Great Barrier Reef island reborn as eco-friendly luxury holiday destination

A formerly abandoned southern Great Barrier Reef island has been resurrected into an exclusive eco-resort having been leased by a hotels group which has redeveloped the destination.

Surrounded by blue water and coral reef, Wilson Island, located off the coast of central Queensland, has seen guests visit for the first time in five years.

The secluded natural coral cay, 80 kilometres off the coast of Gladstone and 15 kilometres from Heron Island, has been resurrected as an eco-friendly luxury camping resort

Just 5.24 acres in size, the island was left abandoned by a former owner five years ago and in 2017 was bought on a rolling lease by Aldesta Hotels, which has since redeveloped the picturesque island paradise.

Project Manager Kevin Nixon told ABC Capricornia "it's such a unique experience … it's like you're living in the middle of a bird sanctuary, you wake up there's turtles outside your room nesting."

It took 18 months for the island to be cleaned up and transformed.

Nixon continued “we had to fully refurbish.

"Our small build team over there spent months and months bringing everything back to life."

Guests to the exclusive island must be over the age of 16 and it only sleeps 18 people at a time.

Nixon said this also plays into the island's sustainable focus, adding “we've got nine battery-powered luxury reef safari tents. We're 100% solar (and the tents are) very understated but very luxurious at the same time … everything is all eco-amenities and 100% native-Australian focus.

"We've got all septic installed, all new organic linen, eco-friendly mattresses, recycled timber mirrors and bedside lamps.

“We've got upcycled glassware and eco-friendly light fittings … no plastics at all."

Staying in line with the island's sustainable efforts, it will close to guests for two months every year so as not to interrupt the annual bird-breeding season.

Explaining this, Nixon advised “(it will be) closing for a couple of months from 28th January to 1st April every year.

"That's the peak of the bird season and that is their home, you're in the middle of everything that's going on while you're there and we just want to let them do what they want to do.

"We've got sea eagles and everything nesting over there."

Advising that management works very closely with Queensland Parks and Wildlife, Nixon added “Wilson is even more restrictive than Heron Island in terms of what we can do and how we do it. So we're constantly checking what we're doing is alright and going the extra mile.”.

Gladstone's peak tourism body, Gladstone Area Promotion Development Limited, said the island will be a major drawcard for domestic and international visitors to the region.

Tourism Manager, Dominique Gleixer stated “this just opens up another luxury market in our region.

"It's a completely different island experience to Heron Island … there's only 19 people able to be on the island at one time, with nine permanent designer tents, so it's a private exclusion and we're very fortunate to have this in the southern Great Barrier Reef here."

Wilson Island is part of the land traditionally owned by the Port Curtis Coral Coast (PCCC) People, a group which is made up of four tribes - the Byellee, Gooreng Gooreng, Gurang and Taribeland and Bunda people.

The PCCC board consists of two representatives from each group and is responsible for managing the benefits of various Indigenous Land Use Agreements (ILUA).

Images courtesy of Wilson Island.