Sunset sessions
With scenic beach walks, award-winning dining, massages, micro naps, a rum masterclass, sunset drinks and a bit of ‘citizen science’ with a marine biologist, you’ll never want to leave the resort
It’s a pool party! It’s a pool party!” It was the excited trill of a little girl only just old enough to understand the concept. We’re on a boardwalk over one of the multiple lagoon pools at the Sheraton Grand Mirage Resort Port Douglas. It’s late Sunday afternoon and we’re looking across the water to the resort’s man-made “main beach”, where a Sunset Session is in full swing.
The sand is dotted with sun lounges, beanbag chairs and umbrellas illuminated with rainbow colours. Further back, lights are roaming up the trunks and through the foliage of the palm trees that separate the grounds from the world-famous Four Mile Beach. A DJ works some tunes, with enough beat to get the body moving but not enough to interfere with the chill. The sun was well and truly gone by this stage, after barely making much of an appearance all day. It didn’t seem to matter. She continued to dinner with her family, I returned to a private kabana perched on the side of the lagoon and a carafe of Moet, along with a generous platter of tapas-style food for two.
We were taking advantage of the very luxe Pearl package, but prices for the event start from about $50. It was only the second time this event had been held and it’s set to continue on the last Sunday of the month – but keep an eye out for possible schedule changes if you’re around on a weekend.
We’d flown into Port Douglas the day before. The four-or-so hour total travel time delivering us 1700km north, to temperatures at least 10C warmer than when we left, a welcome change after weeks of the chilliest SEQ winter for some time. With little more than a 48-hour stay ahead of us, we changed into clothes that would otherwise remain closeted for at least another month, and headed straight off to a rum masterclass hosted by the resort. It was an unexpected highlight.
That the rum and the cocktails it was mixed into were pretty tasty was only part of the appeal. What made it really special was learning the story behind a local operation punching above its weight in a pretty crowded market. The class was presented by Mt Uncle distillery director Mark Watkins, who knew early on that his goal in life was “to make booze”. Turns out he and the FNQ Rum Co team make award-winning booze that is sold not only in the north, but in retail outlets around Australia and sent overseas, taking out top prizes in international competitions.
Resort executive chef Belinda Tuckwell’s food matches deserve a nod, her offering of a “cheese sandwich” perhaps underselling the truffle and gruyere sourdough with fig jam morsel presented as a pair for the last of the trio of spirits we tasted.
Leaving the class we headed back to our room. With a tiny rum buzz, there was time to suck in some ocean air from our small patio, and take a micro-nap on the king-size bed, before heading off for more award-winning fare at Harrisons restaurant, tucked away in the resort’s main complex beside yet another pool (the lagoons measure 2ha in all).
The promise of a modern British menu (a nod to chef and owner Spencer Patrick’s heritage) seemed a little incongruous in the tropical surrounds, but there was plenty of local fare to be tasted. One of the specials was a melt-in-the-mouth serve of Atherton Tablelands pork belly, and it was a hit, but the North Queensland painted crayfish was the firm winner. We chose a half-serve, but were immediately sorry we didn’t go big. Our treacle tart with clotted cream ice cream for dessert seemed more a nod to faraway shores.
Envisioned and developed by Christopher Skase and opened in the late 80s, the resort changed the course of history for Port Douglas. It has a large footprint in the town, employs hundreds of people and is undoubtedly a huge drawcard, from conventional holidaymakers to golfers taking on its well-known 18-hole course to corporate guests using the popular conference facilities. But there’s more to this part of Queensland than tourism and hospitality, and the hotel has developed a number of events to share that with guests. As the rum class raises a glass to the final products of the area’s sugar cane industry, another initiative pays respect to the men and women who helped establish and harvest the earliest crops, including the Italian families whose descendants still call the area home. The hotel’s Feast restaurant – home to its daily buffet breakfast – turns Italian diner in the evening, offering an a la carte menu, or a more communal dining experience about once a month. Our sample of the menu proves this to be a fine tribute indeed.
If you need to work off a bit of the fine living during your stay, the resort has 1.8km of beach frontage and the hardpacked sand makes for a very scenic stroll.