TRIUMPHANT

After almost four years in the planning, design and construction, has reopened on the wildly beautiful south coast of South Australia’s Kangaroo Island.

Southern Ocean Lodge’s original architect Max Pritchard and his team have led the recreation of the property, which was destroyed by fire in 2020, and have included all the features guests loved best along with some considered extras.

The new iteration of Southern Ocean Lodge holds almost the same footprint as the original, with the Great Room taking centre stage on the island’s limestone cliffs and with 23 luxurious suites easing along the coastline. In a deft design manoeuvre, the guest suites have been reoriented to open towards the southeast, each taking in uninterrupted views of the Southern Ocean and rolling coastal wilderness. All guest suites feature private decks, an EcoSmart fireplace and a bathtub.

New elements include the ultra-premium Ocean Pavilion, cleverly designed to offer a single four-bedroom owner’s residence or two separate two-bedroom suites to create the ultimate Kangaroo Island hideaway for families and friends travelling together. In addition, The Great Room terrace now boasts a wet-edge pool, while spacious new surrounds for the Southern Spa allow for three treatment rooms, a gymnasium, sauna, and hot and cold plunge pools.

The new-look lodge is also as green as ever, with cutting-edge technologies boosting rainwater capture and solar power generation, while 45,000 biodiverse native plants, propagated onsite, have been planted to form a natural buffer from the wilderness.

— NICK WALTON