Novotel Brisbane to be rebranded after Amora Hotels & Resorts buys hotel for $67m

Amora Hotels & Resorts, which operates hotels in Thailand and Australia, has bought the Novotel Brisbane for $67.9m. The property at 200 Creek St, on the edge of the Brisbane CBD, was owned by Singapore-listed group CDL Hospitality Trusts and it will be rebranded next year when Novotel’s lease expires. Amora Hotels is a subsidiary of Singapore-based Amora Holdings. Its three directors are members of the Siriphatrawan family based in Bangkok. Amora Hotels & Resorts director Raja David said the hotel will complement the company’s existing portfolio in Thailand and Australia. “We’re now looking forward to the rebranding and exploring further expansion opportunities for our Australian network,” he said. The 4-star hotel features 296 guest rooms, full-service restaurant and bar, cafe, ballroom and function rooms, 70 carparking bays, an outdoor swimming pool and gymnasium. The hotel is popular among corporate and government bodies. The sale comes a month after the purchase of The Fantauzzo Brisbane Art Series Hotel for just under $70m at Howard Smith Wharves by Syrian billionaire Ghassan Aboud. JLL managing director and head of Investment Sales Australasia Peter Harper said the sale of the Novotel Brisbane was an example that high-quality hotel real estate remains sought after despite the obvious short-term challenges ahead. “Six months on from the initial impact of COVID-19, its apparent that there is a two-tier market emerging,” he said. “Given how tightly held the Australian hotel market has historically been, many investors are taking a long-term view. As such, investment grade hotels in good condition and locations are still seeing strong investor demand and this competitive interest is helping to maintain capital values. ”While many purchasers were hoping to see widespread heavy discounts to pricing, the reality is that we are only seeing this for assets that are situated in secondary locations, require significant capex or considered likely to be the last to fully recover.” CEO Asia Pacific, JLL Hotels & Hospitality Mike Batchelor said offshore investors have always been attracted to the Australian hotel market. “This is even more evident in the current environment where the country is clearly viewed as a flight to quality destination due to its strong investment fundamentals, the way our governments have handled the COVID-19 crisis relative to other nations and a very positive medium to long term outlook,” he said. “Our team of 90 across Asia Pacific are currently constantly fielding interest and inquiry on Australian hotels, be it for existing sale offerings or the search for off-market opportunities. “Pleasingly, it’s not just from the traditional capital source markets of Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia, but increasingly also emerging markets such as Thailand and Vietnam.”