The Head of Colin Biggers & Paisley's market leading Hotels, Tourism and Hospitality team, Duane Keighran and the wider practice has advised the purchaser on the acquisition of the Rydges Esplanade hotel in Cairns.

 

Colin Biggers & Paisley has advised the purchaser on its $65 million acquisition of the 4-star, 242 room hotel on Abbott Street. The hotel is being sold by Malaysian conglomerate Mulpha, who also own Hayman Island and the Sydney InterContinental hotel. The recently refurbished hotel returned to the market in the wake of strong growth in both domestic and international visitors and expenditure in Queensland.

 

Partner Duane Keighran said the deal involved the careful consideration of a number of complex legal issues including hotel management, body corporate and caretaking and letting rights issues.

 

Duane Keighran said the legal practice is providing legal advice to acquire the entire asset which included the hotel and caretaking and letting rights businesses, as well as the freehold title to the property.

 

"The deal had a number of complex layers to work through and our multi-disciplined Hotels, Tourism and Hospitality practice worked with our wider team to provide our client with an outstanding result. It is an excellent example of the type of deals that our Hotels, Tourism and Hospitality team is proud to be at the coalface of with other leading market experts in the hotel industry, and it builds on a number of similar deals we have assisted our clients on recently."

 

The transaction is the latest in a number of deals the team has negotiated, including the agreements between the Pellicano and Perri Projects joint venture and Hyatt hotels to open a 170 room hotel in the $700 million South City Square precinct in Brisbane, and the first Moxy hotel in South Yarra, Melbourne.

 

The team was led by Duane Keighran and supported by property partners Matthew Castley and Brendan Maier, special counsel Alan McKernan, senior associate Morgen Kerry, partner Ben Caldwell for planning, and partner Jon Meadmore in the corporate and commercial practice.