Where to stay and eat on a Gold Coast getaway at Sanctuary Cove

With the holiday hordes in hibernation and a bolstered events calendar, the cooler months are a cue for locals to reclaim their backyard - and score mates rates on this flavour-packed staycay.

All eyes are about to be on Sanctuary Cove.

The marine Mecca is days away from hosting the blockbuster Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show (May 22 to 25), but for now a handful of watchful kangaroos are my only spectators on a sunrise stroll.

From character-filled cruisers to superyachts, a fortune floats at the end of rope tethers.

The waterfront boardwalk – soon to be bursting with boaties, buyers and the “just browsing” – offers the ultimate in window shopping.

Marine Mecca Sanctuary Cove.

With the holiday hordes in hibernation and a bolstered events calendar, the cooler months are a cue for locals to reclaim their backyard.

I seized the chance for a Sanctuary Cove staycay, its cobbled streets, roo-grazed greens and megabucks marinas about as far as it gets from my southern beaches base without leaving the city’s bounds.

My home-not-far-from-home is a classic Queenslander suite at the InterContinental Sanctuary Cove Resort.

Recently refurbished but a study in timeless elegance, its traditional floorplan offers space to spare, a private king bedroom and quite palatial bathroom.

While away the days at InterContinental Sanctuary Cove Resort’s lagoon pool.

A separate lounge and dining area, plus handy office nook, spills on to a balcony presiding over the landscaped grounds and one of the Gold Coast’s best pools.

Fringed with white sand, the one-acre saltwater lagoon is normally alive with families, but on this off-peak autumn morning it’s an undisturbed mirror for the sunrise, cabanas waiting to be claimed.

The resort’s glamorous Great House, with its stained glass, grand staircase and fountain terrace framed by fairy-lit trees, holds what is for me, the main attraction: dinner – and a show.

Any foodie worth their salt should have The Fireplace Restaurant in their little black book.

Everything is cooked over flames in view of diners.

Order the degustation at InterContinental Sanctuary Cove Resort’s Fireplace Restaurant.

Get the full experience with the wine-matched degustation – the generous pour policy is enough to make you grateful you booked that room.

Smoky flavour informs every course, from burrata spliced with a rainbow of heritage tomatoes to the showpiece Jack’s Creek wagyu rump, and fire-roasted pineapple with caramelised macadamia ice cream.

If you’re staying a little longer then my single night, you’ll have time to expand your dining menu to The Marine Village and its smorgasbord of eateries just a wander away.

I did make it over to Destino for a pre-dinner drink. In a sure sign locals have laid claim to the aesthetic wine bar, it was absolutely heaving.

Destino’s Tiramisu cocktail is a must for espresso martini fans.

Cocktail fans will have a field day here. If you like espresso martinis, try the urbane Tiramisu. The choc-dusted combo of dark rum, muscat and Mr Black vanilla is dessert you can drink.

The writer was a guest of the InterContinental Sanctuary Cove Resort.

The local’s offer starts from $309 a night and includes accommodation in a room or suite of your choice, $100 restaurant and bar credit each night, and a late midday checkout. It’s valid for selected dates on stays until June 30 for residents of the Gold Coast, Brisbane, Sunshine Coast and Northern NSW (postcodes 2450-2490). Terms and conditions apply.