Getting back to nature doesn’t always mean pitching a tent and ‘going’ in the bush.
These five wilderness resorts offer you the chance to experience the great outdoors and recharge in style. Is there any better way to completely switch off?
1. Southern Ocean Lodge, Kangaroo Island SA
Enjoy windswept, rugged coastal landscapes as remote as you can get from the comfort of a modern suite on a ridgetop overlooking the Southern Ocean.
With floor-to-ceiling windows, the suites at the Southern Ocean Lodge are raised above the surrounding vegetation so you get uninterrupted ocean views. It’s a great place to explore Kangaroo Island from, whose native produce ends up on the Lodge menu with some of South Australia’s best wines.
2. El Questro, The Kimberly WA
Overlooking the iconic Chamberlain River, the El Questro Homestead is a super-remote, 18-guest resort that’s part of a 700,000-acre hectare property with everything the Kimberleys has to offer.
An army of 4WDs, boats and helicopters can take you exploring weathered mountains and gorges, waterfalls, rivers full of barramundi, thermal springs and mud and salt flats. The location is outstanding, and the surrounding landscape is as good as wilderness gets.
3. Bamurru Plains, Kakadu National Park NT
This safari lodge on the Mary River floodplains and savannah woodlands near Kakadu is one of the last wildlife Edens on earth.
Wild buffalo, wallabies, birds, barramundi and crocodiles roam in a world free of TV, internet and wi-fi. Each of the Bamurru Plains 10 safari-style bungalows has mesh walls on three sides, so you see and hear the vast floodplain while keeping out any animals or insects. It’s simply magical.
4. Capella Lodge, Lord Howe Island NSW
Capella Lodge’s views of Lord Howe Island’s uniquely concentrated tropical paradise is hard to beat. Look out of the floor-to-ceiling windows in any of the nine island- styled suites for astonishing views of the lagoon, the world’s southernmost coral reef and the volcanic peaks of Mounts Gower and Lidgbird.
Everything is on your doorstep, from snorkelling and forest walks to mountain climbs or simply a relaxing, luxury semi-tropical holiday just an hour’s flight away.
5. Saffire Freycinet, Coles Bay TAS
Although Saffire Freycinet is more of a luxury boutique hotel than a wilderness lodge, its stunning views of Tasmania’s granite Hazard Mountain chain and Great Oyster Bay, right next to Freycinet National Park, mean you get the full wilderness experience all the same.
Voted the world’s best boutique hotel in 2014, Saffire Freycinet is just 2.5 hours’ drive from Hobart. You can soak in the view all day, enjoy the fine dining and spa or get rugged and go hiking and kayaking.
This story originally appeared in Fitness First magazine.