El Questro Emma Gorge Resort — Hotel in Durack

To a large extent Emma Gorge basks in the reflected glory of El Questro Homestead’s glitzy reputation. But this is not the homestead even if even if the common dining/bar/lounging area renders a servicable imitation of same. The sprawling urban quasi-tented lodgings are simple and reasonably comfortable but their upkeep has been hit or miss and many of them are some way from the resort’s centre of gravity.| |The good: The very well presented “Homestead” dining/bar/lounging facilities are, apart from Emma Gorge itself, the highlight of a stay here and the comestible offerings were well presented, wholesome and tasty. Our tented suite (queen + single bed) was adequately roomy, clean, quiet and provided for a comfortable sleep. The compact ensuite bathroom was adequately equipped and mostly worked OK. The beds were comfortable and linens clean. For the most part the staff we encountered were pleasant and helpful. There is Wifi around the “Homestead” with Telstra 4G phone/data service elsewhere across the resort. Guest laundry facilities are provided. | |The not so good: the tented lodgings are somewhat utilitarian in appearance which imparts more of a mining camp look than that of a holiday resort. Depending upon how far your “tent” is from the “Homestead” you could be in for a long walk between dining/drinking and lodging. The drainage from our bathroom was leaking during our stay and may well have been leaking for some time because nothing was done to rectify it during our stay despite it being reported early on. We heard from other guests that they had similar problems. A few other aspects of the accomodation were also looking a bit the...

Stayed here for 3 nights.

Welcoming professional staff who let us check in even though we were early. Helpful by providing us ice for our cool bag which was good

Tents are nice however they do NOT lock.

Valuable can be stored in a safe at reception however everything else has to be lugged around which is inconvenient and slightly anxiety inducing. You can keep them in your car however that’s hardly the best idea if someone chucks a brick through you window whilst you are walking a gorge.

The first night was not very quiet due to a leaving party at the airstrip which went on till the wee hours.

The beds are comfortable but when the sun rises heat up dramatically with only a spinning fan to keep you cool.

The shower is nice and warm and area fine.

The restaurant serves a selection of pan Asian foods and actually they are very tasty we had the laksa and curry alternating nights and daughter had the spaghetti bolognese.

In the morning you awake to bird calls and can hear the wallaby’s hopping about outside

Overall a relaxing stay but really feeling secure is the key to any stay.

We would have loved to have tried the Homestead however that’s out of bounds for under 16s unless you rent the...

This score is entirely for the Emma Gorge Tented cabins and facilities (or lack thereof), the staff themselves and the location were fantastic.

$350 per night for a fancy tent only including one fan and no fridge (were told not to plug our car fridge in to mains either due to low voltage) is very pricey... especially when you take in to account all meals must be purchased at the restaurant. Plus you cannot lock your accommodation!!! Hard when you want to hike and not take your expensive technology with you or leave it locked in a hot car.

There are no facilities for those that want to self cater a meal or two per day. Not even a bbq in the picnic area! We would have stayed at the station instead except we were limited by a 2wd car.

We were prepared for the fan only (we toughed it out regardless of 38 degree days) and the lack of fridge having read previous reviews, but we're not financially prepared to need to buy three meals a day for our three day stay.

Staff and tours are great, just need to include the extra info about no self catering options on the brochure for Emma Gorge. It makes a big hole in the budget for those like us who saved to be able to even afford the...