Encounter Kangaroo Island’s most unique attractions – from endangered Australian sea lions to a eucalyptus oil distillery. Depart the pier for a drive across the native bushland of Kangaroo Island to beautiful Seal Bay Conservation Park on the south coast. It’s the only place in the world where you can walk along a beach among highly endangered Australian sea lions in their natural environment. Watch these extremely rare creatures as they bask in the sun and play in the surf. In contrast, Emu Ridge Eucalyptus Distillery is all about the flora, not fauna. Your tour here is also a heritage experience – a throwback to the days when distilling aromatic oil from indigenous eucalyptus trees was big business on the island. The shop here has everything eucalyptus-scented you could ever want.

Explore picturesque Kingscote, a heritage town with a thriving arts community and the first European settlement in the state of South Australia. Established at nearby Reeves Point in 1836, Kingscote remains relatively undeveloped, due in part to its remote location. That is the beauty of this seaside town and the surrounding area, were nature reigns supreme. On the way to town, you will pause at gorgeous Pennington Bay and Pelican Lagoon; the latter known for its free-roaming kangaroos, wallabies and of course pelicans. While meandering about Kingscote on your own, you might browse the art galleries, admire the enormous kangaroo mural painted on a downtown silo and shop for hand-crafted jewelry. Many of the stores also carry products made with organic honey from imported, genetically pure Ligurian bees. Later, you will visit the Island Beehive, the source of this revered raw honey that is used in everything from mead to beauty products.

Travel through the island’s beautiful countryside and stop along the way to sample unique locally sourced products. The natural beauty of Kangaroo Island will be on display the entire time, but especially at the surfers’ haven of Pennington Bay and at the Penneshaw Lookout. As you will see, the island is beautiful and bountiful. All sorts of organic products are made in this pristine environment, including pure Ligurian honey, which you will taste after touring the Kangaroo Island Ligurian Bee Co. Similarly, you will learn how essential oils from plants such as eucalyptus, clove and lavender are distilled for cosmetics and other uses as a prelude to sampling ciders at the distillery. You will enjoy a full lunch and lavender-infused scones after touring Emu Bay Lavender Farm. Several vineyards also flourish on the island, enjoy some exclusive tastings arranged in Penneshaw. Free time in seaside Kingscote rounds out the experience.

Encounter stunning coastline and a menagerie of marine creatures as you cruise just offshore of Kangaroo Island. Aboard a custom undercover vessel ideally suited for nature spotting in these waters, listen in as your captain points out the landmarks, shares island history, and brings you as close as possible to whatever wildlife’s out and about this day. Expect to see New Zealand fur seals romping in the water or snoozing on the rocky shore; they’ve made a remarkable comeback since being hunted nearly to extinction in the 1800s. Another furry marine mammal you’re likely to encounter is the Australian sea lion, a species that remains highly endangered worldwide but enjoys the safety of a breeding reserve here on Kangaroo Island. Males and females look quite different; your captain will help sort out who’s who when they show up. While you’re aboard, don’t be surprised to spot a pod or two of bottlenose dolphins, perhaps with calves swimming alongside their mothers. They often approach the boat for a closer look – as curious about us as we are about them. And don’t forget to look up. Plenty of seabirds to see, including white-bellied sea eagles, spectacular to watch when they fish.

Experience Kangaroo Island like a local by visiting lesser-known wildlife hotspots with nature-loving island residents Ro and Phil, your guides for the adventure. In and around the coastal areas, you may see bottlenose dolphins, koalas, kangaroos, echidnas and a colony of little penguins. You might even spot rarer species such as Rosenberg goannas, blue fairy wrens and Tammar wallabies, which are extinct on the mainland. Up-close encounters with iconic Australian animals is only one aspect of this behind-the-scenes tour as you will also see how the locals live. You will stop for tea with Ro’s parents and visit your guides’ home, a Wildlife Land Trust property where they take in rescued animals and have reforested the land to attract glossy black cockatoos. You might also have the chance to swim in the sea with dolphins and seals and stroll through the bushlands. By tour’s end, you will know firsthand how locals live in harmony with nature.

Treat your eyes to spectacular coastal views from a 19th-century lighthouse, and your palate to a tasting of Kangaroo Island-grown wines at a nearby cellar. A scenic drive from the pier leads to the southeastern tip of “KI”– that’s local shorthand for the island’s name – on the Dudley Peninsula. Here stands the Cape Willoughby Light, built of local granite and limestone in 1852. It’s South Australia’s oldest lighthouse, sorely needed to help navigators contend with a stretch of sea known as the Backstairs Passage, the treacherous channel between KI and the mainland. The vantage point on the coast is wonderful out here, and the scene is made even more perfectly Aussie by the free-range kangaroos that frequent this part of the peninsula. Not far away and bathed in the same maritime climate and sea breezes, wine grapes flourish. Enjoy a stop at a wine tasting establishment where you can taste how content these shiraz, sauvignon blanc and viognier fruits are to be growing here on Kangaroo Island as you sample the selections. The specific wines chosen for the tasting vary by the day, but the one sure bet is that they will showcase the unique KI environment.

View a remarkable variety of native Australian animals at a wildlife park and gain an understanding of the critical roles that bees play by visiting Island Beehive, a family-owned apiary buisness. While walking through Kangaroo Island Wildlife Park, you will see a collection of iconic creatures that includes koalas, wallabies, penguins, dingoes and plenty of other indigenous animals. You may also feed kangaroos and hear the caregivers describe how animals such as slow-moving koalas became especially endangered after bushfires burned much of their habitat. A stop at the Kangaroo Island Ligurian Bee Co, one of Australia’s largest organic honey producers, will reveal the steps in making pure Ligurian honey and the variety of products that contain it. The company nurtures bees in about 800 hives and makes everything from small-batch botanical honey to beeswax candles. You will also visit the lookout at photogenic Pennington Bay, a favorite spot for surfing as powerful swells are constant.

Journey into the wilds of Kangaroo Island, Behold the stunning natural beauty of Kangaroo Island, a rugged wonderland that the locals affectionately call K.I. You will concentrate on the island’s southernmost natural phenomena, starting at Remarkable Rocks, a collection of sculpture-like granite boulders that the rain, wind and pounding sea have shaped over millions of years. Nearby Admirals Arch is another erosion-shape coastal landmark within Flinders Chase National Park. From the viewing platform of the rock bridge, you can expect to see brown seals frolicking below. For the ultimate view of the island’s indigenous birds, you will visit Raptor Domain, the only presentation of birds of prey in free flight in South Australia. Wedge-tailed eagles, barn owls and kookaburras are but a few of the rescued and orphaned avian species that have been rehabilitated there. Later, you will enjoy a close-up look at the surfers’ haven Pennington Bay and a sweeping view of the island’s northern coast from Penneshaw Lookout.