My husband and then 2 year old son stayed at Cape Cassini in Nov. 2004. I was first very impressed by the architecture of the house - the rammed walls, stones from their surroundings, broken glass.... It was amazing how they had built their dream house on their own. It was an the first example of how much passion David and Pat have for learning how to live sustainably and actually living it. We felt it was a luxury to have the beach all to ourselves and enjoy modern technology - like the internet and electricity - at the same time just by be careful to use just the amount of water and electricity needed, using environmentally friendly shampoo, etc. Cape Cassini is a place that we would certainly like to visit again. David and Pat have slso given us the courage to dream that we might also be able to start a project like theirs in Japan.

I first learnt about Cape Cassini Wilderness Retreat in 2005 in Adelaide when Pat and David Telford presented information to teachers of Tourism and Hospitality at a Conference for CASTT- SA ( Council of Australian Secondary Tourism Teachers).
It is interesting to see two people take action using their knowldege , transferable skills from teaching and life experiences from global travel to develop a far more sustainable lifestyle in a wonderful part of South Australia- Kangaroo Island.
Ecotourism knowledge has been shared amongst teachers who influence young people who are impressionable and yet also provoked more mature people to think about small changes that can impact and work towards a better quality of life. The effort and persistence required to turn your dream to reality has been a huge challenge from which you have learnt and have willingly shared your learning with others. Please continue.

I first learnt about Cape Cassini Wilderness Retreat in 2005 in Adelaide when Pat and David Telford presented information to teachers of Tourism and Hospitality at a Conference for CASTT- SA ( Council of Australian Secondary Tourism Teachers).
It is interesting to see two people take action using their knowldege , transferable skills from teaching and life experiences from global travel to develop a far more sustainable lifestyle in a wonderful part of South Australia- Kangaroo Island.
Ecotourism knowledge has been shared amongst teachers who influence young people who are impressionable and yet also provoked more mature people to think about small changes that can impact and work towards a better quality of life. The effort and persistence required to turn your dream to reality has been a huge challenge from which you have learnt and have willingly shared your learning with others. Please continue.

Liz and I are proud to have been able to share a little in the realization of David and Pat's dream as it developed over the past 10 years. Like the Welfords, we live in and nurture a remote bushland part of Kangaroo Island in which achieving a level of self sufficiency, sustainability, and harmony with the natural environment is essential.
David and Pat are very active learners and were keen to test their ideas against the experiences of people like ourselves in solar and wind power generation,rain water collection, organic gardening, and living in the domain of native animals. We noted many aspects of these discussions being incorporated into their project, and how from there they developed the knowledge and systems of sustainability for running their home and heritage bushland property which they now pass on to their B&B guests and the local community. They have maintained strong community contacts through their on-going involvement with local schools and through their commitment to sustainability and ecological harmony.
As an example of this process, David and Pat have worked with Eco-Action Inc. (a K.I. community environmental organization) providing ideas and practical solutions when working with the "Sustainable Houses" committee which seeks to showcase the many projects operating on the Island.
The Welford's project was, in our eyes, highly ambitious and very demanding; especially so as it was not built with an unlimited budget, Dave and Pat undertaking contract Teaching work both on and off the Island to support their family while they developed their project.
They have succeeded in establishing what is essentially a learning centre in the eco-tourism field, setting standards which remain the highest on Kangaroo Island.

Cape Cassini Wilderness Retreat has been a supporter of Trees For Life for the past nine years. Last year they donated a major prize for the Annual Trees For Life Lottery. The prize was two nights for a family at Cape Cassini with a retail value of $730.
Trees For Life is a community-based organisation with an outstanding reputation for its program of revegetating South Australia with local native species, and protecting over 300 sites of remnant bushland of significant heritage value.
The commitment of David and Pat to the environment is reflected in their ongoing commitment to Trees For Life.

We have been fortunate to regularly experience Cape Cassini Wilderness Retreat and cannot imagine a better example of educating for living sustainably, anywhere in the world. Living, sharing, modeling and promoting sustainability, both to their guests and the education and tourism sectors, Pat and David provide an excellent platform for people globally to reflect and review their living practices and ecological and carbon footprints. Their creation of a wonderful model to protect and enhance the earth is exemplified by selection to showcase sustainable living to Meisei University students from Tokyo, Japan, as an integral component of ongoing Environmental Studies programmes.

The retreat is courageously and successfully positioned at the “upper end” of the tourism market and likely to attract critical clientele but conversely those needing to make radical changes and in a position to do so, if human life on the planet is to become more sustainable. They provide experiences showing conclusively that with the right attitude, will and determination, anyone can contribute to the fight against global warming and climate change, modifying their energy generation and usage practices.

Coupled with this is the fantastic raft of wildlife experiences and unique biodiversity the beautifully preserved natural bushland setting and coastline offers - an absolute delight! Sightings of rare birds are a regular occurrence and the coves and beaches provide wonderful marine experiences whether snorkeling, fishing or simply enjoying passing whales or bottlenose dolphins frolicking in the turquoise waters below. These remarkable experiences are educative as Pat and David always seek to inform from their extensive knowledge or accessing expert information. They have been involved in environmental restoration programmes and the streams on their property, provide an excellent pristine habitat for research into endangered native fish and collection of breeding stock for restorative works elsewhere.

Pat and David’s unique, superbly hosted ecotourism retreat is a perfect global example providing an educative ecotourism experience of a lifetime - extraordinary wildlife experiences in luxurious ecofriendly accommodation which educates about sustainability!

From UK - 2004/2005, my partner Carol and I had a fabulous 2+ months touring Australia and New Zealand. We didn't stay long in the same place and experienced an enormous variety of guest accomodation.
Cape Cassini Wilderness Retreat was unique, not just in terms of that wonderful holiday, but in our life's experience.
Although we wanted for nothing (hospitality was excellent),we were gently introduced (not hectored or preached at)to a lifestyle that didn't ravage our planet - electicity generated by the wind,collected rainwater,food grown locally, fish literally caught at the bottom of the garden, building materials, wherever possible,garnered from the surrounding environment.
THE WAS A SENSE OF ECO-HARMONY (if there is such a term!)that made us, well.... relaxed and content -a feeling of wellbeing.
We wish David and Pat every success in this competition as recognition of their vision and endeavour, but also in the hope that attendant publicity will help promote this model of sustainable eco-tourism.

As the Chair of the Judging panel for the South Australian Tourism Awards and an Australian National Tourism awards Judge, I must say that this property remains in my mind as one of the truely ecotourism experiences. My arrival was in the early evening during a spectacular electrical storm out at sea, the Retreat's location high on the cliff reinforced the nature based experience the stay at Cape Cassini offered. The adherance to sustainable tourism is carried through to all aspects of the stay and adds strongly to visitors appreciation of the need to protect the environment.

Dave and Pat embarked on their Cape Cassini Wilderness Retreat enterprise many years ago when many people thought is was something different and, maybe, a bit quaint.

Some visitors may have been a bit bemused and, a few, even annoyed at the extent to which they had to fit in with the need to conserve water and electicity sometimes or, at least, not use these resources in the careless way we do at home.

Today we see that their vision of self sustainability and conservation is with us all, wherever we live, as our water supplies dwindle and power costs increase, both financially and environmentaly. They are some of the very few people who have seen the future and made a personal and practical committment to showing how we can all get by, very comfortably it must be said, without abusing and misusing our environment and diminishing resources.

Similary I was impressed with the work being done to impove and restore the natural bushland, something that will also have an impact well beyond their time in that place which is a significant pointer to Dave and Pat's real motives.

While staying at Cape Cassini Wilderness Retreat, we enjoyed the opportunity to participate in a program to save the red tailed black cockatoo. This involved planting drooping she-oaks (Allocasuarina sp.), the principal food source for these endangered birds on Kangaroo Island. In addition to providing a food source to these birds, such tree planting will lessen the effects of global warming. As a couple who is concerned about environmental degradation, we commend the Welfords for their efforts to involve guests in activities which will help our planet into the future.

To experience Cape Cassini Wilderness Retreat is to have known the best of the best.* Its lessons stay with you..**
Cape Cassini is not for young eco-campers, the ones who stay in hostels and prefer rough it.
It is not for the family seeking a week in a bungalow by the sea with lifeguards and amusement parks.
This is not a place for middle-aged and older couples used to extreme consumption either at luxury b&bs or 4-5 star hotels.
Cape Cassini is for younger couples who love wildlife and care about the environment, those who want to learn how to be responsible householders, who want to catch the vision for what is possible in their own home---like our son and his wife who just bought a row house in Philadelphia.
This is a place for parents who know that their children need to learn a new way of relating to the earth and its resources, like the family of CRK, that stayed here in 2005.
Cape Cassini Retreat is for middle-aged and older couples, like us, who have gone to luxury b&bs and 4 star hotels, but who prefer to experience Aussie-style eco-tourism with the unique wildlife and landscape of Kangaroo Island, done with fun and without excuse for its low impact on the environment.
Pat and David’s warmth, flexibility, and commitment to the land lent credibility and authenticity to Cape Cassini Retreat’s byline: “Setting the standard; looking to the future.”
* Wonderful food, unparalleled views, wallabies and kangaroos galore, finding birds, koalas, and seals, personalized touring
** Use only the water and electricity you need. Eat and drink local. Use biodegradable cleaners. Recycle wastes. Waste less.
Build to maximize the benefits of heat, cold, light and wind. Walk softly among the birds and animals. Value your friends.

Cape Cassini Wilderness Retreat has gone to great lengths to achieve and retain the highest level of certification through Ecotourism Australia.

David and Pat have implemented a number of best practice initiatives such as alternative energy sources, organic fruit and vegetable gardents and a number of design principles to create a more sustainable product.

Cape Cassini Wilderness Retreat should be complimented on their committment to sustainable living practices and it's great that Australian tourism businesses such as Cape Cassini are leading the way in ecotourism standards.

Cape Cassini was a tremendous experience.
We really benefitted from David's knowledge and Pat's wonderful cooking.
we were very impressed with the self-sustaining nature of the resort.
we highly recommend Cape Cassini.

It was a priviege to stay at Cape Cassini Wilderness retreat, albeit a brief one. We enjoyed listening to David and Pat Welford describe their sustainable living and the features and benefits of their ecofriendly retreat. We learnt lasting lessons about water conservation! The home produced food was delicious with a bumper packed lunch when we left. The coastal scenery was spectacular. David and Pat have their own white sand beaches. At dusk a number of wallabies came right up to the house. As night fell a deep peace descended on the retreat. The only regret we had was our visit was so short.

We stayed at Cape Cassini Wilderness Retreat in June 2005 and experienced a wonderful time! Our hosts (David & Pat Welford) were very knowledgeable and helpful in many ways. Their excitement about the ecotourism was evident and served to teach both us and our children (10 & 13 years old at the time) about the importance of helping to save our world's environment. It was both fun and enlightening to learn how self-susstained the family and business was run. We visited at a time when there had been a number of rainy days as well as cloudy days so the solar panels were not able to produce much power. The family showed us their wind power and other options available. It made every one of us feel good to think that we could visit this beautiful remote area and not leave a terrible carbon footprint behind. Seeing how easy it was to be more ecologically responsible made a big impression on us and we have talked about it many times over the last 3 years. The hosts are wonderfully kind individuals who made sure that we were very comfortable and we experienced a great time on Kangaroo Island. We toured one full day with David and he was very knowledgeable about the island and its history and wildlife. The food was very enjoyable and we certainly had plenty of it. One of our favorite things at breakfast was the honey from Kangaroo Island. We did not feel like we were staying at a hotel or even a bed & breakfast, but rather like we were staying with new friends in their incredible home! Visiting Kangaroo Island was one of the highlights of our trip to Australia and it was made very memorable by our stay at Cape Cassini Wilderness Resort. This is a very special place run by some very special people! They should be commended!

The Middleton's email nicely highlights the difficulties of being all things to all people when doing something different. They stayed at the retreat in Jan 05; we had been open only a short while. We would like to think that we are now a little more subtle about indicating to guests when we have to use our fossil fuel back up generator if they want to use high energy appliances. As we said in our submission it has taken some time to learn about how to do the business. We have always been proud of the information about us on our website. Our guest survey, implemented in 2007, is also very important in guest selection. There is no doubt that we are not the place for some and we can't cater for those who want a B&B accommodation and limitless resources. In the ecotourism industry, recycling cloth serviettes is accepted best practise. Clean serviettes are always put out if it is not clear whose serviette belongs to whom or if they are soiled.It would have been nice if the Middletons had been more up front about the evening meal at the time. In 2005 chicken was served as a buffet meal and there was more available. They left no comment on the guest survey sheet in their room and a good comment in the Visitors Book when they left. We find out almost 3 and a half years later they would have liked more to eat. We believe that the customer also has a duty to inform their hosts if they are not happy with customer service at the time. We are not offended when guests ask for something, and are more than happy to be as obliging as we can be. Room guest books which explain our operation say "Within the limits of power, water and energy we will always do our best to provide for you.Our prime interest is for you to have an enjoyable,relaxing, fulfilling and safe time"

I think Cape Cassini is really having an admirable 'go' at ecotourism. However, our experience was NOT one that we would care to repeat. I suppose I didn't really appreciate fully what staying in an eco resourt entailed, but I think they need to be more upfront and advise their guests there are certain things to be aware of before booking.
Specifically, we found the following:
1 Recycled cloth serviettes were not appreciated. Especially, when we found ourselves having to determine who owned their particular serviette at breakfast the following morning.
2 When I asked to use a hairdryer, I was reminded next morning that the wind was not sufficient to allow me to wash my hair again. Even though I had no intention of doing so!
3 The whole experience made me feel like I was back at school - the only thing missing was a roll call!
4 The bitter end was our dinner where ourselves, the other two guests and the hosts shared a single chicken. On my reckoning that's a 6th of a chicken! The poor Italian couple must have been famished, but were much too courteous to say so. Of course, we were reminded that tea and coffee could be taken in our room as the host couldn't possibly do that after preparing dinner.
What a pity that the overall concept has been marred by a failure to remember the basic rule that the "Customer comes first".