A decade, and a complete rebuild, passed between Jo Elwin’s twice-in-a-lifetime luxury stays on Australia’s version of Galapagos. Visiting the emblem of the bushfire recovery, she rediscovers a haven of natural beauty, wildlife and cuisine.
In 2014 I wrote that Kangaroo Island was a “food-lover’s paradise and an experience I
KI is a large 4405-square-kilometre island (to put that in perspective, Waiheke is 92). The fires burned for several weeks and, with over a third of the island protected by national parks, conservation parks and wilderness protection zones, news coverage was hard to comprehend. When I saw that Southern Ocean Lodge had been razed, there were tears. The beauty and history of those rugged coastal and inland reserves had heightened my connection to nature and Southern Ocean Lodge had defined my idea of luxury. I was surprised at how deeply personal it felt.
Exploring the island, I was excited to be realising the dream of sharing the Southern Ocean Lodge experience with my partner and perplexed at not seeing any sign of the fires. It wasn’t until we spent an enlightening day with Exceptional Kangaroo Island’s Craig Wickham that we understood the common misconception that the entire island burned. Most of the more populated areas were untouched and, when we reached the area that was, it was fascinating to learn how the different vegetation regenerates – some of it at speed. Burnt tree branches towering above the new green flora are now the only obvious indicator that you are in the zone.
Driving the remote unsealed road to Southern Ocean Lodge, announcing our arrival at the yakka-design gates (Craig told us the yakka tree thrives on fire, is sprouting prolifically and has become an emblem of the bushfire recovery), and winding our way up the drive felt familiar until we turned a corner and I was taken aback – the rebuilt lodge spreading out before me where once it was hidden by trees.
As the large lodge doors swing open and glasses of bubbles are presented, the impact of the carefully crafted great room, with the majestic Southern Ocean beyond, sets in. This is the intended take-your-breath-away moment. It is just as I remembered and my partner, an architect, was suitably speechless.
The lodge team, well used to dealing with stunned mullets, ushered us into Paola Navone “Ghost” chairs in front of the vast windows, where they left us to take it all in and compose ourselves over drinks and snacks.
Perfect as it was, SOL 2.0 has been rebuilt to pretty much the same specifications and footprint, with a few minor improvements. The wine cellar is double the size to accommodate a private dining table and more bottles for guests to help themselves to. The expanded bar, which is also help-yourself 24/7, makes mixologists of us with all the right spirits, liquors, digestives, aperitifs and mixers, many South Australian. Prepped garnishes and cocktail books encourage creativity. The team will happily whip you something up, but this unique inclusion makes for fun times as guests become accustomed to having whatever they like, whenever they like, because all food and drinks are included in your stay.
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Advertise with NZME.New spaces include the Southern Spa with treatment rooms, gymnasium, sauna and hot and cold plunge pools, and the Baillie Pavilion – a separate four-suite residence in which groups of friends and family can hide away. What was once a guest office, redundant in today’s world, has become an extra suite – one of 23 that fan out from the great room along the cliff edge, as they always have. Each takes in the Southern Ocean from private sitting rooms, indulgent bathrooms and terraces, some with plunge pools.
While the wild sea and beach views demand attention, it’s the calm and tranquil Tasmanian Blackwood and warm limestone interiors that ultimately win our hearts. Everything is enticingly plush and tactile with pops of what I now refer to as SOL blue enhancing the neutral palette. Returning to our Goulburn suite (each suite is named after a historic shipwreck) after dinner, blackout blinds have been closed over the wall of windows, the Eco-Smart fire glows and an oil burner fills the room with the lodge’s signature scent which, as with everything, is a subtle delight. In the morning, the blinds open at the push of a button to take in the sunrise.
The restaurant has been rebuilt as it was, and executive chef Tom Saliba is chuffed that he got to redesign the kitchen. Tom was part of the team that returned for the rebuild, which was a logistical nightmare thanks to the lodge’s remote location. Incredibly, the staff village (everyone who works at SOL lives onsite) was mostly untouched and the 40-odd rooms were used to house everyone involved in the rebuild, which took nearly four years from demolition to reopening day.
When Saliba wasn’t cooking meals, he joined lodge founders Hayley and James Baillie and a large crew of supporters, including past guests, clearing hundreds of acres of land around the lodge of debris to encourage bush regeneration and propagating and planting over 45,000 biodiverse native plants. Such love and support for Southern Ocean Lodge was what made the Baillies determined to rebuild, asking architect Max Pritchard to recreate his celebrated design with carefully considered enhancements to bring Southern Ocean Lodge into a new era.
Kangaroo Island’s natural wonders and wildlife (they call it Australia’s Galapagos for good reason) and the lodge’s “experiential luxury” proposition runs through to the restaurant, with produce sourced as locally as possible, giving guests a unique fine dining experience with a Kangaroo Island flavour. The island’s Parndana High School supplies fish from its barramundi farm and fruit and veges from the greenhouse fed from the water runoff. The school’s aqua and agriculture programme encourages children to stay on the island after they finish school and Saliba says it’s one of the many ways the lodge can be part of the community.
Foraging around the lodge is not what it was but muntries and boobialla (a native juniper) are starting to grow back. Karkalla (pigface) and saltbush from the property are already adding their unique flavour and visual appeal to dishes including the marron, which is sustainably farmed by Scott Wilson (who is also the stone mason behind the signature limestone walls) down the road.
On my visit, the marron was served with native curry butter, finger lime and wakame, a dish reflective of Saliba’s inclusive kitchen and he is quick to credit his multinational team for a menu that highlights indigenous ingredients in an international way. Everything fits the casual luxury vibe, there’s no dress code and nothing is too much trouble. On day one, while we struggled to choose between the daily-changing entrees and mains, our server quickly relieved any Fomo by arranging for all four dishes to be served. It was exquisite – but not to be recommended as the meals are generous and there is also a daily dessert and cheese selection that are not to be missed. A “classics” menu looks after those looking for a simpler meal, a bowl of fries or a charcuterie board. Lunch works the same way and a breakfast buffet runs alongside an a la carte menu. Juices are freshly squeezed and coffee is made just the way you like it.
It doesn’t take long to make yourself completely at home at Southern Ocean Lodge and what a dream home it is, decorated exquisitely with bespoke Khai Liew and designer furniture, lighting, carpets, ceramics and unique local art. Everything down to the salt and pepper grinders and coffee table reading is exactly what you didn’t know you wanted. Which, of course, is exactly what they set out to achieve and it makes this returnee very warm and fuzzy to say that this is still the lodge that defines luxury for me.
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Advertise with NZME.Address: Hanson Bay Rd, Kingscote
Contact: Southernoceanlodge.com.au
Island Time
Australians have a soft spot for Kangaroo Island’s wildlife and natural beauty, with many escaping the cities for island life. From the early settlers who made their way here through whaling and sealing, the islanders are an industrious, down-to-earth community who have created businesses that give visitors a taste of something different. Through these experiences, you learn a lot about the island’s fascinating ecology and history. A few highlights include:
Kangaroo Island Spirits
In a gin-soaked world, it’s rather impressive that Australia’s first dedicated gin distillery was founded here in 2006. Today they distil a unique range of gin, vodka and liqueurs. Whiskey is ageing nicely in barrels for release in 2025. Made using Kangaroo Island grain and rainwater, it will eventually be a 100 per cent local product once the team has finished working on creating an endemic species of yeast. The gin uses native botanicals where possible, including boobialla, olerea axillarus, lemon myrtles, lemon thyme, native thyme and eau de cologne mint – many grown onsite. The distillers are also having success at growing common juniper to ease the reliance on juniper berries from Macedonia. Lemons, limes, oranges and kaffir lime leaves come via a barter system with islanders – 15 kilos of fruit for a bottle of gin. That’s how things work around here. A tasting paddle will help you define what botanicals work for you and which bottle you’d like to take home. Give yourself time to enjoy an expertly made cocktail among the botanicals and fruit trees in the gin garden, which suffered no damage from the fires in 2020 (they stopped 5km away). Interestingly, the outpouring of support for the island after the fires gave Kangaroo Island Spirits its biggest year of sales.
Address: 856 Playford Hwy, Cygnet River
Contact: Kangarooislandspirits.com.au
KI Living Honey
I’m not sure a farmer could love his livestock more than Shawn Hinves at KI Living Honey and he’s rather fond of humans too, which makes for good times when you visit his working honey farm. The island has been a Ligurian bee sanctuary since 1885 so honey is serious business here and, on a good year, the business can extract about 26 tonnes from 350 hives around the island. Shawn refers to himself as an ethical beekeeper who puts the wellbeing of the bees before anything else, explaining how his methods ultimately produce a product more beneficial to our wellbeing. Hives are located 5km from suburban or agricultural areas and honey is extracted to stringent guidelines to ensure certified organic raw honey. Shawn is generous with his personal and professional stories and gives an incredible insight into the pleasures and pains of farming on Kangaroo Island, which is in the driest state on the driest inhabited continent in the world. Seventy per cent of his production came from the part of the island that burnt in 2020 and it’s slow progress to build that back up, hence the focus on the farm experiences and shop.
Address: 172 Florance Rd, Haines
Contact: Kilivinghoney.com.au
The Oyster Farm Shop
A historic shipping industry has led to American River being dubbed Kangaroo Island’s seafood capital and a 17-hectare oyster farm still operates here. Pacific oysters are on menus throughout the island but you can eat an embarrassment of them at The Oyster Farm Shop, where these salty crisp molluscs are shucked fresh daily to eat in or take out. Complementing the local delicacy is a selection of Kangaroo Island and South Australian seafood, making a one-stop shop for the region’s ocean bounty. With typical KI simplicity, your chosen seafood is served in cardboard trays to be eaten with your hands with lots of paper napkins – pop them in the bin when you have finished. They don’t fry here, the King George whiting is grilled to order, as are the Kangaroo Island abalone and their baby sibling abalini and wild marron. The aqua platter, which promised a little bit of everything, was actually a lot of everything. Each mouthful outstanding.
Address: 44 Tangara Dr, American River
Contact: Oysterfarmshop.com.au
Exceptional Kangaroo Island
Craig Wickham, owner of tour company Exceptional Kangaroo Island, epitomises the Kangaroo Island character. He’s warm, welcoming and generous with his vast knowledge of the island on which he grew up. Having studied wildlife management and worked with the South Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service, he’s now focused on sharing wildlife encounters in KI’s unique, diverse environment with inquisitive travellers. Craig and his team of guides offer a range of small group and private tours that cater to visitors’ interests, ensuring they get what they came here for plus a few surprises. As my day exploring the Flinders Chase National Park went on, I was struck by how much I would have missed if exploring this wilderness without them. I came away educated about the island’s history and ecology, its people past and present and how to get the best out of my time here. Along with the popular, spectacular attractions, Craig had us bush walking (boosted by homemade lamingtons) to the river to spot platypus, and setting up camp under the eucalypts and koalas for a beautifully set lunch conjured from the back of his four-wheel-drive. Craig’s educated insights on fire ecology were particularly enlightening and helped give reason to the devastation of 2020.
Address: 1139 Playford Hwy, Cygnet River
Contact: Exceptionalkangarooisland.com
Kingscote
Kingscote is as big and bustling as it gets on Kangaroo Island with nearly half the island’s population living here. In 1836 it became South Australia’s first official European settlement and a mulberry tree planted around this time still stands and bears fruit every summer. Heritage landmarks and buildings make wandering the streets and shorefront fascinating and they sit pleasingly among the modern stores, restaurants and houses that make up the service town today. There’s a thriving art scene and, although you won’t be short of kangaroo sightings while visiting the island, the largest painted kangaroo resides here on a 22-metre-high silo. Stock up on supplies before heading deeper into the more remote parts of the island. The food stores have an impressive range of local products and the liquor stores give you a great overview of the island’s thriving wine industry. The island’s only (at the time of writing) craft brewery KIB is up the road and the beer sits proudly on shelves alongside Coopers which, thanks to these travels, I have discovered is 162 years old and still made in Adelaide by the Cooper family. Book a table for dinner at Amadio’s Vino e Cucina, an authentic Italian trattoria in the heart of town, and brunch at Cactus, a cafe founded by a couple of chefs who met working at Southern Ocean Lodge.
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