Thala Beach Nature Reserve

Great experience! We were fortunate to have the owner as our captain. He and his staff made it possible for a rusty swimmer like me to snorkel. An unforgettable experience!

This is a beautiful resort placed in the middle of a wonderful nature park with private beach. Highly recommend. Also the coconut tour was great.

We stayed in a Eucalyptus Bungalow which was spacious and well appointed. Comfortable bed and comfortable seating area both inside and on the secluded balcony. We felt perched in the trees and could hear the waves of the beach below. The main complex has friendly staff who were more than helpful with all requests. We enjoyed afternoon drinks in the bar and lounge area and breakfasts and dinner in the restaurant. Both are open air with views either along the coast to the Daintree or down the coast towards Cairns. Good menu choices and a limited but ample wine list. We had great conversations with the friendly barman and waiting staff. We had a lovely stay and enjoyed the nature walks, the bird watching tour, and learnt more than I thought was possible about coconuts!

Beautiful views Excellent service Peaceful and exciting at the same time ...wonderful experience

Beautiful views..wonderful service...very friendly..magical experience!

Beautiful location

what an amazing hotel; lovely staff, amazing rooms, golf buggies to get you around… We were in heaven!

Came up to have a look and decided to have lunch. The view from the restaurant is superb. The service in the restaurant is so friendly. We had the lunch special (one of us had a beef burger, the other the fish and chips) and it was terrific. Highly recommend eating here and enjoying the scenery. Call out too to the car park driver who took us up to the restaurant with the golf buggy.

What a truly amazing place to stay. My son and I enjoyed it so much. The photos are a completely accurate representation of how it actually is; the decor is smart and looks new, the views, the pool, everything is simply stunning. The staff are fantastic, so friendly and helpful and I felt we were completely taken care of and nothing was too much trouble. The onsite and included 'tours/experiences' are well worth the time to attend. Thank you to Rose for her stargazing evening in particular, and Tim for picking us up and delivering us to the restaurant, back from the pool, up to Reception etc etc. Many more staff were fantastic and I'm sorry I don't remember all their names to thank them individually. Our room was fabulous (Jungle Walk room) and we loved the verandah where I enjoyed morning coffee and searching in the forest for orange footed scrub fowl. The restaurant and bar both have fantastic views and you can see the wildlife straight from your table. My son and I are vegetarian and there were always two meals to choose from, plus we could have asked for almost anything and I think the kitchen would have tried to do it for us. Breakfast choices were lovely, with a proper menu to choose from and stunning views. The freshwater pools aren't heated and are available day and night to cool off. I loved the jacuzzi at the top of the 3 tiered pool, and my son (12y) loved the cave with its underwater viewing hole into the main pool. There is a lovely reception with a video screen looping photos and videos of the wildlife you can see at the reserve, and the staff will happily tell you where might be the best place to spy the creatures you see on the video. We loved the lookouts around the reserve and the walk down to the beach that has sun loungers. Note that there are no refreshments available at the beach itself, but you can order a hamper box to take down - we just opened up the fallen coconuts in the beach and had coconut water when we were thirsty! We totally loved it and would love to stay again. Just a note for those who are looking to be more in the middle of Port Douglas life - this is a gorgeous eco resort of the highest standard, and it's a nature reserve, so it is out of town. There are shuttle buses available at times throughout the day and evening and there's an extra cost of $15AUD pp to get you there. Our stay was at the end of our busy touring around time. If you're wanting to explore Port Douglas and the local area more I'd recommend hiring a car, or you are someone who likes dining at different restaurants each night, or shopping and being around town. We loved being in nature and loved it here. Can't wait to return one day.

This is an interesting resort. Definitely up market, and tucked away in what I learned on a 6.30am guided nature walk was a woodland, although it seemed like rainforest. The natural setting is lovely and the owners and a dedicated gardening staff have worked hard to wild and maintain the environment. Wallabies, butterlies and birds all around. I found our stay a little long, at a week, as the resort is quite isolated (AUD64 return trip to Port Douglas). And as others have commented, the pool, which is a beautiful set of interconnecting smaller pools, has nowhere to sit in the sun and it was stinger season so no swimming (which I think crocodiles make impossible year-round anyway). We had breakfast included. The food was very pricey (although it not out of line at all with Australian restaurants in general). The menu is set and at the end of the week I would have liked some variety, however the food itself was absolutely excellent. I recommend you fall out of bed for a 6.30am nature walk, and any other activities they have. We were here at a hot and humid time, and as noted above, a week was a little long and I in future i would stay 4 nights and then a couple more in Port Douglas itself. Their insect non-deet alternative is excellent, by the way. And no bugs in the (wonderfully air conditioned) units which was quite the feat! I didn't mind the every-second-day service (they didn't top up the bar which I would have liked), as I find it wasteful.