Ningaloo Reef · WA
Sal Salis Ningaloo Reef
Nine safari-style tents on the dunes right behind Ningaloo Reef — walk-in snorkelling from the beach, no boat required, inside Cape Range National Park.
Where To Stay · Eco Lodges & Nature Stays
Sleeping Inside The Landscape, Not Next To It
A small number of Australian properties are built specifically to put you inside a landscape rather than looking at it from a hotel window — low-impact tented camps and lodges, usually in places you can't easily reach any other way.
- Price tier
- $$$$
- Best for
- One remote, immersive stop
- Found in
- WA coast, Kangaroo Island, Top End, Tasmania
- Booking tip
- Often includes meals & guided activities
Eco Lodges In Australia: Planning A Remote Nature Stay
Eco lodges in Australia aren't places you stumble into — they're usually the reason a particular leg of a route exists at all. Most sit inside or right next to a national park or marine reserve, run at a deliberately small scale, and price in guided activities rather than leaving you to find your own way.
What is an eco lodge in Australia?
A low-impact, small-scale property built specifically to put you inside a landscape — a reef, a floodplain, a mountain range — rather than looking at it from a standard hotel window. Room counts are deliberately kept small.
How do you get to a remote eco lodge in Australia?
Almost always via a transfer booked separately from the room — a light aircraft, a 4WD transfer, or a boat, depending on the lodge. Confirm this before you book flights into the nearest regional airport.
Are meals included at Australian eco lodges?
Usually, yes — rates typically bundle breakfast, dinner and at least one guided activity, which is worth factoring in when comparing the nightly rate to a standard hotel.
Landscape by landscape
Five remote stays worth the detour
Each built around a specific landscape you can't get the same way from a city hotel.
Kangaroo Island · SA
Southern Ocean Lodge
Rebuilt on its original clifftop site after the 2020 bushfires and reopened in 2023 — still one of the most architecturally striking lodges in the country, looking straight out over the Southern Ocean.
Top End · NT
Bamurru Plains
Open-sided bungalows on the Mary River floodplain near Kakadu — airboat rides over the wetlands instead of a 4WD track, and genuinely close to the wildlife.
Cradle Mountain · TAS
Cradle Mountain Wilderness Village
Simple timber cabins in the eucalypt forest at the edge of Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park — the practical, lower-cost way to base yourself for the Overland Track's northern end.
Uluru · NT
Sails in the Desert
Part of the Ayers Rock Resort complex, built with large sail-like shade structures to work with the desert heat rather than against it — the mid-tier option if Longitude 131° is out of budget.
Worth knowing
Before you book one
- Transfers are usually separate
- Most of these sit well outside the nearest town — check whether a transfer is included or needs booking as its own line item.
- Availability is limited by design
- Small room counts mean these sell out further ahead than a normal hotel, especially in the dry season (May–Oct) up north.
- Meals are often included
- Rates at remote lodges usually bundle breakfast, dinner and at least one guided activity — factor that into any price comparison with a normal hotel.
Keep exploring
More ways to pick where you stay
Want one of these worked into your route?
Create a free account and start building your trip around it.