History
As the regions longest standing hotel, The Alby has built a reputation amongst the local community as Weipa’s go-to for casual dining and entertainment. Being located in a mining town where bauxite was available in abundance, it was decided that the hotel would be built with locally produced bauxite brick.
The venue opened its doors for its first official day of trading on October 27, 1973, and saw a reported 90 people gather to the area, including Sir William Gunn, Mr. H.S Williams, both partners in the venture who flew in from Cairns, and Mr Eric Riding, State manager of the S.G.I.O. It wasn’t long until the Albatross Bay Resort established itself as the go-to meeting place for locals and tourists in the Weipa region.
The venue’s name is predominantly derived from the bay on which the resort’s located, though a vessel, QGS (Queensland Government Steamer) Albatross is also largely to thank for the name. The Queensland Government steamer Albatross was a wooden vessel with a straight stem, a single mast and hold with superstructure aft and a tall, thin funnel. She was at Thursday Island from 1886 under control of the Qld Government resident, but used as a tender for navigation aids and surveys and the conveyance of stores. She was involved in the rescue of survivors from the Quetta disaster in 1890. She was commanded by Captain David Reid initially and was succeeded by Captain George Kerr. Albatross left Thursday Island in 1896 and was used for general tasks such as towing barges and for repair work on coastal beacons.
After changing hands a number of times, one thing still remains the same and that is that the venue is still renowned as the most popular meeting point for social occasions in Weipa.
In early 2020 Waymark Hotels, a privately-owned Australian hotel and property group, acquired the Albatross Bay Resort and Weipa Cellars.
Waymark’s corporate heritage has been built over a period of more than 60 years, originating in the Northern Territory and Queensland outbacks. Waymark Hotels has been leading projects that have brought vital infrastructure and amenities to communities since the 1950’s.