So far as Tasmania and secrets and techniques go, it might take a neighborhood (me) to confess that we now have many. There are all the time a handful of eating places, bars and lodging experiences in every city we locals prefer to maintain underneath wraps. However that being mentioned, the favored spots are all the time fashionable for a motive. The reality is, we simply have so many nice companies within the hospitality and tourism sector that you can be spoilt for selection. Why, it’s possible you’ll surprise? Properly, Tasmania’s financial system is closely reliant on tourism. So once we host a customer, we make certain to do it properly. And for those who’re on the lookout for the very best of the very best in Tasmania, Kittawa Lodge on King Island is about pretty much as good because it will get. Oh, and did I point out it’s nonetheless a fairly quietly saved secret?
Kittawa Lodge, an Oasis in Tasmania
I’ll forgive you for those who’ve by no means heard of Kittawa Lodge. Tasmania’s latest luxurious lodge has solely opened to the general public just lately and it’s tucked away on the serene King Island, a small island situated off the North West coast. It’s only a quick 30 minute flight to succeed in King Island from Wynyard, or you can too board a flight from every of Tasmania’s important cities, Hobart or Launceston.
When you arrive on the island you’ll quickly see how straightforward it’s to chill out. The locals are pleasant and principally maintain to themselves, so it feels pretty straightforward to mix in (even when everybody is aware of you’re an out-of-towner!) However the tempo right here is typical of island life – stress free and straightforward going. It ought to come at no shock, then, that the majority of Kittawa’s friends up to now hail from busy Sydney or Melbourne, keen to flee the rat race.
Discovering the magic of King Island
There aren’t any main points of interest on King Island however simply being right here is motive sufficient. The air is contemporary, the ocean breeze is balmy and the tempo of residing is very easy to adapt to. That being mentioned, there are many lovely seashores to go to and a handful of locations to cease in your journey. However the fantastic thing about King Island is much less about doing and extra about being. You’ll see what I imply if you arrive.
If you need a number of pit stops to your arrival, these are some highlights we discovered from our keep:
King Island Dairy – Free cheese tastings and an incredible cease to refill on native produce (by which I imply extra cheese)
Seal Rocks – Dramatic cliffs and tough seas. An important spot at sundown.
Cape Wickham Lighthouse – Australia’s tallest lighthouse and a good looking spot up North.
Disappointment Bay – Something however disappointing! A stupendous seaside for dawn.
The Rooms at Kittawa Lodge
After a day to sight see across the island, we checked in to Kittawa lodge round 2:00pm. This was an incredible excuse to see extra of King Island as quickly as we arrived, as a result of we quickly realised that Kittawa Lodge is a kind of locations you don’t wish to go away after getting arrived!
There are at present simply two lodges on provide, with plans to broaden sooner or later. Every lodge is outfitted with all of the wizz bang home equipment like a Nespresso machine and dishwasher, however there is no such thing as a tv in sight (aid!) As a substitute you’ll be able to excuse your self from the every day routine and tune out to tune in.
Every lodge is outfitted with a full kitchen, giant eating desk, ample seating within the lounge space and a wooden hearth for these cool evenings with the ocean breeze. There may be additionally central heating all through the room so you’ll be able to relaxation assured you’ll by no means go chilly – and for those who do, simply throw a go surfing the hearth and chill to observe the (nature) present exterior.
There are an abundance of wallabies on the property who make for nice leisure. You’ll typically see them exterior the room munching on grass, coming proper as much as the window in an inquisitive style. A spotlight of our keep was seeing them go to our lavatory window whereas within the tub and if the size of keep was something to go by, I feel they liked it simply as a lot as we did!
Personal In-Room Eating Expertise
In case you do only one factor throughout your keep at Kittawa Lodge, make it the non-public in-room eating expertise. That is an non-compulsory further so as to add to your keep and dare I say probably the most memorable a part of our go to. The house owners of Kittawa Lodge, Nick and Aaron, had been made for hospitality. And regardless of having very totally different roles on the lodge, each of them felt important to the expertise.
All through your days at Kittawa Lodge you’ll inevitably meet each of the house owners, who’re integral to the success of the lodge. Having had a imaginative and prescient when visiting some years in the past, the pair packed up their lives and careers in Sydney to make a way of life change. And if you style a few of Nick’s candy creations (the sticky date is a stand out!), you’ll begin to surprise if he might need a future profession in baking.
However when it got here to the non-public eating expertise, that is when Aaron actually took centre stage! With Italian heritage that’s most demonstrated in his masterful lunch and dinner creations, Aaron’s love for meals is really a spotlight of your keep. And when the non-public eating expertise promised foraging for herbs alongside the seaside, I knew it was a night we couldn’t go up.
The 4 course meal included a scrumptious blue cheese beetroot starter, adopted by Aaron’s well-known gnocchi as a beneficiant entree. Then got here the principle course – meat for my boyfriend and a vegetarian creation for myself, with Aaron all the time being too completely satisfied to accommodate dietary necessities. This was all completed off with a chocolate orange torte – actually the proper meal!
Oh and the way about that bathtub!
You possibly can’t go to Kittawa Lodge with out taking a every day dip in your stone bathtub tub. Not solely are the views spectacular, however they’re additionally typically frequented by the native wallaby inhabitants. And if you’re something like me (an avid wildlife lover), you’ll take advantage of this! The trick is to time your bathtub instances at varied elements of the day for the total expertise. An typically marshmallow pastel sky is a delight within the morning time, however a setting solar over the ocean is unforgettable.
Guide your keep
I totally loved my time at Kittawa Lodge on King Island. A lot in order that I’m telling everybody I do know to e book a keep whereas they’ll! The lodge is turning into more and more fashionable, particularly as Australian borders stay closed and extra of us are searching for out escapes throughout the nation. And definitely if you’re on the lookout for an unique escape with out leaving Australia, this is able to be it.
Rooms are at present priced $880 per room, per night time.
Meals packages and personal eating experiences are non-compulsory extras.
