Dig for sapphires.
Cook your own dinner.
Self-contained family apartments in the middle of Emerald — 45 minutes from the Sapphire Gemfields, 20 minutes from Lake Maraboon, and a five-minute walk from the Botanic Gardens.
Check availabilityEmerald is a comfortable day’s drive from Rockhampton, Mackay, Gladstone and the coast, and the whole point of coming here is that the holiday costs less than the coast and the children get to do something they cannot do anywhere else. Our 32 apartments are properly self-contained — a full kitchen and a washing machine in every one — which is what makes a week here work on a family budget.
Room to spread out,
and a kitchen to use.
Two bedrooms, six people
80 square metres, a queen and two singles plus a sofa bed, a separate living and dining area, and a private balcony. Everyone gets somewhere to be that is not the edge of a bed.
A full kitchen, not a kettle
Full-size fridge and freezer, oven, stove top, microwave, toaster and proper cookware. Breakfast before you leave, and dinner when you get back covered in Gemfields dust.
Your own washing machine
A washer and dryer inside the apartment. Fossicking is filthy and swimming is wet — you will use it daily, and you can pack half as much.
Reverse-cycle air conditioning
Central Queensland in January is hot. Every apartment is air-conditioned, and the afternoons are genuinely more pleasant indoors.
Cots and rollaways, free
No charge for a cot or a rollaway bed. Tell us who is coming and we will set the apartment up before you arrive.
BBQ and garden
A barbecue and garden area with a 65-inch outdoor TV — which, over the summer, tends to mean the cricket.
Being straight about two things: there is no pool on site — the Emerald Aquatic Centre is 900 metres away, an 11-minute walk — and we cannot accommodate pets, with the exception of assistance and support animals.
Sapphires, water,
and a town that works.
A few practical things.
When to come. December and January are the school holidays and the quietest weeks of Emerald’s commercial year, which is exactly why they suit a family trip. It is hot — plan the Gemfields and the dam for mornings and late afternoons, and the air conditioning for the middle of the day. Late January through March is sunflower season, when the plateau turns yellow.
Getting here. Emerald is on the Capricorn Highway, about three hours west of Rockhampton and nine from Brisbane. Directions and measured distances are on the location page. Free undercover parking is included, and larger vehicles, boats and camper trailers use the street parking around the property.
What it costs to eat. This is where a self-contained apartment pays for itself on a family holiday. Woolworths, Coles and IGA are all close — IGA is an 8-minute walk — and the Emerald markets are worth timing a trip around. The dining guide covers the nights you would rather not cook.
How long to stay. Three nights covers the Gemfields and the dam without rushing. A week lets you add Carnarvon Gorge or Blackdown Tableland, and starts to make the drive worth it. Staying longer than a week? Weekly rates are worked out case by case.
Book direct,
and keep the difference.
Booking with us directly is the best available rate, with no booking fees. If you want a Two Bedroom apartment over the school holidays, book earlier rather than later — there are only so many of them.
Check availabilityOr call (07) 4980 0600 · 28–30 Esmond Street, Emerald QLD 4720