While staff were lovely the food was dull and the rooms tired. Unfortunately only buffet dinner was offered during our stay, the cost of which well exceeded any nice restaurant we would usually go to. Buffet dinner can be ok but in this case it was very ordinary. At breakfast only instant coffee was available - yuck! So bad! The rooms were worn, bathrooms mouldy and eek, the shampoo and conditioner were such bad quality - watered down and disgusting. I wish I’d brought my own. The reef has changed, much degraded than previous visits. Once such a great resort this is another example of an amazing Queensland destination being allowed to go to ruin.

This was our third trip to Heron Island. Our first trip was 10 years ago to the month, 18 months ago and then, obviously, this year. The island itself remains beautiful. The views are breathtaking and obviously the marine life and birds are stunning. Interestingly enough, 10 years ago you we could see so many reef sharks in the bay just by standing on the jetty, this has changed over time, to be expected. Our arrival at the marina in Gladstone was a pleasant change this time around. The lady at the counter was lovely and friendly, I think her name was Julie. It was a smooth and easy bag check in. Arrival at the island was good and as normal directed to the conference room for the induction. I would suggest that while the content remains the same this be "beefed" up a little bit to get a better understanding of the island and what you can do. It would be great to include that parents are asked that their children do not chase the birds or attempt to harm them (yes this did happen, and parents stood by to watch birds being scared), to please not allow their children to kick items around for example chess board pieces and to respect other guests. Bizarre this needs to be said but it does as there were a few families whose children were quite misbehaved using the chess pieces as a ball or an item to use to practice karate kicks. I would also suggest that in this induction, a representative from the marine Centre come in and chat to the guests. All information can be given at the same time with what activities are on offer and where to check the tides, winds etc. each morning. This is something we did not notice before (for some reason) and was very handy to know about each day. Check in was fine, we had paid in advance, though had to point this out as we were asked to pay again. As the island was not busy we were able to go to our room immediately which was a bit of a score as it can be a long wait otherwise. We were booked into a Turtle Room. Interestingly enough, the room looked very different to the examples of the room shown on the website when booking. I am not sure if this can be done but it would be good to know what the rooms look like and potentially an option for a guest to choose a room number they are comfortable in if having been before. The room was comfortable and the bathroom clean. A little run down but clean and it was spacious. A review of this room in particular, the bed was dismal and so uncomfortable. it tended to "roll" to the middle, the pillows were very uncomfortable for us unfortunately, hubby used a display pillow as that was more comfy :) As mentioned the bathroom was clean however there was no water pressure, you had to "dance" under the shower to get wet and to try rinse soap or water was interesting :) After a few days we went to reception to see if we could upgrade our room, and fortunately we could, we moved to the Wistari room and oh what a difference. The bed and pillows were super comfy, a comfy chair to sit on (only one in the Turtle room for 2 people) and the water pressure was perfect. I get you pay more and maybe therefore better though I would think basics of bed and water would be the same. We did say when we go again, this will be the room we will book. Interestingly enough, since we have been there 10 years ago, food is always complained about and never looked at to improve which does baffle me a little bit. Having been in the hospitality industry for many years I do understand the challenges of producing meals on an island to suit everyone's tastes. We had the opportunity to see the barge coming in to drop more supplies which included food, linen, building supplies, oil, diesel, bins, gas etc. This is a mammoth task and know it would not be easy. Some small changes I think would go a long way: * Have wait staff clean spilled food around the Bain Maries and serving plates * Top up food that can easily be replaced such as sauces, breads, egg, muesli etc * Provide alternative options if required to guests. Breakfast seems to be a "first in best dressed" though available till 9:30, assessment of how many have come in and how many guests to still arrive should be assessed for food to be put out. Lunch was something we shared as a couple, not being big eaters, this is a good option as food costs do set you back a lot. An example is we ordered a beef burger, which comes with chips, an extra side of chips and 2 soft drinks, cost $56.00. We cut this in half and could share this and it was enough. The chicken burger was a better option to do this though :) - size wise. Pizza was good, we each had a pizza and that was reasonable. In regard to specials, I would suggest printing this up and placing it at the front restaurant desk may be a better idea than reading it off a printed till slip. We chose not to have dinner, we went one night, but left before ordering, meal options did not suit us as we are not big eaters and cost was really high. We chose to rather order sandwiches in the bar during the day and kept them in the fridge and ate them with dinner along with a drink. The sandwiches were always good. The staff at the Marine Centre were great, Andy was always so helpful and accommodating in his dealings with us and friendly when seeing us out an about. He was a pleasure to deal with, as was Louis (I think his name was). We went out for a snorkel, my first time and my hubby's third time. I did enjoy it, sad to see the dead and dying coral though I know a lot is being done to save the reef. Hubby did say it was average for him as he had experienced the dives to the right of the harbour, we went to the left, which he said was far superior to what we had, but that is okay. The snorkel team was Andy, Andy and Lisa and they were a great team, thank you. The bar was a good spot we took advantage of this time around. The round chairs are the most comfortable to sit, have a drink, chat and read a book. If I could make a couple suggestions. The weather this time around was a little average and snorkeling was really only something you could do between 6am and 10am each day. * Have some movie nights in the bar, in the day and evening, for adults and kids. So many good movies could be shown and viewed at each discretion. Eg Harry Potter, Finding Nemo (of course), The Lion King, Forest Gump, Grease, Dirty Dancing, The Goonies, Inside Out to name a few. Selling some popcorn and a drink could add to value. * Music evenings - music videos on the big screen, must say the play list in the bar was spot on each time. * Trivia Nights * Bingo nights It would be great if the board games could be updated a bit, some have lots of pieces missing and torn. I liked the book library. While I did not take a book I did leave one, having that more available and on display is great. Regarding staff, the GM I found to be friendly and would stop for a chat and recalled when we were leaving as well. The nurse (Gill) was lovely too. Overall it was a good trip and would be lovely to see that some ideas are implemented and followed through on moving forward. We will be back again and hope to see a few small changes that do make all the difference.

Difficult to review Heron Island. The island itself is absolutely stunning as are the beaches with all his birds. The scuba diving is very good and all the dive staff make for a great and proffesional atmosphere on the boat. The cooks make very tasty vegan sandwiches on request! Under the jetty you can see stingrays, lemon sharks, shovel nose rays and lots of turtles. And there is a great coherent vibe among all the staff. But the resort itself is in need of some serious repair, renovation and cleaning. It was probably very impressive years ago but not any more. Our room was certainly not impressive at all for the price we payed. But in the end Britney, Agatha, Maya, Eliza, Antun and especially Nicole made this place really special for us and we left the island after 10 days feeling like we had a great experience.

It pains me to write this review as my first real reef experience was at Heron 40 years ago, and it remains one of the highlights of my young life. I remember seafood buffets, nightly entertainment and enthusiastic staff making sure everyone had a great time. But Heron Island today is a shadow of its former self. The resort is seriously run down, the activities are all but nonexistent, and the staff, while friendly, seem to be completely unmanaged. And the food - well - expect to pay top end Sydney restaurant prices for very sub-par meals. $58 for a rump steak. $45 for pasta that tastes like it’s been made out or a jar. No more seafood buffets - those are apparently a thing of the past - the food is both really expensive and incredibly disappointing. A good example of the resort’s decline is the tennis court. When I asked whether it was still there I was told “yes - but only the staff are allowed to use it.” Why? Because it’s damaged and no longer safe for guests to play on. Instead of fixing it they’ve just abandoned it. That attitude seems to exist across the whole island. The new owners are running the place into the ground. The marine life is still exceptional - especially the turtles - and that’s the only thing saving Heron from a one star review. But there are many better places to see fish/coral. I still hold out hope that Heron can return to what it once was, but I doubt it can under current ownership/management. It’s coasting on its former reputation. Do yourself a favour and look elsewhere for a family holiday.

Heron island is a beautiful location with an opportunity to swim with turtles, sharks, rays and tropical fish from the beach. We were lucky to see the baby turtle hatchlings too. It’s amazing. The research tour and talk was also excellent; informative and gives an insight into the research carried out by the PHD students and team lead by Prof Stuart kininmonth it is worth booking and cost $20 pp it was worth it. The reason I didn’t give it a 5* was because of the quality of the food and service. Breakfast was the worst, sometimes nothing there to choose from. Barista coffee is still handmade and I don’t know why a machine isn’t there for self service? We had to queue to. We didn’t bother to have a lunch but dinner wasn’t the best. Heron Island deserves better. It is a special place and deserves better dishes. Please could the booking process and the checking in procedure to be clearer to how things work on the island. How to book a flight etc. also heron island is open all year round. Not sure why any dates after April are not available to book on the website? We felt the rooms could be cleaned better and that the blinds were broken and required fixing. The rooms are basic and dated. But it’s all about the reef. Don’t expect 5* accommodation. However you’ll get 5* marine life to Swim with you :) Also be prepared to pay for wifi . Bring a book if you want to do very little. We would go back again if we visited heron island. Mother Nature hands us beautiful experiences like Heron island. We also met lovely, friendly people on the island. We shared wondeful memories together.