Ten laidback things to do in Noosa

1. Get up early and stroll the boardwalk along Main Beach to the end of Noosa Spit as the rising sun burns off any chill in the air.

2. Have coffee on Hastings St and overhear the locals struggling to find something to complain about.

3. Have lunch at Ricky Ricardo's Bar and Grill on Noosa Wharf. Dine out at Berrardo's on Hastings St. Or nip across to Noosa Junction for cheaper eats or takeaways.

3. Leave the beach and bask in the balmy heat of the late afternoon with window shopping along Hastings St.

4. Take the short drive to Noosa National Park, 480ha of forest, heath-covered ridges and clifftops. Take the track to Tea-Tree Bay where the surfies hang out.

5. Nip down the Bruce Highway to the Big Pineapple, Queensland's fibreglass answer to Te Puke's big kiwifruit. Ride the Sugar Cane Express through the pineapple farm. Enjoy a pineapple parfait - and visit the souvenir shop for some of the best in Australian tack. We particularly liked the pineapple-slice fridge magnets. Other child-friendly tourist magnets include the seals, sharks and rays at UnderWater World at Mooloolaba, pythons at Australia Zoo at Beerwah, and kangaroo at the Forest Glen wildlife sanctuary near Buderim.

6. Stroll the Saturday morning craft market under the fig trees in Eumundi township.

7. Rough it (a bit) on World Heritage-listed Fraser Island. At 123km long, the world's largest sand island is home to freshwater lakes, rainforest and giant sand drifts. Hire a four-wheel drive or take one of the many day-trips offered by eco-tourism operators.

8. Buy a decent bottle of champagne and book a twilight cruise on Ricardo's gondola. Corkscrew, ice-bucket, champagne flutes and opera are provided free to help melt the hardest of hearts while you cruise Noosa's canals and pass by flash waterfront homes. Sylvania Waters this ain't. For a more conventional mode of travelling Noosa's waterways, catch the Noosa Ferry from the Sheraton Hotel jetty.

9. Go inland and explore the backcountry towns and villages in the Blackall Range and the bizzare-looking Glasshouse Mountains.

10. Drive up to Laguna Lookout at the summit of Noosa National Park and watch the sun go down across the Noosa Sounds.