Elvis is completely at home in the Gallery Restaurant on friendly, laid-back Hamilton Island, even though his diet is limited to just one food item. I reach out to give him a big cuddle and he responds by clinging to me like a long-lost relative.
Elvis cannot sing like his namesake, but he has a huge capacity for love for a 2-year-old slow-moving arboreal marsupial.
The loveable koala warmly embraced talk-show queen Oprah Winfrey when she breezed into Hamilton Island on a whirlwind Downunder tour. She was then whisked away to the pristine white silica sands of nearby Whitehaven Beach, returning to the luxury of the Beach House at Hamilton Island's Qualia Resort.
Many Kiwi families picture an idyllic island holiday scene in their mind's eye and dismiss it as an unrealistic dream. However, Hamilton Island ticks all the right boxes, being easily accessible by air from Brisbane. It's already a firm favourite for mainland Aussies and they are only too happy to share it.
I begin my sojourn by jumping on the free purple shuttle bus to take a look at the island. Later I stroll along Catseye Beach and talk to a couple who tell me they've booked a massage and spa treatment after lunch when their three children will be doing their own thing. "The kids will be having fun in the Clownfish Club ... They're doing arts and crafts and snorkelling this morning and playing pool games this afternoon."
Children under 15 stay free at the resort when sharing a room with their parents, and even dine free from the kids' menu in five of the restaurants.
Hamilton Island offers plenty of options for adults, too. The big-ticket items are water sports like diving and sailing. Adrenalin Rush sailing is the ultimate 20-knot, wave-slicing sailing experience where you wear a full trapeze harness and lean out over the side of the boat. Other action-packed options include go-karting, parasailing and jet skiing.
Next morning I explore the world beneath the waves with a snorkel, mask and flippers hired from the Beach Hut. A colourful pantomime of costumed performers put on a show, including angel fish, damsels and demoiselles. Before I can say "bring on the clowns", an impish Nemo-lookalike pops out of swaying anemones to dart and dive.
The water sports continue all day, with kids of all ages lining up for windsurfing, catamaran sailing and snorkelling lessons. There's aqua for athletes, basketball, cricket and a "fit chicks" boot camp at the Sports Club. For light relief, I enjoy tropical bingo in the Bougainvillea Bar.
As the evening draws in, there's a pervading sense of quiet anticipation as guests guide their electric buggies - the common means of transport on the island - up to One Tree Hill to observe the sunset over the Whitsundays.
As the intense rays of the tropical sun fade, the aquamarine sea darkens to a velvety violet shade, which spreads across the unruffled waters of Catseye Bay. The only sounds are the chink of glasses toasting the end of another fun-filled day on Fantasy Island.
I stretch out on the sun lounger in front of my beachside villa and contemplate the night sky. There's a gentle whoosh of waves sliding over the sand and the merest whisper of a breeze in the palm trees overhead. This is an island where you have the choice of having the time of your life with fast and furious aquatic activity or simply taking time out.
Just 30 minutes away from Hamilton Island by fast ferry is Daydream Island, where families can play together in a wonderful setting. A sun-drenched villa overlooking the sea will be my home for the next two nights.
I throw myself into the aquatic action with a snorkel at Daydream's gorgeous Lover's Cove amongst colourful coral gardens. Later, when swimming at Mermaids Beach, I'm surprised to discover three beautiful mermaids sunning themselves in bronzed splendour on wave-splattered rocks. This is Daydream Island after all, where there is no limit to what the imagination can conjure up. At night the svelte creatures are bathed in floodlight and visible from Mermaids Restaurant.
At the island's million-dollar mini-golf course, I putt my way around Australia via interactive holes featuring iconic places such as the Sydney Opera House and Uluru, and meet folk heroes like Ned Kelly and the giant shrimp on the Barbie.
The golf course and holiday resort express the spontaneous passion of their visionary owner, Vaughan Bullivant.
Bullivant was a waterski performer at Florida's Cypress Gardens in the late 1960s. One day, while skiing barefoot backwards at 90km/h, he slammed into a steel tower and remained underwater for seven minutes. He put his miraculous recovery down to a heavy intake of vitamin tablets, and went on to establish Nature's Own health foods. Thirty years later, he sold the company and bought Daydream Island.
Skippers Kids' Club & Child Care Centre is replete with age-appropriate activities. Family rates apply for two or more children and there are a range of support services including babysitting and stroller hire. A firm favourite with the little dippers is the Bubblemakers snorkelling programme. The philosophy here is if the kids are happy, the parents are happy.
The sense of fun is heightened by casino nights and new-release movies at the outdoor cinema, where you can snuggle up with your loved ones under a star-lit sky and nibble snacks from Gilligan's Health Hut. There is tropical-style acoustic music played every night by the Bali Boys.
A popular activity on Daydream is feeding the sharks, stingrays and tropical fish in the unique man-made coral-fringed Dream Reef Lagoon, the world's largest outdoor aquarium. A 3-year-old boy joins me in offering bait fish to Brutus the giant barramundi in the Waterfall Pool. This voracious feeder takes the fish in an explosion of water and spray that is faster than the blink of an eye. Two stingrays called Pancake and Pikelet love to be stroked - just another magical Daydream moment.
There is something special about holidaying on tropical islands. Next time the family says "take me to an island", maybe it's time to oblige.
Paul Rush travelled to the Whitsunday Islands courtesy of Tourism Queensland.
FACT FILE
The Whitsunday Islands are located 1120km north of Brisbane and direct flights arrive daily at Hamilton Island Airport from Brisbane. Fantasea Cruises operate regular ferry services from the mainland, departing from Shute Harbour on Airlie Beach.
Daydream Island is a short ferry ride from Hamilton Island. Both islands are family-oriented, with a full programme of daily activities and child-minding facilities.
The islands have a year-round tropical climate, with an average temperature of 27C. May to November is the best time to visit.
Recent developments on Hamilton Island include the private, world-class Qualia Resort, the fully refurbished four-star Reef View Hotel, the ultra-modern Yacht Club and a magnificent golf course.
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