Food & Drink, Markets
The coast’s brand-new permanent food market The Night Markets are back on at Carrara this Friday and Saturday night (and every week from now on!). It launched officially last weekend – if you want to learn more about it, head here. Also out at Carrara Markets this weekend is The Unicorn Festival, held from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm both Saturday and Sunday – it’ll be a rainbow glitter-infused weekend that includes an abundance of unicorn market stalls, creative kids workshops, magical entertainment and fun food, all under the one roof!

You can sink ice-cold tinnies on the water’s edge with Ales and Tails at Currumbin RSL on Saturday afternoon, or spend the night getting low at the Latin Dance Party at Morena Espresso in Mermaid Beach. The 130-foot superyacht known as Yot Club is back on the Gold Coast this weekend – you can book in and join the boat party on both Saturday and Sunday. If you prefer to stay on the land, soak up the spring-racing action at The Palms Super Saturday at the Gold Coast Turf Club, or gather the crew and head to Burleigh Pavilion’s Welcome to Summer Party this Saturday from 5:00 pm. Garden Kitchen & Bar’s month-long Oktoberfest on The Lawn bash is in full swing, taking over the lush lawn area every Friday, Saturday and Sunday afternoon/evening this month – read more here, but expect warm salted pretzels, ice-cold steins, live music and good times out on the lawn all weekend! Finally, for something a little different this weekend, book in for a High Seas Experience at The Sheraton – it’s like high tea, but with seafood! You can indulge in a decadent seafood tower with a glass (or bottles?) of Chandon sparkling.

Live Music
It’s a huge one for live music this weekend! The Gold Coast’s newest music festival The Grass is Greener is coming to Broadwater Parklands this Saturday – American rapper Tyga is the headliner alongside Hermitude, Peking Duk, Amy Shark, The Veronicas, Golden Features and plenty more! You can score final tickets over here. Currumbin Creek will once again be filled with musicians, mimes, acrobats and joyful crowds when it plays host to the award-winning Buskers by the Creek this weekend. Non-stop entertainment from more than 300 performers will be showcased over 14 stages across Saturday and Sunday – there will be everything from sword swallowing world-record attempts and samba dances to Afro-Brazilian drum rhythms, comedy, contortion and more!

There’s also plenty of local gigs popping up across the coast this weekend. Catch Matthew Armitage at The Cambus Wallace on Friday night, or experience a feast for the senses at Stories in the Key of GC at HOTA (also on Friday night). New Zealand artist Katchafire is bringing its Pacific roots reggae deliciousness to RSL Club Southport on Friday night, while on Saturday, Gold Coast beer-bottle slide-guitar extraordinaire Jackson Dunn is bringing his live tunes to Eddie’s Grub House. You can also catch You Am I and Jebediah at the Parkwood Tavern on Saturday night, then on Sunday Jimmy Barnes is hitting the stage at HOTA – it all starts at 1:00 pm, with Thirsty Merc on stage from 4:15 pm and Jet from 5:45 pm before Barnesy rocks the mic from 7:30 pm. George Michael: Listen To Your Heart is a symphonic journey through George’s life story and hit songs, hosted and led by John Foreman with a 30-piece orchestra and an ensemble cast of Australian singing stars like Hugh Sheridan and Rob Mills – and it’s coming to The Star Gold Coast this Saturday for one night only. Keen? Get tickets here.

Arts, Exhibitions and Community Events
Like the sound of stepping inside some of the city’s most intriguing buildings? Gold Coast Open House is back this Saturday and it’s giving you the keys to the city for just one day!  The event turns five this year, with 56 interesting places and spaces set to open or offer behind the scenes tours and its biggest ever program of walks, talks, workshops and fringe events. Don’t miss it! Next weekend the Vodafone Gold Coast 600 is in town, and this Sunday there’s a fun-filled prelude – the Vodafone Gold Coast 600 King of Burleigh Hill. It’s essentially a community billykart race down Burleigh Hill, with plenty to racing action as well as entertainment, food and all-ages fun! Those looking to unlock their inner creative this weekend have plenty of options – a paint-and-sip class at The Sweet Fine Artist Studio, the Paint Your Mate, Picasso Style class at Brush & Barrel in Surfers on Saturday, or a DIY Earrings Crafternoon at Robina Town Centre on Sunday. Don’t forget The Village Markets are back on again this Sunday – head on down for a coffee and bite to eat before shopping up a storm. Oh, and one more thing – Fright Nights are back at Movie World on Friday and Saturday nights until October 26. This year there are new mazes, horrific scare precincts, panic room experiences, live music and the biggest offering of interactive scares ever! Sounds fun(ish).