Two tourists have learnt the hard way the simple mistake of leaving your balcony door open can have major consequences on Queensland’s Hamilton Island.
Ellie-May Hadrian and her friend Aimen walked back into their hotel room to find the disastrous results of a cockatoo invasion.
Packets of food scattered on the floor, bird poo on the bed, the surfaces, their clothes.
“It was like a tornado had come through our room,” Hadrian told 9News.
It wasn’t a storm but a simple mistake, forgetting to close the balcony door despite warnings from staff not to do so.
“Our beds and everything we own is f—ed,” Hadrian says in a TikTok video that’s been watched more than 2 million times and attracted thousands of comments.
“[We] opened the door, saw five or six cockatoos on the floor right outside the minibar,” she told 9News.
” … we were like, ‘Get out, get out, go away!'”
The avian party was over, leaving behind a massive cleanup and $25 minibar bill.
Hamilton Island staff are no stranger to the hungry birds wreaking havoc.
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“They said it happens every single day,” Hadrian said.
Visitors are warned to keep their doors closed but even outside the birds are opportunistic.
“They just get their little beaks, open the packaging and have a party,” Hadrian said.
She’s hoping her warning will not only save staff but other guests from the same fate.
“As long as people learn from our mistake, as long as something good comes from it I’m happy,” she said.
Hadrian was gushing in her praise for the hotel’s staff, saying she and her friend cleaned what they could before cleaners came through and took care of everything.
“I actually appreciate the staff so much because it’s out fault, we left the doors open,” she said, in a follow-up video.
“We’re stupid enough to do that.”
