Schoolies or schoolies week (also known as leavers' or leavers' week in Queensland Surfers Paradise and Western Australia and coasties in the Australian Capital Territory) refers to the Australian tradition of high-school graduates (also known as "schoolies" or "leavers") having week-long holidays following the end of their final exams in late November and early December. #traditions #school #australia #schoolies #queensland #surfers #paradise #gold #coast

Schoolies week first began on the Gold Coast, Queensland in the late 1970s, in the week following final exams for private single-sex schools. The Broadbeach Hotel was the main meeting place. Schoolies Week events began to be organised for 1980, and from then on the Gold Coast attracted schoolies from all over Australia for celebrations. Since then, the tradition has spread, and Australian high-school graduates celebrate their graduation with a week-long party at many popular tourist destinations around the country. #traditions #school #australia #history #gold #coast #schoolies

• L'immagine è presentata Caleb Russell

Queensland's Gold Coast, particularly Surfers Paradise, maintains its status as the largest single venue for this revelry, attracting tens of thousands of schoolies. The Gold Coast is viewed as a liminal space, somewhere to get away, a city of theme parks and leisure by the sea where transitions are possible.Research carried out in 2003 found schoolies boosted the Gold Coast economy by $59 million. Schoolies are also present on the Sunshine Coast; this is an alternative for the graduates who fear the negative media attention. #schoolies #australia #gold #coast #sunshine #coast #traditions

• L'immagine è presentata Alexander Popov