Lodges & Resortsfor guided walks or don waders for
a semi-submerged meal of freshly
shucked oysters and sparkling wine
(saire-freycinet.com.au).
Southern Ocean Lodge, on the
south-west coast of Kangaroo Island,
celebrates 10 years as Australia’s
first “super lodge”. Its 21 suites
cantilevered over a headland facing
the wild Southern Ocean and a host
of nature-focused encounters have
put Kangaroo Island on the wish
lists of travellers worldwide
(southernoceanlodge.com.au).
When the outback calls,
Australia’s lodges and resorts
respond with exceptional style. In
South Australia’s Flinders Ranges,
a 19th-century sheep station has
becomeArkaba Conservancy,
a private wildlife sanctuary with
five designer suites in an 1850s
homestead and a network of luxe
campsites linked by a four-day hike.
A maximum of 10 guests stay at any
one time on this 24,000-hectare
property (arkabaconservancy.com).
Nowhere does wilderness quite
like Australia. In Western Australia’s
far north,Sal Salisis a simple, sublime
afair of 16 tents among the dunes
and coastal scrub of Cape Range
National Park. The social life tops
out at sunset cocktails by the Indian
Ocean, but the marvels of Ningaloo
Reef – communing with whale sharks
and turtles and a kaleidoscope of
corals – are the main attractions
here (salsalis.com.au).
East of this Eden liesEl Questro,
a million-acre property in the
Kimberley ofering accommodation
ranging from private campsites to
riverside cabins. The best beds are
in the homestead: nine adults-only
suites perched above Chamberlain
Gorge (elquestro.com.au).
Longitude 131°is famous for
the views of Uluru from its 15 suites
and, more recently, the panoramas
of both Uluru and Kata Tjuta from
the two-bedroom Dune Pavilion.
Indigenous art and furnishings by
Australian artisans lend rich context
to the surroundings, while a dune-top
plunge pool and dining pods take
desert indulgence to new heights
(longitude131.com.au).Queensland is resort central and
two properties set the standard for
languid island life. On Hamilton Island,
Qualia’s 60 pavilions are teamed with
fine dining, five-star service and the
World Heritage wonders of the Great
Barrier Reef (qualia.com.au).
Further north,Lizard Islandis
arguably Australia’s best-positioned
island resort, ringed by the reef and
fringed by 24 sandy beaches. Guests
snorkel among reef fish and over
a giant-clam garden within wading
distance of 40 white weatherboard
rooms and suites, rebuilt twice after
cyclones ripped through a few years
ago (lizardisland.com.au).
There’s more World Heritage
splendour atEmirates One & Only
Wolgan Valley, a 40-cottage resort
built around an 1832 homestead
in the Greater Blue Mountains
region, north-west of Sydney.
The zero-carbon property sits in
a 2,800-hectare wildlife reserve,
perfect for guided hikes on foot,
horseback or mountain bike by
day and star-gazing by night
(oneandonlyresorts.com).●From left: a new
coastal pavilion
at Freycinet
Lodge; the Great
Room at Southern
Ocean Lodge;
tented luxury at
Sal Salis; the pool
in the Wollemi
Villa at Emirates
One & Only
Wolgan Valley.GOURMET TRAVELLER 187