We stayed for 7 days in the self contained accommodation with lounge and kitchen. . The room had a balcony overlooking the pool.We had a late check in,the reception was closed.We had to ring for the code to get in to the box for the key.So there was a delay which was'n to bad.. The underground parking was excellent The room facilities were good and the bed comfortable.However there were children playing in the pool at 6.30 in the morning and the were people in the pool at 10 .30 in the evening, so there was a great deal of noise which seem to travel up to our room. All rooms over look the pool and the pool curfew isn't policed so if you stay expect the noise.The main street was just around the corner,very handy for restaurants and shopping.Because of the noise we would not stay here again.

Well, it is that time of year when Salty and Mrs Croc make their journey to the deep north to bask in the sunshine after a hard winter down south. This year we stayed at the Mantra Aqueous. Our stay was something of a gamble since we booked the room way back in June at a special deal, and because we were unsure of the weather so close to the start of the wet season.

We booked this room through the Mantra departure lounge facility, to which I have access at work and peruse for specials when I am not out there foreclosing on working families or evicting little old ladies in my brilliant career as a debt collector. We were a bit concerned about the place billing itself as ‘family friendly’ since the missus can’t stand the thought of the little darlings pissing in the pool and running around the deck squealing. Also, the proximity to the rear of the shops on Macrosson Street had us a bit concerned as there can be a lot of noise, and the missus needs her rest!

I am pleased to report that we had no need for any worries. The weather was fantastic, and I would happily return in November again. The water was a lovely 26C, and the pool was great as well. The Mantra was reasonably appointed and comfortable; and we hardly saw any of our future leaders running amok on the pool deck all week. The noise from the shops was minimal and the trash collection began around 6:45 am, which is normal for Port Douglas and quite late for Salty, who knows very well that early morning is the best time to repo cars! There were no late night yobs wandering the streets raising cane and looking for trash cans to tip over.

The room itself was a spacious and comfortable. It was well-appointed with a full size laundry and with a large bathroom. The refrigerator and laundry appliances were new. The bedroom was air conditioned separately so that I could ‘reduce my carbon footprint’ according to the Mantra literature on the counter. The balcony with table and chairs overlooked the pool. There was a spa bath to the side of the balcony and it was screened for privacy from the ogling eyes of the neighbourhood perverts. Overall, it was comfortable and pleasant for a week at the beach. Some of the furniture was a bit tired, and the king-sized bed had a rather uncomfortable board running through the middle of it (like a lot of places, they just joined two single beds together and called it a king.) But for the price I can’t complain too much; you take what you get on holiday.

Now, the negative. When we opened the door to the flat upon arriving, we were hit with the smell of 100 cans of Snappy Tom cat food baking in the tropical sun! It was like being slapped in the face with a very dead fish except that John Cleese was not on the other end of the fish. After checking the place for dead bodies (and finding none, thankfully) I moved onto the kitchen and found the fume hood over the stove absolutely dripping in stinky grease. Now Salty’s view on life is that if you want something done on Saturday afternoon, you had better do it yourself. So on our trip to Coles supermarket we got a can of oven cleaner and I degreased the fume hood, which seemed to do the trick in combination with turning the fans on high, opening all the windows, and letting the cigarette smoke from the German couple in the neighbouring flat waft gently through the place for an hour (who says second hand smoke doesn’t have any use!) The state of the fume hood and the little microwave/convection oven was pretty poor and pointed to a lack of quarterly maintenance by Mantra.

The other negative was that some bogan who had stayed there before us obviously got frustrated with the television, and, like a good moron, he yanked all the cables on back of the tv set and cable boxes as hard as he possibly could (no doubt figuring that his anger alone would make things work). It didn’t, and all he left behind was a co-axial cable pulled completely out of the set. Having had a 30 year old English car, I know all about dodgy electrics and was able to reconnect the set myself rather than placing a call to the poor girl on the front desk, who would contact the repairman to come next week. This proved fortuitous, because after the repair, the only station that we could get was Fox Sports 8 and I was able to watch non-stop wrestling all week long. (Mrs Croc will not let me have cable at home for this precise reason! So, while I watched John Cena square off against The Rock, she complained bitterly and read her 17 magazines on Jennifer Anniston – there is a case of hypocrisy if there ever was!) Nevertheless, I have to wonder what sort of regular room inspection is done by Mantra.

So there you have it, another week in a tropical paradise come and gone. The Mantra Aqueous is a bit tired, like me, and it could use a bit of TLC to spruce it up (who couldn’t – let’s be honest). But overall, if you can get a good rate, it is pretty good value. Just bring your own tool kit!

I only just got back from staying at Mantra Aqueous on Port and already can't wait to write the review!!

We had a late check in, around 10.30 and it was the smoothest we ever had. It took less than 5 minutes to get our key and in less than 10 minutes we were already in our room.
We had the spa room and were very happy with it. The room size is perfect, not too small with enough room for our two suitcases. The spa was probably the best thing in our room. The room was also equipped with microwave, kettle, toaster, cutleries and sink.
Location wise - perfect!! It is located in a quieter part of Port Douglas with only minutes walking to restaurants, bars, cafes, shops and Port Douglas market. The beach is pretty much just a few steps away.
The only down part is probably the room smells a little bit but since we hardly spent the time inside except when we slept, it was not a big issue. Oh another one, they use wooden sliding door as "curtain" and there is a 20 cm gap in between left and right side. In the morning it was really annoying as the sun easily went straight thru to our room and woke me up every morning at 5. Would suggest to bring eye mask!!
I would definitely recommend friends and families to stay there.

Very disappointed in this hotel. We were booked in for a 7 nights stay recently in a dual key 2 bed apartment. The main bedroom attached to the kitchen area was quite good as was the kitchen area BUT there was only a disgustingly shabby old two seater lounge for four adults to share and watch TV. The staff brought up another one but it was just as shabby. The dining room table was smaller than the coffee table about 600mm in diameter. We were told that the owners of the apartment had not updated and would be advised of our problems.
We were in the second bedroom which had the worst mattress - I don't know how old it was but old enough that if you moved to the middle of the bed you rolled down to the sides again. The wardrobe in this second bedroom was a single cupboard. Along with a rail for hanging clothes was a broom, a mop, dustpan, basin, ironing board and iron. We complained and were offered a room on the otherside of the hallway which had noise from a nearby restaurant's refrigeration going day and night. Not to be fussy but this was also unacceptable. The swim up rooms are a nice idea with spa baths on the balcony but it is a bit closed in and dark.