Green Island Resort

If you are thinking about a visit don't let the haters put you off. Green Island is a beautiful little island to spend a few days away from it all. Being able to snorkel straight off the beach and walk through the rainforest everyday - magical! We loved the evening fish feeding - we even saw a few reef sharks. We saw turtles from the jetty a number of times and some guests snorkeled with them. We loved the complimentary glass bottom boat tour - we saw a giant clam, stingrays, clownfish and many more. It was unseasonably wet and cool during our dry season stay with two young kids. We have bought plenty of snacks and some inside activities so we were fine. We were all in the one room but they are quite spacious (more spacious than the five star hotels we stayed at in Cairns). The food is classic island fare - priced to take into account everything has to be brought in and out and standard was just ok. We self-catered our own lunch, when the island is busiest with day trippers, and ate at the restaurant or got take away from the Bar in the evenings. The pizza was our favourite. But you don't go to green island for its culinary scene - you go for the rainforest, the birds, the turtles, the reef. It's utterly beautiful. My six year old was able to snorkel off the beach because we had time to take this slowly. She got so confident, we took her out to a pontoon at Moore Reef. She would never have snorkelled off a pontoon without first getting the hang of it at the beach. Little kids can see a lot of fish just off the beach. The beach is patrolled, so it's safe. The pools are not heated and my crazy kids insisted on swimming in them but older kids and adults will just swim in the gorgeous ocean. My partner and I took turns to take a guided snorkel with a marine biologist. This was fantastic. They took us a little way out on a boat to a beautiful growth of coral and the marine biologist pointed out many things I would have missed - like pink clownfish. The view from our room was beautiful - they have kept a lot of rainforest trees on and around the accommodation. Our room was up stairs (there's just two levels) so check you have a ground floor if mobility is a concern. Green Island is very pram friendly. There's no greeting feet wet or walking on sand. Wheelchairs would also be able to use most the paths including the boardwalk in the rainforest (but beach access could be tricky). The hotel provides milk and tea bags. There's a kettle and bar fridge in the food. Take your wetsuits in winter, as it can get cold snorkeling after a while.

We stayed at Green Island Resort for two nights. The resort is older and shows some signs of age, but it has plenty of charm. The staff were always friendly, welcoming, and helpful, and they did everything they could to make our stay as enjoyable as possible. A major advantage was that the use of facilities such as beach chairs, towels, snorkelling equipment, glass-bottom boat tours, and the use of guest laundry was included in the price. The ferry transfers to and from the island were also included. We also joined an interesting “behind the scenes” tour, which gave us an insight into the island’s water supply, waste management systems, deliveries from the mainland, and the logistics involved in running a remote island resort. It gave me a much greater appreciation of how much work goes into operating a place like this and why the cost of staying there is entirely justified. We would be very happy to stay here again!

We loved our 2 night stay at Green Island. The rooms were spacious and the beds were comfy. The staff were AMAZING. Every single employee was friendly and helpful. They truly seemed happy working there. It makes sense, the place is beautiful and peaceful. Day guests show up around 9 and leave at 4:30. We never felt overwhelmed with the day guests. Once the day guests left, we felt that we had the island to ourselves. Our reservation included 2 sunset drinks daily, a free glass bottom boat tour (30 minutes), free chairs on the beach, and free breakfast. I highly recommend this place. The money is worth the experience!