The major regional hub of Roma is the place where country Queensland meets the Outback, but it still has a lot of big city sophistication. There are lattes galore, lovely cafes and restaurants, and regular air services to Brisbane.

With a diverse income and important transport routes at its heart, Roma also has huge opportunities in the accommodation sector as one of the most profitable motel towns in Australia.

While once famous for producing football greats including Arthur Beetson, Willie Carne, Darren Lockyer, and Brent Tate, Roma now has a growing reputation as a bustling regional town which draws workers and tourists all year round.

As the administrative centre of the Maranoa Region, Roma, 515 kilometres west of Brisbane, has a population of 7000 and an economy based around agriculture, resources and government services.

Roma is situated at the junction of the Warrego and Carnarvon highways in the middle of a prosperous wheat and pastoral district. It is also a major town on the Western Railway Line from Toowoomba and Brisbane.

Motel Carnarvon on Roma’s Northern Road is one of the biggest motels in town, with 38 rooms including 29 4-star apartments, some with two bedrooms and all self-contained. There are also nine 3-star motel rooms.

Charlie Eames, from Premier Business Sales, is marketing the Motel Carnarvon as a freehold going concern, with a price tag of $7.7 million.

“It is a tremendous property and very profitable with high year-round occupancy,” Mr Eames said. “It’s predominantly a corporate motel and is recording 74 per cent occupancy with better than 50 per repeat trade. That make it a great business.

“Almost all the rooms have been fully renovated recently. There’s only half a dozen that are still the old style but they are also easy to rent because there is still a market for budget accommodation.

“It’s an easy motel to operate, and there is minimal food service required because there are arrangements with local eateries who deliver to the motel.”

Mr Eames said a diverse economy made Roma “one of the best motel towns in the country”.

“Roma has a mix of agriculture, resources and government services,” he said. “For most of the motels in Roma, 20 per cent of their business would be government services. Because it is a regional hub for the south west of Queensland, the State Government sends a lot of their people out there from Community Services, Emergency Services, Queensland Rail and other departments.

“There is also a big leisure and tourism market. Roma is on the way to the spectacular Carnarvon Gorge and there’s plenty to do in Roma itself. The council has spent millions of dollars recently upgrading the Big Rig that celebrates the oil and gas industries.

“Roma also has the biggest cattle saleyards in the southern hemisphere which is a tourist attraction itself. You could easily spend two or three days in Roma just checking out the local attractions, but it is also a stopover for people heading out further to Carnarvon Gorge, Charleville, Longreach and Winton.”

Roma is five and a bit hours from Brisbane by road but there are regular services on Rex Airlines for those who prefer to fly.

“It’s a terrific regional hub,” Mr Eames said, “and for the motel trade, if one industry is down there, the others are going okay so it doesn’t have that boom/bust cycle that some towns experience. Motel Carnarvon has a really good steady income, and Roma is a very active, engaged community.”