Channel Nine marketed The Block’s 2024 Phillip Island location as a ‘tropical paradise’ – but what I saw was a dreary suburban street of cookie-cutter houses

Block 2024 promised to build a “tropical paradise” on “idyllic” Phillip Island, just a few hours south of Melbourne.

But the reality paints a very different picture than the beach holiday promos that Nine has been releasing over the past few months of the season, under the name Block Island.

Daily Mail Australia gained access to the construction site on Thursday expecting to find a “slice of paradise” but found only a cold and windy block of terraced houses.

Although the completed houses were modern and beautiful, even though they were not yet finished, the gloomy weather and dull exterior made them initially appear dull.

The latest trailer sees hosts Scott Cam and Shelley Craft make an emergency landing on a remote white sand beach in the middle of an unexplored jungle.

However, this ‘pure paradise’ is located in the middle of an emerging suburb, surrounded by modern buildings built according to a similar plan.

“The Australian dream is going to be tropical,” the trailer proclaims, but the nearest beach is a 20-minute walk away at the end of a typical Australian dead-end road.

Phillip Island is also thousands of miles away from anything even remotely tropical. Winters are cold and average summer temperatures are around 20 degrees.

A sign outside the construction site reads “Island Cove Villa.” A long driveway then leads to the heart of the complex, which is surrounded on all sides by identical-looking homes.

Originally consisting of nine dilapidated huts, the Nine team bought the resort for $9.5 million in October last year after their favoured location in Daylesford fell through.

A team of five new participants combined the huts into four identical terraced houses, a common layout for housing developers these days. Only one house has a completely different architecture.

The network has made a fair effort to make the interior of the complex look tropical, with palm trees, rocks and sleek white gazebos.

While the film paints a pretty picture, it falls short of the exotic island destination portrayed in the promotional materials.

The exteriors of the homes are beautiful to look at, but they are also the latest in a long line of mass-produced architectural designs marketed to the upper middle class.

Their personalities are reflected in the interior design, but the influence of current style trends still means that many of their rooms are tarred with the same brush.

The Block was forced to change plans for its special 20th anniversary season late last year after it failed to secure a location in the Victorian town of Daylesford.

Delays in obtaining the necessary building permits forced production to move to Phillip Island.

But executive producer Julian Cress recently confirmed that the 2025 series will now be set in Daylesford, thanks to timely intervention from Victoria’s Planning Minister.

Located 114km north-west of Melbourne, Daylesford’s unique combination of natural beauty, historic charm and vibrant local culture provides a stunning backdrop ideal for the reality show.

The Block originally had its sights set on a beautiful piece of land owned by Hygge Property on the edge of Hepburn Shire, where the company wanted to build five luxury homes by the 2024 construction season.

The series has previously been filmed in a number of popular cities and regions, including St Kilda, South Yarra, Prahran and Gisborne South.

This comes after co-creator and producer Julian confirmed that The Block, which premieres Monday night, will take a dramatic turn when one of the five teams leaves the show midway through its run.

“We didn’t make it through the whole series with all five teams. We had to replace one along the way, which was a very dramatic moment,” Julian told TV Tonight.

It was previously announced that Blue Team lovebirds Jesse and Paige abruptly left the series in the middle of filming. Julian added that they had an important reason for this.

“It was a very difficult decision for them to make, but there was a very strong reason why they decided to do it. Very, very dramatic, will unfold over the next few weeks.”

Julian added that audiences will be shocked when they see the drama on screen that leads to the Blue Team leaving the construction site.

“I’m not saying these people left because they were lazy. They wanted to do it, but it just became incredibly challenging at some point,” he said.

“Their reasons for leaving are remarkable. I think it will start an interesting conversation among the public.”

Fortunately, the producers were able to recruit sisters Maddy and Charlotte at short notice to replace the Blue Team, meaning that five couples will make it to the final.

The Block: Island premieres Monday night at 7.30pm on Nine and 9Now.