Daydream Island Resort

Lack of service ... very understaffed ... was told to come back in 40 minutes for dinner (reservation not required for this restaurant) !!! Wanted to make a reservation at another restaurant for another night ... no one there to make the booking???

The food was great at all of the restaurants and decent portion sizes. The room itself was a great size with very comfortable beds. Great range of activities to do on the island both free and paid.

The service from staff all across the island was disappointing, but particularly at the restaurants. Restaurant staff were disorganised and disinterested. We were constantly waiting for staff to take our order, and when we’d ask we’d just get told it was someone else’s job. Most staff across the resort seemed disinterested in actually helping, and when we requested anything it was always done begrudgingly. In addition, our room was not properly cleaned. There was toothpaste on the bathroom tap and the floor around the beds was covered in hair.

The buffet breakfast was good. The food at the other restaurants was average but over priced. The staff were rude and unhelpful, one even swearing at us for asking for a glass of ice.

The system that they have (or don't have) for when you are getting drinks from the pool bar or even from the other restaurant is shocking. Nothing is signed for and anyone can put anything on your room number.

Worst resort I have ever stayed at!

for Booking.com: We stayed four nights at Daydream Island Resort and Spa after months of planning and careful research. Based on the four-star rating and the photos shown online, we expected a well-maintained island resort. Unfortunately, our experience was very different from what was advertised. We have attached photos to accurately reflect the conditions described below.From arrival, it was clear that much of the island is poorly maintained and visibly dilapidated. There were broken fences around the tennis courts, run-down and unused buildings, and a general lack of landscaping, cleaning, and upkeep. Given how small the island is, this neglect was very noticeable and disappointing.Our room was in poor condition, with damaged drywall and visible wear. Housekeeping was a major issue throughout our stay. We requested room cleaning three separate times. When housekeeping finally came on the third day, the service was extremely superficial — the bed was made and towels were replaced, but the bathroom was not cleaned, trash remained on the floor, and used glasses and bottles on the nightstand were not removed. The room did not appear to have been properly cleaned at all. In addition, Wi-Fi barely worked in our room, despite being advertised as an included amenity.The common areas were also in poor condition. The laundry room had severely chipped and damaged tiles and looked very run-down. During rainy weather, multiple walkways flooded. Carpets throughout the resort were old and had a damp, mildewy smell. Soundproofing was almost nonexistent — we could clearly hear the laundry room through the walls of our room.The dining experience raised serious concerns. Dining areas were consistently messy and appeared understaffed, with tables not being cleaned in a timely manner. We found hair in our food, were served visibly dirty dishes, and at one point received a glass of water that contained a foreign object.

Location was nice. Aquarium and living reef great.

Service and staff. Very disappointed. No communication about booking tours. Poor service at Salti Restaurant, reception, tour desk and swim up bar. Unable to do 80% activities. Will not go back or recommend to family or friends.

The marine life.

Daydream Island is a beautiful location ruined by poor management, untrained and disengaged staff, substandard housekeeping, and overpriced, low-quality food. Facilities are poorly maintained, service is minimal, and guests are left feeling captive on an island where basic expectations of a “resort” experience are not met. We are now on Hamilton Island and loving it—do yourself a favour and go there instead.

Staff was friendly and room was good .

It’s little out of the way and the tours not too much to. Choose from , lot of activities close b fore 3 . So plan for at least 2 days and book activities in advance …. Airlie port beach had lot of options .

Location in the whitsundays is beautiful - it’s a shame the island only looks good from when you disembark from the ferry - welcomed to a transit arrival lounge with beverages, which then leads to a high ceiling renovated reception area that looks good - beyond that is nothing special.

We have been visiting Hamilton island (whitsundays) every year for the past 30 years & can not fault it whatsoever - decided to try something different this time and explore nearby Daydream island - big mistake.property looks run down. Ants inside room. Very small rooms. Once the sun goes down there is no lighting to light up pathways & areas around pool - makes the island look deserted much like Cast Away.Only 2 restaurants on island that are open. One tiny convenient store/souvenir store - no facilities if you want to purchase any food or necessities. Once restaurants shut you can’t even buy any snacks or drinks for your room. Rooms don’t include a mini bar like other hotel resorts. We left the island after 2 nights (losing the money paid for the rest of the stay) and went to nearby Hamilton island to continue our holiday.

Complementary breakfast buffetLocation Island itself

Mainly rude staff (holiday visa holders that couldnt be bothered to remediate situation)Subpar cleanliness Worst housekeeping everDisconnect b/w front desk and housekeepingOverpriced restaurants on site

The island itself is stunning, with loads of wildlife and lovely views. The staff are genuinely friendly and polite, and the two main restaurants serve good food (though the options start to feel limited after a few days). It’s a relaxing place to unwind if you’re after nature and some quiet time, provided you avoid the pool areas where the kids are.

Check-in was delayed by over an hour with no one seeming to care or compensate, and there was no porter to help with bags on or off the ferry up the jetty to reception on arrival or departure. The breakfast setup felt more like a school canteen, and room cleaning was pretty minimal, resembling a teenager who could just about muster making a bed. The facilities are starting to feel a bit dated — more old English seaside resort than island escape.

Beautiful location

Food was overpriced and not very good.Housekeeping was awful, didn’t sweep floors in the six days we were there, didn’t restock tea/coffee, toilet rolls or tissues Bed was sometimes badly made.

We arrived off a late ferry and first impressions were of the long concrete corridors and massive atrium being a bit "institutional" but the room didn't feel that way. The room was spacious and comfortable. We liked watching the live feed from the lagoon on our TV! and being able to have takeaway Pizza and chips. As we explored the next day, we were very impressed by the grounds and pool area. Amazing buffet breakfast with continental and cooked options. The underwater observatory was awesome and so relaxing. We loved the Kangaroos, happily performing their "lawnmowing" duties and enjoyed the educational talk at the lagoon. Watching the migrating whales from the restaurant made up for the gull invasion ! The incorporation of so much wildlife really makes Daydream Island special.We were lucky to see Helen the rock python on our walk around the island and enjoyed the challenge of the bush track.We enjoyed a G&T at Lover's cove while watching a stunning sunset and listening to some great live music. Hats off to the gardening and maintenance staff as the resort is so well looked after. Our brief stay was too short and I would recommend a 3 to 4 night stay to have time to relax as well as try out the activities.All the staff we encountered were friendly and happy to help. This would be the perfect place for a multi-generational holiday. Younger kids in particular would love it.

Limited eating options on Sunday evening. Buffet dinner was good value if you were hungry but expensive if a small meal preferred. Some activities were not available on a Sunday, such as the glass bottom Kayaks.Poor communications. Prior to our trip, I tried to telephone twice, with limited success, and wasn't phoned back as promised.

Breakfast was okay, but I didn’t appreciate having the curlews walking around in the restaurant.

I think the resort is a little rundown and needs updating and for the price I just think it was a bit overpriced.

Our family loved the living reef tour at the resort. We did the snorkel activity which was an incredible experience for my son and I who are both new to snorkeling. Our guide was very knowledgeable and kind.

The room wasn’t cleaned very well with pretty obvious soap scum and residue from previous guests. It was also frustrating to have only 2 restaurants on the property that you can eat at, and most of the time they were all booked up. Side benefit is that you’ll probably shed a few pounds ?

The grounds and pools seemed to get a lot of upkeep done throughout our stay so I will give the resort that. That said, the pizzas & Asian on the menu honestly were of the few things we actually enjoyed. The views were stunning, and the pools were lovely, but unfortunately, those positives didn’t make up for the rest of the experience.

We stayed at Daydream Island for 3 nights as a family of 5 and were really disappointed. The food overall was BAD minus a few options below… the kitchen area in the buffet had visible mould, which was really concerning. There were crows flying around inside the buffet area — we even saw one poo on a guest, and who knows how many times they’ve done the same over the food. It felt completely unhygienic and unacceptable. Buffet definitely isn’t worth the $65 per person. The facilities inside the resort are extremely run down, with mould throughout multiple areas including our room. The bed sheets were dirty, towels had visible stains & blood, the shower was gross (thankfully my kids had thongs to wear in there), and there were piles of dirty towels left in corridors. The whole place felt neglected and poorly.If you’re unsure about visiting this place, like we were as we saw a lot of mixed reviews, let this review be the one that stops you. I’m coming from a totally honest place, this was a very disappointing stay and absolutely not worth the money, we will not be back nor recommending this resort to anyone.

Amazing value for money. There were a lot of activities. I enjoyed the buffet breakfast, cocktail and mocktail selection. Staff were very friendly. Great amenities.

Housekeeping wasn’t good, the rooms were not vacuumed for the 5 days that we stayed. I found it bizarre. I am unsure if they replaced our towels, but I left them hanging and upon return there were towels folded but they had stains on them. The place was so dusty.

The view was spectacular from every location. The living reef was awesome. Lovers cove magical

The resort shop was not very stocked. Families need options for buying snacks outside restaurants. My daughter is coeliac and she struggled to find food to eat as we were told at restaurants that there was cross contamination.

The cocktails were good, the food and staff at infinity were amazing, the view is quite good.

The hotel is very dirty and not taken care of well. The hotel is not entirely enclosed and the carpet is disgustingly and needs a vacuum. The first room i was allocated had a poorly made bed with clearly dirty sheets, mismatched pillows, mould over the furniture and the TV and Phone were broken. The staff then provided me a new room which was better quality but there was dried food on the wall near the bin and ants were coming in as a result. Housekeeping only came at 8am which isn’t ideal for solo travellers who would prefer a small sleep in on holiday. A major problem is the poor wifi strength , given all menus, maps and information about your stay are electronic, i could rarely access this information and when i asked the staff if the quality was poor or if there was an issue they were unhelpful. Through research of my own, certain network providers only have 4g coverage in this area so you will need to manually change your phones default setting from 5g to access the internet due to the spotty wifi. I do not recommend this island for solo travellers or couples, it’s geared toward children and families and was not a positive experience. I suggest spending a little more money and staying on a nicer island.

The animal and marine life for kids.. and lovers cove was magic

The restaurants were terrible. Overpriced and they ran out of food

quiet & the wild kangaroo

the check-in time was 2 hours delay!!! and the most unpleasant part was the reception staff (Annabelle) was a passive aggressive, arrogant & snobby. Finally & luckily the duty manager sorted it out. Otherwise, you will never know how long you’re going to wait for your checkin time, because she is going to tell keep exploring the island until you receive a call. Besides, the room was definitely not meet up and 4-star standards, quite dirty in some corners.