‘Nightmare’: Young family unloads on Daydream Island Resort

A young family’s dreams of a holiday in paradise quickly turned into a “nightmare” following a horror experience.

A young family has shared how what was supposed to be an idyllic holiday at Daydream Island Resort off Queensland’s coast quickly turned into a “nightmare”.

Mish and Kirk Ryan-Welsh expected a sunny paradise when they headed to the Whitsundays with their baby Jiah, but they ended up leaving the resort as soon as they could.

The Adelaide family subsequently aired their grievances with the conditions and treatment they experienced at Daydream in a TikTok video that has now amassed more than 60,000 views.

Throughout the 30-second clip, the family juxtaposed what they had been promised with the disappointing reality of their stay.

A closed pool bar.

The state of the Ryan-Welshes’ room.

“Because if you don’t laugh, you’ll cry,” they wrote.

“Ninety-nine per cent of the time we’re showcasing wonderful places to visit and stay, but this is not one of those times.”

The Ryan-Welshes listed numerous issues they had with the four-star resort, including finding ants and mould in their room

They also took exception with Daydream billing itself as an eco-resort.

“The resort claims to be an eco-resort but there’s plastic + rubbish EVERYWHERE , + no recycling system in place,” they said.

“This is just an excuse to not have to replace towels.”

The Ryan-Welshes said the resort’s facilities were always closed and out of order, including its pools, bars, vending machines and playground.

They said they needed to book in at the restaurant a week in advance to get a table, and they claim they were short-changed with the food and beverages they ordered.

Rubbish littered across the resort

A beach filled with rocks instead of white sand.

“We ordered two glasses of champagne, the girl filled them both only halfway,” they wrote.

“We took them back and said ‘champagne is meant to be filled to the top, and she said ‘that’s all we have left’.”

The family said the pools were “freezing cold” and “very filthy”, while the beaches were filled with rocks and not white sand like advertised.

They also alleged a staff member told them Jiah looked “like a chimpanzee”.

The family quickly decided they needed to leave Daydream at their own cost.

“Lesson to be learnt, never book a fancy resort you see on Instagram before reading the hundreds of negative google reviews,” they wrote.

“We forfeited hundreds of dollars worth of accommodation as soon as we could find another available place to stay.”

Mish and Kirk Ryan-Welsh with their baby boy Jiah on Daydream Island. Picture: Supplied

The family is now holidaying on Hamilton Island, which they say has been “bliss”.

After the video was uploaded, comments soon started rushing in from other people who had similar horror stories at the resort.

“Daydream has never been good, Hamilton and Hayman are the better options, or just stay at Airlie,” one user wrote.

“Daydream is well known for this, some friends went last week and what a disappointing experience they had, they ended up leaving before planned,” another said.

“Stayed there in 2020 and we nicknamed it nightmare island … honestly couldn’t wait to be gone.”

Daydream was contacted for comment.