Scenic station taken off market

A remote, hugely-scenic Queenstown high country station has been taken off the market despite attracting “exceptional” offers.

The longtime Singaporean owners of Lake Whakatipu-fronting Cecil Peak Station — accessible only by boat or helicopter — put the 13,000ha station up for sale last October.

Bayleys’ senior broker John Greenwood, of Auckland, said the owners had decided “to retain ownership”.

He said he did not know why they had changed their minds. The property had a ‘guide price’ of $60 million, and it is understood an offshore party prepared to pay that sum was planning a high-end lodge and 18-hole golf course.