Daintree Spa at Daintree Eco Lodge & Spa
Rating: 2.5/5 (23 votes cast)
Set in the world's oldest living rainforest, in tropical North Queensland, the Daintree Eco Lodge & Spa pampers the environment as lavishly as it indulges its guests. This one-of-a-kind treehouse-style spa has won numerous worldwide accolades for its fantastic efforts to ensure that while giving its guests an unforgettable experience, it also cares for the impact it might have on its precious environment and the Indigenous people who live around it.
Cond Nast Traveller (UK) recently named it one of the Top 10 sea Retreats of the World 2005. In 2004 'it was awarded Best Spa Retreat in Australia and the South Pacific, and in 2003, it won two much coveted Australian Tourism Awards for Deluxe Accommodation and for Ecotourism.
Location
Tucked away in a lush valley in the Daintree Rainforest, the Lodge and Spa sits adjacent to the majestic Daintree River, just 40 kilometers from Port Douglas, considered the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef. Here, 15 gorgeous 'hideaway' rainforest villas provide one of the world's most unique experiences of living within the lush beauty of nature's oldest gem.
The Lodge works closely with the Aboriginal Kuku Yalanji rainforest people to create experiences that acquaint guests with the intricacies, legends and traditions of their culture. This is carried through to the Daintree Spa's treatments which are best enjoyed at the spa's newly created waterfall pavilion. Simply called Gunya (the Yalanji word for shelter), the pavilion is nestled deep in the rainforest, in an area that is said to hold mystical healing powers. This spiritual area has been visited as a special place by the Kuku Yalanji women for thousands of years and today offers its essence to the spa treatments provided at Daintree Eco Lodge & Spa.
Spa Treatments
 Daintree Spa's signature treatment, Walbul Walbul (which means 'butterfly') connects guests with the vibration of this ancient land by way of a warm oil and desert salt scrub. This is followed by a head treatment aptly called Milkanga Kaday (return to the mind), before the healing waders of a rain shower and a soothing massage unites the body with the sky. The treatment is likened to the brilliant transition of a caterpillar to a butterfly, which spreads its wings and soars when opened to nature.
Alongside the various spa treatments, the Kuku Yalanji guides offer insights on how their ancestors lived in harmony with nature. Dreamtime story telling is perhaps the most unique method. Set in a clearing in the forest, and conducted in the early evening around a campfire, guests can listen to a telling of selected Dreamtime stories – always with the permission and approval of the Kuku Yalanji elders. The oldest folklore on earth, guests are connected to this special land in a truly unique way. As well, art workshops and cultural classes provide a glimpse into this aboriginal culture in a relaxed interactive and non-contrived way.
A celebration of the rainforest, of it indigenous people and the concept of well-being all mix to create a truly enriching experience. At the Daintree Eco Lodge and Spa, the unpolluted air is replete with oxyen, bands of pure sunlight filter through the thick canopy of trees; and the sounds and smells of clear running water are a constant reminder of how far back to nature you’ve come. The realization itself is intoxicating. As Brooke Shields succinctly put it: "To wake up in this rainforest is heaven on earth". More on Daintree flora and Cape Tribulation
Activities
Aboriginal art and culture classes, fishing and hunting tours, aqua-aerobics, cooking demonstrations, dreamtime storytelling, four wheel safari drives, jungle surfing, life coach counselling, life enhancement classes, scuba diving, snorkelling, meditation classes, pilates, hiking and horseback riding.
Contact
20 Daintree Road, Daintree
Queensland 4873
Australia
T +617 4098 6100
F +617 4098 6200
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