Restaurant, hotel pitch as rare Point Samson beachfront land hits the market

A rare tourism development opportunity on the Point Samson coast has been labelled a game changer by the local tourism body. Nestled between Point Samson Tavern and the historic Point Samson Jetty on Vitenbergs Drive, the 8325sqm lot has uninterrupted views of Honeymoon Cove beach. The land is zoned for tourism and would be suitable for a restaurant or accommodation development. Pilbara Tourism Association chairman Barry Harrison said the site was a great opportunity in a beautiful location. “It would certainly activate more tourism in Point Samson and as we know there's only the hotel and caravan parks, so to have another operator in there it would bring people from the inland who would come out there to enjoy the beautiful beaches,” he said. The Agency realtor Mitch Watt said the increase in regional tourism because of COVID-19 meant it was the perfect time to put the block on the market. “There's not a lot of tourism opportunity to develop in Point Samson because there's very little land available, so this would be the only one that I'm aware of in such a location,” he said. Mr Watt said the town was a well known spot for grey nomads and travellers “escaping the weather down south”. “Coupled with the new COVID world we live in, people aren't going overseas anymore — they just can't — so they're actually exploring their own backyard,” he said. “It's an opportunity for people holidaying at home and it's (the development) going to be a growth opportunity. Mr Watt said the location of the lot was perfect for its approved zoning. “Obviously to develop the site would not be a cheap exercise — it is level ground, so it's ready to go — but you would need someone with a few million behind them to put something there that's going to be a tourist attraction,” he said. The development opportunity comes on the heels of the PTA predicting an ongoing boost to domestic tourism. “This year and next year are going to be great for Western Australia because while borders are shut to overseas travel they're going to travel internally as they did following SARS in 2003,” he said. “We're certainly predicting a bumper year this year for tourism operators.”