A beachfront compound with the distinction of having once been owned by notorious cocaine kingpin, Pablo Escobar, which sits on the spectacular sands of Tulum, Mexico-one of Riviera Maya's trendiest and most highly-prized regions-is soon to be reborn as an ultra-luxury boutique hotel.
Real estate development company, Thor Equities, recently purchased the property, called 'Casa Magna,' for $17.5 million, according to Bloomberg. Word is that the firm plans on spending as much as $100 million to redevelop the site into a high-end boutique hotel with 40 luxury guest rooms, a spa and upscale shops.
The Mexican government seized ownership of the property after the Columbian drug trafficker's death in 1993, and it stood abandoned for about a decade before being purchased by Melissa Perlman, who also co-owns the nearby Amansala eco-resort.
For a while, Casa Magna then served as a small resort hotel, but now stands empty once again.
The complex also sits just down the beach from what was once its sister compound, Casa Malca, a smaller property now owned by an art dealer and also operated as a hotel, which features a curated collection of contemporary artworks.
Situated at the intersection of unspoiled tropical jungle and a pristine patch of sand along Mexico's Caribbean coast, Casa Magna is certainly well-positioned to welcome an increasing number of travelers who come to Tulum looking for a less crowded and more nature-inspired setting than nearby Cancun.
Casa Magna's upcoming reincarnation promises to be pretty spectacular, given the resources that are now being sunk into it.
Known for investing in retail spaces, Thor Equities Group has lately been branching into other types of commercial real estate ventures, says Bloomberg. The firm now owns multiple luxury hotels in Mexico, including the Montage Los Cabos, the Thompson Playa del Carmen and the Ritz-Carlton, Mexico City, which is set to open next year.
Thor Chairman, Joe Sitt, expressed in a statement that he believes the firm's acquisition of this property establishes it in an important market for this region. "Tulum is the most stylish and now destination in all of Latin America," he said.
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