This is the most famous hotel in Australia (if you’re British)
The first surprise from the JW Marriott Resort Gold Coast and Spa is that it’s nothing like a secret hideaway.
To an Australian, that will come as no shock. It’s right next to the Gold Coast Highway in Surfers Paradise, after all. But British travellers will have more exotic visions.
The JW Marriott Gold Coast is probably the most famous Australian hotel in the UK, thanks to featuring in I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!
After all, for Brits, the JW Marriott is probably the most famous hotel in Australia. This is courtesy of reality TV show I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!
For the uninitiated, I’m A Celebrity sees a handful of theoretically well-known stars put into a rudimentary jungle camp. They are given trials, generally involving wobbling around at terrifying heights or eating kangaroo anuses. Then they are voted out one by one, until the winner is crowned King or Queen of the Jungle.
Australia has its own version, on Network 10 and filmed in South Africa. It does relatively well, but it comes nowhere near the cultural behemoth status of the British original.
The UK version of I’m A Celebrity has run for 21 years and 23 series. For three weeks, it is shown nightly at 9pm on major terrestrial channel ITV1. Millions of Brits watch – 11.5 million watched in 2022 – and vote to choose which contestants do the trials or get kicked out.
Last year’s winner of the UK version of I’m a Celebrity, TV personality Sam Thompson. Millions of Brits tune into the show every year. Credit: Getty Images
The jungle camp is just over the border in New South Wales, but production is based on the Gold Coast. That’s where the JW Marriott comes in. When campmates are voted out, they reunite with their families at the hotel, where they do their subsequent interviews from. Great play is made of the contrast between jungle squalor and Gold Coast glamour.
However, TV magic makes the JW Marriott seem more of an exclusive tucked-away resort than it is. In real life, it is a high-rise, big-city hotel, albeit one with a very impressive resort-style pool complex.
The lobby is cavernously high-ceilinged and somewhat confusing. Banks of desks line up to either side, none of them immediately obvious as the reception. Above, a series of giant, basket-woven fans waft back and forth like the oars of a Polynesian war canoe.
The fans have a sense of theatre that extends to the welcome drink. A lavender tea is presented, then turned purple with a drop of lemon juice.
The rooms are understated.
Any sense of flamboyance is stamped out by the time you reach the rooms, however. The beige and white colour scheme is calming, understated, mellow – but could also be described as bland.
You don’t need relentless stimulation in the room when there’s this sort of view from the balcony, however. Ahead, a staggering vision of the meandering Gold Coast waterways, complete with jetskiers and paddleboarders, unfolds, with Main Beach and the ocean beyond.
Below, though, is the JW Marriott’s trump card.
The huge saltwater lagoon pool is flanked by a series of man-made waterfalls, and plays host to around 300 tropical fish. Snorkelling with tangs, rainbow wrasse and angelfish in a hotel pool is the sort of treat that should make the jungle celebrities eager to get voted out as soon as possible.
To one side, there’s another freshwater pool with a slide and a lazy river; to the other, thoughtfully laid out gardens with a series of ‘secret spots’ revealing chair swings or ping pong tables.
The outdoor space is brilliantly designed.
The outdoor space is brilliantly designed. It feels much bigger and more expansive than it is, while signs share fun facts, celebrating the resident ibises and water dragons.
But this wonderful playfulness is abandoned at the door. Inside, the vibe is purposeful and dynamic rather than opulent. It’s perfect for TV interviews, less perfect for families trying to feel homely-yet-pampered while waiting for their most famous member to return from eating bugs in the jungle.
Contestants on the TV reunite with their families at the hotel.
When the celebrities finally do get out of there, their new pad isn’t quite what millions of TV-glued Brits might think it is.
Keeping it reality – more hotels made famous by reality TV shows
Skye Suites, Sydney
The Koichi Takada-designed apartments from Married At First Sight are slick but not as big as viewers might imagine. The one-bedroom suites cover 45 square metres, with full kitchens included. Prices start at $423 a night, room only. See skyesydney.com.au.
Sinalei Reef Resort, Samoa
After being kicked out of the 2023 edition of Survivor, the competitors stayed at ‘Jury Villa’. Off-screen, this is the four-star Sinalei Reef Resort, which offers garden-surrounded villas next to a lagoon on main island Upolu. Villas cost from $345 a night, room only.
Robertson Hotel, NSW Southern Highlands
The heritage-sprinkled Robertson Hotel played host to the murder and mayhem of The Traitors. It’s a converted grand manor, originally built in 1924, amid 14 acres of gardens – which were used extensively in the show. Ensuite rooms cost from $169, room only. See therobertsonhotel.com.
THE DETAILS
Fly
Virgin Australia, Qantas and Jetstar operates flights from both Sydney and Melbourne to the Gold Coast. See Virginaustralia.com, Qantas.com.au, jetstar.com
Stay
Double rooms at the JW Marriott Gold Coast Resort and Spa cost from $440 a night, room only. See Marriott.com
More
The writer travelled as a guest of Tourism Australia and Tourism and Events Queensland.
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