Mulpha Australia has made a sizeable move back into Sydney hotel investment. The group has acquired a one-third interest in two of Darling Harbour’s best-known accommodation assets: Novotel Sydney on Darling Harbour and the adjoining ibis Sydney Darling Harbour.
The transaction settled on 21 September 2026. Mulpha now sits alongside Sun Hung Kai & Co. Limited and Wentworth Capital in the ownership group. Accor will continue to manage both hotels.
Together, the properties offer 781 rooms. The Novotel has 525 rooms, and the ibis has 256. That gives the partnership serious scale in one of Sydney’s busiest tourism, convention and corporate precincts. Accor independently confirms the Novotel’s 525-room inventory and its prominent Darling Harbour location.
For Mulpha, this is more than another pair of hotel keys for the corporate keyring. It is a deliberate use of capital in an area the group knows well: hotels, destination hospitality and long-term asset management.
The timing is also worth noting. Wentworth Capital and Sun Hung Kai & Co. were reported to have acquired the two-hotel complex from the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority earlier in 2026 for A$390 million. Mulpha has not disclosed what it paid for its one-third interest, so pinning down an exact price for this latest deal would be guesswork.
Big hotels, bigger location
Darling Harbour remains one of Sydney’s most important visitor precincts. It combines hotels, restaurants, attractions and the International Convention Centre Sydney, while sitting within easy reach of the CBD.
The Novotel offers 525 rooms, restaurants, meeting space, and resort-style facilities, including an outdoor pool, gym, and tennis court. Next door, the ibis provides 256 rooms in the economy segment.
That mix gives the owners exposure to two different price points in the same high-traffic location. It is useful territory when leisure travellers, corporate guests, groups and major-event delegates are all looking for beds at once.
Mulpha Australia Head of Hotels, Hospitality & Leisure Marcus Hanna said the scale and location of the hotels were central to the appeal. Mulpha confirms Hanna leads the strategic direction, performance and growth of its hotel and leisure portfolio.
“The Novotel and ibis are substantial, well-established hotels in one of Sydney’s most important tourism and business precincts. Their scale, location and long-term potential make them a compelling addition to Mulpha’s hospitality portfolio.”
Hanna said Mulpha would bring its ownership, operational and asset-management experience to the partnership. The group will work with Sun Hung Kai & Co., Wentworth Capital and Accor to build on the hotels’ existing strengths.
“We look forward to working closely with Sun Hung Kai & Co., Wentworth Capital and Accor to build on the hotels’ existing strengths and identify opportunities to enhance their performance and guest experience over time.”
Capital goes where experience counts
The acquisition follows a period in which Mulpha has sold non-core assets and redirected capital towards investments that fit its long-term strategy.
Hanna described the Darling Harbour move as part of a disciplined approach to capital deployment.
“The acquisition also demonstrates Mulpha’s disciplined approach to capital deployment. We remain focused on high-quality opportunities where our specialist expertise and collaborative investment model can create sustainable, long-term value.”
That statement is backed by plenty of hotel experience. Mulpha’s Australian hospitality portfolio includes InterContinental Sydney, InterContinental Hayman Great Barrier Reef and InterContinental Sanctuary Cove Resort. It also includes Bimbadgen and The Lane Retreat in the Hunter Valley, along with its Perisher properties.
The Darling Harbour investment fits neatly beside those assets. Location matters. Leisure demand matters. Operational skill matters. And in hotels, the minibar may be small, but the capital bill rarely is.
For the Australian travel trade, the immediate message is straightforward. Accor remains in charge of hotel management, so there is no announced change to the operating brands.
For the investment market, the deal sends a different message. Established Sydney hotels with scale and strong locations continue to attract substantial investment interest.
And for Mulpha, 781 rooms in Darling Harbour represent a very visible way to put capital back to work.
By: Michelle Warner – © 2026.
Read Time: 3 minutes.
Author Bio:
Michelle Warner has always carried stories the way others carry passports lightly, faithfully, and with purpose. She learned her craft in newsrooms, shaping sentences with care, before swapping deadlines for departures as a flight attendant with some of the world’s great airlines. Years aloft sharpened her eye for character and deepened her fondness for the small, dignified rituals of travel, the quiet kindness of strangers, the poetry of arrival, the patience learned between time zones.
Now grounded by choice, Michelle has come home to writing with the same calm authority she once brought to turbulent cabins. Her prose blends an editor’s discipline with a traveller’s wonder, tinged with humour and reverence for travel’s golden age. Each piece feels like a handwritten boarding pass, gracious, observant, and unmistakably alive.
