Know Before You Go: Emirates One&Only Wolgan Valley (Newnes, Australia)
In the best possible way, this place overwhelmed us with its warmth and natural abundance. We got the impression from the resort website and traveler reviews that the property would be fairly formal and that the all-inclusive rate may not really be all that inclusive. Happily, we were totally mistaken. Hands-down, one of our favorite stays and we can’t wait to return someday.
OVERALL RATING
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Exceptional
Overview
At-a-Glance
Date of stay: May 2019
Length of stay: 3 nights / 4 days
Trip type: Couples trip
Property type: Boutique luxury all-villa, all-inclusive property on an expansive conservation and historic heritage site catering to travelers of all types
Tailor-made for: Wildlife lovers, families/couples looking to reset and reconnect with each other and nature, those who appreciate great food, great scenery and great service in equal measure
Highlights
Staff service experience - like visiting old friends
Beauty of the vast preserve
Wildlife - wallabies, wombats, kangaroos, opossums and more
Endless outdoor diversions - biking, hiking, picnicking, excursions, etc.
Food and beverage program (and all-inclusive at that!)
Amazing villa with indoor pool, mountain bikes, backpacks, hiking sticks, and lots of other outdoor gear you might need
Good to Know
Wi-Fi is available throughout the resort, but there is no cell service here
There is much to do here within the all-inclusive program, though wine, spirits, and premium activities cost extra
The Activities Director stopped by our dinner one night to soft-sell us on booking premium activities which felt a little odd (during dinner?)
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Location & Setting
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We landed in Sydney International Airport, arriving from Hobart, after an all-too-short but sweet stay at Saffire Freycinet. The flight was a short nonstop, so we arrived feeling rested. We had booked a car service directly through Emirates One&Only Wolgan Valley to drive us the 3-hour journey to the property. Our driver was waiting for us when we landed and helped us with our luggage to the car. We quickly learned our driver was a retired member of the Australian secret service (evidently, very common backgrounds for drivers of the car service the property uses). We also quickly stumbled into some very uncomfortable discussions of Australian and American politics with our driver. While normally we would have been happy to have a spirited debate about politics, when finding ourselves on a 3-hour drive in remote parts of a foreign country with a former member of the secret service, this made for a somewhat disquieting start to our journey.
When booking a transfer to Wolgan, you have the option to book a Range Rover Sport or a Tesla Model-S. We picked the Range Rover, which was fortunate as our driver informed us the journey in a Tesla can take up to an hour longer as it requires a break midway through the drive to recharge the battery. If you're looking for a faster or more scenic alternative to the car journey, the hotel can arrange shared or private helicopter transfers.
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Property & Grounds
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An all-inclusive property, Emirates One&Only Wolgan Valley comprises 40 freestanding spacious villas, a main lodge, 2 restaurants and a bar/lounge, a spa, a fitness center, a pool, and a meticulously-restored 1832 heritage homestead and kitchen garden, all set on a 7,000 acre conservancy reserve abundant with native wildlife in a stunning valley in the Greater Blue Mountains. Notably, the reserve has its own natural spring, which staff described as the most valuable thing on the property (especially given the growing concern surrounding drought conditions in New South Wales).
Heads-up: there's no cell service anywhere on the property so guests can truly disconnect, but high-speed WiFi is available for free everywhere on the property, including the villa.
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Room
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We stayed in a Heritage 1-Bedroom King Villa — Wolgan's entry-level accommodation, which was anything but basic. At just under a thousand square feet, this spacious, ultra-luxurious villa came with a sitting area and a four-poster King-sized bedroom separated by a large stone dual-sided fireplace, generous walk-in closet, large bathroom with jacuzzi tub and rain shower with skylight, private indoor plunge pool, large screened-in back porch and small open-air front porch. The decor and furnishings were well-appointed and updated, with a rustic, eco-luxe feel throughout. One of the best design features was the glass-front doors wrapping around the villa, allowing for ample natural light and breathtaking views of the property from just about any vantage point in the villa.
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The villa came with two mountain bikes and helmets for use during our stay - one set sized for a male, the other for a female. There was also a Wolgan-branded backpack for use during our stay, perfect for hiking, biking, and other outdoor activities. As part of Wolgan's conservancy efforts, Two Wolgan-branded aluminum water bottles with carabiners were also provided for us to keep that could be refilled at filtered water stations throughout the property.
There was a welcome bottle of Australian red wine in our room upon arrival with a handwritten note welcoming us to the property. The mini-bar was fully stocked with gourmet snacks and drinks (non-alcoholic and alcoholic), all included in the rate.
At the time of booking, the hotel was running an Exceptional Early Bird rate which offered a 30% discount on the standard room rate. This, taken together with the all-inclusive nature of the property and the advantageous USD to AUD exchange rate at the time we traveled (1 AUD = 0.7 USD), yielded a truly exceptional value. As a point of comparison, 2 years earlier when visiting the lovely Meadowood in Napa Valley, we paid roughly the same amount for a cottage about half the size of the Wolgan Heritage Villa, and that rate included nothing but the room and access to the resort facilities.
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Service
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The service experience was out of this world. Everything was thought of and we felt well-looked after from the moment we arrived to the moment we left. The GM, James, makes sure to personally greet every guest; we had a great chat with him and learned we had some very small-world connections even though we live half a world apart. Anthony, the head sommelier, was especially knowledgeable and passionate about his craft and we had several top-notch experiences with him. For example, when we left, Anthony did not have a chance to personally say goodbye and he followed up the next day with a thoughtful goodbye email and incredibly generous offer to ask his connections in the wine world to help us arrange visits to some of his favorite wineries on our upcoming trip to Italy. The whole restaurant staff was really incredible -- they were professional, thoughtful, and extremely proactive.
The only off-key service note was during our first dinner at the property. The Activities Director came to our table, introduced himself, and chatted us up briefly. While he was very congenial, it felt like he was trying to up-sell us on booking some paid excursions. Getting what felt like a soft sales pitch in the middle of our dinner was a bit odd, but certainly didn't put a damper on the overall experience.
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Dining
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The dining at Wolgan was nothing short of exquisite. Although Michelin Guide does not rate restaurants in Australia, the cuisine and service were on par with many other Michelin 1-starred restaurants. All of the property's dining venues are located in the main lodge and are open only to overnight guests:
Main Dining Room - serving breakfast and dinner. Breakfast includes a la carte hot items and a buffet. Dinner service features a daily-changing multi-course menu or a la carte menu. Wine pairings are included, but there is a premium wine pairing option for additional charge. The dining room is indoors but service extends to the Terrace in warmer-weather months. The stone fireplace in the middle of the dining room lent a warm and cozy vibe when lit for dinner service (we visited during Australia's winter).
Bistro - indoor/outdoor dining option serving lunch. Featured a great a la carte menu, but also daily changing deli-style prepared food options (sandwiches, salads, etc.).
Bar and Terrace Lounge - indoor/outdoor venue serving drinks and bites, including the property's own 1832 Gin.
Private Dining - ideal for groups.
Kids menus are available at all dining venues.
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Family Services & Amenities
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Kids will love the wildlife encounters here and having room to explore, while adults will love all the kid-friendly programs and activities designed for both little ones and parents in mind. There were many families staying at the property with young children in tow, and the property looked after all of them attentively. Many of the activities offered on the property are family-friendly. Specifically-designed for kids, Wolgan Rangers is a supervised wilderness adventures program available to kids of all ages, but especially well-suited to those age 8-12. Activities are designed around various themes (e.g., bush survival, animals and birds, fossil hunting, adventure hikes, insects, arts and crafts, orienteering, etc.), weather, and the kids' individual interests.
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The Wolgan Rangers program is divided into two groups:
• Junior Rangers - kids under age 8. Children under 5 years of age must be accompanied by a parent or adult caregiver.
• Senior Rangers - kids age 8 and over.
At the Main Dining Room, kids can enjoy dinner and a movie supervised while Mom and Dad have an adults-only dinner nearby. A large conference room adjacent to the Main Dining room is staffed and decorated with bean bags, a projector, and a small table and chairs, and kids movies are shown here during dinner to keep kids and parents happy.
At the Bistro, there is a small kids outdoor play enclosure where little ones can be entertained while grown-ups enjoy the views.The Stables tour is especially family-friendly, and kids can groom and feed the horses.
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Activities
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The resort offers lots of activities, some included in the rate, others at an additional fee. Examples of complimentary activities include: expansive hiking and mountain biking trails (mountain bikes and helmets provided in each villa) -- for certain trails, the hotel requires guests to notify the staff and bring walkie-talkies along; guided nature walks; Colonial heritage homestead tours; stargazing talks; archery; conservation activities; tennis. Examples of activities available at an additional charge include: Krug picnic; trail riding and horse riding; guided glow worm walk; campfire experiences; nocturnal wildlife spotting tour; guided mountain hikes; photographic and 4WD expeditions; birdwatching tours.
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Wellness
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The resort offers plenty of outdoor and wellness-focused activities, as well as a fitness center and several running trails on the property. It was too cold for us to swim, but the outdoor pool looked perfect for wiling away long, hot days during summer months. There are also tennis facilities onsite.
With a large relaxation room, 6 private double treatment rooms, and visiting spa practitioners, the One&Only Spa is intimate and indulgent. The treatment rooms all have floor-to-ceiling glass-front doors that open to private outdoor sitting areas. Since we had just done the couples spa treatment at Saffire Freycinet prior to coming to Wolgan, we skipped the spa but it was incredibly tempting.
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Wow Factor
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Like having a mountain wilderness preserve to yourself with endless diversions and unique-in-the-world excursions, this place is the very definition of wow factor.
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Value
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Although this is one of the most expensive resorts in Australia, the scale and beauty of the property, the memorable wildlife encounters, the sizable and well-equipped villa, the high-quality dining and activities included in the nightly rate — plus the very favorable USD to AUD exchange rate for Americans — made this place an unexpectedly great value for us. The seasonal special offer that we booked enhanced the value equation even further.
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Overall
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To borrow a phrase from Michelin, this place was worth a special journey. Not to be missed.
Rating Legend*
💛💛💛💛💛 Exceptional
💛💛💛💛 Notable
💛💛💛 Standard
💛💛 Substandard
💛 Unsatisfactory
*All ratings are relative to similar-class properties
