Dunk Island Resort Whitsundays
Readers Reviews
John and Marina
November 2003
Just got back from Dunk Island and would recommend it to anyone with kids.
We stayed in a family room that consisted of a queen size bed in one room
and two singles in the other. The room was so big that a rolla way could
easily fit in. We have a 3 yr old who spent his whole morning in the large
pool and then have nap before dinner. Kids club looked fantastic although
we never used it but saw what activities they had every morning in the
"Daily Dunk" the local paper that had all the days activities. Great food
Package included breakfast and dinner. If we go again we will go to a
supermarket at Mission Beach and get essentials as they were very expensive
on the island. Do not use the water taxi to get to the island as it is
disgusting as you have to practically swim to get on and of at Mission Beach.
A fantastic family vacation.
Sharon
September 2003
Our family - two parents and two children age 14 months and (barely)
3 years - were at Dunk for 6 days in September 2003. It's a beautiful resort
with excellent facilities for adults and older (school age) children but I
can't recommend it for anyone with children as young as ours. Our older
son had lost his toilet training in the excitement of being on holiday and
the Kids Club would not change nappies, so either my husband or I to be on
call and close by to change him as needed. Trying to organise babysitting
was difficult - I was originally quoted $55 per hour for my 2 children (!)
but when I queried that further on our second day the figure was reduced
to a still hefty $25 an hour. I then learned that we were supposed to
provide 48 hours' notice of a baby sitting request. We finally secured a
baby sitter for our fourth morning at the resort - but she didn't turn up.
I rang reception and was sent a replacement - a 16 year old girl on work
experience who had arrived at the resort the afternoon before and had no
experience looking after children! Because we had transferred to the
resort by light plane and were restricted as to luggage I had asked before
we came whether I would need to take disposable nappies. I told the staff
member the child's weight and was assured that there would be a supply of
nappies available in the resort shop. When I went to the shop to buy some
I was told they had run out and weren't expecting any more for another
5 days - the day we were scheduled to leave. I also found the staff ignorant
and unhelpful when it came to mealtimes and feeding the near-toothless
14 month old. He lived on the same 3-veg mash every day for lunch
(at about $7 a pop!) and laboriously cut up scraps from our main courses
for dinner since staff refused my requests to stick a bamix in a small bowl
of meat/rice/veges for him ( "you should have brought jars of baby food
for him" one told me). None of these problems detract from the other
excellent facilities and activities - for those who can access them.
I described our disappointing experience in detail on the guest feedback
form but didn't receive an acknowledgement. This resort is run by
resident staff who are young, overwhelmingly single, certainly childless
and who "turn over" rapidly. There is insufficient awareness of or interest
in the needs of babies and toddlers and their parents. If you have a
toddler or baby and you absolutely MUST go to Dunk, take your own nanny
and a suitcase full of nappies, or suffer the consequences.
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