Surfers Paradise (Q1)

서퍼스 파라다이스

Q1 Tower is a skyscraper on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia, right by the beach at Surfers Paradise. The name is short for "Queensland Number One." It is about 322.5 metres (1,058 feet) tall and opened in November 2005.

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At a glance

Country: Australia
Location: Gold Coast, Australia
Built: 2005
Height: 323 m
Type: Skyscraper

Quick answers

Where is Surfers Paradise (Q1)?

Surfers Paradise (Q1) is in Gold Coast, Australia.

When was Surfers Paradise (Q1) built?

Surfers Paradise (Q1) was built in 2005.

How tall is Surfers Paradise (Q1)?

Surfers Paradise (Q1) is about 323 m tall.

Q1 towers over Surfers Paradise beach as one of Australia's tallest buildings, with a popular sky deck.

It is the tallest building in Australia. From 2005 to 2011 it was also the tallest residential building in the world, and in the Southern Hemisphere only the Autograph Tower in Jakarta is taller. Queensland counted it as one of the state's icons during its 150th-birthday celebrations. Its glass-enclosed, sleek look sets it apart from the other high-rise towers in Surfers Paradise.

Why does it look like that?

The architects at SDG and The Buchan Group took ideas from the Sydney 2000 Olympic torch and the Sydney Opera House. Ribbons of aluminium cladding wrap around the tower and twist gradually as they climb, and they also hang over the entrance plaza to give cover and shade. The name Q1 honours Australia's Olympic sculling team of the 1920s. In 2005 it won the Silver Award at the Emporis Skyscraper Awards, coming second to the Turning Torso in Sweden.

Strong and fast

The tower stands on 26 piles, each two metres wide, pushed 40 metres into the ground. Inside, the fastest lifts travel at 8 metres per second to reach the upper floors. The building has homes with one to three bedrooms, and facilities such as two lagoon swimming pools, a gym, a small theatre and a spa. In 2010 a request was filed to build a walkway around the outside of level 78.

Fun facts

Its name honours a 1920s Australian Olympic sculling team called Q1.
It was the world's tallest residential building for six years, from 2005 to 2011.
Its foundations rest on 26 huge piles that reach 40 metres deep.