Stranded with Refuge was the sixteenth season and the fourth All-stars in Stranded. Typically, All-star seasons only include contestants from the previous 3 seasons, however Stranded with Refuge featured All-stars from seasons 9-15. This season’s twist revolved around the new concept of Refuge. In the beginning of the game 22 players started on one beach. 2 won Individual Immunity and picked tribes of 10. The two players left over became members of the Refuge tribe. The Refuge Tribe would be Immune for a pre-determined amount of time. Each week one tribe of 10 lost Immunity and had to vote someone out, while the winning tribe also went to a ceremony: The Refugee Induction. There, the most recent Refugee would select one person on the winning tribe to join them in Refuge. Slowly but surely, the Refugee tribe grew. When there were 4 players remaining on both original tribes of 10, they were merged to face off against the complete tribe of 8 refugees. After another 4 councils, the two tribes merged into the final tribe of 12. The new twist sent strategy upside down as the Refugees had to decide between taking an ally on the tribe (thus decreasing their alliances numbers on said tribe) or an enemy. Add to that taking away a tribes challenge strength might also put them at a disadvantage. What resulted was a constant back and forth power struggle between the alliances and whoever was sent to Refuge.

The early stages of the game saw three huge characters go back to back in Parvati, Taj and Tyson. Lucky, the majority of the following boots were not major characters as most went to Refuge where they remained safe. Refuge became a season of underdogs as Paloma, the person not chosen for either tribe, proved her strength on Refuge and began forming close bonds with the players who wanted her out. Just as unlikely, the last player to show up to the game, Yul quickly won the first Immunity challenge and from there eventually joined the Refuge tribe. In the merge, the alliance between Natalie, Paloma and Brenda proved to be a strong one. Meanwhile, the always argumentative Naonka and Alina provided an entertaining distraction for everyone with their constant bickering. Yul managed to make it to the final four despite his challenge performances and likability. Meanwhile, the less popular Erinn muscled her way to the end game when she won a string of Individual Immunities much to the chagrin of her tribemates. In an equally unlikely underdog story, Lisi found four different idols and idoled her way to the very end of the game in the final three. Likewise, the wildcard Katie was as entertaining as ever as she charmed her way through the game (and in some cases annoyed). Ultimately, despite all the underdog stories of Refuge, Natalie ended up taking the crown after a season of twists, turns and mind-numbing strategy.