We just spent 3 days at the Hamilton Island resort in February '06. We would never go back again. Three weeks before we arrived their power line was cut and they were barely operating off temporary generators. We were never advised of this. The result was we only had air conditioning for 2 days. The power was completely turned off for 5 hours one night. We paid $1,700 AUD for the 3 nights, it wasn't worth it if we had paid half that price. When I complained to the hotel manager about not having air conditioning, he completely denied any problems with the power. Everyone else on the island knew about it.

This is a beautiful area. I would go back any time, but stay at a different resort. In addition to the power problems, the rooms were dirty, the food was bad even in their expensive restaurants and the service was bad. We had to call housekeeping every day to get towels. Most of the time they never responded to our requests. We stayed in the Reef View Hotel.

We stayed there 20 years ago and it was absolutely magnificent. Lush, tropical and gorgeous. It was up market and certainly looked the part. Two years ago we dropped back in for a day trip. Oh my god. It looked like a dump. The pool was filthy, the area around it was overgrown there was rubbish everywhere and the general atmosphere of the place had gone from 5 star to 2 star. I was so disappointed and felt relieved that we were not staying there.

I really hope you got to stay on a nice island (maybe Hayman?) after this fiasco, sounds like you needed it. What an expensive disaster for you. If it was me, I would write a letter to whom ever sold you the holiday and complain.

It was a good idea to put your info onto this website as well.

Sorry to hear of your experience at Hamilton Island, unfortunately sounds a bit like the Whitsunday island resort thing, "paradise one day, receivership the next". Have never had a good meal on that island, and agree that food is over-priced and less than mediocre. Don't blame you for being mad! Whitsunday resorts need to wake up to themselves, mostly they are incredibly overpriced, reliant on weather, and still some distance from the Great Barrier Reef.

It would be interesting to find out who owns the Reef View Hotel and write to them. Hopefully you have repeated your post on Frommers and on Trip Advisor so that more people can read it.
It makes me mad that some people can claim one thing about their establishments and when you get there it is nothing like what you expect.
I myself will be writing something similiar about my trip which I am still on when I get home too. Especially about the Motel or rather ( resort) that I had booked for 4 nights in the Southern Highlands of NSW. It was nothing more than a bloody joke!

Hi Tahoe,

I was on a famil with the Tourism Board last year and did an extensive tour of the Whitsundays. They are REALLY trying to market this area. While our tour was very professional,everything handled smoothly, I learned alot as the properties we visited were very ....um...diverse.

I don't know if this will help, but perhaps you can voice your displeasure with www.hamiltonisland.com.au.

Regards,

Melodie
Certified Aussie Specialist

This is why I love fodor's, lets find out the real story before we book. Again thanks to Pat W. and others from Australia that help the rest of us out with our trip planning

Similar feelings about Hamilton Island too - dirty, overpriced and two star standard.Those golf buggies are a ridiculous price!
However, the Whitsundays are still a great destination and we are in the process of booking our third bare boat charter out of Airlie Beach just after Christmas this year.
The freedom of sailing (or motoring!!) to a beautiful, isolated cove, firing up the on-deck barbeque, having a swim off the boat before watching the sunset behind the islands - priceless!
I think Hamilton Island is a salutory lesson on mass tourism and high rise development on an isalnd that never should have been developed to such an extent. Remember also that the Whitsundays are continental islands - not coral - and the palm trees you see in the photos of Hamilton etc are all planted!

I have heard similar stories concerning Hamilton Island...not my cup of tea to start with, large high rise apartment blocks, housing numerous people. Thats why I like Brampton Island, and other islands, which don't pander for "mass" tourism.
Tahoe Traveller - best to stick to smaller island resorts that cater for less tourist numbers, and hopefully, can give you a better service.
When my wife & I first visited Brampton Island, I think it was owned by the McLean family who also operated Roylen cruises in that region. Bob & Dolly Dyer owned a cottage at the resort, and most of the accommodation consisted of fibro shacks, no air conditioning, just glass louvred windows and a balcony. I'm talking about 35 years ago, and we thought it was heaven.
Hope your next Queensland Holiday is better. Wouldn't hurt to ask some of the aussies on this chat board before making your final decision.

We had to put into the Hamilton Island Marina because of engine trouble, and stayed 2 days 'til it was fixed. The sky-high slip fees include resort rights, so we lounged around a couple of the pools, rented a golf cart, and checked out the island. It is indeed an incongruous resort, with high-rise hotels on a small island, as well as all sorts of touristy stuff, like a zoo, go-kart track, zip-lines, gliders, etc. I must admit though, they have a darn fine miniature golf course! As noted above, there are so many better choices on other islands, it would be hard to imagine why one would stay on Hamilton. It does have an airport with a jet-size runway, which could simplify your connections to other islands.

Sorry to hear about your problems on Hamilton Tahoe. What a shame!! It can be really tough to chose a place if you've never been to an area before. At least you'll know for next time.

I'm going to be in the Whitsunday's in mid-May, it'll be my first trip out there. I'm really looking forward to it but Tahoe's experience has me a little worried now. I've booked at the Daydream Island Resort. Has anyone stayed there before and, if so, are the accomodations decent?

Also, can anyone recommend a good company for snorkeling/diving the GBR there and near Port Douglas? I've seen some of the larger operators but I'd like something a little smaller so I'm not diving the same reef as 600 other people!

Thanks in advance,
gtb

I haven't stayed on Daydream Island, but I have heard from others that its a good resort, and well run.
Most resorts are okay in the Whitsundays, except news items concerning South Molle Island Resort.
Daydream Island is the closest resort to Shute Harbour/Airlie Beach area. Its a small island, but there should plenty of activities & cruises to keep you occupied.

We spent a week on Daydream Island. There is a single resort that pretty much takes up the whole tiny island. The hotel was totally remodeled a few years ago, and is quite nice. You can walk around the whole island in about an hour, but there is also a shuttle to take you around. There are 3-4 restaurants to choose from, ranging from a snack bar to fine dining. Daydream caters to families, so there are quite a few kiddies running about. Plenty of activities on the island, including boating, water-skiing, and diving (not impressive).

Several dive operators pick up guests at Daydream, but you might have a greater variety if you ferry over to nearby Hamilton Island, where more operators stop. I would not be so quick to dismiss the large operators that go from the Whitsundays out to the GBR. First of all, it is a rather long way, so a big fast boat will get you there quicker and in more comfort. Second of all, the big boats cater to snorkelers and first-time divers. If you are a certified OW diver, then you will find yourself among only a handful of others. I have been to Reefworld (http://www.fantasea.com.au/reefworld.htm) on Hardy Reef a couple of times because we were with a bunch of snorkelers. Both times there were fewer than 6 OW divers in our group, and we had a fine time doing two dives; one directly off the Reefworld platform, and another drift dive where a small boat took us a ways out, then we drifted back to the platform. Cruise Whitsundays (http://www.cruisewhitsundays.com/gbra.aspx) is a similar operator that has a large fast cat but mostly transports snorkelers.

Port Douglas is an entirely different story. The GBR is closer, so the size and speed of the boat is not such a big factor. Also, there are countless operators to choose from. We had a fine day out with Pro-Dive (http://www.prodive-cairns.com.au/page3-12.html), which also has smaller Tusa boats going out of Cairns.

Thanks a bunch for the info ALF and tropo!!

I was hoping for a slightly less touristy experience but at least it's a nice, well run place I guess. It really does cost a small fortune to stay on most of the islands and they had a good special at DI. I suppose I can always go somewhere less touristy...

Thanks again!
GTB

We got married on Hamilton Island four years ago and had the best time ever, thought the hotel was fab (we were put on the 18th floor cause we were getting married) but still found it clean and the food gorgous. Everyone there was so friendly and made our wedding for us, we will never forget our week on Hamilton.