Bellarine Bayside Holiday Parks

The park itself is lovely and the amenities were clean, but the service really let it down. The O'Toole staff who answer the phones sounded hostile from the moment they picked up, and the paperwork came across as aggressive and anti-customer, as if guests were a nuisance. Our Annex was over bare ground, with no sign of any remediation work. The fire pits are oversized too; making them half the size would use less wood and give off more heat. Parks Victoria staff drove around every hour, and I couldn’t tell why.

The facilities were acceptable and the park is in a decent location, but I wouldn’t stay with young kids until the safety concerns are dealt with. Several children rode scooters and bikes quickly around the park, often without helmets. When I asked them to slow down because my children were playing outside our site, they ignored me and sped up. Management said there was nothing they could do when I raised it, which was disappointing. There need to be clear rules and enforcement for bikes and scooters before I’d feel comfortable returning.

We had a lovely caravan site right beside the beach, with a great walking track along the shore and a swimming beach that suited the kids. The sunsets were beautiful, with the city lights coming on and the spurit of tassie cruising out. Toilets were cleaned regularly, and we had a great stay overall. The only real hassle was the shower timer: four minutes isn’t enough for long hair or a mum showering with a couple of kids. I’d rather showers weren’t timed and were included in the fees. It’d also be nice to have a small fire at the site.

The campsites had good grass cover and the facilities were very good. It’s right by the beach, though shops are a ten-minute walk away. The problem was that only one toilet block was open, and it was cleaned and restocked just once a day at 8:30am. By morning, there was no toilet paper when the ladies went in. At $50 a night off peak, I’d expect more frequent restocking. I called the office, but the after-hours service seemed to be a remote contractor who couldn’t help. They need to lift their game on this.