Yongala Lodge by The Strand

From the moment I rang Yongala lodge to book my stay I felt like this place was going to be awesome from the positive warmth in Nicole's voice and I was not wrong. The rooms are old fashioned but very comfortable, the service from Nicole who runs the place is 10/10. She is friendly and has helped me out big time. It is awesome that you can have your pets here and is a god send in an accommodation world that is extremely anti-animals. The bed I had here is the comfiest I have slept in since my month long journey began and the rooms are very clean. There is a pool for a swim and a laundry to wash your clothes. The old building at the front is beautiful and the hotel itself is situated within crawling distance to the "strand", a beach front precinct with parks, restaurants and of course plenty of sand. For a dog owner this is just awesome as I can just take my dogs for a walk in a nice spot at anytime. The prices for the rooms are very reasonable and it seems very friendly people stay here unlike some other dodgy places I have stayed along the way! The only thing you need to be aware of is to take your key with you every time you leave the room as you cannot leave your room unlocked if you close the door...you do not want to get caught outside in your jocks and have to wake Nicole up to get you back in! All in all I enjoyed my stay here and want to stay longer. I highly recommend this place.

Wouldn’t even give one a one star if I had the option. I’m extremely disappointed by the attitude of the lady who was at the desk. Me, my partner and dog got stuck due to the floods so we booked a PET friendly room. The lady asked to see our dog (which I thought was abit weird, she was a very a very odd women but I just thought no problem). We already paid for this and when she saw our dog she goes because of his size it’s extra 50$ per night. We stated this wasn’t in the booking when we Booked online and explained our situation. She became rude stating what should I do you should read the small terms and conditions on booking.com. In a time where people are stranded in different areas, they are trying to make profit and putting in extra hidden charges and ontop of that she becomes patronising and makes FUN of our situation. As we left stated ‘i can make a few calls for you if you haven’t got anywhere and laughed’. This lady was in her 60s me and my partner are 28 I never expected someone to act so immaturely and just plain nasty and rude to literally kids who are young enough to be her grand kids. I was reading through the other reviews and another comment stated she was being racist. Me and my partner are both a ethnic minority and her attitude and demeanour towards was appalling. Maybe she has a problem with our skin colour however this isn’t something we can’t change. Maybe we have different morals but she needs to reflect on her behavior and attitude.

Booked and paid in full ($1115) only to cancel under reasonable circumstances and have zero refund offered - unethical and no care for customers. Do not stay here unless there is no other option.||||I have been living in temporary accommodations week to week since arriving to Townsville on July 20th. I have moved here with my dog, and there is very limited pet-friendly temporary accommodations, especially within budget. The options are so minimal, that I was having to book over a week in advance to secure lodgings. This particular booking, my first at this motel, and one of two options left for me at the time, was not offered with any refundable options. **There are no booking options which are refundable whatsoever at Yongala**.||||On the Tuesday prior to the Sunday on which I was due to check in, I was accepted for a rental application (4 days after booking), and I immediately called to advise the motel of my change in circumstance, and request a refund. I was told the manager was going to be away until the following Monday, but I cancelled my booking immediately to give them the best possible chance of rebooking. I later realised the person I was speaking to WAS the manager, and they were lying to me, despite pretending to be friendly and helpful. This week, I have been advised they will keep the total amount I'd be quoted on booking.com (100% of the booking fee for the entire stay), despite my efforts to communicate and be as accommodating as possible.||||I have now called and messaged on multiple different occasions to discuss this matter, and have not been offered any form of recourse, and have not been treated with any kind of respect or decency. In my opinion, retaining 100% of the booking fee for my stay, without me ever checking in, is totally unreasonable, and in breach of ACL - regardless of being immoral and frankly un-Australian. It is also in stark contrast to the treatment I received at the Spanish Lace motel, who refunded me the difference of the days remaining on my stay once I was accepted for a rental property. I would advise staying there, or the Robert Towns if you need a pet-friendly place, or literally anywhere else if you don't, as the owners/operators of this motel are totally unreasonable and dishonest... very poor reflection of Townsville after just moving here, and dealing with decent, caring human beings at other motels.||||I have filed a complaint with the ACCC and raised a dispute with my bank, and will be exploring every possible option to protect consumers and recoup some losses.

Been in many motels and hotels and can say definitely the cleanest one I’ve been in so far. Spotless accommodation, well kept, friendly helpful staff! Well worth the visit and the price

Easy to check in after hours. Big room with kitchen table lots of beds, couch. Only suggestion would be a soap dish in shower with shampoo & conditioner supplied. Plus a bigger TV would have been great

A great little place to stay. Basic amenities and a gorgeous pool. The staff went out of their way to make our stay comfortable. Thanks team. We will be back next NAFA!

I really enjoyed my stay at Yongala. The location is good, the room was clean and spacious and the manager friendly. There is a pool there that was clean, although I didn't use it. The lodge is old and tired, but nevertheless fine for a brief stay. I would stay here again.

The location was great and I loved that the accommodation was pet friendly, however the bed was very uncomfortable and there was no shampoo, conditioner or body wash provided, which I thought would be included for the price of $200 per night.

The Lodge was a perfect stay for us. We were only in town for the night, and the room was inexpensive and the staff was very accommodating. Very clean room and great location! We walked to the Strand across the street and to local bars and restaurants.