From bush to bustle: Celebrating 80 years of Surfers Paradise

SURFERS Paradise has changed a lot since Bob Akes first laid eyes on it.

Robert "Bob" Akes who was born on the Gold Coast in 1931, talks about the coast's rich his...

SURFERS Paradise has changed a lot since Bob Akes first laid eyes on it.

The 82-year-old lifelong Southport resident grew up knowing the vast, mostly uninhabited region across the Nerang River only as Elston until its most famous resident successfully changed its name.

PHOTOS: Surfers Paradise over the years

Surfers Paradise Beach looking west along Cavill Ave 1938

Hotelier Jim Cavill's fight to rename the beachside area Surfers Paradise paid off when the change came into effect on December 1 1933 but for locals like Mr Akes, not much changed.

"In the 1930s this place was totally different from today and to get to Elston we had to cross the Jubilee Bridge at Southport or row a boat across from Barney's Jetty which stood near what is now Sundale Bridge," he said.

"Jim Cavill's original hotel was there and it had a zoo during its early years which was really pretty.

"It was a popular attraction but the neighbours didn't like it and installed a high fence so the kids couldn't climb up to see the animals.

"You wouldn't believe it looking over there now but there used to be a place called Shark Bay near where the Southport Yacht Club is now where we would go to swim because it was all just bushland and a backwater."

Surfers Paradise Hotel, Cavill Avenue and Pacific Highway 1952

Mr Akes will be among the Gold Coast's oldest residents celebrating Surfers Paradise's 80th anniversary on Sunday.

A day of activities will be held from 7am-3pm celebrating the legacy of Mr Cavill's fight to introduce the iconic name to the region and its growth from bushland to bustling metropolis.

A time capsule will be buried in central Surfers Paradise with mementos of the Gold Coast through the decades which organisers expect to dig up in 2033 for the suburb's 100th anniversary.

The iconic Surfers Paradise Hotel. Picture: Inga Williams

Mr Cavill opened his world-famous Surfers Paradise Hotel in 1923 and lobbied the town council to consider a name change.

Surfers Paradise was always considered the frontrunner, though Sea Glint was also nominated.

Bowing to pressure, the town council approved a name change and, on December 1, 1933, Elston was renamed Surfers Paradise.

Cavill's original hotel only lasted three years before a fire destroyed it in 1936.

It was replaced with a brick structure which was demolished in 1981.

Surfers Paradise Alliance boss Laura Younger will preside over the festivities and said the area's past would be honoured.

"The rich history of Surfers Paradise will always have a hand in shaping its future, but we are now working to ensure it remains as this city's number one attraction," she said.

Surfers South 1958 Picture: File

What's happening and where:

Surfers Paradise 80th birthday celebrations - Sunday December 1 7am-3pm.

●Surf culture cars on display along the Foreshore (7am-9.45am)

●Ceremony with speeches from by Surfers Paradise Alliance boss Laura Younger and Mayor Tom Tate. (8.30am - 9am)

●A time capsule will be lowered into the ground (8.40am)

●Surfers Paradise State School Junior Choir will sing happy birthday to the suburb before a birthday cake featuring an edible Surfers Paradise skyline is cut. edible (8.50am)

●Skydivers will land with smoke flares and land on the beach (9am)

●Gold Coast and Hinterland Historical Society's John Burns will give a presentation on Surfers Paradise's history (9.05am)

●A plane with a 'Happy Birthday' flag will fly over Surfers Paradise beach between Q1 & Main Beach (9am - 9.30am)

●Surfers Paradise Surf Life Saving Club demonstration helicopter rescue (10.15am)

Surfers' Paradise 26/9/1973.