Beloved former El Caballo horse resort and lifestyle village in WA up for grabs

During its heyday in the 1980s, the lavish El Caballo Blanco resort and theme park was a major tourist attraction, best known for its daily Spanish dancing horse shows.

With the horses and riders long gone, the disused former resort and a large adjoining lifestyle village just outside Perth are now on the market and primed for development

The equestrian arena and amphitheatre are still there, albeit without the riders in their traditional Spanish costumes, the dancing Bodeguero Stud horses and the cheering crowd of onlookers.

In its prime during the 1970s and 1980s El Caballo attracted around 250,000 visitors annually and offered tourists and locals a range of family attractions including the daily horse shows, chair lift rides and water slides.

The equine arena, which hosted the dancing horses and the other attractions, closed in 1995 and the resort itself ceased being used for events and conferences about three years ago.

The riders in their traditional Spanish costumes and the dancing horses are long gone. Picture: realcommercial.com.au/for-sale

The resort complex, located 60kms east of Perth, is a 6.5ha site that includes function spaces, equestrian arena, ampitheatre, tennis courts, commercial kitchens, motel units and a currently-empty pool.

In 2020 trustee management firm Equity Trustee purchased the property and reportedly paid over $12 million for it.  It is owned by their client, the Noongar Charitable Trust.

The property was going to be used as a social housing site for the benefit of the Noongar people.  NCT were contacted for comment through Equity Trustees and declined to speak about the sale.

El Caballo Blanco first opened its doors to the public in 1974. Picture: realcommercial.com.au/for-sale

Resort originally formed around an appreciation of horses

The El Caballo story begins with Perth businessman Ray Williams, who purchased the property through his company Williams Investments Pty Ltd in 1969 and set up the Bodeguero Stud after successfully breeding Andalusian horses in Australia.

In 1974 El Caballo Blanco was opened to the public.

The main resort at El Caballo, which took its design cues from Spanish and Moorish architecture, was used for events and conferences up until three years ago. Picture: realcommercial.com.au/for-sale

The dancing horse shows were so popular with the general public that a second El Caballo Blanco was opened in Catherine Fields in NSW in 1979.

It closed in 2000 and has since been developed into a housing estate.

The empty pool at the disused El Caballo resort. Picture: realcommercial.com.au/for-sale

El Caballo lifestyle village’s development potential

The property at 51 Jocoso Rise and 3349 Great Eastern Highway, Wundowie, is being marketed with two lots on offer – the original El Caballo resort complex plus a lifestyle village, which was set up seven years ago.

The 38.95ha lifestyle village, has 89 fully serviced lots. There are currently 50 residents in the 38 homes that have been built to date, though some are display houses.

There is DA approval from the Shire of Northam for a maximum of 131 lifestyle lots as well as an aged care facility.

Knight Frank’s Tony Delich is handling the sale and said the property’s development potential “will be the biggest drawcard for buyers”.

“The El Caballo sale is likely to be very attractive to the growing number of lifestyle village operators and comes at a time when Western Australia is in desperate need of new affordable housing options for seniors,” he said.

“Lifestyle villages have become an extremely popular housing choice for seniors as they provide an affordable housing option for retirement without the complexity of a deferred management fee which is required with most retirement villages.”

Aerial photograph of the lifestyle village. Picture: realcommercial.com.au/for-sale

The lifestyle village is surrounded by nature reserves and the El Caballo Golf Course, which is not included in the sale, in addition to a number of adjoining businesses including the Linley Valley Pork abattoir.

The property has been granted a narrow usage from council that stipulates: “No person shall occupy the El Caballo Lifestyle Village that is not disabled, physically dependent or aged over 45, or is the surviving spouse of such a person.”

The two lots, being sold via an expressions of interest campaign, can be purchased together or separately and there is no price guide on the property as there is little to compare it to in the area Mr Delich said.