After a bumper summer school holidays, The Wharf Mooloolaba is celebrating the opening of its new fresh food emporium – Get Fresh @ The Wharf.
Get Fresh @ The Wharf is the first new retailer to open in 2019 at the beginning of Stage 3 of the revitalisation of the precinct and continues on from more than $10million invested throughout 2017 and 2018, which saw more than 15 new restaurants, cafes and boutiques open as the precinct was transformed to its fresh, new ‘Hamptons’ style.
The Wharf Mooloolaba has rescheduled the first 
Family Fun Day of the year after Cyclone Oma interrupted plans for the original event.
The first of several highly anticipated Family Fun Days planned for the year will now be held at the popular open-air precinct on Sunday 10th of March.
From 10am to 3pm on the Sunday, locals and visitors are invited to join in on any of the family-friendly activities available onsite including face painting, petting zoo, jumping castle, large Jenga challenge and Connect Four games to play, and more – all absolutely free.
The Wharf Mooloolaba Managing Director Dirk Long said it would be the first Family Fun Day since the second stage of The Wharf Mooloolaba’s $10 million refurbishment was completed late last year.
“So much has happened at The Wharf since our last Family Fun Day with many exciting new activity, dining and retail businesses now calling the complex home,” Mr Long said.
The Mary Valley Rattler Railway Company is delighted to announce today it has appointed a new General Manager, David Thompson, to oversee operations at the popular Gympie-based tourism attraction.
Mary Valley Rattler Chairman Ian McNicol said Mr Thompson, formerly the long-time General Manager at the Sunshine Coast’s Aussie World theme park one hour south of the heritage rail experience, will start in the role on Monday 4th of March 2019.
“After an extensive search, we are thrilled to be able to share with you the news that David Thompson is coming on board as the General Manager of the Mary Valley Rattler,” Mr McNicol said.
“David is clearly a ‘people’ person, having a long history working in the tourism and hospitality sectors and there’s no doubt he’s the right person to lead our large team of personnel at the Rattler, most of whom are volunteers.”
“He brings with him not only a wealth of experience in managing this kind of attraction and growing visitor numbers, but an extensive knowledge of Health and Safety, one of the foundations the Rattler’s return to regular service has been built on.
EVENT POSTPONED DUE TO ROUGH WEATHER CAUSED BY CYCLONE OMA
The Wharf Mooloolaba has announced the first of several highly anticipated Family Fun Days planned for the year will be held at the popular open-air precinct before the end of the month, on Sunday 24th of February.
From 10am to 3pm on the Sunday, locals and visitors are invited to join in on any of the family-friendly activities available onsite including face painting, petting zoo, jumping castle, large Jenga challenge and Connect Four games to play, and more – all absolutely free.
The Wharf Mooloolaba Managing Director Dirk Long said it would be the first Family Fun Day since the second stage of The Wharf Mooloolaba’s $10 million refurbishment was completed late last year.
With a toot of the horn on its iconic steam engine, the Mary Valley Rattler will start celebrating the Australia Day long weekend early this year, with the Aussie Express Twilight Train departing the historic Gympie Station at 5:30pm on Friday 25th January.
It’s the first time the iconic heritage railway experience will mark the occasion since returning to regular services in October last year, and a rare opportunity to enjoy a very special trip on the Mary Valley Rattler at night.
Mary Valley Rattler Chairman Ian McNicol said the Aussie Express will be just the second time the popular tourism attraction has run a night-time passenger service, after running a similar return journey to Amamoor in mid-December.
The Mooloolah River will light up with the spirit of the season this weekend, for the highly-anticipated Mooloolaba Christmas Boat Parade, organised by Mooloolaba Yacht Club.
With Stage Two of The Wharf Mooloolaba’s multi-million-dollar refurbishment nearing completion, several vibrant new businesses join a bevy of food, retail and activity traders at the popular precinct in time for the start of summer and school holiday trade.
The new ventures are Ninth Street – a highly anticipated burger and dessert bar specialising in American-style favourites, and Il Vento – a traditional Italian restaurant and wood fired pizza bar, as well as Gingers Boutique who are opening a second location to their iconic Buderim fashion store. There is also a revamped El Bigoton – a casual food bar and take away dedicated to Latin Street Food, and Fudgees on The Wharf Mooloolaba – the ever-popular fudge, ice cream and confectionary shop now occupying a larger premise.
The Mary Valley Rattler will mark a major milestone next month, with a record number of train journeys scheduled for December, as strong demand from visitors builds.
The heritage railway experience is on track to run 34 services in December, a 30% increase from its regular timetable of the 26 services spread across Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays since the popular attraction reopened in early October.
Mary Valley Rattler Chairman Ian McNicol said the significant jump is a result of special Christmas services, an extension of the Retro Fridays trial and the demand for group bookings.
“We’re thrilled with the way Queenslanders have embraced the return of the Rattler, so much so that we will continue with our trial of Retro Fridays, the short haul trip to Monkland on the Silver Bullet rail motor paired with breakfast or lunch at the Platform No.1 Café throughout December. We have also planned some very special trips to celebrate Christmas,” Mr McNicol said.
“There will be a special Christmas service scheduled next month, with two additional charter services to run for private functions.
The Mary Valley Rattler will celebrate its first Christmas since regular services resumed with a special Twilight Christmas Train journey, along with the opportunity to take your own photos with Santa Claus every Sunday in December in the lead up to Christmas.
The inaugural Mary Valley Rattler Twilight Christmas Train will depart historic Gympie Station on Tozer Street on Friday 14th December at 5.30pm, on an extended return trip to Amamoor Station.
Mary Valley Rattler Chairman Ian McNicol said the Rattler’s Twilight Christmas Train is a rare opportunity to take in the sights and sounds of the scenic Mary Valley at night.
A flotilla of local boats will light up The Mooloolah River with the spirit of the season again this year for the 15th annual Mooloolaba Christmas Boat Parade, organised by Mooloolaba Yacht Club.
MYC Vice Commodore Josh Close said the Parade, starting at 6.30pm on Saturday 22nd December, will be the biggest and best yet with a record level of entries expected not only from boat owners but homeowners along the Parade route too.
