Plan a Staycation for Christmas

Like Coffs Harbour’s Big Banana and Tamworth’s Big Golden Guitar, The Big Pineapple is one of Australia’s much-loved ‘Big Things’.This heritage listed, over-sized fruit put Woombye on the map when it opened way back in 1971. If you’re a child of the 70s or 80s, you’re sure to have enjoyed a banana split at this Queensland icon before setting off for a tour of Sunshine Plantation in the, now heritage-listed, Pineapple Train. (Bonus points if you also remember the macadamia-shaped train carriages of the ‘Nutmobile’ that used to tour the macadamia plantation on the property.)

After closing its doors for a few years in 2010, the Big Pineapple is open again and undergoing a major redevelopment which will make it one of the premier tourism destinations on the Sunshine Coast. These days the Big Pineapple is now also home to Wildlife HQ Zoo and the newly-opened TreeTop Challenge, a two-kilometre high-ropes and zipline course weaving its way through eight leafy acres on the Big Pineapple’s grounds.

And of course, we can’t mention The Big Pineapple without a shout-out to the organisers of The Big Pineapple Festival – one of Australia’s most popular regional music festivals held in the aptly named Big Pineapple Fields each May.

Just a couple of kilometres up the road is another long-time Woombye resident and Sunshine Coast icon, Thrill Hill, the Coast’s only waterslide park. The 120-metre long in-ground waterslide snakes its way down Thrill Hill and is the perfect spot to head if you’re looking for a bit of family-friendly excitement.

But of course, none of that matters seeing as we’ve already established, you and your crew are never leaving home. And for good reason. Who needs to try and find places to go and things to do, when, for your family and friends, your place will become the destination of choice?

After all, the long list of attractions on offer in our Christmas Prize Home is quite impressive, if we do say so ourselves. With a massive entertaining deck, spectacular outdoor kitchen, games room conveniently equipped with a pool table, media room (a.k.a. kids retreat), sparkling inground swimming pool, a ‘man cave’ workshop (complete with tools), and even a huge garage for storing your caravan or boat, this home ticks a whole lot of boxes for everyone in the family.

Just one of the ‘attractions’ in our Christmas Prize Home.

This ‘all-inclusive’ family holiday… er sorry, we meant home… is a perfect example of where the luxury homes of today and tomorrow are heading.

Long gone are the days when homes were just functional places – somewhere to shelter, eat and sleep. Today’s homes, particularly at the pricier end of the scale, verge more toward a resort than a basic abode. This style of home design fits with the trend for ‘staying in’ or even choosing a ‘staycation’ instead of packing your bags, rounding up the kids and heading off on holiday. Why leave home when it’s all right here?

The main focus is on the two Rs – recreation and relaxation.

So, seeing as we’re staying in and, you know, just chillin’, we’ve got all the time in the world to explore all of the nooks and crannies of this amazing home and see if we can find what might become your very own happy place. The biggest attraction and happy place contender number one is the deck. Now we know we’ve already mentioned that it’s massive, but let’s just say that it’s large enough to be divided into multiple zones (if not quite postcodes). Technically, there’s actually about three or four potential happy places out here. But who’s counting?

It’s certainly easy to picture everyone gravitating to the outdoor dining area to graze and relax. It’s the perfect place to gather the family for an epic Christmas lunch with a big eight-seater table that could surely squeeze in a few more chairs around it if you needed to.

The outdoor dining area is the perfect place to gather the family for Christmas lunch.

This spacious area is the definition of an outdoor room. With shuttered walls, downlights, a ceiling fan and one of the biggest outdoor kitchens we’ve ever included in and Endeavour Foundation Prize Home, it’s definitely drool-worthy material for the future chef or foodies of the house. Happy place contender? You bet.

It’s fair to say that this outdoor kitchen has more prep space and cabinetry than many of its indoor counterparts. Its centrepiece is a serious-looking stainless steel Gasmate hooded barbecue with the added indulgence of a built-in rangehood. Smoke is so 2018.

In case of inclement weather, although unlikely on the Sunshine Coast, the timber-look aluminium shutters can be closed to shelter you from the elements. Very considerate indeed.

Could this be your new happy place?

When it’s time to adjourn to the lounge, you can, of course, do that outside too. A little further along the deck is the outdoor lounge, otherwise known as happy place contender number two. With views over the sparkling pool below out to the green hills beyond, it’s the perfect spot to while away a balmy summer afternoon.

The next big attraction and happy place contender is just inside – the games room. Complete with slate-topped pool table (topped with show-stopping custom red felt) and built-in bench seating, this room is a guaranteed bloke magnet whether it’s the silly season or just a Sunday arvo get together. For the teens in the household, the games room creates an awesome hang-out option for them and their friends. While that means you might be signing up for a house full of teenagers, they are still better off at home, where you know where they are, than off at that (insert boy’s name’s) house.

How old do we sound?

While all those attractions are indeed pretty appealing, there’s another secret hidey-hole that could become the perfect happy place for someone in the family. If you’re pretty handy with the tools or you like to tinker under the bonnet, you may just fall in love with the workshop that’s tucked in off the garage. Already kitted out with shiny new tools from Supercheap Auto, it’s just waiting for you to move in the rest of your bits and bobs and set it up just the way you like it.

Or perhaps you’re a person who enjoys simple pleasures like gazing at a roaring fire on a winter’s night. Or maybe you’re just a cold frog? Either way, the arm chair closest to the fireplace in the main living area may for you, have ‘happy place’ written all over it? It’s possible you might even find that you have more than one in this place.

Now when it comes to the kids, it’s definitely going to be tough for them to choose just one place as their favourite. Obviously, the pool will be right up there on the list. What kid wouldn’t love to bomb dive into their very own sparkling pool over summer? The media room or kids retreat is also in there with a shot. There’s nothing kids love more than having their very own space, away from adult eyes and ears, but not too far away.

Another possible contender for ‘happy place’.

Like moths to a flame, the kids won’t be able to stay away from the media room.

But a surprise contender can be found right under the deck. There’s a virtual roller-skating rink of concreted space (well, maybe a slight exaggeration but you get the idea) that’s perfect for setting up the table tennis table, marking out a handball court or practicing with their roller-skates (and, of course, knee pads – safety first). It’s also the perfect spot to host a kids’ birthday party. You know, somewhere you can hose out afterwards.

Even with all of the other amazing attractions on offer, don’t be surprised if this space becomes your kids’ happy place. It’s a bit like when the kids open their Christmas present and decide that they love the big cardboard box just as much as the gift inside. But, hey, as long as everyone is happy, who cares?

Win Your Happy Place

While the above happy places can’t be bought, they can certainly be won. If you pick up a ticket or few in Endeavour Foundation’s Christmas Prize Home Lottery, you could be the lucky one getting to choose your favourite spot in this stunning family home.

If you want to get a head start on finding your happy place at Woombye, you can take the virtual tour right now. But, there’s nothing like exploring the ins and outs of the home in person. You might surprise yourself with where you decide is the sweet spot.

Our Christmas Prize Home at 19 Ridgeview Place, Woombye, is open every day from 10am to 5pm until the lottery closes on Wednesday 11th of December.

How To Get There

From Brisbane: Head up the M1 north toward the Sunshine Coast then take exit 201 onto Nambour Connection Road. Take a left onto Woombye Palmwoods Road then follow the signs to Ridgeview Place.

From Gympie: Take the Bruce Highway (A1), which becomes the M1, all the way to Forest Glen. Take exit 201 and head west onto Nambour Connection Road. Veer left onto Woombye Palmwoods Road then follow the signs to Ridgeview Place.