The handsome Duke’s Inn of Northam is now for sale amid what is predicted to be an ongoing surge in regional travel among intrastate tourists.
Northam is only 90 minutes from Perth, in the heart of the wheatbelt’s Avon tourist region.
The two-storey pub, with colonial-style balconies over two street frontages, is one of the area’s oldest and most renowned hotels, opened in 1907 and now heritage-listed and set to benefit from the boom in displaced travel.
Duke’s Inn has seen a recent refurbishment, upgrading amenities while retaining its old-world charm. It boasts a modern restaurant, sports bar and alfresco beer garden, as well as 31 mixed rooms that provide a range of accommodation options. There are also an additional eight accommodation units and more developable land opposite the pub.
For the past half-decade the properties have been in the hands of private owners Mike and Elizabeth Roszak, who also own assets in the eastern states and are relocating to work there, bringing about the sale of their Northam lots.
Figures show Australians spent 181 million nights overseas in 2019, equating to an average of nine nights per person. It’s predicted that through 2020 and 2021 a significant proportion of these will be diverted to local destinations.
Duke’s Inn is being marketed by CBRE Hotels’ Ryan McGinnity, who cites trading figures “consistent year-to-year” and WA out-of-metro hoteliers already seeing substantial benefits from the absence of overseas flights.
“With current travel restrictions prohibiting people from being able to travel abroad, and even throughout Australia, more Western Australians are exploring their own backyard.
“This is providing a welcome boost to our local tourism industry, with regional hotel operators experiencing heightened demand from local travellers.
“Sitting high on the hill overlooking the town, the Duke’s Inn takes in magnificent views and is the ideal place to spend the night or have meal while exploring greater WA.”
The Northam region has a number of major tourism drawcards, such as being the starting point of the world-renowned 124-kilometre white water race on the Avon River known as the Avon Decent, and recent news it will host the fifth Women’s World Hot Air Ballooning Championships in 2021.
“These events and others are expected to create substantial demand from intrastate tourists as they heed the call from Tourism WA to Wander out Yonder in 2020 and beyond.”
Sale of the Duke’s Inn is likely to fetch circa $3 million, and circa $1 million for the additional accommodation and land.
Sale of the assets is via Offers to Purchase, closing Tuesday, 29 September.
