Buoyed by recent accolades, decorated regional hotelier Ash Lyons has grown the collection with purchase of Adam Drabarek’s prominent Howlong Hotel.
Howlong, with local population of around 2,500 residents, is recognised for its Murray River frontage, acclaimed golf course and heritage buildings.
The Hotel, built 1858, is a one-level operation equipped with single service public bar with TAB, dining room and intimate lounge seating, beer garden, a three-bedroom manager’s residence and a former gaming lounge, with its six machine entitlements on short-term leases to other venues. It resides on a 2,023sqm corner site.
The acquisition by Lyons comes with approximately 2.5 years remaining on a lease to the current operator, making it a secure investment with potential for the portfolio.
Lyons’ Oxford Hotel was recently crowned Regional Hotel of the Year at the AHA NSW 2025 Awards for Excellence and went on to win Best Redeveloped Hotel – General Division at the Australian Hotels Association National Awards.
The Howlong furthers the group’s expansion, after another regional purchase late 2025.
“Following our acquisition of the Lawson Park Hotel in Mudgee, we identified the Howlong Hotel as a tidy investment that complements our existing regional portfolio,” Lyons says.
“It’s a property with solid fundamentals that provides the ability to support our future plans as we continue to strengthen our key regional markets.”
Vendor on the sale was experienced hotelier Adam Drabarek, who operates a portfolio across New South Wales that includes the Criterion Hotel in Weston and Imperial Hotel Coonabarabran.
Drabarek acquired the Howlong as an investment in 2022, buying it from Andrew and Bernadette Kelly, who had owned and operated it for 20 years.
The latest transaction was managed by Leonard Bongiovanni of MQ & Associates, who notes the sale allows Lyons multiple options.
“The offering was unique in that it provided a secure tenanted investment,” says Bongiovanni.
“This structure meant the comfort of a stable income with strategic upside.”
