April 2014 – Wilderness Collection’s North Island in Seychelles is undergoing an extensive refurbishment, one of several to have taken place during a successful 12-year period of groundbreaking innovation and award-winning style, due for completion at the end of June 2014.

“We are focusing on evolving our luxury ecotourism operation and guest experience offering to ensure that North Island remains the world’s most exclusive private island escape. The new look and feel will see a heightened textural variety to increase the contrast in “barefoot luxury” and enhance our infamous ‘North Island way’”, says Bruce Simpson of Wilderness Collection.

North Island’s signature ocean palette will be interspersed with sharper golds, stronger teals, corals, and patterns alluding to Creole culture and the trade routes of the Indian Ocean. In the villas, new Phillipe Starck for Hans Grohe ceramic fittings are being introduced, together with hand-blown glass light fittings and gilt ironmongery. The new softs and furniture, including deep relaxing loungers and curvaceous outdoor chairs, will reinforce the contemporary organic modernism of North Island, whilst the decorative elements will allude to marine life and aquatic forms in a celebration of place.

New billowing curtains in the villa rooms allow the relaxed holiday home feel to permeate the suites and add a softness and privacy to the rooms. Plush carpets in silk and hand-woven Himalayan wool will also add a greater level of refinement and elegance to the villas for the sophisticated guest. The much-loved outdoor salas have new mattresses and brighter bolts of colour in a more energetic palette and additional handcrafted detailing.

In Villa 11, the master bed itself will be extended through the introduction of a hand-beaten brass headboard and dressed in luxury Ivano Redaelli linen, whilst the rest of this expansive villa will receive new furniture, fittings and design elements alluding to the natural marine world.

In the main areas new lighting, new dining furniture, serving ware and decorative elements are being introduced. The wine cellar features strong burnt coral colours and cork accents whilst outside, floating between two ponds, the dining area has new olive green decorative elements. Breadboards made from antique French wine barrels talk to artisanal cheese and charcuterie evenings with perfect wine pairings. West Beach, with its driftwood Robinson Crusoe aesthetic has new accents of coral red and bone furniture, furnishings and décor.

In essence, the softs refurbishment and upgrading of North Island resets and raises the benchmark of “barefoot luxury” to a point where North Island remains the leading luxury private island retreat in the world. It also reasserts its place as an icon of sustainable paradisiacal escape and relaxation with purpose.

Notes to the editor

Wilderness Collection www.wilderness-collection.com

• The Wilderness Collection is a hand-picked portfolio of progressive and innovative destinations in iconic areas of Africa and its islands. All of the destinations share a philosophy of building environmental, social and financial equity and of raising global awareness around sustainability.

• Refined and elegant, each location is dedicated to unashamed, but sustainable, luxury and exceptional guest experiences. From the barefoot opulence of North Island, to the architectural sophistication and elephant ambassadors of Abu Camp, the rainforest discovery and lowland gorilla encounters of Odzala and the cultural journey and modern conservation concept of Segera, the Wilderness Collection is firmly rooted in striving to provide truly unique and authentic experiences for our guests.

North Island www.north-island.com

• North Island is one of Africa’s most exclusive private islands, situated 30km from the main island of Mahé, Seychelles. Extremely isolated with only 11 spacious guest villas, North Island is renowned for its luminous white beaches, filigree reefs and azure Indian Ocean.

• North Island offers an unrivalled all-inclusive experience where guests are able to choose whatever they want to do and eat, whenever and wherever – private beach dinners being a firm favourite. On land or in water, the choices on North Island are many and varied – from cool forest trails and mountain biking to snorkelling, diving, kayaking, fishing expeditions and romantic sunset boat cruises.

• North Island is a sanctuary where natural habitats, long neglected, were rehabilitated so that endangered Seychelles fauna and flora could be reintroduced and given a place to grow and thrive.