King Sound Resort Hotel, Derby, Western Australia

...were my impressions of the King Sound Resort, located in Derby Western Australia. I stayed there recently (September 2008 ) - just overnight, but long enough to give Ciao readers some idea of what to expect when you visit a small coastal town in remote North Western Australia.

As I was staying at the hotel as part of my coach tour, I didn't book direct. But you can expect to pay around $A180 or 75 pounds, if you booked via the internet ...
.../> I arrived at the King Sound Resort late afternoon. I was informed (by my coachdriver) that it was the best available in town. This statement is open to question I felt. If Derby had a very high standard of accommodation places, then the resort might be first-rate. But on the other hand, if the town didn't really cater for tourists, and there was not a great selection of good quality motels or hotels, then the hotel might well be less than memorable. ... more

These were my impressions of the King Sound Resort, located in Derby Western Australia. I stayed there recently (September 2008 ) - just overnight, but long enough to give Ciao readers some idea of what to expect when you visit a small coastal town in remote North Western Australia.

As I was staying at the hotel as part of my coach tour, I didn't book direct. But you can expect to pay around $A180 or 75 pounds, if you booked via the internet for instance.

On arrival....

I arrived at the King Sound Resort late afternoon. I was informed (by my coachdriver) that it was the best available in town. This statement is open to question I felt. If Derby had a very high standard of accommodation places, then the resort might be first-rate. But on the other hand, if the town didn't really cater for tourists, and there was not a great selection of good quality motels or hotels, then the hotel might well be less than memorable. There was only one way to find out. We checked in.

I didn't see much of the staff at check-in, but it looked basic, but clean in the reception area.

Security

The first thing I noticed was that the hotel is well fortified - it is of solid brick construction which may be good for withstanding seasonal cyclones or unwanted thugs or ruffians trying to get in.

indeed it seems that security of the guests is very well catered for. I suspect there imay be a problem in Derby with petty theft or break-ins, so management has tried to make sure that staying here is a safe experience.

Needs facelift

It is an older hotel and I found the dark brick walls of this building were just a bit gloomy. Perhaps I was tired after my bumpy bus journey. But a repaint with brighter colours would cheer the whole place up particularly with regard to the brickwork.

Facilities

Having said this, the hotel offers reasonably good facilities and consists of a central courtyard surrounded by two floors of guest rooms. The courtyard area is probably the most attractive part of King Sound resort. There is an inviting looking pool, and an area where you can relax and recuperate.

My room

As regards my room itself, I was led down a dark brickwork corridor by the porter, , and then gained access to my accommodation. Well at least it was brighter than the corridor.

If blue is a favourite colour of yours , then this is the place to come. I gradually got used to the blue decor and I noted the fact that the beds (one single, one double) were decked out in matching blue spreads with cheerful orange and red stripes.

The comfort level.

The mattresses were fairly firm and comfy to sleep on. The striped colour scheme was mirrored in the curtains which covered a window with not much of a view - namely a dusty sidestreet. . Cane furniture completed a tropical feel to the accommodation.

Cleanliness and room features

Room cleanliness was good, and there was an LCD TV, an airconditioner (which unfortunately blew a cold blast of air directly on the bed) and some fairly tacky paintings on the wall. The tackiness of the paintings is only my opinion, of course, but let it be said, Van Gogh it was not.

Fresh air ??

Some quite solid security screens were on the windows. It was not possible to open the window, so fresh air was not really an option. But it was rather hot outside (40C) and the room was cool by comparison.

Bathroom

The room had an ensuite - a small but functional bathroom, with shower, flush toilet that worked, and a basin/mirror area. Some basic toiletries were provided (shampoo, conditioner for example).

Restaurant dining

What were the other facilities of the King Sound resort hotel ? I dined in a spacious and extremely high ceiling dining room. There was a serving buffet area down one side where we queued in an orderly fashion to heap our plates up.

Meal quality

I would offer a point of improvement for the soup. It was tasty (broccoli and bacon) but came only luke-warm from the tureen. I sent it back to the kitchen where presumably they gave it the microwave treatment and this improved it no end.

The main dishes - the usual choices of fish, meat or chicken plus vegies I found quite acceptable, and indeed, went back for seconds. This left just enough room for dessert which proved to be fruit (mainly tinned) with cream topping (out of a can I suspect). However the other option ( I ate both) was lemon cake dessert and this was scrumptious - better than the fruit/cream I felt.

We sat at long canteen style tables ( it looks like the resort caters for quite a few bus tours) and I found the meal was of reasonable quality and quite enjoyable.
The resort also has a bar - glossy chrome stools and barrel tables - plus wall mounted TV screens showing sport etc.

Breakfast.

I returned to the dining area after a quiet night's sleep. Some of my fellow travellers (who had rooms nearer the pool) said it was a bit noisy overnight. Breakfast provided a good array of hot dishes, and also cereals and fruit.

Summing up.

Overall, a reasonable standard of comfort at this resort. I didn't have much contact with staff, but those in the dining area were polite and friendly. They warmed up my soup without any problems or exasperated sighs when I complained it was lukewarm.

I found the dark brick facades at this coastal hotel rather daunting, and this is an area for improvement. However the food was generally quite acceptable in the dining areas, and the room accommodation was clean and comfortable, although it helps if you like blue walls. 

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