Gladstone City, QLD 4680

Gladstone on the Central Qld coast has a beautiful harbour with fishing and boating being some of its attractions.It is a great place to raise a family and with the abundance of industry also offers great work opportunities. We chose to raise our four boys here with the last of them begining an apprenticeship this year. As a family we are never short of something to do. All sport is well catered for and we have been involved in swimming, touchfootball, soccer, hockey, surf lifesaving, cricket, motor cross riding, 4 wheel driving and the list goes on. You are living in an Industrial town and you have to be prepared for the good and the bad of this. We would not live anywhere else, all four boys have great jobs. Gladstone has a wide range of living alternatives with the seaside towns of Boyne Island & Tannum Sands offering beach living or if you prefer the country feel the town of Calliope and surrounds offers township or acreage living all within a short drive of the city. Nightlife for the younger age group is probably limited. Shopping is OK but not great. Sporting facilities are good and improving all the time. Residential investment gives good returns. Only a 1 hour flight to Brisbane. Gladstone has been good to us.

Gladstone is on the Central Coast of Queensland south of Yeppoon. From Gladstone it is a hop skip and jump to the many islands dotting the Great Barrier Reef. Tours are run daily. Enjoy the clean beaches or partake in some fishing. Fishing charters are readily available to suit most anglers. Gladstone offers many sporting clubs and associations and has a good sized entertainment centre as well plenty of shopping facilities. There is no end to the accommodation options at Gladstone, from backpacker hostels to motels, cabins and resorts and purchasing a property in Gladstone is still with reach whilst rentals are quite affordable.

Gladstone is a pretty bad town, nothing to do, everyone is up themselves and into each others business, industry all around polluting literally everything, lacking in job opportunities that aren't industry and just straight up lacking any opportunities' really, ive lived here 20 years and cant wait to leave, while its not the worst place it certainly isn't the best, i can say however that the town is relatively safe as you can safely traverse the town at nigh time without worrying about being attacked (unless you live in Barney Point) and there are some genuinely good people here hidden under all the toothless nuffies and dole bludgers, the hospital system however is the biggest joke i have ever seen, if you ever need to go there for any reason weather it be something minor or a life threatening injury just don't, they will end up killing you quicker than any injuries will. thats it really.

I lived there January-September 2022. It was a great place for a young person to get back on their feet after living abroad. But it lacked the busy atmosphere, the social opportunités and career opportunities. I moved back to Sydney and never have been happier, I felt so stuck and isolated there. Also not many bulk billing services and lack of public transport for those who can’t drive.
Gladstone is great for families but not if you’d like the busy atmosphere of the city, career/education opportunities, social opportunities and connection to the rest of the world. Not for me but I wish the best for those who are thriving there.

Immediate family lived there for several years. Great town, and they are planning to go back to retire. The air is clean, the town is attractive, it is no longer expensive as the boom has gone, heaps of amenities, decent schools, great restaurants. The moderators really need to do better with this page. These negative reviews give no details and seem fixated on one bad experience they themselves had (or maybe created). Please do better.

I’ve been lucky enough to live and travel all over the world. From far outback QLD to Brisbane to London to Paris. And everywhere in between.
When I first moved to Gladstone I believed the bad PR. But I really love it now. You have to scratch the surface but I personally believe the positives outweigh any negatives. We just bought a house outright. Something we could never of done in Brisbane. Our street is obscenely quiet and my lifestyle is just what I want, peaceful, easy and relaxing.
Yes the real estates are rubbish and it’s not the best place to rent. I rented here and they’re really some of the worst agents I’ve come across. And yes industry is a major player here. But I can see QAL from my balcony (as well as the ocean and islands and boats) and I have my own air quality reader. I have never seen the reader produce a reading above ‘good’. Which means it’s always good. And even on its worst days, it’s just on a par with Brisbane!
This town, much like any town, is what you make of it. If you want night life and parties and stuff like that. It won’t be for you. If you want a quiet, private and peaceful life, it may be.

I have just found this site and am proud to be a 34 1/2 year long resident and home owner. I am selling my small acreage but only to pursue our dream of retiring in Agnes. I have raised 3 children and now have grandchildren growing up in Gladstone. These comments previously are very unfair, and offensive to locals - there are problems in every town if you go to those areas. The council has worked very hard to beautify Gladstone, and our parklands and waterfront/harbour has come along way. Great walking paths, botanical gardens, sporting facilities. Yes the main street area is not thriving but there are some great specialty shops around. Do your homework wwinarto, don’t go off a fews bad experiences. We love our home, my kids have employment and futures here.

I lived in Gladstone for 22 years. 5 years ago I decided to sell up and move.
I recently had to return to Gladstone for a function so I booked in to The Oaks behind The Grand Hotel. As I turned off the highway onto the road that leads to the brown dirty polluted atmosphere of Gladstone i noticed a dead cat, obviously decomposing, on the road outside the first housing estate lying there rotting amongst other accumulated rubbish.
Verges of dead spindly grass intermingled with litter greeted me as i continued towards the city.
I drove past old dilapidated buildings as i entered the outskirts on my way into the main street. As i drove along i saw an endless procession of empty businesses and ugly vistas. It was 2pm Saturday and as i turned left into Tank steet i noticed no people at all. All shops are closed and 'for lease' signs decorated many of them. Around the roundabout into Goondoon street (the main street of town) and i was greeted by more of the same. Nothing attractive caught my eye, no green spaces, no trees, no cars, no people.
Dead as a doornail.
No redeeming features.
After booking in and assessing my surroundings i figured I'd go out and get myself something to eat. Unfortunately at 2pm in Gladstone city on Saturday your only option is McDonalds as all other eateries are closed.
Not even a coffee is accessible unless you go to Maccas.
Well at least dinner with my friends isnt far away from my accommodation, off to Oak and Vine at 7pm.
We were seated and a drink order was taken by a pleasant young lady who didn't know that there were several different types of gin other than Gordons. Anyway that's all they had so a gin and tonic with lime was ordered.
The post mix tonic was flat and off and oops, the restaurant attached to a bottleshop is out of tonic.
The meals were expensive and awful.
Undercooked waygu, overcooked chicken and poorly cooked swordfish and overcooked sweetlip supposedly grilled but looked broiled.
Top that off with hard vegetables and watery sauces.
Anyway....we got a heavily discounted tab.

Off to Lightbox for a drink and a bit of music.
And here, the experience of Gladstone just got worse.....poorly trained staff. Unsafe work practices. Awful music that sounded like one long bad song rouded off a long bad day.

Gladstone......1 star. And that's for the accommodation.

Moved to Gladstone City over five weeks a go with high hopes of a new life, good neighbours and affordable rent. From the 1st week in the townhouse in Auckland Street I was not able to get much sleep. Rowdy and noisy mothers on both sides of me with small kids. The house opposite kept playing loud music and having parties through the early hours of the morning. Nearly put myself into hospital and I went to the Rydges hotel a number of times to get some rest. I rented from a very bad real estate agency in Goondoon Street Gladstone. This was not Raine and Horne. I told the agency I rented from many times of the noisy bogan neighbours but they didn't care. Cruel and insensitive! I called the police many times. I'm finally getting out of here tomorrow and moving back to Brisbane on Thursday. Gladstone is a town of small mentalities, suppressive peoples and mental illness. Where the police go speeding down Auckland Street everyday racing to the next offense. Stay far away from Gladstone City. The place just isn't worth it.

Well where to I start. The people were friendly when we got here. The more we are here the more I want to leave. Was in units where music was always loud no respect. Move into nice house. First week the neighbours music was so loud. They were so drunk in the end it turned into a brawl. Just want to leave this horrid place. Don't move here

A town with mostly men / tradies doing the fly-in fly-out work. Increasing traffic, increasing rents / housing prices becoming more unaffordable than bigger regional centres and suburbian capital cities. Aggressive rental agents push up rents every 6 months by 20% making living here unaffordable for a average single income family.
Gladstone is OK if you are a cashed up blu collar worker taking advantage of the BOOM, but good luck if you're looking for affordable accomodation. Grocery prices are also increasing beyond the average so cost of living hse been going up.

There are lots of pubs who cater for the male workers. Not much else in town if you're looking for any reasonable restaurants, entertainment or culture.

Gladstone has changed little in twenty years and desperately needs an infrastructure injection. The local council has a small town mentality and is out of it's depth when it comes to improving the lifestyle of the area. Despite the industry that is present and the high employment and wages there is nothing to do in the town, shopping is akin to some outback town with a corner store and there is an over-supply of males and a shortage of females. The realestate agents are impolite, borish, ignorant and exploitive. Most retail outlets of any kind, restaurants included, have poorly trained staff who seem more concerned with their social lives than providing service. In short, the only reason to live here is if you work here, the only thing to shop for here is food (anything else requires a trip to somewhere else) otherwise choose to live somewhere else.

I have lived in Gladstone for 11 years & watched it grow. It is an excellent area for familes with wonderful sporting facilities and excellent private and state schools. Shopping is ok, but Rocky is an hour's drive if one wants a big shopping trip. Gladstone is very pretty with an attractive harbour, it has many attractive homes, lots of views and hills, it also has a feeling of prosperity, is clean and modern, not like some depressed towns I have seen. There is a wonderful entertainment centre which provides some cultural life as well as an excellent art gallery currently hosting a major exhibition, there are also many restaurants to chose from. The botanic gardens are lovely to visit and there is also a modern library which is well used. There are many scenic and interesting places to visit around Gladstone, and it is an excellent spot for boaties and fishermen, not far from Heron Island. Altogether Gladstone is great for most people. I live on top of one of the hills and have wonderful views and sea breezes.

Well what can I tell you about Blackbutt, except it is a terrible little town a getting smaller by the day as more stores close down. Been here 2 long myself so we are outa here if we can ever sell the house.
LOL

The pity about Gladstone is that it's got the potential to be a great city. But it just doesn't live up to it. Maybe it's the footy obsessed townsfolk who all look agahst at the thought of attending a cultural event. Maybe it's the generations of families that have all married into each other and need some fresh blood. Or just maybe, it's the horrendous industry that looms large over the city and fills the place with toxins and smog. It has a lovely marina area, some good sailing opportunities and a lookout of silos. Forgive me, childhood home, but Gladstone just reminds me of the Simpsons' episode about the 3 eyed fish