Sheraton resort on the Gold Coast up for grabs with a glittering price tag

The 1980s Sheraton Grand Mirage Resort on the Gold Coast, which was built by late fugitive developer Christopher Skase, is up for sale. Consortium owners led by Star Entertainment Group have placed it on the market with a price tag of more than $200 million.

Sitting on 3.45 hectares, with 215 metres of beach frontage at The Spit, north of Surfers Paradise, the hotel once favoured by models, movie stars and even royalty opened in 1987 and was considered the jewel in the then Skase group’s growing property portfolio.

Prince Charles, George Clooney and Sting have stayed at the resort that Skase, through his Quintex group, built for about $100 million. Skase and his socialite wife Pixie went on to build the “other” Mirage resort in the then lesser-frequented Port Douglas in Far North Queensland before fleeing to Spain, where Skase died of cancer in 2001.

The Sheraton Grand Mirage Resort on the Gold Coast is up for sale, seeking offers over $200 million.Credit:

Star Entertainment and its consortium, including the Far East Corporation and Hong Kong-based conglomerate Chow Tai Fook, bought the five-star resort with its 295 rooms in 2017 for $140 million.

In Star Entertainment’s half-year results, in February, the company signalled it would put the Sheraton Grand on the market as part of a non-core asset sales program. It also held an $800 million equity raising to pay down debt and fund high-scale development projects including Queens Wharf in Brisbane.

The resort is being marketed by Colliers, McVay Real Estate and JLL as the hotel sector gains a new lease of life following the hard-hitting global pandemic. The resort is operated by Marriott International under the Sheraton brand.

Colliers’ head of hotels and transaction services Australia, Karen Wales, said: “Every astute investor with an interest in prime Australian real estate should consider this investment opportunity”.

Dan McVay added that progressive refurbishments had ensured all the rooms and facilities within the hotel remained at the “highest of standards”.

Pixie and Christopher Skase at the Sheraton Mirage.Credit:

The sale comes as Queensland is in the early stages of preparing for the 2032 Summer Olympics and the state’s tourist industry advances plans to accommodate an influx of visitors over coming years.

Hotels have experienced a resurgence across the board. In Sydney, the former Department of Education building, known as the “sandstone building” in Bridge Street, is the new home of the country’s first upmarket Capella hotel brand.

The Capella Hotel in Sydney’s Sandstone Precinct at 35-39 Bridge Street. Credit: Timothy Kaye

Its 192 guestrooms and suites are spread across nine levels of the heritage-listed property, which was restored and reimagined by Pontiac Land, owners of Capella Hotels & Resorts, and international firm Make Architects.

JLL executive vice president Adam Bury said the Gold Coast remained one of the fastest growing regions in Australia.

“The hotel sector has seen incredibly strong post-pandemic performance across south-east Queensland and especially on the Gold Coast in the five-star sector,” Bury said.

“As south-east Queensland moves towards the 2032 Brisbane Olympics and the so-called golden decade, supply and demand is expected to remain in hotel owners’ favour, with continued elevated performance.”

Under its current owners, the hotel has had many upgrades to counteract competition including Palazzo Versace.

The Spit precinct has been earmarked for about $1.5 billion of developments, including the $300 million Mantaray Marina. Billionaire Con Makris is also undertaking a $500 million project to overhaul Marina Mirage shopping precinct – which was also part of the former Skase empire – to include a boutique hotel, retail and 90 luxury apartments.