Spa, restaurant to welcome you back
Dutton’s trip to Tip a source of worry
CRYSTALBROOK Collection is gradually rebooting more of its business, with luxury spa treatments back on offer and another restaurant about to swing open its doors.
Eleme Day Spa at Riley is back in action after months of forced closure while the COVID-19 pandemic brought the Far North tourism industry to a dead halt.
Spa manager Kelly Adair was excited to have staff back giving facials, super-circulation stimulation, mammoth detoxification, skin firming, smoothing, tightening, lifting, fixing and the “ultimate muscle-melting rub-downs”.
“We’ve taken this time of closure to practise what we preach – we’re well-rested, relaxed, rejuvenated and ready to welcome guests out of isolation and into an epic Eleme voyage that’ll have them feeling fresh and fabulous,” Ms Adair said.
CC’s Bar and Grill at Bailey is set to fire up again on Friday next week, despite the hotel still being closed. As with the firm’s Paper Crane restaurant and Rocco bar at Riley, CC’s will be open only on Friday and Saturday nights.
Crystalbrook CEO Geoff York said the Bailey apartments tower already had some long-term residents on sixmonth, 12-month and longer leases, but short-term letting would start on lower storeys in September.
Flynn had been due to open in March this year, but that date has been pushed back a year to March 2021.
Mr York said there had been some positive booking news for the company’s Cairns interests.
“Riley hit almost 60 per cent occupancy on Friday night, which was a peak,” he said.
“Plenty of bookings from NSW and Queensland are coming through, which are all good signs of things to come.
“There’s been a bit of a setback with Victorians not able to travel, and without international business, things are at least a year away from what you might call normal.
“But it is positive.”
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A RECENT visit by holidaying Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton to Cape York has amplified fears of COVID-19 infecting vulnerable indigenous communities.
Mr Dutton and his family, in a convoy of LandCruisers, was spotted this week at Punsand Bay and Bamaga.
Owner of the Croc Tent Dale Mears said he had to deny some of Mr Dutton’s party entry to the souvenir shop 17km south of the Tip due to social distancing regulations.
Since the opening of the Northern Peninsula Area to all except Victorian travellers the community had been hyper vigilant about the potential coronavirus infection.
“There is still a lot of very nervous people in the community,” he said.
If a Victorian second COVID wave was mirrored in FNQ Mr Mears expected visitors to be again locked out of the Cape.
“I am pretty confident as soon as we get a threat at the doorstep they will close it up again,” he said.
Mr Dutton said he made it to the Tip with his dad for his 75th birthday with 11 of his grandchildren and six adults.
“Which has made (the trip) a really memorable family time,” he said.
“We’ve had a great trip … and we’ve met some amazing people on the way.”