Embedded in the coastal wilderness of Kangaroo Island, the reimagined Southern Ocean Lodge celebrates community, creativity and place like never before.

You don’t forget your arrival at Southern Ocean Lodge. Almost five years since I was first here, I’m walking towards the double-entry doors again as they are swung open for the big reveal. Crossing the threshold, the coastal wilderness of the Southern Ocean is unveiled in all its raw, expansive glory: the lodge’s Great Room setting the stage for drama.

It’s a moment designed to evoke emotion. But the emotion is twofold for returning guests who, like me, visited this luxury lodge on the wave-carved south-west coast of Kangaroo Island before it was razed to the ground in the 2019-2020 Black Summer Bushfires.

A pioneer of luxury, sustainable and experiential tourism in South Australia, and – with its fierce community focus – a game changer for the island, Southern Ocean Lodge (a member of Luxury Lodges of Australia) had not long ago celebrated its 10th anniversary when the catastrophic fires struck. But within days, buoyed by the support of the tourism community and guests around the world, founders James and Hayley Baillie, of Baillie Lodges, committed to rebuild their flagship property.

Southern Ocean Lodge 2.0 opened in December 2023, almost four years to the date of the fires. And it bears almost the same footprint as the original incarnation on the island’s limestone cliffs. The Baillies partnered with Kangaroo Island-born architect Max Pritchard and the team from Max Pritchard Gunner Architects to work on the rebuild along with several key designers.

The aim was to recreate the essence of the lodge and elements that had always worked well while adding new features and design alterations made with the benefit of hindsight. Underscoring everything, the new lodge needed to be futureproof: tackling the challenges of a changing climate and being embedded in the environment in an even more considered way.

Faithfully recreated to the point of uncanny – it feels like it never wasn’t here – the Great Room remains the beating heart of the lodge. Its sink-into-me Ghost Chairs are poised to take in 180-degree views through floor-to-ceiling windows and its cast iron suspended fireplace remains the centrepiece. Along with Sunshine, the kangaroo sculpture that greets you upon entry, made by local artist Indiana James from an old combine harvester, the fireplace was one of few items to survive the fire.

The lodge is a celebration of local creativity, community and place. Adelaide design master Khai Liew’s bespoke lounges that curl around the fireplace, taking cues from the undulating coastline, are among many considered design details.

The ‘help-yourself’ walk-in wine cellar – packed floor-to-ceiling with up to 1200 bottles sourced from across South Australia’s wine regions, including Kangaroo Island itself – was always a highlight for guests. It has now been rebuilt and restocked. I peruse the bottles – an installation depicting a shoal of Southern Ocean whiting by Adelaide glass-blowing artist Llewelyn Ash swimming above my head – and pick a Hobbs of Barossa Tin Lids Aria Secca shiraz to take to dinner.

The restaurant flows on from the Great Room and boasts a 125-metre limestone feature wall crafted by Kangaroo Island resident Scott Wilson – a stonemason and also a sheep farmer and supplier of marron (freshwater crayfish) to the restaurant. Helmed by executive chef Tom Saliba, the lodge’s menus, too, are a celebration of local and regional produce.

An ever-changing menu that rolls with the seasons might feature local King George whiting, saltbush gnocchi or Coorong beef. Tom maintains relationships with existing suppliers – such as the local Parndana Campus, where students sustainably farm barramundi, and Kangaroo Island Living Honey, which produces honey from the world’s only purebred colony of Ligurian bees.

Chef Tom is excited to work with new suppliers in the community, such as Kangaroo Island Mushrooms and Juniper Rise, a produce garden that supplies microgreens and vegetables. Tom took the reins as executive chef at Southern Ocean Lodge just months before the fires and was committed to coming back from day one.

The intervening years saw stints in the kitchens of sister properties in the Baillie Lodges portfolio, such as Capella Lodge, Longitude 131° and Silky Oaks Lodge, in between return trips to the island to play a part in the rebuild. With each visit, Tom says, seeing the regeneration of not just nature, but local businesses and hearing about new suppliers opening up, was exciting. “And the homecoming has been great. To see the similarities but the differences as well," he says.

Key differences at Southern Ocean Lodge lie in the addition of a wet-edge pool and a more spacious Southern Spa with three treatment rooms, a sauna, and hot and cold plunge pools. Further up the clifftop lies the new ultra-premium Baillie Pavilion, which can be booked as a whole four-bedroom residence or as two separate suites. It is the ultimate private retreat that emulates the feel of the lodge itself, complete with a scaled-down version of the Great Room.

The remaining 23 suites, which peel away down the coastline, have been reoriented to optimise views. Facing south-east, my Flinders Suite is a study in quiet luxury and intuitive design with a calming palette of neutral limestone, warm blackwood and storm blue inviting the outdoors to take centre stage.

My suite is ensconced in the coastal heath, and its sunken lounge, deep tub and private deck each provide optimal spots from which to take it all in. But nothing can compare to lying in a bespoke Baillie Bed in cloud-like linens watching the sun rise over the roiling ocean – next stop Antarctica, sea spray shimmering in the buttery first light – or falling asleep at night to a percussive lullaby of crashing waves.

Southern Ocean Lodge has always championed local artists, but 2.0 sees more bespoke commissions line its walls than ever. The signature kangaroo-print fabric from artist and designer Julie Paterson, of Cloth – which formed a foundational design element of the original lodge – has been lovingly reinstated in each guestroom and beyond. That her work is inspired by the strength and diversity of the Australian landscape is fitting.

Mandalas made by Kangaroo Island assemblage artist Janine Mackintosh from eucalyptus leaves, seeds and shells once again line the limestone walls of the restaurant, while a wall of found objects marks the entrance to the Southern Spa: remnants gathered from the aftermath of the fire that have been given new life and beauty. Elsewhere, Indiana James, too, has fashioned items found in the ashes, from stainless-steel lotion pumps to serving utensils, into a spirited metal lyrebird sculpture, Lyre Lyre Pans on Fire.

Taking a sneak peek at the Baillie Pavilion, I’m spellbound by a series of works by artists from the remote An-angu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands in the north-western corner of South Australia that were commissioned by Hayley Baillie.

Completed following a visit to the site in 2021, these large-scale paintings swirl with life in an interpretation of the landscape I haven’t seen before.

Not the green, blue and surf-white triptych that floods the retina at first blink, but pink clay, lilac, plum, sage and all shades of sand. I make a mental note to take a close look at the landscape and the colours of its flora as I comb the coastal scrub myself.

Above all, Southern Ocean Lodge is a base from which to immerse yourself in its surrounding nature. We visit Seal Bay Conservation Park to observe its colony of sea lions porpoising in the surf and snoozing on the sand. And head into Flinders Chase National Park on a half-day Wonders of Kangaroo Island experience to visit the fur seals of Admirals Arch and the sculptural granite marvels – dusted with their distinctive orange lichen – known as Remarkable Rocks.

Ninety per cent of this national park at the western end of Kangaroo Island was destroyed in the bushfires, but the opening of a $19.5 million state-of-the-art visitor centre in July 2024 marked a significant milestone in bushfire recovery. And a signature Koalas and Kangas experience provides the chance to feel heartened by the bounce-back of our beloved marsupials at Hanson Bay Wildlife Sanctuary and the historic property of Grassdale.

On my final morning here, I head out from the lodge on a clifftop walk through coastal heath, waves crashing vertiginously below while ospreys soar overhead. The return leg offers a fresh perspective as Southern Ocean Lodge comes back into view: its low profile hugging the contours of the coastline.

Among the raft of leading environmental initiatives ensuring the new-look lodge stays completely off-grid and fit for the future – including its hybrid solar and battery infrastructure, rainwater harvesting supplemented by a reverse osmosis system that converts bore water to fresh water, and a state-of-the-art bushfire sprinkler system – is a 20-metre wilderness buffer planted with fire-retardant native succulents and the island’s own endemic juniper.

Fresh growth is everywhere. But some chalky skeletal trees remain in the line of sight as a visible scar and a potent reminder of what went before. My eyes are pulled back down as I spot a pair of dolphins frolicking in the waves. I soon realise they are leading me back to Southern Ocean Lodge, which sits gently in the landscape like a lighthouse: a beacon of resilience and hope.

A traveller’s checklist

Getting there

Just 15 kilometres from mainland South Australia, Kangaroo Island is accessible via a 40-minute Qantaslink flight from Adelaide/ Tarndanya or a 45-minute Sealink ferry transfer from Cape Jervis.

Staying there

A stay at Southern Ocean Lodge is all-inclusive of breakfast, lunch and dinner with menus that change daily, an open bar with premium wines and spirits and an in-suite bar that is replenished daily. Rates also include signature guided experiences of Kangaroo Island and return Kangaroo Island Airport transfers, including access to the lodge’s exclusive airport lounge before departure. The wheelchair-accessible Flinders Suite features level floors, a modified bathroom and close proximity to the main lodge. Rates start at $2950 per suite per night based on two guests staying. Southern Ocean Lodge is a member of Luxury Lodges of Australia.

Playing there

Signature Experiences include the half-day wonders of Kangaroo Island, Seal Bay Safari, Coastal Clifftop Walk, Koalas and Kangas, a guided tour of Kelly Hill Caves and a Taste of SA Wine. Experiences at additional cost include the four-hour remarkable hike, Nocturnal Explorer and Beach Fishing.

Hikers can also set out on a variety of self-guided walking trails that leave from the lodge doorstep, and those looking to explore further afield can book a full-day private itinerary with the lodge’s own experiences team, or renowned operators KI Touring Company and Exceptional Kangaroo Island. Don’t forget to peruse the Southern Spa menu of indulgent treatments that make the most of Kangaroo Island’s prized natural beauty products for a spot of TLC after all that adventuring.