Orpheus Island Lodge

“Absolutely wonderful stay”

It’s hard to describe how wonderful Orpheus Island Lodge is. From the moment you arrive and are welcomed with a glass of champagne it feels like an incredibly special place. The staff are all excellent and very friendly and the food is amazing at every meal. The lodge is extremely well managed and … more

It’s hard to describe how wonderful Orpheus Island Lodge is. From the moment you arrive and are welcomed with a glass of champagne it feels like an incredibly special place. The staff are all excellent and very friendly and the food is amazing at every meal. The lodge is extremely well managed and the manager Chrissie is always present and hands on which we feel is a very good sign. We rarely say that we would love to return to a destination but we definitely would love to return to Orpheus Island Lodge.

less

“Island Paradise”

This was our third visit to Orpheus Island. During our first trip for my birthday in 2022, we loved the place so much that we advance booked for five years in a row; and I'm pleased to say that each visit has been just as memorable as the previous. There are two things, which to us, are the essence… more

This was our third visit to Orpheus Island. During our first trip for my birthday in 2022, we loved the place so much that we advance booked for five years in a row; and I'm pleased to say that each visit has been just as memorable as the previous. There are two things, which to us, are the essence of what makes our time on Orpheus so special, and what keeps bringing us back. Firstly there's the food. Each meal is curated individually under the control of, for the second year now, Chef Josh Childs. We've eaten in some of the finest restaurants in the world, and Josh's creations I believe would equal any of them. It's rare in a high end restaurant to meet the Executive Chef, but as soon as you arrive on the island Josh is there to talk to you, to understand any dietary preferences that you may have. Josh is also apparently intolerant of delays longer than about 10 seconds in getting prepared meals out to guests, as on more than one occasion we've heard the familiar 'hello', and looked up to see Josh himself bringing a meal to a guest's table. One final point on the food at Orpheus, the 'Dining With The Tides' experience at the end of the dock is absolutely unique, and we book that once on each of our visits. The second thing that's so special about Orpheus Island is the staff. Nothing is ever too much trouble, and the staff are united in the singular purpose of ensuring that your stay is simply 'just perfect'. The Management/Supervisory people - Chrissy, Nicole, Elise, have been there for multiple years; and much to my surprise they remember and implement our unique preferences automatically from the instant that we arrive. The rest of the crew are all just simply nice people, from all over the world; and so friendly and accomodating. We talk at length with many of these people, they're genuinely happy to stand and chat, and as a result we become close to many and regard them as friends. Unfortunately most of them though will only spend one season on the island, then they move on to somewhere else in their journey; but that's good for them, and it's also necessary for us, so that we have the opportunity of getting to know the crew who will be there on our next visit. Thank you to everyone at Orpheus Island Lodge, past and present, for making our visits so special.

less

“Fantastic week at Orpheus Island.”

We had a fabulous 7 night stay at Orpheus Island. The laid back, personal vibe with only 20-25 guests and 30 staff was perfect. Daily laundry service, housekeeping and basic resort functions were all excellent. We greatly enjoyed chatting with the staff from all over the world, and they were happy … more

We had a fabulous 7 night stay at Orpheus Island. The laid back, personal vibe with only 20-25 guests and 30 staff was perfect. Daily laundry service, housekeeping and basic resort functions were all excellent. We greatly enjoyed chatting with the staff from all over the world, and they were happy to stand and chat without anyone feeling rushed. Many other things stood out. The food and wine was good enough to make it the primary reason for a visit to the island with delicious meals interspersed with dips in the infinity pool, but there is so much more: the giant clam garden and coral reef just a few feet below the surface at low tide and only a 15 min self-guided dinghy ride from the lodge; taking out paddle boards and kayaks to explore the nearby bays and mangroves; visiting the marine research station on the island; walking the loop trail through the island forest with some spectacular views of nearby islands (you'll need decent walking shoes for the rocky, uneven trail); visiting one or more of the many nearby reefs as part of daily lodge trips that also included wine tasting, cocktail making, low tide and land nature walks. And my favourite, taking the Hoobie Cat out in decent winds to sail the bay. There are also multiple fishing and further afield site seeing charters available. The SE trade winds were not so favourable during our visit (the resort is on the west side of the island and relatively sheltered) so we didn't take any additional charters but other guests brought back fresh spanish mackerel, coral trout, etc., which we were lucky enough to share some evenings. Looking forward to returning for the moderate summer weather during our southern winter.

less

“Live like a billionaire for a while”

We hesitate to write this review, because small crowds are part of the allure! We just finished a five night stay at Orpheus - our thirtieth anniversary celebration. We had travelled almost 12,000 miles to get there. The staff of Orpheus change with time, but the quality of the experience rem… more

We hesitate to write this review, because small crowds are part of the allure! We just finished a five night stay at Orpheus - our thirtieth anniversary celebration. We had travelled almost 12,000 miles to get there. The staff of Orpheus change with time, but the quality of the experience remains unsurpassed. Foodies love the food; I was more impressed with the overall experience. Dining with the Tides, for example, is a celebratory romantic meal that can hardly be surpassed. We wish we remembered everyone’s name - I’m sorry, we don’t - but we’re sending our gratitude to Chrissy, Nicole, Hayden, Ben, Ash, Gabriella, Mathilde, and our friend from Vancouver. We realize that there were many others who made this work behind the scenes, and we enjoyed our time at the spa today. With a guest max count of about 28, it’s fun to make new friends- but you don’t have to. In summary, we can’t say enough - this is our highest recommendation.

less