Discovery Parks owner eyes Aussie outback expansion

The $2bn G’Day Group is on the hunt for more regional assets after its recent acquisition of the Wilpena Pound Resort in the renowned Flinders Ranges.

El Questro in the Kimberley. Picture: Supplied

Fresh from the recent acquisition of the Wilpena Pound Resort in South Australia’s renowned Flinders Ranges, Australia’s largest regional accommodation player is on the hunt for more regional assets to add to its burgeoning portfolio.

The $2bn G’Day Group, which is 95 per cent owned by the $300bn Australian Retirement Trust, with the remainder largely controlled by its chief executive Grant Wilckens, who founded it 20 years ago with the acquisition of a park in Kalgoorlie, has recently looked at venturing offshore.

It had its sights on the US where it sees more value than veering offshore into New Zealand, but for now the concentration is on buying more Australian resorts and parks given it has $50m to $100m to spend on mergers and acquisitions annually.

“There’s a huge opportunity for growth in Australia, even after twenty years. I feel we are still getting started. Covid was good for us, it was almost a blessing in disguise,” Mr Wilckens told The Australian.

All up, G’Day Group controls 310 properties with a mix of recreational parks and lux properties including Discovery Park, El Questro in the Kimberley, Kings Canyon and Tasmania’s Cradle Mountain.

Apart from Wilpena Pound Resort which it purchased for $4m and plans to spend $20m on in upgrades, it has also just snapped up a park in Western Australia’s Margaret River wine region.

Wilpena Pound Resort in the heart of the Flinders Ranges on Adnyamathanha Country, is the perfect base to explore this vast and spectacular ancient outback landscape.

Although it has properties – either owned or franchised in each state – Wilckens believes it is underweight on the NSW Central Coast and is constantly scouring for more acquisitions.

“I would like to do more in NSW, we have some amazing beachfront land in NSW. We have a lot of riverfront land in NSW, and we are quite strong in the South Coast.

“We have our eyes on lots of things we want to buy, we want to be the undisputed leader in regional travel experiences and I reckon we are pretty close,” Wilckens says of the private company which will report its annual results to ASIC next month. “We are unlisted. I don’t think we need to list.”

“The foundation (of G’Day) was holiday parks, but we have blossomed into a diversified tourism business with iconic resorts such as El Questro, Rottnest Island, and Cradle Mountain. We are spending more than $100m a year upgrading our parks and resorts…and buying five to seven properties a year.”

G’Day is in due diligence on a number of “opportunities” Mr Wilckens said.

“We are not going to buy in the CBD, we are a regional investor, we want iconic locations where we can invest capital and bring our customers, we want to add value,” Mr Wilckens said.

G’Day Group does not pay full price on properties, but rather buys properties which have not had a lot of recent investment. “We have a very strong operational capability to add,” Mr Wilckens says.

Looking to the future, Mr Wilckens signals that he would like to get onto the Tourism Australia board at some point.

When it comes to the question of expanding offshore, Mr Wilckens says the most attractive country would be the United States.

“But it's the tyranny of distance. I think there’s enough opportunity in Australia. Our 10-year business plan is in Australia there is enough opportunity here in Australia for growth.”

“We are (also) still buying regional experiences because it adds value and keeps people staying longer.”

El Questro, East Kimberley.

Back at Wilpena Pound, G’Day Group is partnering with the traditional owners of the Flinders Ranges – the Adnyamathanha people – and the state government, which owns the resort land.

G’Day Group has negotiated a 42-year sub lease from Adnyamathanha Traditional Lands Association, which manages the native title rights, grants and other business interests of the Adnyamathanha people and will invest in major infrastructure including the redevelopment of accommodation as well as water parks and family friendly facilities.