The Reef House Palm Cove - MGallery 5 stars

The hotel itself was lovely however the service left a lot to be desired. The only staff member who provided excellent service wad Karrie. We were very disappointed in the service (or lack of) we received around the pool and at the restaurant at night.... in particular from Bernard. My husband and I were really looking forward to enjoying cocktails and beers by the pool.. . however there was NO poolside service. Evey afternoon we would sit at the pool and no one would attend to us. I would have a swim and then have to dress and go and seek out staff to order a cocktail. I understand if this happened on one occasion but Bernard saw is there Every day ! Would it not occur to him to think " oh rhis couple enjoys cocktails by the pool" and then come and wait on us?? He would see us there and ignore us and every day I would seek him out. THEN we would order one drink and he NEVER came back to ask us if we would.like another!!! You would have made some serious.money from us as a cocktail and a beer was $33 a pop but we only ever had 1 because we got sick of waiting around for service so we would get dressed and go down to Portofino for happy hour between 3 and 5pm !!!! He and the other staff seemed more interested in spending time with the visitors drinking the free punch !!!!! also there were dirty lunch dishes still sitting at the tables at 3pm attracting all the flies. We had the degustation dinner on our last night and it was a comedy of errors. Again Bernard and a poor young girl who had absolutely no idea how to wait tables contributed to make our last dinner a disaster .... from not giving us a top up of fresh drinking water ( we received half a glass each and that was it ) to forgetting my drink... to taking away the drink menu before we'd ordered anything... to not asking how I wanted my steak cooked then receiving it very rare and having to send it back... they then scaled off the sauce and stuck it back on the chocolate and re served it to me.... my husband had already finished so I ate alone.... it was a $300 night and the food was lovely but not a nice experience. I don't think I could recommend this place to anyone I know as lying around a pool being waited on is a huge attraction as I have often done in Maui... Waikiki... Fiji... Bali and several places in the Mediterranean.

Lovely staff always feel welcome! Amazing food

It was our first time in Palm Cove and I'd definitely come back to stay at the Reef House again. The location was great: restaurants and the beach are a short walk away, and we thoroughly enjoyed the pool area at the hotel. The level of service from staff was excellent. They welcomed us warmly, and went beyond on our departure, assisting us with a flat tyre on our rental car.

For the $390 I spent on the room as a treat for my mother, I don't really feel like I got my money's worth. The hotel itself felt a little dated and not maintained, and the room I specifically purchased was supposed to have a view of the gardens and pool, and a balcony. Our view was of a few plants and next door's car park. There was no balcony and the bed was neither a four-poster, nor made of wood which was also described online, and it creaked considerably. The spa was beautiful and the bathroom clean. The gardens and pool were pleasant and the continental breakfast really nice.

Stayed with my husband for his birthday, refreshing drinks and cool towel upon arrival was just the start, we were shown around and given details about all the little things you can do at Reef house as a guest. We enjoyed both pools and spa, complimentary sorbet, yoga, 5 pm punch, mixology class and more. Which all made our stay very enjoyable and memorable. Felt very relaxed and pampered, would highly recommend this place as a standout.