Ever wondered where Santa goes to de-stress little before the big day of Christmas each year?
Forget the traditional cold, soggy Christmas; the jolly man in the red suit has ditched his sleigh for a stand up paddle board and headed DownUnder to enjoy a sun-filled Queensland Christmas escape.
The Sunshine State, also known as Queensland, offers more than 300 sunny days per year, a 7,400 km coastline boasting the most beautiful beaches in the world and the largest and most extensive coral reef system on the planet – The Great Barrier Reef.
And Santa is loving it!
Photos have been leaked of the big man in a red sneaking in a pre-Christmas Queensland escape before his annual duty, delivering millions of gifts to children around the world.
“When it’s dark and cold at home, the best place to be is Queensland. This place sparkles brighter than the tinsel on a Christmas tree … and it’s all natural,” a chilled Santa said while giving a Koala a cuddle.
Thanks to Santa, today’s featured Christmas article pays homage to our Australian friends and readers and gives you a glimpse of what Christmas is like at an exotic destination in the Southern hemisphere.
(Photography by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images for Tourism Queensland)
Forget about snowmen; it’s all about sandmen on Australia’s Gold Coast…
…and they’re defo not the melting type.
Christmas in paradise! Queensland’s beaches rank amongst the best in the world and Christmas in Queensland is about sun and summer. You’ll find the warmest, whitest, biggest and most beautiful beaches stretched along the 7,400km coastline of Queensland, Australia.
Santa couldn’t resist a cuddle from his little helper, a koala named Forest from Cairns Tropical Zoo in Queensland, Australia. Queensland wildlife sanctuaries are the primary places in the world where people can hold a koala.
Koalas are native to Australia. A koala baby is called a joey (not a cub) and when born, is around the size of a jelly bean, is blind and hairless and weighs around 0.5 grams (0.02 oz). The koala joey wont emerge from its mothers pouch until its around six months old.
Santa swaps two turtle doves and a partridge in a pear tree for two cockatoos under Queensland’s palm trees at Palm Cove Beach.
Time for a dip in the waters of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef Marine Park to cool off.
With about 2,900 individual coral reefs, 600 continental islands and 300 coral crays, Santa has a lot to see underwater at the Great Barrier Reef.
The Great Barrier Reef in Queensland Australia is the largest and most extensive coral reef system in the world. It is the largest natural feature on earth and its impressive size (about 70 million football fields, or the size of Japan!) makes it the only living structure that can be seen from the moon.
Splish splash, Santa’s taking a dive.
Merry Christmas to all!