Felicity and James Manser last weekend took over Willowbrook Country Apartments — on Malaghans Rd, about 3km from Millbrook Resort — from Tamaki and Roy Llewellyn, who developed the accommodation business after buying the 1.57-hectare property in 1996.
The deal was brokered by local Tourism Properties.com principal Adrian Chisholm, who’d been seeking offers over $5million.
Having originally opened Willowbrook as a B&B, Roy says "people were starting to arrive with bags and shopping wanting to cook, so we thought they need kitchens, so it was a natural evolution".
They put four self-contained apartments into the homestead and another four across formerly rundown outhouses.
Facilities like an outdoor spa pool and tennis court were also added.
"The most common thing we hear from our guests is ‘I’m so glad I booked here, I’m close to town, but I’m not in it’."
Occupancy had bounced back really well since Covid, Roy says.
Felicity, who owns tiling, bathroom and kitchen business Unico with her husband, says "I have a passion for interiors and landscape gardening, and while the property has got good bones in both areas, it’s got huge opportunities".
"We’d like to eventually be in a position to turn that heritage home back into a beautiful family home.
"We do hope to do a nice big rebrand, lift it a little bit and get sort of a higher-end clientele and really market it as discreet private accommodation."
The new name, she reveals, will be Resort Arrowtown.
