There are, of course, plenty of kangaroos on Kangaroo Island, but only one named Sunshine. The larger-than-life metal sculpture – made out of pieces of an old Sunshine-brand combine harvester – has greeted guests at Southern Ocean Lodge, one of Australia’s first super-luxury retreats, since it opened back in 2008.

Sunshine is a survivor. After the devastating bushfires of 2019-2020, which burnt the lodge to the ground, the various parts of his metal skeleton were found lying among the ashes. His creator, sculptor Indiana James, carefully reassembled the pieces and, when the rebuilt lodge opened in December last year, Sunshine was once again standing watch. Only this time, he has a friend. 

As James foraged through the ashes, he also found cutlery that had survived the inferno, which he used to create a sculpture of a lyrebird. Its wings made of melted forks, and its magnificent tail fashioned from fire-scorched spoons, the new statue is an ode to beauty that rises from the ashes, just as the lodge has now done. 

Compare before-and-after photos and, at first, Southern Ocean Lodge 2.0 appears to be an exact replica of the much-loved original. The panoramic view from the Great Room is just as jaw-dropping, the South Australian wines in the cosy wine cellar – where guests are encouraged to help themselves to any bottle they would like to try – are just as impressive.

Southern Ocean Lodge

It’s only when you actually walk through the space that the small changes come into focus. The rooms may look the same, but each one now has a bathtub with a view; the spa still smells as heavenly as ever, but now includes a sauna and hot-and-cold plunge pools. Discreetly tucked away behind the main lodge is a new four-bedroom Ocean Pavilion that offers a private escape for small groups travelling together.

These subtle changes make it clear that original owners Hayley and James Baillie, who also led the rebuild, got it right the first time around. And that’s pretty remarkable when you consider how much Australia’s luxury-lodge scene has evolved over the last decade and a half. 

Australia’s first generation of lodges – which included the likes of Qualia on Hamilton Island and Saffire Freycinet in Tasmania – were safe bets. Set in some of the country’s best-loved holiday hot spots, their elegant accommodation and finessed food gave guests a new way to experience a familiar destination.

Fifteen years on, the format has proven so successful that luxury lodges have become attractions in their own right. Instead of taking a day trip to the beaches of the Central Coast, Sydneysiders in need of a recharge make the 90-minute drive to stay at Pretty Beach House, an intimate clutch of four guest pavilions nestled inside Bouddi National Park.

Pretty Beach House

South Australians savour the stargazing and koala-spotting at Sequoia Lodge in the Adelaide Hills, just half an hour out of town.

Conversely, you will also find lodges in the most far-flung corners of the country. Sal Salis, a high-end tented camp, is set amid the sand dunes of Western Australia’s Cape Range National Park, near the spectacular Ningaloo Reef; Mount Mulligan Lodge in Queensland’s backcountry, is accessed via a three-hour four-wheel-drive journey from Cairns, or a half-hour helicopter flight. 

The locations may be diverse but the central promise is the same: today’s lodges are all about immersing their guests in the destination through carefully curated activities, which have become a key attraction. “It’s not unusual for high-end travellers to forgo the traditional luxurious accommodation in favour of a property that delivers a richer interpretation of the destination, with amazing people and culture,” says Drew Kluska, founder and managing director of The Tailor travel designers.

Activities range from hikes to heli-flights, forest bathing to Indigenous experiences. Case in point: during the “Connection to Country” experience offered by Tasmania’s Saffire Freycinet – one of the lodge’s most popular offerings – an indigenous guide shares insights into the culture, traditions and bush tucker of the native Oyster Bay people. 

Sequoia Lodge

Sequoia Lodge

Saffire Freycinet

Saffire Freycinet

Sal Salis

Sal Salis

What’s on your plate – or in your glass – has become another way to celebrate the environs, with lodge menus highlighting the region’s wines, spirits and craft brews alongside locally grown produce. At Southern Ocean Lodge, that might mean tucking into South Australian venison teamed with cacao, beetroot and witlof, while at Silky Oaks Lodge, adjoining the Daintree Rainforest, salmon tartar is paired with tropical flavours such as pickled ginger and yuzu aïoli. 

“There’s much more focus on provenance, a gentle pride in what we do well that makes us distinctively Australian,” says Penny Rafferty, the executive chair of Luxury Lodges of Australia, a collection of 19 independent properties across the country. Even the once-obligatory French champagne on arrival has in many cases been replaced with a more local choice. 

Increased competition has also pushed leading lodges to commit to constant innovation. “A prime example is The Lake House in Daylesford,” Rafferty says. When the Lake House, 90 minutes outside Melbourne, was launched by the Wolf-Tasker family 40 years ago, it was one of Australia’s first destination restaurants. That evolved into a boutique hotel which has now been joined by a nearby regenerative farm stay, Dairy Flat Farm. “All the while, they have maintained that warm hug of hospitality,” Rafferty says. 

Lake House

Other properties where guests can connect with the owners include the beachcomber-chic Haggerstone Island on the Great Barrier Reef, helmed by Anna and Roy Turner, and the Venturin family’s Finniss River Lodge outside Darwin. The appeal of the personal touch is so strong, it can even lure guests to a destination with which they may be entirely unfamiliar. 

“The lion’s share of our guests connect to our property online, then they figure out how to get here,” says Aaron Suine, who owns and runs Kittawa Lodge with his partner Nick Stead. The boutique property – which is about to open its third villa – is on King Island, situated in the Bass Strait between Tasmania and the mainland. King Island’s tourism industry is still in a fledgling state, and Suine loves introducing guests who know little about the island to its diverse environments, which range from coastal cliffs battered by surging surf to mangroves, to forests and white-sand beaches. 

“You’re probably only going to spend three nights in your entire life here, so it’s my chance to showcase everything King Island stands for and Tasmania stands for,” Suine says. “We give them local provisions, we create a customised itinerary that has a little bit of history, a little bit about the natural elements, all of these touchpoints that weave a much stronger connection to the place.”

Finniss River Lodge

Finniss River Lodge

Kittawa Lodge

Kittawa Lodge

Kittawa Lodge

 Photos: © Southern Ocean Lodge, George Apostolidis, © Pretty Beach House, © Sequoia Lodge, © Saffire Freycinet, © Sal Salis, Martina Gemmola, © Lake House Daylesford, Richard Lyons, © Kittawa Lodge, Brooke Saward, Adam Gibson