We recently spent 5 nights on Lady Elliot with a large group of friends and had an absolutely amazing time. We have had previous Barrier Reef holidays, from very basic camping on Lady Musgrave to a pre-kids holiday on more up-market Heron Island. Lady Elliot is perfect for families. We ranged from a 10 and 12 year old, several teens and twenty-somethings, up to 50-somethings. We felt like part of an Indiana Jones adventure as we left rainy Hervey Bay airport in an 8 seater twin engine plane. That was the smallest of the resort's planes, going home wasn't anywhere near as exciting! By the time we arrived, the sun was shining and everyone looked very relaxed and happy.
Don't be put off by the initial slightly unpleasant smell, you soon get used to it and I suggest wearing a hat when walking under trees - there are birds everywhere! The accommodation is basic but for our family, who usually go camping, this was definitely superior! Rooms cannot be locked but you can ask the office to look after valuables. We had a 6 bedded bunk room between the five of us. We had our own small bathroom (toilet, hand basin and shower). The room had 6 basic bunks and a wardrobe. We used the spare bunk for extra storage and it worked fine for us as we only ever collapsed there at night. The balcony was mainly used for dripping snorkel gear, towels and numerous shoes/flippers but as it is shared, it provided opportunities to meet the neighbours! Mums relished the absolute freedom from cooking, cleaning, washing up etc and the fact that we did not have a single complaint from our children or any need to rouse on them! The breakfasts were huge so we ate up big in the hope that we wouldn't need lunch but a busy morning snorkelling would see us back in the restaurant for a snack at lunchtime! The kids were able to go off snorkelling together straight off the beach in front of the cabins so they were very safe. The more adventurous kids went to the other side of the island with the older members of our party and had amazing experiences with bigger critters such as reef and other apparently harmless sharks, manta rays and huge fish and came back with some incredible tales. The turtles were everywhere. The smaller green turtles could often be seen in the shallows at the edge of the beach and we were fortunate to be there during the nesting season and witnessed loggerheads laying their eggs on two separate evenings. Some of our party went scuba diving but you don't have to - there is so much to see just snorkelling.
The staff are enthusiastic and friendly. I tried to do as many of the guided walks as possible as they were a lot of fun and very informative. It is a very laid back resort, so don't bother bringing fancy evening wear or high heeled shoes. We only ever wore thongs (flipflops) or crocs (good for reef walking). Don't let your kids go barefoot - coral cuts can end up with nasty infections. Entertainment in the evenings was very family friendly, trivia quizzes, charades and the like. My only gripe is there were a couple of TVs so the men often snuck off to catch up on the cricket and tennis!
We felt very privileged to be able to enjoy the Barrier Reef and it's inhabitants at such close quarters, it is an amazing place and we want to go again, hopefully when the baby turtles hatch!

What can I say we had such high expectations after looking at the web site we thought it would be lovely to have three nights here - how wrong we were.

We booked a reef unit room, which we found out is basically 1 third of a porta cabin. (look at the web page all photos are taken with trees in front of the accommadation!) There is a small balcony outside the front of your room but it is not partitioned off from your neighbour as shown on the web site. You do not get a key to your room they do not lock from the outside so don't take anything of value with you as your room is always open!

The rooms are small and need some serious renovation work. (again the photos on the web page must have been taken 10 possibly 15 years ago) Everything is cramped in, at the head of the double bed either side is a large shelf and underneath is your mini fridge, but it means you don't have any room either side of the bed and that is as wide as your room. The room is as long as a double bed and a bunk bed plus about two two foot. When we went to bed I pulled back the duvet and the bottom sheet on the bed did not fit the matress. It was only just wide enough to lay flat on top it didn't go over the edges at the top or sides it was only tucked in at the bottom!

There was not enough room to have a proper door on the bathroom so it has a sliding door, which was of its' runner when we arrived. We told reception and maintenance came round and fixed it pretty promptly. The bathroom is only as wide as a toilet plus about 6 inches either side. It's a squash and a sqeeze.

The package gives you half board, breakfast was not bad the usual fruit, cereal, bread/toast and a selection of hot food, bacon toms, mushrooms,eggs e.t.c. Dinner was just about passable so long as your not a fussy eater. There was a soup followed by a beef or turkey carvery and veg, plus a vegitarian cheese and spinach puff. A selection of 4 salad dishes and then three deserts.

Beer was pretty expensive 5 * hotel prices the best option other then take your own out with you was wine, it wasn't too over the top.

We thought the reef rangers club would be a chance for our son to learn about the Australian sealife, but the first afternoon they were building puzzles and the next morning it was colouring - he could have done that anywhere.

The whole experience was made worse by bad weather - nothinig to do with the island but they cancelled the diving as visibility was poor, but then in the next breath said that afternoon they would take people diving regardless of visibility so people could dive!!

Well after that we decided to leave why take people down if there is nothing for them to see............ it was all becoming clear MONEY..................... this place is one major rip off............... I should have realised when we booked, we payed a deposit but the remainder of the bill had to be paid 1 month before flying.

My husband went to reception at 8.30am and asked if we could get a flight out that day, luckily there was a flight at 9.20. The receptionist did not ask WHY? we wanted to leave. We packed pronto and checked out again no-one asked WHY we were leaving early, all they remind you is that you won't get a refund and although we only stayed 1 night we stilll had to pay the enviromental nightly charge for 3 nights!!

Whilst waiting for our flight we got talking to a couple who were staying in the 2 bed suite and they stated that the room was just a river where rain had got in it was flowing across their floor.

Funnily enough there were another couple returning that had flown out with us the afternoon before (and you could only make bookings for a min of 3 nights in peak periods) and more people were enquiring as to whether they could leave the island early.

In summary this maybe an eco resort but it is a run down one that is extortionatly expensive. We paid about £900 (AUS$1950) for three nights for 2 adults and a child of 5 and ended up having one night on the island. It seems to be about making money without spending it on the upkeep of the facilities.

GO ELSEWHERE unless you can get it for at least under half what I paid or you will feel ripped off.

If you are planning on going for a day trip be aware that they will not let you dive due to the flight even though it is not a pressurised flight. We met people on the island on a day trip who were not informed of this until they got there, it also goes for people staying on the island you cann't dive on your last morning.

Wanted an island on the barrier reef where kids could snorkel form the beach. Expectations met +++. Coral etc great and staff made everything easy for us. Plenty for kids to do if fed up with snorkelling. Kid club bril and educational. Accomodation basic but fun. The accomodation is what it says it is. If you are looking for plush suites don't go here. For us with 4 kids it was perfect as you spend most of the time outside. Food good but again not fabulous. Again it is what it says it is. As an experience for a family hard to beat I reckon especially at the price we paid. In summary it provides a great experience of the Barrier Reef from an isolated beautiful island setting. The food and accomodation reflect the relatively cheap price but both adequate and do not affect the holiday. You must go.

We had an excellent three-night stay in August. The water was warm enough for snorkeling, the wind was down, and the rain stayed away. The whales were jumping around the island and the mantas were out, as were the white-tipped reef sharks. The accomodations were rudimentary, as was the food. The staff was quite nice and you were not really gouged on lunch or wine, which was nice given that they are the only game in town! If it was really hot, all the birds were on the island, and there were herds of tourists everywhere, I am not sure that we would have had the same experience. Our trip was just right.