Emirates Hotels & Resorts' first hospitality development outside Dubai scheduled for a soft opening in October.

Scheduled for a soft opening in October, the conservation-based Wolgan Valley Resort & Spa has already received its first bookings, including individual, family and small group reservations.

Located on Australia's Great Dividing Range, within the Blue Mountains World Heritage Area, Wolgan Valley occupies 2 percent of a 4,000-acre conservancy reserve and is surrounded by two National Parks.

This secluded resort will feature 40 individual villas surrounded by private decks, each having its own indoor/outdoor swimming pool. Its architecture is reminiscent of traditional rural Australian homesteads.

As Emirates Hotels & Resorts' first hospitality development outside Dubai, the A$100 million project is being built on the same principles as Emirates' acclaimed Al Maha Desert Resort & Spa, fully integrated into its environment, and supporting wide-ranging conservation practices focusing on endangered species protection.

With approximately 4,000 acres of land operated as a wildlife reserve, the Wolgan conservancy project re-establishes and secures a future for many of the region's indigenous and endangered species, which were under critical pressure from introduced flora and feral predators -- the major causes of species extinction in Australia.

This comprehensive conservation program will include the regeneration of the Wolgan Valley reserve through the planting of thousands of native trees indigenous to the area. Sustainability is also an integral part of the Wolgan Valley Resort & Spa development.

Environmentally-sustainable practices such as rainwater collection, grey water recycling and the use of solar panels are incorporated into the framework of a green architecture that ensures the resort will sit lightly within its environment. The resort will ultimately have over 100 solar-energy units, significantly reducing the resort's energy consumption, and therefore its resources footprint. For more information, visit www.emirateshotelsresorts.com.