20 Jun 2018
Words Alicia Nally, Cairns Post

Sales Buoy Outlook for North's Resort Industry

Recent sales of iconic Far Northern tourism properties such as the historic Cooktown Hotel, Bay Villas Resort at Port Douglas, Coral Sands Beachfront Resort and Blue Lagoon Resort at Trinity Beach and the Reef Palms Motel Apartments leasehold in Cairns have fuelled extra speculation the industry in on its way up.

Staff at Resort Brokers Australia's Cairns office have settled 18 accommodation and hospitality property and business sales worth more than $22 million in the region over the past 12 months. 

North Queensland business consultant and broker Kirsten Lowis has also been recruited to join agent Chenoa Daniel in servicing the tropical north. 

National sales manager Trudy Crooks said there were high levels of activity and strong demand for accommodation operations. 

She said the Cairns and Port Douglas visitor economy has performed strongly over the past two years, boosting accommodation trading figures and investment demand. 

The lastest Dransfield Hotel Futures 2018 industry report showed, while occupancy rates increased 2.3 per cent in FY2017, room rates had risen by 10 per cent to $156.65.

"Even more impressive is that revenue per available room was up 13.4 per cent, leading the country in year-on-year growth and outperforming already robust prior expectations," Ms Crooks said. 

"This has produced excellent trading figures on which to sell accommodation business, while the outlook continued growth points to good upside for incoming investors. Preliminary data for this financial year indicates robust rate-driven growth has continued on the back of improving occupancy levels." 

Recent reports from Herron Todd White and Tourism Tropical North Queensland have suggested the effect on increased tourism numbers was starting to filter through into the Far North economy. 

But a constraint on internal flights was expected to impact the domestic market for the next one to two years, according to TTNQ chief executive Pip Close. 

Ms Close said the higher price flights meant a marketing strategy focusing on tourists, with higher than usual budget and who would spend more, was a new strategy.