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Tropical North Queensland by Kelly CuttingSeptember 2008
We flew Qantas on their non stop service from Melbourne to Cairns return, checked in quickly. Our flight departed about 15 minutes behind schedule but it was a smooth flight with good entertainment and food.
Shangri La Hotel Cairns – 5 star
This hotel is in a great location right on the marina with direct access to the Pier Shopping Mall. Most of the restaurants around the pier area will charge back to the hotel. The hotel offers the largest rooms of all Cairns hotels with either a King or 2 Queen Beds in the room and plenty of space available. Superior Rooms offer a view of the garden / city or bay area with the deluxe rooms offering views directly over the marina. Interconnecting rooms are available on all these categories.
The Horizon Club rooms were lovely. They have a large decked undercover alfresco area with views directly over the bay / marina and the rooms themselves are very open and spacious with quite a different feel to the superior / deluxe rooms.
The hotel caters for both leisure and corporate clientele, and they have an early / late departure lounge and showers available for all guests.
Sofitel Reef Casino Cairns – 5 star (Pullman Reef Casino )
This hotel will be undergoing a name change shortly to the Pullman Reef Casino. It is in a central area in Cairns close to the marina and has direct access to the Casino. The pool area is quite small for a reasonably large hotel, however there is a good choice of restaurants available, and the hotel is well known for their in-house Thai restaurant.
The rooms are of a reasonable size and all rooms have Jacuzzi’s and either city or bay views. The bathrooms have louver type shutters which you can open through to the bedroom area, although the balconies are very small.
Voyages Silky Oaks Lodge – Mossman – 4.5 star
Silky Oaks lodge is approximately 20 minutes drive from Port Douglas and had more rooms than I thought but it did not take away from the ambiance of the property at all. Unfortunately we were not able to view the river houses but were told they are basically the same except with views overlooking the Mossman River. We stayed in their tree house accommodation which is spread throughout the property. The rooms are well appointed with no TV’s but they have a CD playing relaxing tunes. The rooms have an outdoor decking area with views into the rainforest and onto the Mossman River with a small table, a couple of chairs and a hammock.
They have a well known spa offering all treatments and a fantastic restaurant where we enjoyed an outstanding meal. Located right on the Mossman River they have complimentary canoes and there is plenty of surrounding walking tracks available.
Mantra Treetops Resort & Spa – 4 star
This property is about 3kms out of town and I felt it was a little tired although it had a refurb. in 2005. They have recently removed a lot of the trees within the grounds to let more light around the resort and also reduce the mess around the resort caused by the trees. We saw a standard superior room which had either a King or 2 Singles and a double sofa bed. The bathrooms were small with showers over the baths. If you were using this property I would recommend upgrading to the deluxe room as the rooms and bathrooms are quite a bit larger.
The resort has 24 hour check in and an on site shop that sells beer and wine. There is no mini bar in the rooms but they do have tea and coffee making facilities. The pool area is nice and large with a swim-up bar, and the resort has a day spa.
Sheraton Mirage Port Douglas – 5 star
The Sheraton is a huge resort and best known for its 5 acres of swimming pools. Most of the hotel rooms are situated in wings overlooking these pool areas and there is a nice sanded beach area which is great for families and children. It has an 18 hole championship golf course. The resort is approx 4 kms out of town and fronts onto 4 mile beach.
Unfortunately we did not do an inspection of the property but we did stay overnight in the Deluxe Lagoon rooms which were well appointed, but you could see that they were a little dated by the brass around the bathrooms, peach / beige colour basin, toilet and spa. The resort has 3 restaurants, 2 bars, spa, sauna, kids club, gym and tennis courts.
Sea Temple Resort & Spa Port Douglas – 5 star
Wow - I thought the Sea Temple was a beautiful property, even though it is a bit further out of town from the Sheraton. It also fronts onto 4 mile beach and had a great feel to it. The rooms were well appointed with studio, 2 bedroom and 3 bedroom apartments as well as swim-out apartments. Rooms are appointed in contemporary brown / cream neutral tones, with well appointed bathrooms and kitchens.
The 2 bedroom penthouse apartments have an upper deck with private outdoor kitchen and Jacuzzi. The pool is the central feature of the property, and they have a day spa and also a well known restaurant where we enjoyed a beautiful meal.
Peppers Bale – 5 star deluxe
Peppers Bale is a new luxury resort that is approx 5 kms out of town. Rooms are known as ‘sanctuaries’ and currently there are 20 rooms open whilst they build more rooms on the opposite side of the resort. Rooms are sold as 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 bedrooms. There is only one 4 bedroom villa ( number 33 ) which has bathrooms off every room and the pool is double the size of other villas. The manager advised that they can sell the 4 bedroom as a 2 / 3 bedroom by locking of 1 or 2 of the doors and it can be requested at the time of booking. The rooms are open plan with indoor / outdoor living and fully appointed indoor kitchens as well as an outdoor kitchen. They are very private and you cannot see into any of the villas from the main pathway. A very small gym, communal pool, sauna, day spa and a fine dining restaurant called Sassy’s complete this resort.
Peppers Beach Club Port Douglas – 4 star
I was a little disappointed with this hotel. It is in a good location within walking distance to the beach and Macrossan Street. There are 77 rooms with 70 of these rooms overlooking the pool area, make sure you request these rooms otherwise the other rooms overlook a caravan park or the side of another property!
Spa suites are well appointed with a spa out on the balcony. Spa suites are combined with 1 bedroom suites to make them 2 bedroom spa suite through a connecting door. The 1 / 2 bedroom suites are spacious with a small but well appointed kitchen, a lounge with a plasma TV. The outdoor area has a table with 6 chairs, plus a couple of club chairs and also a hotplate outside. The pool area is good with a large man made beach area which is great for children. The things that I felt let the property down was the cleanliness as there were marks on all the walls in the rooms and some of the outdoor furniture looked quite worn. The restaurant is very small and is open for B / L / D daily.
Mantra Aqueous on Port – 4 star
This hotel is in a good location and walking distance to the beach and Macrossan St. Next door is a Brumbys bakery and a couple of other small shops which offer a huge convenience for families etc staying at this hotel. The property is long and narrow with ground floor rooms offering pool access from a very small balcony area. Hotel, 1 and 2 bedroom apartments are available and 1 bedroom combing to make 2 bedroom. It is rated 4.5 star in the SLV book but I would say 4 max. This property is good value for money for passengers on a budget who want good sized rooms in a quieter location than some on Macrossan Street. The pools are very narrow and I am not sure what they would be like if the pool areas were busy.
Rydges Sabaya Port Douglas – 4 star
This resort is approx 4kms out of town. I was quite impressed with this property as it has received a refurbishment and includes, 1 and 2 bedroom apartments. The resort had a great feel about it right from the lobby area through to the restaurant and bar areas. The main resort pool has a pool bar / restaurant attached for drinks and lunches by the pool. A good kids club is available during school holiday period. Well suited for families wanting a more resort feel property without the Sheraton price tag!
Manta Amphora Palm Cove – 4 star
We stayed at this property and I was very impressed with its price Very good value for money with hotel spa rooms starting at $ 128.00 per night and 1 Bedrooms at $ 200.00 per night. It is in a great location on the Esplanade directly opposite the beach. It has a very small reception area and day spa centre but a good lagoon size pool in the centre of the resort with a Jacuzzi and children’s pool. There is a restaurant at the front of the property which is not part of the resort and the rooms are well appointed and modern.
Sebel Reef House – 4.5 star
This property is known all around North Queensland for its fine dining restaurant. It is in a great location on the Esplanade, has 3 pool areas, 2 Jacuzzi’s, day spa, café, restaurant and a good bar area within the premises. The rooms were very spacious but a little tired with terracotta tiles ( bit out dated for a 4.5* resort ). I enjoyed this property but I felt like they had just put too much into the area. Sometimes it felt like everything was on top of each other!
Sea Temple Resort & Spa Palm Cove – 5 star
Again I really liked the Sea Temple, beachfront at Palm Cove which was within walking distance of town. Open plan and airy it has a great feel when you enter the lobby area. Rooms are modern and contemporary with studio, 1 / 2 / 3 Bedroom apartments as well as 2 bedroom penthouse apartments. In house they have a restaurant, day spa, gym and 3 pool areas.
Studio rooms have spas and double walk in showers. The 1 / 2 bedrooms have a day bed on the balcony and beautifully appointed kitchens and living areas. The penthouses have a roof top spa and outdoor kitchen for entertaining.
Angsana Resort & Spa – 5 star
The reception area at this resort was very informal for a 5 star property. You enter into a small room and then they take you across to an open air ‘Lobby Lounge’ where you are greeted with a refresher towel and iced tea on arrival. The resort does a lot of weddings with their own in-house wedding chapel which has views directly onto the beach. The resort has 3 pool areas, in-house restaurant and day spa.
They have 1 / 2 / 3 Bedroom apartments which are spacious with flat screen TV’s in the living room and master bedrooms. A good size living and kitchen area, DVD’s FOC from reception, and rooms with either views to the pool or beach.
Grand Mercure Rockford – 4 star
This hotel was in a great location and offered good value for money. It is opposite the beach at the top end of the Esplanade near Angsana. Lovely lobby area and large shaded pool area highlight this apartment style property with a resort feel. 90% of rooms have views to the pool area and they have a few rooms with ocean views. There is 24 hour reception, gym, spa, business centre, restaurant and bar within the complex. Rooms have flat screen tv’s with DVD players. The studio rooms have a kitchenette with 2 burner stove, microwave oven, dishwasher and a washing machine and dryer! The 1 bedroom apartments have a small alcove room with a day bed that converts to a double bed. This room category can accommodate 2A/2C comfortably. They also have a 1 bedroom loft apartment which has a private courtyard area above the apartment.
The only negative that I found with this property was that the lifts were slow and quite noisy, so make sure you request rooms away from them.
Novotel Rockford Palm Cove – 4 star
This resort is only a couple of minutes walk from the beach in Palm Cove and it set on a 9 hole golf course. It caters very well for families and has a great family pool area with a crocodile waterslide, a kids club ( 5 – 12 years ) and games room. There is also child care available for 6 weeks – 4 year olds. The resort also has a few pools, 2 tennis courts and a good sized gym. They also have bikes available for hire.
The resort has undergone a refurbishment and the apartments are now furnished with Nick Scali furniture. Superior rooms have been really lightened up as they were quite dark previously, and the executive rooms have a separate bedroom with a kitchenette. All now have flat screen TV’s in the rooms.
The Lakes Resort Cairns – 4.5 star
I could not really see the attraction with this property. The rooms were nice and if they were in a central location, they would do well. First impressions is a private gated community and this resort has a quite a large percentage of permanent residents. It is located approx 4kms out of Cairns, has a lot of facilities on site such as health spa, beauty salon, children’s playground, games room, 24 hour reception, restaurant, bar, spa, sauna, 4 pools, barbeque areas and tennis court.
The Apartments are all in blocks of 2 / 3 stories high and not all of the blocks have lifts so you need to manage your own luggage up and down the stairwells. We stayed in a 2 bedroom deluxe apartment and it was very comfortable. Full kitchen with dishwasher, laundry facilities and a large balcony area.
If clients are going to Cairns to visit family or are wanting to use it as a base and they have a car, they may enjoy this property, Sunlover says the Lakes is one of their best sellers in Cairns and price wise it does offer very good value for money.
Novotel Cairns Oasis Resort - 4 star
This hotel is in a central location in Cairns. It has a nice lobby area and a great lounge / bar area on the main lobby floor. Their double rooms have either a King or 2 Doubles with either city or pool views, small balconies with no chairs, flat screen TV’s and these rooms are available as inter-connecting. Suites have a separate bedroom area with flat screens in both the main bedroom and living area. Bathrooms containing spas are very spacious.
The hotel pool has a sanded area which is great for small children and a swim up bar great for adults! There is an onsite restaurant, 24 hour reception and a good sized gym.
Mercure Hotel Harbourside Cairns – 4 star
Probably not a hotel that I would recommend. It is a 15 minute walk out of Cairns and they are awaiting approval for a refurbishment toward the end of the year. Rooms at this stage are very tired, especially the bathrooms. The pool area is very small for the size of the hotel, however they do have an on-site restaurant and bar, 24 hour reception and parking. The hotel does offer a complimentary shuttle service into and out of town from 10.00am to 10.00pm.
Quicksilver Connections – Outer Reef Trip
We did this trip from Marina Mirage in Port Douglas. We had fantastic weather and were very lucky with calm passage to and from the reef. The pontoon is great for all with an underwater observatory, semi sub and life guarded snorkeling area. On your way out to the reef they offer a few optional activities such as an introductory dive, helicopter trip and a guided snorkel with a marine biologist. They also offer stinger suits for $5 per person and these help protect people from the sun and the stingers. Lunch is included in the fare and is a buffet including prawns and fresh oysters.
$ 157.00 per adult
$ 120.00 per child
Hartley’s Crocodile Park
This is a good afternoon for families. Hartley’s is located between Port Douglas and Palm Cove and they do a range of wildlife shows including the famous crocodile show. A family ticket for 2A/2C is $ 77.00.
Ocean Spirit Dinner Cruise
We did this 3 hour dinner cruise out of Cairns and it was a great night sailing the calm waters around Cairns. They have light entertainment on board with a smorgasbord dinner included.
$ 89.00 per adult and $ 40.00 per child.
Port Douglas Shuttle
There is a shuttle service that operates around Port Douglas every half hour from the outer hotels such as the Sheraton and Sea Temple. It costs a couple of dollars each way and runs from early in the morning until quite late at night and there are several stops in Port Douglas where you can get on and off. It is convenient for people wanting to visit restaurants within other properties without having to worry about taxis ( which are not few in Port Douglas ) or if you don’t have a car.
Coconut Grove
This is a brand new property set to open in Port Douglas. We got a sneak peek of a 2 bedroom penthouse apartment, and is in a fantastic location at the top of Macrossan Street only about 100m to the beach. The apartments are beautifully appointed, fitted out with designer appliances and furniture, very sleek.
Penthouse apartments feature outdoor kitchens and private Jacuzzi’s. The complex will not have an in-house restaurant but you would be within easy walking distance to Port Douglas or you could use the shuttle to go to some of the better restaurants out of town.
I look forward to assisting you with your Port Douglas Holiday.
Kelly Cutting - kelly@brightontravel.com.au
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