– Fiordland Lodge, overlooking Lake Te Anau, sold for over $15m to Melbourne’s Imperium Group.
– The sale included the lodge for $12.25m and Robynne Peacock’s private home for $3m.
– Imperium plans to expand the accommodation and upgrade the lodge, enhancing its luxury offerings.
A lakefront lodge that’s hosted a string of A-list celebrities, including Harrison Ford and Sir Peter Jackson, has sold for just over $15 million.
Owner Robynne Peacock sold Fiordland Lodge, overlooking Lake Te Anau, to an Australian firm that owns several award-winning hotels in Queenstown-Lakes.
The Melbourne-based Imperium Group paid $12.25m for the lodge and another $3m for Peacock’s private home next door. The two properties sit on a combined estate that spans over 30ha in the Southland holiday town.
Imperium Group also bought the lodge business for “many millions more”, according to the agent who brokered the deal.
Indiana Jones star Harrison Ford and his wife Calista Flockhart stayed at Fiordland Lodge while visiting New Zealand. Photo / Getty Images
International cricketer Virat Kohli has also spent time at the lodge. Photo / Getty Images
Peacock, who is in her 70s, built the lodge with her late husband Ron in 2002. She decided to sell after her business partner, Andy Cunningham, who ran the lodge on her behalf, called it quits.
“You’ve got to do it sometime. Andy deciding he wasn’t going to renew his lease was kind of the catalyst,” she told OneRoof.
Fiordland Lodge is a popular spot for visiting celebrities, including Indiana Jones star Ford and his wife Calista Flockhart, international cricketer Virat Kohli and many of the cast and crew of The Lord of the Rings.
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Peacock told OneRoof that the idea for the lodge came to her and Ron after an overseas trip with their children. They had struggled to find decent accommodation, so they decided to put a log cabin on their rural property for families in the same boat.
“It was really successful. People liked the log cabin thing, and it just grew from there,” she said.
Peacock said she spent several years researching the market and finding out what people wanted, which is how they ended up with a five-star 10-suite lodge.
The lodge, which has 10 suites, a restaurant and bar, sits on the edge of Lake Te Anau. Photo / Supplied
The private residence is a mini replica of the lodge. Photo / Supplied
“We had actually bought another piece of land and realised that because we didn’t have a lake view, we would always be second best, so we sold that and found another that was better.”
American log builder Norman Rhyne designed the cabins and the lodge. It was aimed at the upper end of the market, but Peacock didn’t think that celebrities would end up staying there.
“Peter Jackson stayed there on a number of occasions with the main actors from The Lord of the Rings. They stayed there for quite a long period of time each time.”
Tourism Properties chief executive Adrian Chisholm said the property had attracted buyer interest from around the world. “This exceptional transaction marks the next chapter for one of New Zealand’s most celebrated luxury lodges.”
He said the Peacocks had “created the most spectacular iconic lodge potentially in the whole of New Zealand”. The neighbouring house was equally impressive, he said, and looked like a miniature replica of the lodge.
Chisholm said Imperium Group planned to expand the accommodation offering and turn Peacock’s home into VIP accommodation for the rich and famous.
Imperium Group owner Andrew Cox told OneRoof he was delighted to welcome Fiordland Lodge into its stable.
He said an upgrade programme was already underway at the lodge and over the coming months new luxury offerings would be introduced to complement its existing portfolio, which included Eichardt’s Private Hotel, The Spire Hotel, and the superyacht Pacific Jemm.
“Located at the gateway to some of New Zealand’s most spectacular scenery, the lodge will benefit from our expertise in luxury hospitality as we enhance and expand its guest experience and evolve our cross-selling opportunities.”