Craig Bradbery
Craig Bradbery is the CEO of Baillie Lodges, Director of Luxury Lodges of Australia and Director of Tourism Tropical North Queensland. Baillie Lodges is an intimate portfolio of luxury lodges setting new benchmarks for premium experiential travel. Their property portfolio includes the Capella Lodge on the World Heritage-listed Lord Howe Island, Vancouver Island’s celebrated luxury outpost Clayoquot Wilderness Lodge, Huka Lodge on the banks of Waikato River on New Zealand’s North Island, Longitude 131° at Uluru-Kata Tjuta, and Tropical North Queensland’s luxury bolt-hole, Silky Oaks Lodge located next to the World Heritage-listed wilderness of the Daintree National Park.
3 words to describe Nature?
Peaceful. Powerful. Rejuvenating
3 things Nature taught you?
As much I wish I could, nature has taught me that I can’t control everything
Always try to make the most of every opportunity
Even when things seem somewhat bleak, there’s usually a silver lining
3 most treasured Nature spots?
Kangaroo Island: Our Southern Ocean Lodge property is located on this amazingly pristine island, just 20-minutes off the coast of Adelaide. The wildlife and landscapes showcase the best of Australia, whilst I can sit and look at the wildly intriguing Southern Ocean all day, it just never gets old.
Vancouver Island, Canada: Our newest lodge, Clayoquot Wilderness Lodge, is located here, in the remote coastal Canadian wilderness, surrounded by old-growth coniferous forests, lakes, rivers, and wildlife in a UNESCO biosphere reserve. I fell in love with Clayoquot during my first visit in late 2019, so this is the number one destination on my list to get back to when borders re-open.
Anywhere by the ocean, whatever side of the world it’s on, whether it be Gordons Bay in Sydney – a beautiful, rocky cove nested between Coogee and Clovelly beaches, or Estero Beach in Baja California, which I visited many years ago when it was rustic surfers haven.
When you look at the OCEAN, it makes you feel…?
Relaxed (it grounds me to look at the ocean and hear its relentless sounds), inspired (it takes me away from the “noise” of daily life and helps me look ahead to bigger things), awe-struck (I’m very respectful of the great power that the ocean holds)
When you see a FOREST, it makes you feel…?
Seeing a forest makes me yearn to be within the forest because I’m intrigued as to what I might discover
When you see a VOLCANO, it makes you feel…?
Excited (and maybe a little scared)! The power and uncontrolled force is fascinating – I have very fond memories of the first volcano I got up close to, Mt Agung in Bali
When you see a SUNRISE or SUNSET, it makes you feel…?
Calm and very alive, the start and end of the days are when I’m at my best
When you hear THUNDER, it makes you feel…? *
Alert! It tells me there’s something interesting going on outside and I want to pay attention.
When you hear the WIND HOWLING, it makes you feel…?
Invigorated - there’s nothing like a windstorm to awaken the senses.
Are you an Ocean, Mountain, Forest, or Desert person?
As an Australian living in Sydney (and a Pisces!), I am all about the Ocean. Having said that the desert is also a real source of inspiration for me, so I relish my visits to our lodge, Longitude 131, at Uluru in Australia’s spiritual heart
On a scale of 1 to 10, how important is Nature to your well-being?
9… but add great food & wine to the mix and it becomes an 11!
Share with us a childhood nature memory?
Growing up in Sydney, my first memories of nature were usually on family holidays, such as fishing at Long Jetty on the NSW Central Coast, or snorkeling on the Coral Coast of Fiji. These early experiences were definitely the catalyst for developing my passion for travel… and I consider myself very lucky to work in the industry I am so passionate about.
