Madison Ocean Breeze Apartments
Self-contained apartments one street back from The Strand, Townsville's netted city beach
About this stay
Madison Ocean Breeze Apartments occupies the corner of Mitchell and Kennedy Streets in North Ward, the residential strip behind Townsville's 2.2 km Strand. The beach and its promenade are about 200 m away, the Rockpool sits at the northern end of the same foreshore, and Jezzine Barracks, a 15-hectare heritage precinct on the Kissing Point headland, closes off the walk to the north. Units range from studios to two-bedroom apartments, all air-conditioned with a kitchen and a balcony or patio. The outdoor pool sits in the garden, there is laundry and private parking on site, and Townsville Airport is about 7 km away by road. Guests rate it 8.6 from 1,738 reviews.
- Corner of Mitchell and Kennedy Streets, North Ward, about 200 m from The Strand
- 32 studios and one- and two-bedroom apartments with kitchens
- Balcony or patio on every unit, most facing the garden or pool
- Outdoor pool set in a garden, laundry on site
- Private parking on site
- Rated 8.6 from 1,738 guest reviews
Our take
Madison Ocean Breeze sits on the corner of Mitchell and Kennedy Streets in North Ward, one street back from The Strand, about 200 m from the sand. That trade gives you 32 studios and one- and two-bedroom apartments with kitchens and balconies, a pool in the garden and parking on site, in a low-rise block instead of a front-row tower. I would book it for a week of Strand mornings and Magnetic Island day trips. I would not book it if a sea view from bed is the point: most balconies face the garden or the pool, and there is no restaurant on site, so you cook or eat out along The Strand.
- ✓Between November and May, swim inside the stinger net on The Strand and wear a lycra stinger suit; the council says the nets reduce the risk but do not remove it.
- ✓For a dip without net worries, walk north along the promenade to The Strand Rockpool, the seawater pool at the northern end of the 2.2 km beach.
- ✓Climb Castle Hill at sunrise: the Goat Track starts on the northern slopes behind North Ward and is steep, so go before the heat, or walk up Stanley Street, which becomes Castle Hill Road.
- ✓For Magnetic Island, SeaLink ferries leave the Breakwater Ferry Terminal on Sir Leslie Thiess Drive for Nelly Bay in about 20 minutes, with no booking needed; arrive 20 minutes early.
Why we love it
- The Strand beach and promenade are about 200 m away
- Two-bedroom apartments with full kitchens suit a week-long family stay
- A garden pool for the hottest hours, with parking on site
Why guests love itEvery unit at Madison Ocean Breeze has its own kitchen, the largest have two bedrooms, and the pool sits inside the garden rather than beside a road, with laundry on site. The Strand across the street has calm water, because the breakwater and the offshore islands keep the waves small, and lifeguards patrol it all year; swim between the red and yellow flags. Townsville is also crocodile country: in January 2020 Queensland wildlife officers set a trap for a 3-metre crocodile seen near The Strand. The catch is the season: from November to May box jellyfish and Irukandji are around, so children swim inside the net, ideally in stinger suits. With toddlers I would ask for a ground-floor patio unit near the pool. Teenagers will be happier with a Magnetic Island day than with the pool.
Guest reviews
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