Business
22 May, 2025
New owners for resort
MISSION Beach’s Castaways Resort and Spa has finally been sold to American-based Travel + Leisure Co, which is home to the Wyndham brand.
The beachfront resort will be renamed Club Wyndham Mission Beach and become the 67th resort in the portfolio of Club Wyndham South Pacific, one of the region’s leading vacation clubs with 60,000 owners. It is the third Club Wyndham in the Far North with others at Port Douglas and White Rock.
Travel + Leisure international operations president Barry Robinson said Mission Beach was “a tropical North Queensland gem lending itself both to the growing number of travellers who simply want to unplug and relax and those who want to experience Australia’s incredible natural wonders for themselves”.
“It is also an ideal stopping point between Airlie Beach and Cairns for our club owners taking immersive road trips,” he said.
“With occupancy rates averaging close to 90 per cent in our vacation club, we look forward to showcasing Mission Beach and introducing the highlights of the surrounding region to our Club Wyndham South Pacific owners and their guests.
The resort is on the beachfront and has 48 studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and loft-style apartments. Facilities include two swimming pools with ocean views, a restaurant and bar with substantial dining space and the Drift day spa.
The apartments and some common areas will undergo a staged refurbishment slated to begin in the coming weeks and finish this year. The resort will operate throughout this time.
The acquisition, brokered by ResortBrokers, gives a boost to the future of Mission Beach as a tourist centre, and comes as the Cassowary Coast Regional Council, Queensland Government and Australian Government undertake almost $19 million of the town centre’s revitalisation project to upgrade the town’s infrastructure, including its village green.
Melbourne-based property mogul James Neville Smith acquired the property in 2007 for $5.7m and spent $6m on renovations. The sale comes with council approval for a new $70m 226-room resort. The asking price was nearly $8m but the final sale price has not been revealed.
Residents have welcomed the sale.
On Facebook Lana Lockyer said she hoped the new owners would spend money on it and bring it back to its former glory.
“It’s so rundown currently,” she said.
Toni Garrett Odger said it was in a prime location but was “going to rack and ruin”.
“The Americans will spend a fortune getting it back to a beautiful resort,” she said.
Lesley Lysaght said it was her favourite holiday place, “so I hope it doesn’t change”.
