Peter De Savary has sold his luxury country house hotel, Bovey Castle, Devon, to Hilwood Resorts and Hotels for £26.4m.
The entrepreneur bought the 65-bedroom hotel and 18-hole golf resort three-and-a-half years ago when it was the Manor House hotel, before investing heavily in a refurbishment.
Under the terms of the deal, brokered by property agents Atisreal, De Savary will retain the company, Bovey Castle Ltd, which will be renamed Havana West, and ownership of the White Hart, Sandy Park, Coombe Court, Leyburn House and the Plymouth Inn.
De Savary said he intended to acquire further properties in keeping with his existing portfolio and would remain chairman of the Bovey Castle Club.
This is the second acquisition for Hilwood since its creation earlier this year. The group is run by the former finance and operations directors of Hand Picked Hotels, Gregor Ritchie and Arvinder Walia, in a joint venture with investment adviser Delancey.