A world class boutique hotel

We, Ali & Xochi, welcome you to our little slice of paradise

Welcome to Narrows Escape Rainforest Retreat. An enchanting rainforest paradise at the edge of Kondalilla National Park in the Sunshine Coast Hinterland. We fell in love with the magic of this property the first time we saw it. We knew these eight villas nestled in nature were incredible, a place that sparks special memories.

The beauty of Narrows Escape is that it is a boutique property and we have the luxury of personally welcoming you and getting to know what we can do to help make your stay exceptional. Whether it is sharing our secrets on the best spots in town or our favourite walks or water holes, or helping you organise an extra special little something for your loved one. It is connecting with you and being a part of these little touches that brings smiles to our faces and makes us love what we do.

We invite you to come and delight in this magical paradise as much as we do.

Ali – Disarmingly charming with an infectious laugh, Ali is an entrepreneur in the truest sense. His working life started at age 7, working in a hotel. Ali quickly took to life in the hospitality industry and worked a diverse array of jobs before managing his first backpacker hostel at the age of 15. Ali’s warmth and charm saw him create excellent networks in the Tourism Industry. In 2003 he got the opportunity to live and work in Finland and this enabled him to save the money to achieve his dream of building a hotel. Hotel Helsinki House opened in 2014 and has received prestigious awards such as twice receiving Trip Advisors “Travellers Choice Award for best boutique hotels in all of India”. In 2018 Ali designed and built his second hotel, Boutique Helsinki. Ali never stops dreaming. His dreams for Narrows Escape will continue to unfold, so we hope you will continue coming back year after year and come on this journey with us.

Xochi – Daydreamer, adventurer, and quietly confident, Xochi enjoys the little details in life. She was born and raised in Queensland but also spent a great deal of her childhood in Sweden, where her father is from. This inspired her love of nature and the outdoors that has seen her travel to all corners of the globe. Xochi worked in various iconic Melbourne bars while completing her post-graduate degree in Psychology and Criminology at the University of Melbourne. A chance meeting in Jaisalmer saw Ali turn on all his charms to capture Xochi’s attention. Love blossomed over hotel dreams, sketchbooks of ideas, and endless cups of chai. The chai’s been replaced by coffee and the deserts been placed by rainforest but dreaming and designing continue. This is just the beginning of our Narrows Escape journey, we hope you travel this road with us.

In 2021 we won TripAdvisor's Traveller's Choice Award - #1 Romantic Hotel in the world!! This is an incredible achievement and we are so honoured to have such wonderful guests who have taken the time to review our product and service.  We are so grateful for this recognition and we continue to strive to give our guests the very best experience.

Acknowledgement

Acknowledgement

Narrow Escape Rainforest Retreat acknowledges the Kabi Kabi peoples and the Jinibara peoples whose lands and waters we all now share. The Traditional Owners’ unique values and ancient and enduring cultures deepen and enrich the lives of our communities. Through importan...

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Tourism Industry Involvement

Tourism Industry Involvement

Narrows Escape Rainforest is a proud supporter of the Tourism Industry. It is an active member of the following organisations: Queensland Tourism Industry Council Australian Tourism Export Council Montville Getaways Visit Sunshine Coast Australian Tourism Da...

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Water Consumption

Water Consumption

Villa wastewater is recycled onto the grounds via an Aqua nova Bio cycle system. Two 40,000 litre underground rainwater tank supplies the villas. Water is sourced from rainwater captured from the main residence and supplemented by water drawn natural bore in accordanc...

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Energy Consumption

Energy Consumption

90% of all lights are LED globes, with the remainder energy efficient CF lamps Natural lighting is maximised in living areas with skylights installed in all villas. On demand gas hot water systems ensuring water is only heated as used. Timer switches used on all ou...

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Waste Management

Waste Management

Environmentally friendly biodegradable phosphate free cleaning products are used. Food scraps are recycled in our compost and worm farms. Guests are encouraged to participate in recycling: Compost bins and recycling bins are provided in all villas. Disposable an...

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Sustainable Tourism Practises

Sustainable Tourism Practises

Guest food supplies are sourced locally with an emphasis on regional, seasonal produce. Artisan food products made with local ingredients are supplied to guests. We have planted fruit trees that will hopefully supply our guests in the future. We grow our own organi...

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Environmental Management

Environmental Management

Land for wildlife member All garden areas are mulched to conserve water in the soil Hardy plants and natives are chosen for the garden ...

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Ethical and Natural Products

Ethical and Natural Products

Environmentally friendly biodegradable phosphate free cleaning products are used. Our bath products are all organic and free from nasty chemicals Our throws are from Seljak Brand and are made from closed loop practices. We use natural banksia diffusers with pure...

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Upcoming Projects

Upcoming Projects

We have started phase one of our project to become solar powered by removing some trees that were blocking the amount of sunlight that can be captured by rooftop solar panels We are currently researching the best way to have and maintain beehives on our land ...

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Accessibility

Accessibility

Our Kookaburra villa has ramp access.  It is not fully wheelchair accessible in terms of the bathroom fittings yet.  We are in the process of building and updating this and hope to have it completed by the end of 2021. We welcome guests with assistance animals. O...

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Climate Change and Sustainability

Climate Change and Sustainability

We believe in conscious luxury. We believe that even lavish and indulgent travel can still have a small footprint. Sustainable and ethical tourism is at the forefront of our minds, so you can rest easy knowing that you are supporting a business that supports the environme...

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Narrows Escape

Awards

Family Owned & Operated

We own and operate our beautiful boutique villas.  We are here to make your stay exceptional, whether it's catering to special dietary requirements or writing a handwritten note to surprise your loved one on arrival.  We love our little slice of paradise and the special memories that we help to create.  It is you, our guests, who make us love what we do.  This is our business, our home, our everything, so please give us a call and let us know how we can help make your getaway as magical as possible.

Custom Packages

Looking for something extra special or a little out of the ordinary?  Maybe you are thinking of proposing and want some help to make that special moment as magical as it can be, or perhaps you want to book out the whole property with some friends for a special birthday celebration.  We own and operate our boutique luxury villas and we love to work with you, our guests, to make your stay incredible.  Give us a call and let us know what plans you are hatching and we can see how we can help you make it happen.

Sustainability

We are proudly advanced eco-certified and love to source and showcase the best local products because we believe the Sunshine Coast region is incredibly special.  We are always looking at how we can improve our property to make it greener. We love the little suggestions that you, our guests, share with us and we are excited to implement these, like switching to Australian biodegradable coffee pods, reducing single-serve plastics, creating a compost and worm farm for food scraps and we now have solar panels to reduce our footprint! We believe that luxurious travel can still have a small footprint.  We have also upgraded to a hybrid car for transferring our guests and picking up our local goods because we know every little bit counts.

Check In 3pm

Check Out 11am

Daily Reception Hours

8am - 8pm

If you need a late check-in just give us a call