Arajilla Retreat

Luxury, excellent accomodation, wonderful staff, gourmet meals by very imaginative chef which are varied and experimenting with new tastes. Laundry, bikes, beach towels, snorkelling gear all provided. Canapés and pre dinner cocktails, good choice of wines with meals. Set in private Kentish palm “forest” gardens and well maintained.

My husband, son and I stayed at Arajilla for five nights recently. I concur with all the other positive reviews, and particularly wish to praise the professionalism and warmth of the entire staff, and the spacious, modern, very comfortable accommodations. But what must be highlighted is the food. The dinners were absolutely five star all the way and I still don't understand how such an intimate resort, with food deliveries only once every two weeks, could produce such consistently fabulous food, in terms of taste, presentation, freshness and variety. To say we were blown away is an understatement; I actually started taking photos of the food, which I normally don't do, because I was so amazed. The day we departed Arajilla, we dined at Bennelong at the Sydney Opera House, and all three of us agreed that the food at Arajilla was better. Huge thank you to Arajilla and its chefs for an exceptional vacation.

From the moment you land on the island you are stepping into a family (Hotel)and a community that wants you to experience their island. On our arrival we were picked up by Ben (Exec Chef) and then met by James (Manager) and had the island explained to us…. No mobile phones, limited Wi-Fi, excellent food, BBQ anywhere on the island (almost), excellent wines, bikes,snorkelling, walking and chatting with the locals and other guests at the hotel. Imagine Jurassic Park without the dinosaurs…. That’s the only way that you can summarise the islands landscape, add in a great hotel and you have the perfect recipe for a truly spectacular holiday. James said on our arrival that before dinner we have cocktails at 17:30 and dinner from 18:30 and most guests have gone to bed by 21:00 as they are exhausted….he was right…. If you don’t like Fresh Air, Walks, Bikes, Swimming, Diving, Snorkelling and don’t mention the climbs and steps all over the island LHI isn’t for you….. if you do…. LHI is the gift that keeps on giving. To James and the whole team…. I can see why the Hotel and Island is so low key…. Please keep it that way.

We had the perfect week at the Arajilla Retreat on Lord Howe Island. The staff are excellent and super friendly. We had a couple of massages and I would highly recommend booking before you arrive to ensure you get in. We were fully inclusive and the food was amazing. A highlight was a beach BBQ which was delivered to a beach of our choosing for us to cook. Thank you Arajilla, we can't wait to come back

We stayed in a Kentia Suite for a week at Arajilla. Such a beautiful room with a delightful verandah attached. The nightly turndown service was a treat and so welcoming upon returning from a delicious dinner at the restaurant. Singing the same song as other 5 star reviews - exceptional staff (James, Hope, Flo, Victoria, Benjamin 'Mr Cocktails', Diesel and housekeeping); delicious meals including the seafood BBQ lunches (thank you chefs); and the nightly cocktail hour which was fun. So glad we chose to stay at Arajilla whilst discovering beautiful Lord Howe Island. Thank you all so much for making our stay so memorable.

The first time that our family stayed at Arajilla in 2022, we re-booked to come back in 2023 before we had even left! The same thing happened in 2023 - we have rebooked again for 2024, that is how much we all truly love this special resort. From the personalised service, relaxing atmosphere from the second we are picked up by friendly faces at the airport, beautiful rooms and shared spaces, the incredible food with a varied and delicious menu that we were so lucky to enjoy three times a day (do yourself a favour and do the BBQ option for lunch at one of the many gorgeous BBQ spots around the island), and the best local tips from the 5-star staff to help us feel at home (where to find the waterfalls when it’s rained, and when the cocktail bar down the road has music trivia on - such a fun afternoon!) - we have had 2 holidays of a lifetime here, and can’t wait to return later this year! Thank you so much to each of the fantastic staff, who make all the magic happen.