfing is also coming up, from March 11 to 17. It will be six days of surfing, live music and other attractions, down on the beach at First Point, which is one of Noosa's most famous surfing spots (just around from Main Beach and Hastings Street).

I'm not a surfer but I love going along to watch - let's pray for good waves. Along with the standard surfing, they have stand-up paddle surfing, which is a huge sport here, and I imagine the beach bar will be a pretty popular spot!

It's probably a good idea to book some accommodation if you're planning to come, as the festival has become pretty popular and brings a lot of people into town. Anywhere around Hastings Street, Little Cove, Noosa Sound or Noosa Junction would be an easy walk, but there are always buses and ferries from other parts of town if you're looking for an alternative.

For more details on the events of the festival, click here to go to their website.

 

Images courtesy Phill Jackson Photography

Noosa Qld

The fun way to do Christmas shopping

Eumundi Markets is holding its Summer Twilight Markets again these holidays, starting next week. The Friday night markets will be held on December 16, December 23, December 30, January 6 and January 13, starting at 5pm and going through until about nine.

You could easily do your Christmas shopping at the markets if you want to - there are lots of good quality, handmade gifts for kids and adults, including toys, clothes, jewellery, beauty products and gourmet produce. Every time I go there I find a stall I've never seen before and there are some really quirky and unusual things to buy.

If you're one of those annoying people like me who have already finished their Christmas shopping, you can also just go along and grab some dinner, listen to some live music and enjoy the atmosphere. I've been to the markets loads of times and I'm not sick of it yet.

Noosa Queensland, Eumundi Queensland

 

Christmas in Noosa

If you're heading to Noosa for Christmas - and nice work if you are! - you might find this Christmas in Noosa guide useful.

It gives you the trading hours for most of the bars, restaurants and cafes in Noosa (I'm so glad it wasn't my job compiling it) over the Christmas and New Year period. Some restaurants are open on Christmas Day but not all, so you'll need to get organised and make a booking if you want to eat out.

Most Noosa restaurants are open on New Year's Eve but they are likely to get fully booked, so it's a good idea to plan ahead for that, too.

Disclaimer: I do not personally recommend drinking blue cocktails...

 

Noosa Qld, Coolum Qld, Eumundi Qld

Noosa videos

I don't know if you had a look at Noosa's YouTube channel after I posted that video last week, but there are a couple of other new videos about different parts of Noosa on there if you're interested.

There's one on Tewantin, which is the original settlement of Noosa, and another one on Kin Kin, which is a lovely little village in the Noosa hinterland - a very different side of Noosa if you've only done Hastings Street and the main tourist areas.

(And while you're on the YouTube channel, check out the Two Old Ladies in the teashop, it's a classic.)

Noosa Queensland, Coolum Queensland, Eumundi Queensland

Don't miss Coolum

Speaking of Coolum, if you haven't been there for a while, you'll hardly recognise the place (although the beach obviously hasn't gone anywhere). The main strip has had a big facelift and there are plenty of good cafes and eateries to chill out in, along with shops to browse. There's a great beachfront playground for the munchkins, and the view from the Surf Club or boardwalk is pretty damn good.

I love the atmosphere down there - you feel like you're on holidays even if you're not.

 

Noosa Qld, Coolum Qld, Eumundi Qld

New look Sunshine Beach

Sunshine Beach is looking very schmick, after a major revamp of its streetscape and landscaping. But more importantly, check out the colour of that water!  We were down there on the weekend and the water was so calm we could see some whales spouting and breaching on the horizon.

The surfers probably aren't very happy, with waves like that, but it's perfect for those who just want to go down and swim.

I really enjoy the shops and cafes of Sunshine Beach, too. There are some very good restaurants down there and it has a lovely village feel. It gets pretty busy on weekends but is often quiet during the week, if you want to escape some of the busier parts of Noosa.

I spend a lot of time at the surf club, which is my local, and I would never get sick of the view from the back deck.

Noosa Qld, Coolum Qld, Eumundi Qld

Noosa's best restaurants

Noosa has put in another stellar showing in the annual Gourmet Traveller Australian Restaurant Guide, with no less than 12 restaurants featured.

Restaurants that weren't in the previous guide but have made the cut for the 2012 edition are Embassy XO in Sunshine Beach, Pitchfork at Peregian Beach, Rickys at Noosa Sound, River Cottage in Noosaville and Thomas Corner Eatery in Noosaville.

They join the veterans Berardo's, Blue Angel, Gusto, Humid, Sails, Season and Wasabi, the latter of which was impressively named best restaurant in regional Queensland.

In addition to being spoiled by all those restaurants (and more) in Noosa, we have another guide veteran, Spirit House, only about 20 minutes away in Yandina. We really are incredibly well served for eating and drinking.

Noosa Qld

Head to Joe's for live music

Another place worth checking out, if you're looking for live entertainment, is Joe's Waterhole in Eumundi, which is about a 20 minute drive from Noosa. They get some great acts there, both Australian and international, and the venue is an old weatherboard pub with lots of atmosphere.

Colin Hay (ex Men at Work) launched his new album there the other day and they've had top Aussie bands like Thirsty Merc performing there. Mark Seymour (Hunters and Collectors) is on tonight and upcoming acts include Clare Bowditch and the American songwriter Kinky Friedman.

Noosa Qld

A Taste of Coolum

We had a fabulous dinner at the the Hyatt Regency Coolum on Saturday night, as part of the annual A Taste of Coolum gourmet festival. It was a tri-nation degustation featuring wines from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, matched with food by the team at the Hyatt's top restaurant, Eliza's.

The wine highlight for me was a Stellenrust 46 Chenin Blanc from the Stellenbosch region of South Africa (sorry, Australia), while the food highlights were grainge beef dusted with porcini mushroom and a dessert of rich butterscotch creme brulee with a tangy Buderim ginger ice cream.

They had wine makers from all three countries there to talk about the 13 wines that were served during the meal, and we learnt quite a bit along the way.

The Taste of Coolum festival, which runs over three days each June, this year also included a Champagne degustation dinner, 'A Night in Italy' in the village square (pictured above) and the annual Chefs Alfresco Sunday afternoon event, which was sold out. It's a great festival, definitely worth putting in the diary for next year.

Noosa Queensland