The Gold Coast is a well-known and loved destination for local and international tourists, a city of surf and sun, pleasure and leisure. However, it is also one of the fastest growing cities in Australia, occupying the largest urban footprint outside the state capitals. How did the Gold Coast come to be what it is today? Off the Plan is the first in-depth, multidisciplinary academic study on the urbanisation and development of the Gold Coast. It addresses the historical circumstances, both accidental and intentional, that led to the Gold Coast’s infamous transition from a collection of settlements unburdened by planning regulations or a city centre to become Australia’s sixth largest city. With chapters on tourism, environment, media, architecture, governance and politics, planning, transportation, real estate development and demographics, Off the Plan demonstrates the importance that historical analysis has in understanding present-day planning problems and the value of the Gold Coast as a model for the rapidly evolving western city.