Australia's Crystalbrook Collection spends $370M on three Cairns hotels

Crystalbrook Collection, a new management company based in Queensland, Australia, has announced a $370-million investment into the development of three hotels in Cairns.

According to Crystalbrook Collection CEO Mark Davie, the company was attracted to Cairns because of the city's need for appropriate hotels to respond to key tourism markets along with the forecast for inbound tourism within the region.
 
Recent STR statistics for the 12 months to January 2016 showed a 74.7-percent occupancy rate for Cairns, up by 8.6 percent and double-digit growth in RevPAR, with growth figures coming in at 15.1 percent.
 

The timeline for the projects will have a hotel open each year for the next three years. Cairns developer Prime Group will oversee the projects, which will be self-managed. Each development will have a minimum $100 million invested, with the overall project expected to inject $900 million into the local economy.

The projects include:

137 Esplanade

A 264-room hotel, previously operating as Rydges Tradewinds, will be redeveloped to create a 311-room hotel tower with an adjacent 12-story tower. Beginning construction in 2017, the property is set to be operational by July 2018.

163 Abbott Street

This city-center block will hold two towers, one of which will be a 222-room hotel. Development will begin mid-2017 with completion expected February 2019.

85 Esplanade (Bellview)

A waterfront esplanade location will hold a new 300-room hotel. Construction will begin late 2018 with operations expected to begin very October 2019.
 
Crystalbrook isn't the only company that expects Cairns' hotel scene to grow. In December, Mantra Group CEO Bob East said that new flights into Cairns are creating strong demand for accommodation providers in the region. The company predicted Cairns to be the best-performing travel destination in Australia in 2017, forecasting its current RevPAR growth to continue into the new calendar year.