London-based group dips its toes in balmy Qld tourism sector with $30m-plus deal for Dunk Island

Heavy-hitting international investors have paid $30 million-plus for a Queensland island in a deal touted as a turning point for the tropical getaway and Queensland tourism.

Rainforest-clad Dunk Island in tropical north Queensland.

SOME major sparkle has finally returned to one of north Queensland’s tourism jewels with an unconditional deal struck for the sale of Dunk Island.

London-based investment group Mayfair 101 has been revealed as the buyer in the $30 million-plus deal, which is due to settle later this year.

Believed to be backed by funds from heavy-hitting investors, it plans to rebuild the tropical getaway into a new resort to rival Hayman Island’s new Intercontinental Resort, which has undergone a $140 million renovation by its owners Mulpha.

It is understood the international group also has recently purchased an island off Venice in Italy but this is its first tourism foray in Australia.

Dunk Island in its former glory as a tropical island tourism gem.

The island resort, off Mission Beach, is being offloaded by former Linc Energy boss Peter Bond and his ­family, who bought it for about $7.5 million.

“The sale of Dunk Island is a turning point for tourism in Queensland,” said JLL selling agent Tom Gibson, who brokered the deal.

“It marks the third major island resort to undergo significant investment this year after an almost ten-year hiatus from the tourism spotlight.”

“The new owners will take advantage of the strength in the market and bring the old resort back to life — this is huge for both the Mission Beach community, Great Barrier Reef and Australian tourism.”

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Mr Gibson said with major capital cities remaining tightly constrained for hotel investment opportunities, there had been a significant increase in institutional capital looking at both the Australia and Pacific leisure investment markets.

“With the record investment underway in key feeder cities such as Cairns and Brisbane, combined with the improved resort product entering the Great Barrier Reef market, it is driving record investor interest in the space and is set to continue with the comparatively low Australian dollar and record inbound tourism continues.”

The sale of Dunk Island is touted as a new beginning for the tropical island and Queensland tourism.

Mr Gibson said the international sales campaign for Dunk Island attracted substantial interest from both traditional domestic and international hotel owners, as well as first-time tourism buyers.with six formal offers put on the negotiating table.

Dunk Island, which offers 147ha of freehold developable land and a Qantas-built airstrip, was an internationally famous resort destination until it was ravaged by Cyclone Larry in 2006. It resumed trading but was demolished by Category 5 Cyclone Yasi in February 2011 and was acquired in late 2011 by Mr Bond. Since then the Bond family has kept Dunk Island for personal use and invested in tidying up the old resort.