Schoolies pick adventure holidays over boozy parties

SCHOOLIES are increasingly shunning boozy beach celebrations and avoiding toolies in favour of adventure holidays.

Schoolies are increasingly shunning boozy celebrations on the Gold Coast in favour of adventure holidays / Supplied

SCHOOLIES are increasingly shunning boozy celebrations on the Gold Coast and avoiding toolies in favour of adventure holidays to mark the end of their high school exams.

Bookings for activity-based holidays which include skydiving, mountain biking, scuba-diving, snorkelling, surfing and kayaking are growing every year because many young school leavers are looking for an alternative to a week of hard-core partying in November, North Coast Schoolies director Simon Luke said.

”It just seems to be a growing trend that's spreading by word of mouth,” he said.

”We'll probably sell out in February or March for 2010.”

Mr Luke offers such trips at Port Macquarie and Pacific Palms for 300 people, in which they can also enjoy Hawaiian-themed parties, DJs and evening cruises in a more controlled environment.

”The whole toolie aspect was a big concern for us and for parents,” he said.

”You're not just lost in the crowd here, it's a bit more boutique so you get to know people and form friendships – you don't leave at the end of the week thinking ‘there was 20,000 kids and who did I party with?’”

Most of those who had booked so far came from Sydney and Newcastle but there were also an increasing number coming from Queensland.

While Schoolies was a typical Gen Y invention, with the children of rich baby boomers jumping on a plane to the Gold Coast to indulge, KPMG demographer and Tourism Forecasting Committee chairman Bernard Salt said today's teenagers had a far greater awareness of health and fitness.

”That doesn't mean that a group of them don't indulge in drugs and alcohol but I would like to think it's a highly visible minority,” he said.

Mr Salt also believed the global financial crisis had created a more moral consumer.

”Schoolies is a reflection of middle class prosperity,” he said.

”During the boom tourism operators sold everything as indulgence, but now there's more of a morality to consumption and adventure or activity tourism fits the bill.”

Max Schoeddert, from Kurrajong Heights in the Blue Mountains, and his friend Anthony Hately have decided on a week-long $350 camping trip at Pacific Palms, near Forster.

”I'm not really into the schoolies scene,” Max, 18, said.

”I have had mates in years above me go to the Gold Coast and say it's not that great, they got stuff stolen and lost stuff and can't remember.

”I don't really think it should be all about getting hammered every night and not being able to remember what you did.

”I want to go surfing and mountain biking; it’s a lot more active and more fun and my parents are a lot happier.”

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