Steve Irwin's family opened a lodge next to the Australia Zoo where guests stay in rustic cabins among rescue koalas
Maria Noyen
- Steve Irwin's family has opened a new luxury lodge next door to the Australia Zoo.
- The lodge has eight rustic cabins and an 82-foot infinity pool that looks onto surrounding wildlife.
A boutique lodge created by Steve Irwin's family is open for reservations in Australia.
The Crocodile Hunter Lodge in Queensland, Australia, is a brand-new overnight experience launched by the Irwin family in June, according to a press release provided to Insider.
It's inspired by Steve Irwin, the late Australian wildlife conservationist, who died in 2006 after getting attacked by a stingray. He was 44.
When Steve died, his wife, Terri Irwin, and their two children were left to carry on his legacy.
Steve had two children, Bindi and Robert, with his wife Terri who he married in 1992, according to People.
Famously, the pair skipped out on their honeymoon to embark on a filmed crocodile rescue mission – the footage went on to become "The Crocodile Hunter" series, the Australia Zoo website says.
Bindi, 23, and Robert, 18, both continue to work with their mother to carry on the Irwin name with Australia Zoo, which has 700 acres of land housing over 1,200 animals, the website adds.
The lodge, which officially opened in June, is located in the town of Beerwah on Australia's Sunshine Coast.
The lodge is less than a five-minute drive from the Australia Zoo, which started off as a reptile park run by Steve's parents in 1970, according to the website. In the 1990s it officially became the zoo that Steve and Terri, who tied the knot in 1992, ran together until his death.
Guests who book to stay at the new lodge will have unlimited entry to the zoo, according to a press release provided to Insider. They'll also have a free shuttle service to and from it and opportunities to visit the Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital, the lodge website says.
Located on the grounds is an 82-foot infinity pool, nicknamed The Billabong.
Billabong, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, is Australian slang for a stagnant pool of water — though, from the looks of it, the infinity pool at the Crocodile Hunter Lodge is slightly more luxurious than that definition.
Speaking to Travel + Leisure about the opening, general manager Luke Reavley said Robert, 18, made the pool a unique experience by having photographs he took of two crocodiles printed onto the pool tiles, which makes swimming there "super cool, and a little unnerving."
The swimming pool is the perfect spot to catch a view of the red kangaroos, emus, and koalas rescued from bushfires.
The Crocodile Hunter Lodge, per the press release, is home to a variety of local Australian species such as red kangaroos, echidna, and emus, which are the second-largest bird in the world after the ostrich, according to Brittanica.
It's also a habitat for southern Australian koalas, whose homes were devastated by wildfires between 2019 and 2020. The natural disaster was so bad that more than 60,000 koalas were either killed or hurt by the bushfires, according to a report commissioned by the World Wide Fund for Nature-Australia at the time.
Overnight stays in the lodge take place in one of the eight rustic cabins, which are family-friendly, Terri said.
"The Lodge includes eight family-friendly cabins, including an accessibility cabin, and offers services and facilities to suit everyone's needs, ensuring a pleasant and memorable stay," Terri, 57, said in the press release.
The website also says the accommodations, dotted around the bush, have laundry and room service.
According to the New York Post, booking a two-bedroom cabin costs between $800 and $1,000.
Bindi was behind the name of the lodge's on-site dining area, The Warrior Restaurant and Bar, which is a tribute to her father.
As Insider's Rachel Askinasi previously reported, Bindi chose to name her first daughter Grace Warrior in honor of her father, who she called "the most incredible Wildlife Warrior" in the post announcing the birth on Instagram in March 2021.
Reavley told Travel & Leisure that Bindi was behind the decision to name the lodge's restaurant. "Bindi chose the perfect name for the restaurant, Warrior, paying tribute to Steve who coined the phrase Wildlife Warrior," he said.
The seasonal menu has a variety of meal options, including a 48 Australian dollar, or $33, Wagyu steak.
All around the lodge there are special nods to Steve, and the legacy of wildlife conservation he left.
From framed family photographs on the wall to recycled timber used in the structure that Steve originally used to hand-build visitor viewing stands at the Australia Zoo, there are memories of the crocodile hunter throughout the lodge.
Incorporating wildlife and conservation in this new luxury overnight experience is a "beautiful way" the family is honoring Steve's "legacy and everything he stood for," Bindi said.
After all, Terri says it was Steve's dream to find a way to create an overnight experience for visitors to bring them closer to nature.
"Steve always had a dream that one day, people would not just visit Australia Zoo, but stay overnight, and have the immersive experience of listening to and being around wildlife after dark," Terri said in the release.
Combining luxury with conservation efforts is one way Robert said they are fulfilling Steve's wishes. "We are achieving Dad's vision of a world where humans and wildlife can peacefully coexist," Robert added.
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