From Hippies to Hollywood: Byron Bay Pub Fetches A$100 Million

(Bloomberg) -- The iconic Beach Hotel in the Australian resort town of Byron Bay has sold for just over A$100 million ($68 million).

Moelis Australia entered an exclusivity agreement to buy the pub and the adjoining 25-room resort, the Sydney-based investment firm said in a statement Monday. The hotel will be used to seed a single-asset investment fund, the firm said.

Once the domain of surfers and people seeking an alternative, more laid-back lifestyle, Byron Bay, about 750 kilometers (470 miles) north of Sydney, has morphed into one of Australia’s most popular and upmarket holiday destinations.

The town of about 9,000 people is now home to Australian-born “Thor” star Chris Hemsworth and his family. Oscar winner Matt Damon also once owned a house in the area, but sold it in 2018, according to media reports.

The Beach Hotel was developed in the 1990s by “Crocodile Dundee” actor Paul Hogan’s right-hand man John Cornell, who sold it in 2007.

To contact the reporter on this story: Peter Vercoe in Sydney at pvercoe@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Katrina Nicholas at knicholas2@bloomberg.net, Jonas Bergman

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