We came to Australia as a place I had not visited before and to mark our 25th Wedding Anniversary. We have an itinerary that stretches for a month and covers Singapore, Adelaide, Melbourne, Cairns, The Whitsundays, Sydney and then travelling back through Hong Kong. It is a busy schedule and that is the way I like it; I am a reluctant holiday maker, much more comfortable with a list of things to do and the sense of achievement that doing them brings. Paradise Bay is the part that I was most concerned about, I see the sense of breaking the visit with a quiet time; 5 days? What will there be to do, I have visions of me pacing up and down the beach.

I need not have worried. The pace here is gentle and time is foreshortened, 5 days pass in a moment as Paradise works its magic. We have fun with the boat, we walk the pathways, we watch the wallabies and curlews as we relax, we soak up the whole ambiance.

The food and wine are outstanding, the food is sumptuous and a non meat eating diet catered for excellently. The company of other guests and staff is genial, friendly and knowledgeable. An evening meal here with the sea lapping and candle flames flickering against the dark sky with bright stars is an exquisite jewel in the treasure that paradise offers. Look out for the moonrise and moonset, they are special here.

The attention to guests is amazing, just a casual mention that it was our Silver Wedding resulted in a private candle lit dinner on our deck, complete with a special desert.

I was in some doubt, about the trip to the Barrier Reef, we make this a last minute addition. It was the right decision, it is organised perfectly; the helicopter ride over the islands, the snorkelling with thousands of fish, their myriad colours and shapes against the living reef, all done as a very small group. This shines brightly as a high point.

I am recharged, a little sad to leave, carrying with me the thought that I should find a time in that busy schedule to return again. I can only repeat that, the setting is gorgeous and the activities are full of fun: the attention, dedication and commitment of the staff make this a special experience. Paradise is in good hands.

I just go back from Paradise Bay and it was a very memorable experience. From the moment the helicopter set down to when we left we were totally spoiled.

The food was simply superb my only complaint is that my willpower left me as did the word "No" so I ate and drank far too much. Although when food is this good I am not sure too much is possible.

All the staff were excellent and no request was too much, in fact small requests were acted on in a delightful way. For example a favourite drink was immediately created and offered again without request at the appropriate moment the next day. It happened with food too. I asked if they had any Turkish delight one day which they said they did not. Unbeknownst to me they had some brought from the mainland and included it in my lunch rucksack the next day. I found it when I opened my lunch in between snorkeling swims at Sandy Bay. How delightful....... and delicious too. One of our group jokingly asked for chocolate crackles, a childhood favourite. It was served as part of afternoon tea the next day. Unforgettable.

The day before we were leaving for the holiday I was told by my wife that there was no internet (well only in an emergency anyway) and no mobile phone reception at the resort. At first I thought this was a crime against civilisation. It turned out to be the reason I for the first time in a decade forgot about the share market, emails and the like and truly relaxed.

Island resorts are not normally my preference, the resort was chosen by friends we were there with, but I was very thankful that we visited Paradise Bay. It lived up to its name.

My highest recommendation is this... we will return.

It's a thousand star paradise...

see the long trip report on Tripadvisors Long island Forum Pages.

After the slight hitch with the heli transfer over we were warmly welcomed and given a brief run down of the resort before boarding the "yacht" for a days sailing to
Cid Harbour.

Accommodation.

There are 10 small bungalows or cabins on the island which accommodate up to a total of 16 guests. We had the pleasure of cabin 8 which is also known as KangaRoom. The resorts website uses this room for the internal pictures (has the yellow artwork on the wall and large silver coloured decanters)

There is a comfy king size bed, an open hanging area with a section to place folded items, a timeber vanity top basin complete with ahuge array of Molton Brown toiletries. Two chairs in our room, one complete with a bat on arrival.
The outer deck also had excellent hanging space for wet items and a timber furniture setting as well as a very comfy hammock.
The linen is top quality with sportscarft and country road towles and Sheridan sheets.
The only issue we had was dim lighting but you must remember this is an eco resort and we are getting on so need a bit more light than normal. The gazebo area has adequate light for reading.
The shower is good and hot, but light on for pressure...read eco again. You don't come for the shower tho.

Food
To die for.
The intimacy of the resort means that there is no menu to choose from but the chef consults with you regards to food likes and dislikes allergies etc. There was not one meal I thought was ordinary. In fact when asked, it was difficult to identify the best meal because they were all very yummy. A packed lunch is provided each day to go out on the boat (this will change in September when the new boat arrives and has onboard catering)
There is an open bar after 6.30pm but wines and beers are reasonably priced during the day.

The only issue with the food was I gained 2 kilos!

The best dining experience was the candleight balcony dinner for two organised when there were only 2 couples on island. WOW!

Activities.

You are fitted out for snorkelling gear, stinger and wetsuit, and they provide reef shoes. Not to walk on the reef but for the rocky areas on some islands. It is still best if you bring your own. You are also given a wind/waterproof jacket for the boat although I never managed to use it.
There are kayaks available on the island and a nice walk up behind to look at Pentecost, if you don't mind the cobwebs. The resort is not accessible form any of the other esorts on long island nor is it possible to walk from Paradise to them, not that you would want to.
There are a variety of board games and a small but diverse library adorns the gazebo to keep you occupied.

Fellow Travellers
This is a couples destination and although the little Gurus have already begun hassling for a visit i'm not sure that it would be active enough and would spoil the romantic setting at evening meals. But then again the ability to go sailing each day may satisfy their needs.

In all this is a place i would recommend for couples looking for a total chill out in a beautiful location. It beats Hayman hands down if you want kids free quality time, we visited Peppers palm bay and much preferred the intimacy of Paradise (Peppers is growing in the number of guests and at the moment is definitley nosiy due to construction as we had a dropp off and walk thru).

This is a perfect place and Australia is wonderful. Renee and Mark and Kelly and Ben make you feel like you are in your very own castle, they are friendly and wonderful as is the location, food, accomodations and resident wallabees. The helicopter trip to the outer reef they arranged was well worth the price and we had the reef entirely to ourselves. Our bungalow with the hammock was awesome, so was falling asleep to the sound of the waves and the rain on the roof. Thanks for a grea time. Highly recommended.