Process for producing benzyl acetate and benzyl alcohol

A process is provided wherein benzyl alcohol which cannot readily be isolated and purified from the hydrolysis product of benzyl acetate can be produced economically by constructing an isolation-purification process in consideration of the azeotropy of the components including benzyl alcohol and acetic acid as hydrolysis products, unreacted benzyl acetate and water, and recycling the process fractions to the specified process, and by using, as the catalyst, a sulfonated styrenedivinylbenzene copolymer having divinylbenzene units in a specified content range, and by reacting the starting materials in a specific ratio. Moreover, according to the present application, benzyl alcohol can be produced economically by transesterification of benzyl acetate with methanol in the presence of a basic catalyst, and combining process fractions reasonably in consideration of the later isolation-purification process.