9 Of The Best Australian Luxury Lodges For A High-End Holiday, As Chosen By An Expert
Leading travel writer and columnist Kendall Hill picks his favourite stays from Australia’s growing portfolio of luxury lodges.
Like Russell Crowe, electric fences and (possibly) pavlova, luxury lodges are a New Zealand innovation that Australia has adopted as its own.
Inspired by Huka Lodge, the elite Taupō fishing camp founded in 1924 and transformed into a famed retreat in the 1980s, the country is now flush with exceptional stays. All bring outstanding design, service, amenities and experiences to some of the most remarkable – and often remote – corners of the continent. I’ve stayed at most of Australia’s top lodges, some of them multiple times. Here are the ones that impressed me most.
Silky Oaks Lodge
Mossman, Tropical North Queensland
This, for me, is one of Australia’s most transformative stays – a 40-suite treehouse retreat tucked into jungle beside the Daintree Rainforest. Opened in 1985 before the Daintree had World Heritage protection, it grants front-row access to the world’s oldest tropical rainforest from personal sanctuaries given a full glow-up by new owners Baillie Lodges. Lodgings range from entry-level rainforest suites to the two-bedroom Daintree Pavilion with tiered horizon pool and sleekly modernist interiors (my pick are the 92sq m Billabong suites suspended above the Mossman River with hammocks and outdoor tubs). Dining on Asian- and indigenous-inspired dishes in the soaring, cantilevered Treehouse restaurant is a highlight, so too the six-room spa and cultural tours with Kuku Yalanji traditional owners. Baillielodges.com.au
Capella Lodge
Lord Howe Island, New South Wales
The nine-suite Capella Lodge sits in the south of Lord Howe Island, the part that locals call “God’s Own Country”. It’s a claim that’s hard to dispute when you’re seated in Capella’s airy restaurant savouring the freshest Pacific seafood, floating in the plunge pool or lounging on your day bed beneath the impressive peaks of Mounts Lidgbird and Gower. Accommodation has a swank beach-house feel with designer fittings (Danish Prime Time swivel chairs, Artemide Tolomeo lamps) and decks with hot tubs and dreamy outlooks. Island attractions include Jurassic hikes, surfing, golf, the world’s southernmost coral reef and a supremely laidback lifestyle that brings to mind much simpler times. Footwear optional. Capellalodge.com.au
Saffire Freycinet
Coles Bay, Tasmania
Saffire is Tasmania’s premier address, renowned for its elevated gastronomy and design (and room rates) and immersive activities including oyster farm visits and invigorating hikes in the breathtaking Freycinet National Park. But my lasting memory is of waking, on a clear day, to the sight of The Hazards’ pink granite peaks mirrored in a see-through bay fringed with sandy arcs and silver peppermints, perhaps with some rays gliding through the shallows. Absolutely dazzling. Saffire-freycinet.com.au
For a more affordable stay right within Tasmania’s oldest national park, Freycinet Lodge across the water has comfy timber cabins or glass-walled coastal pavilions above Great Oyster Bay (rooms 65 and 66 have the best views). Freycinetlodge.com.au
Kittawa Lodge
King Island, Tasmania
Australia’s smallest lodge is also, I think, its most charming. Anchored on the southwest coast of King Island, midway between Melbourne and Tasmania, Kittawa has just three suites (the third, a two-bedroom Retreat, was added last year) but boundless soul. Owners Aaron Suine and Nick Stead opened their passion project in 2019 on a 38ha oceanfront site above the Southern Ocean. The three off-grid havens are cased in timber and glass and furnished with every conceivable comfort, including house bars of Tasmanian wine and spirits, binoculars for whale watching and even smart gumboots and raincoats for island outings. Indulgent dining showcases island and Tasmanian produce – you’ll have fresh rock lobster one evening, a four-course cooked menu another, and delicious treats all stay long. Private guiding, massages and yoga by arrangement. Kittawalodge.com
Southern Ocean Lodge
Kangaroo Island, South Australia
Like Huka in New Zealand, Southern Ocean is the benchmark by which all other Australian lodges are measured. Opened in 2008 on a commanding 100ha clifftop on Kangaroo Island – a mini-ark of native species – the lodge was completely rebuilt after catastrophic bushfires in 2020. It reopened bigger and bolder than ever, with 25 suites walled in local limestone and glass, a flash new spa and infinity pool, and room for families or groups in the two-bedroom Remarkable Suite and eight-guest Ocean Pavilion. There’s a full roster of island experiences available, from meeting local producers to meeting local wildlife, but a 1200-bottle wine cellar and multi-course meals in the mezzanine restaurant make a compelling case for sheltering in place. Southernoceanlodge.com.au
Arkaba Homestead
Hawker, South Australia
There’s a rugged romance to this outback sheep station in South Australia’s stunning Flinders Ranges, about 400km north of Adelaide. The semi-desert country wasn’t great for sheep but it’s been a game-changer for native wildlife since Arkaba became a 24,000ha private conservancy in 2013. It’s this context of abundant animals and birds, coupled with dramatic landscapes, the storylines of the Adnyamathanha or rock people and the creature comforts of the renovated 1850s homestead that makes Arkaba one of Australia’s most singular stays. There are just five suites, a small pool and a country kitchen that turns out sophisticated menus of locally sourced ingredients (the saltbush Dorper lamb cutlets are some of the best I’ve eaten). Explore the outdoors on 4WD safaris and guided hikes, including the three-day Arkaba Walk, staying two nights in posh swags under the stars. Experiencearkaba.com
Pumphouse Point
Lake St Clair, Tasmania
Not strictly a lodge, but a unique Australian experience I’d always recommend to international guests. Pumphouse offers a rare chance to experience Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park, part of the World Heritage-listed Tasmanian wilderness, without the hardship. There’s a range of accommodation, including three dazzling new couples’ retreats on the lake’s edge, but my favourite is the 1940s Pumphouse, an elegant three-storey construction that looks like a neoclassical temple floating on Australia’s deepest lake. The views from its 12 rooms and suites are mesmerising. Set-menu dinners in the Shorehouse are nourishing rather than refined; honesty bars are stocked with Tasmanian spirits, wines and beers. Spend your days tramping through forests, fishing, mountain biking or just soaking in the serenity. Pumphousepoint.com.au
El Questro
Durack, Western Australia
Full disclosure: I haven’t stayed at El Questro lately but it’s such an epic place, with around 400,000ha of Kimberley wilderness to explore and accommodation options to suit all budgets, that it deserves a mention. The lodge element is The Homestead, a 10-suite, adults-only eyrie perched on an escarpment above the Chamberlain River with all the usual trappings of a luxury resort. But you can stay much more affordably in tented cabins at Emma Gorge, in riverside motel-style accommodation and campsites, all with full access to the waterfalls and thermal pools, sandstone ranges and remnant rainforest of this magnificent landscape. Elquestro.com.au
Osborn House
Bundanoon, New South Wales
There’s a touch of Soho House to this converted 19th-century manor in the NSW Southern Highlands, not surprising given Soho’s former design director Linda Boronkay fashioned the eclectic glamour of its interiors. Set in formal gardens above the untamed Morton National Park, Osborn House has 15 (gorgeous) rooms in the main building and 12 contemporary timber cabins with fireplaces and bathtubs on wilderness-facing decks. Relax by the 25m pool or in the four-room spa; explore virgin bushlands or the quaint highlands villages. Don’t miss sundown cocktails on the terrace with kangaroos grazing below, or the Sunday Fire Feasts, Argentinian-style asado barbecues that transform the lawns into a wood-fired fiesta where whole chickens and chimichurri tomahawks are carved straight from the fire. Osbornhouse.com.au
Kendall Hill is an Australia-based journalist specialising in luxury travel, food, and culture. His work has appeared in publications including NZ Herald Travel, Condé Nast Traveler, Travel And Leisure, The Australian, Escape, Qantas, and more.
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