Schoolies on the Gold Coast is no longer the wild and rollicking booze-fest of its heyday.

Heavy security, dense policing and strict rules have thrown cold water on the notorious violence, underage drinking and unprotected sex.

As a result, freedom-hungry school leavers are increasingly heading abroad to new hot spots such as Bali, where the booze is cheap and the restrictions are scant. Satellite destinations, such as Byron Bay and Airlie Beach, also continue to grow, boasting large crowds away from the spotlight of Cavill Avenue.

Andy Gourley, the chief executive and founder of the Red Frogs volunteers, has been involved with Schoolies since 1997 and has seen a significant shift to overseas destinations over the past five years.

"There are probably about 5000 school leavers going to Bali and another 5000 going to Fiji," he said. "There is less structure in Bali and there is a lot more freedom as far as alcohol goes.

"They're not as stringent with checking ID, if they ever do check an ID. So it's probably seen as a bit less controlled."

Mr Gourley said cost was also a factor, as cheap flights meant island holidays were not much dearer than a Gold Coast trip.

Research by Unleashed Travel, which provides overseas travel packages for Australian school leavers, confirms this trend.

It surveyed 118 travel agents between 2011 and 2013 and found 65 per cent of inquiries for Schoolies holidays were for island destinations such as Fiji.

Queensland Hotels Association chief executive Justin O'Connor said the Gold Coast was still the largest Schoolies party but students were increasingly looking elsewhere, partly because of the beefed-up restrictions.

"The Gold Coast Schoolies has become quite structured," Mr O'Connor said. "There are basically counsellors on every street, there are people who stop kids from walking across on red lights, there are people handing out condoms and water, you name it.

"The word has got out amongst kids that it's not the free, easy, unsupervised activity that it might have been in the past."

Hotels have enhanced security such as restrictions on visitors, glass bans and locked balconies, while licensed venues enforce strict ID checks.

"There's quite a range of active and passive security measures and that does contribute to the more recent phenomenon of students going to other places where there is more freedom," Mr O'Connor said. "But that's really part of the evolution of this Schoolies process which has been going on since the mid-80s."

Jessica Lee from Danebank Anglican School For Girls in Hurstville left for Fiji with a group of friends on Saturday.

"We were looking for somewhere overseas that was a popular destination to celebrate the end of the HSC," the 18-year-old said.

Unlike many pub-crawling school leavers, Jessica and her friends' trip will involve a visit to a local school where they will donate school supplies and sporting equipment.

"I think the majority of the time will be spent at the beach or the pool relaxing," she said.