By the Sea Port Douglas

Rooms and decor

Rooms are 1-2 bedroom apartments, and every unit has a full kitchen — fridge, electric stove, microwave and a full set of cookware — plus a private balcony and a separate living room. Some upper-floor units have a balcony that looks straight out to sea; reviewers suggest picking one of those, so the morning view is the sun rising over the Coral Sea. There is a washer and dryer in the unit, which makes a longer stay easy. The building itself is one of the town's older Art Deco blocks, refreshed in clean white to match the tropical coast.

Food and amenities

There is no restaurant on site — you either walk out to eat or cook in the apartment kitchen, which is why the full kitchen and the in-unit laundry matter here. The hotel has an outdoor pool set in a tropical garden ringed by palms, a shared BBQ area, free Wi-Fi throughout and free underground parking. Making your own breakfast in the kitchen is an easy way to keep the budget for reef trips.

Location and getting there

By the Sea sits on Wharf Street, directly on Four Mile Beach — walk out the back door and you are on the sand in seconds, with no road to cross. The beach runs 6.5 km of fine white sand and clear water, busiest at sunrise and sunset. Location is the strongest thing here: a 3-minute walk to the restaurants and cafes on Macrossan Street, about 700 m to the Crystalbrook Marina (the former Marina Mirage), and about 1 km to Sugar Wharf, where the Great Barrier Reef boats leave (Quicksilver and Sailaway).

Things to know before booking

The apartments are small to medium, so they do not suit groups of more than 4 — bigger parties should look at the larger apartment resorts in town. During jellyfish season (Nov-May) you need a stinger suit to swim off the beach. And because this is the highest-rated address in town, it fills early: book 2-3 months ahead for the dry season (May-Oct).

Our take

By the Sea Port Douglas is the best beachfront location in town, and it suits couples, honeymooners and small families who want to wake up to the sea, have a kitchen and walk to everything. If this trip is about the Great Barrier Reef or the Daintree with Port Douglas as your base, this is the pick we rate as the most comfortable and the best value — and the real-guest score of 9.0 backs that up.