Australian Outback Spectacular Gold Coast Theme Park

The Gold coast is the number one destination in Australia for recreation and entertainment. Of all the things you are going to want to see and do Australian Outback Spectacular Gold Coast Theme Park should be at the top of the list.

Although not really a theme park in the generally understood sense of the word --no rides, no giant animated characters to have your picture taken with--it is definitely a experience.

The Australian Outback Spectacular venue is conveniently located at the same freeway exit as Movie World and Wet and Wild. It was obviously intended to fit in with the visitor's theme park plans. Just take exit 60 from the Gold Coast Highway and follow the signs.

Showtimes are nightly at 7:30 pm, from Tuesday to Sunday, the one exception being Christmas Day. By popular demand a Sunday Matinee lunch show at 12:30 has been added to the schedule as well as a 4:30 pm Saturday show on selected dates. Check for details when you order your tickets which you can do online.

Although the Outback experience includes dinner and a show it is a far cry from traditional dinner theatre. This is not Death of a Salesman in a tiny restaurant in Akron Ohio. In the first place the theatre is a 1000 seat arena designed and planned in every detail to give the audience the feel of being part of the time and place being portrayed.

The building conveys the look and feel of a building you might see on a sheep station. The ceiling an walls are made with lots of corrugated iron and heavy timbering. Old fashioned wagon wheels feature heavily in the decor. Patrons enter the venue by crossing a bridge over a small, meandering body of water identified as a billabong.

The show itself is somewhere between Bill Cody's Wild West Show and Star Wars. A huge cast of humans and animals recreate events of years past on a set designed, built and landscaped to transport the visitor to the Outback of yesteryear. The effect is enhanced and intensified by the use of ultra modern sound and light special effects.

The new show celebrates the connection between the pioneer stockman of the Outback and the Light Horse. The Light Horse were mounted troops who developed a style of warfare that was particularly suited to the vast expanses of Australia's landscape. The horses were used to transport the men distances too great to make marching practical but the men normally fought on foot. Rather than a cavalry the Light Horse were considered mounted infantry.

Most of the Light Horsemen were recruited from born-to-the-saddle stockmen who learned their superb riding skills while managing stock on the vast sheep and cattle stations of the Outback. The Australian troops volunteered to support the British in a number of foreign wars and were highly valued for their riding and shooting skills. Australian soldiers gained a reputation as dangerous marksmen who remained level-headed under fire.

The huge cast includes some of Australia's most outstanding stunt-riding horsemen and women. There is also a huge cast of animals including sheep, cattle, camels dogs and of course horses. The horses are especially selected from all over Australia and chosen for their particular talents and personalities. They are trained for parts in the show that they are most suited for and overall help to make a spectacular show even more spectacular.