InterContinental Hayman Island Resort

It is hard to beat Hayman for it’s idyllic and private location, and refined upmarket vibe. Just arriving on the boat is a bit special and that feeling continues to the spacious room and abundant and lush outdoor areas. 3 specialty restaurants gives plenty of choice despite there being no passing trade - all exclusively for guests. Although it is celebrating 50 years and that age is evident in some of the fixtures and design, it has been well maintained and updated over the years. Perhaps the biggest criticism is that the service, while always friendly and attentive, can be a bit hit and miss with a heavy reliance on backpackers and people happy to work remotely. This is most noticeable in the restaurants. That said, I’ve experienced this in plenty of other first class remote locations and it is in some ways part of the trade-off for privacy and exclusiveness. It certainly didn’t detract from our overall positive experience. There were also some fabulous staff with great hospitality experience, and the resort seems to instil a friendly and guest-oriented culture in the team. There’s plenty to do or nothing to do - we will be back!

Had the most amazing experience at the Hayman spa. The treatment was very nice and relaxing. It was a total switch off and relax experience.

Ive never written a review before because I'm not that type of person, but I feel I need to after what I experienced. As we are checking out today, I need to formally express how unacceptable and deeply disappointing our stay has been, especially considering this was our honeymoon and the significant amount of money we spent expecting a genuine 5-star luxury experience. While the views are beautiful, almost every aspect of the resort — from service to dining to accommodation standards — has fallen far below what is advertised and expected at this price point. Guest services regularly failed to answer the phone, lifts requested to our villa often never arrived, and nearly every interaction or service request came with delays, errors, or no response at all. The villa itself was also far from acceptable for a luxury property. The drop-down TV was extremely loud every time it operated, sounding like a mechanical fault and completely disrupting any sense of relaxation. One of the televisions in the villa did not work for the duration of our stay. The plunge pool, which is advertised as a luxury feature, was ice cold and unusable. On top of that, the outdoor furniture, including sofa beds, had visible mould and tears, which is completely unacceptable for accommodation in this price range. The dining experiences throughout the resort were consistently poor. At Amici the food was bland and tasteless, Pacific breakfast repeatedly arrived cold with rubbery bacon, cold eggs and dry food, and Bam Bam’s food tasted like old oil with no seasoning whatsoever. We also booked in-room breakfast for 7am before our Blue Pearl Bay experience and it never arrived because the order was apparently never received, only for the excursion itself to then be cancelled as well. After raising these concerns with the in-room dining manager, we appreciated the apology, fruit plate and champagne, and decided to give breakfast another chance this morning. Unfortunately, it again arrived incomplete with missing items including mushrooms, bacon and sausages. We paid $70 for a second breakfast that still arrived incomplete, leaving us with cold eggs and multigrain sourdough bread that was not even toasted and felt like it had come straight from the fridge. We also ordered in-room dining for dinner and the massaman curry arrived cold, bland and burnt tasting. The mushroom arancini contained virtually no mushroom at all and was essentially plain rice inside. On top of that, having meals delivered in cardboard takeaway containers feels far below the standard expected from a luxury honeymoon resort. Even the pool bar experience was disappointing. My wife’s chicken burger arrived with burnt chicken, burnt bread and soggy chips that again tasted like old oil. I ordered fish tacos and the chef explained they did not have enough flour available to batter all of the fish, so we agreed to one grilled taco and two battered tacos instead. While the chef himself was polite and trying to assist, the fish was rubbery and the tacos were still poorly executed. By this stage it genuinely felt like every single meal during our stay had some sort of issue or inconsistency. The massage was genuinely excellent and honestly the only standout positive experience of the trip. However, overall we are extremely frustrated and disappointed with how poorly this stay has been handled. What is even more concerning is that we raised many of these issues during our stay — including the room defects, service failures and repeated dining problems — and there was little to no meaningful response or attempt to properly resolve the situation. Considering the amount we paid for what was supposed to be a luxury honeymoon, the repeated failures across accommodation, food quality, service and organisation are completely unacceptable. We do not feel the small apology gesture provided remotely reflects the extent of the issues we experienced. Given how many concerns were raised during our stay without proper resolution, we believe meaningful compensation or a substantial refund is warranted. At this stage, we feel extremely let down by the entire experience and cannot justify returning in the future. It is incredibly disappointing that what was meant to be a special honeymoon has instead been overshadowed by constant frustration, poor service and a complete lack of accountability.

Amazing attention, Clari and Mer were the best giving us a great service having dinner in Amici

A disappointing experience. The lift outside my room didn’t operate. Hadn’t done so for more than a month. The blind on the balcony had a hole in it. Needed replacing. The sunset cruise for 60 minutes (AUD$199) only served Bimbadgen non cuvée sparkling plonk. No white or red still wine. Friendly staff need more training. Duty manager George offered to meet me at Ban Ban restaurant to remedy shortcomings. Didn’t turn up! Some exceptional staff: Oscar (boat) and Aude (waitress from Canada) Derek Murphy ihg Platinum Elite Ambassador