Tourism operator and developer Tasman Holiday Parks has made its first foray into the Victorian market as part of a $65-million spend to acquire four sites.
The Riverglen Holiday Park in Geelong, with 125 permanent cabins, was purchased by the family-owned company for an undisclosed price.
It also bought the BIG4 Ballina Headlands Holiday Park in northern NSW, and Yallingup Beach Holiday Park and Yallingup Caves Holiday Park, both in Western Australia.
The company has a further $150 million in holiday parks either under contract or in an advanced pipeline after raising $300 million in capital late last year to tap into the market.
The alternate-asset class is booming following the increase in domestic travel and land prices across the country with more than 100 leisure parks put on the market in 2021.
Alceon Group recently offloaded two coastal sites for double what it paid to retirement community investment group Lincoln Place.
Tasman Holiday Parks chief executive Nikki Milne said the latest acquisitions had grown the portfolio to 26 properties—21 in Australia and five in New Zealand.
“The Geelong acquisition marks our first entry into the Victorian market as we continue to explore opportunities for key holiday parks across Australia and New Zealand,” Milne said.
“The reopening of state borders in Australia has seen a surge in the domestic drive market which we believe will continue even with international travel restrictions also easing.
Tune in to The Urban Developer's coming Residential Land Lease vSummit Thursday, 14 April. Click here to secure your ticket.
“Our operations in Australia have been performing extremely well. Victoria will play a key role in our expansion strategy, with our properties in the NSW Murray region showing continued strength and growth.
“We are well positioned in the New Zealand market with major investments under way as we prepare for the April 13 border reopening date.”
Tasman Holiday Parks is also increasing its focus on development across its portfolio, led by the expansion of its holding at Racecourse Beach at Bawley Point on the NSW South Coast.
The company has invested more than $350 million in acquisitions and development activity since mid-2020 with plans to put a further $30 million into redevelopment this year.
