The future of Hamilton Island is in doubt with the sale on the cards

One of the most famous islands in the Great Barrier Reef could soon be sold for around one billion dollars.

The Oatley family are said to be exploring the future of Hamilton Island, off Airlie Beach, in north Queensland.

The Oatleys bought the island during the tourism boom of the early 1980s for around $200 million – although the actual sale price has not been disclosed.

Rough estimates suggest that the Oatleys have spent over £450 million developing the island into the paradise it is today.

The bill includes $100 million for an island resort called Qualia, $85 million for a yacht club and villas and $45 million for a golf club.

Another unique feature of this island to attract customers is the international airport.

A Hamilton Island spokeswoman confirmed the island had a change but declined to comment on the rumored sale.

‘(We) have put in place new leadership and direction and (we) are conducting a review with the help of (our) consultants, to explore opportunities for future growth and prosperity,’ he told The Australian.

‘Currently this review is ongoing and no decisions have been made. We do not intend to comment further until any recommendations are considered.’

However, an ‘informed manager of Hamilton Island’s marketing campaign’ has confirmed that the island has played host to potential buyers in recent weeks.

‘Hamilton Island has been delivered almost a year after the peak of domestic tourism post-Covid,’ they said.

The apparent sale of Hamilton Island is one of many recent high-profile deals on the Great Barrier Reef.

Malaysian multinational Mulpha is still trying to sell the nearby Hayman Island resort for $300 million.

South Molle Island, which was devastated by Cyclone Debbie in 2017, is also for sale for $25 million.

Its owner, China Capital Investment Group, also previously tried to sell the popular holiday destination Daydream Island but failed to find a buyer.

Annie Cannon-Brookes, ex-wife of Atlassian founder Mike Cannon-Brookes, bought Dunk Island for $23.6 million in 2022.

Even Australia’s richest man bought into the frenzy by buying Lizard Island for $42 million through his investment company, Tattarang, in 2021.

The richest woman in the country, mining magnate Gina Rinehart, is about to join the elite of island owners with the sale of Great Keppel Island in 2022.

However, the $50 million sale fell through after Rinehart struggled to explain plans to improve the island resort.

The Oatley family is involved in the wine industry and is known for winning the Sydney to Hobart yacht race nine times.

Family patriarch Bob Oatley died aged 87 in 2016.

The pioneering entrepreneur made his fortune in the wine business, selling his Rosemount winery to Southcorp for $1.5 billion in 2001.

He founded Rosemount Estate in 1969 in NSW’s Hunter Valley and sold his first harvest in the 1970s.

Over the next 30 years, Rosemount became the second largest Australian wine market in the US and the largest family-owned Australian winery.

When Mr Oatley sold the business in 2001, he used $200 million to buy world-famous tourist resort Hamilton Island in Queensland.

He was named an Officer of the Order of Australia in the Australia Day honors in 2014 for his service to the wine and tourism industries and to yacht racing.