Our Kids Collection Editor, Nadine, had long promised her daughter, Esme, a bucket list trip as a reward for getting through her GCSE exams. They chose to discover Sri Lanka, and had the trip of a lifetime!
This is Part Two of their adventures, find Part One here.
Stop 7: Ceylon Tea Trails, nr Hatton, Hill Country
We took the train from Kandy up through luscious terraces and tea plantations into Hill Country, alighting at regional hub, Hatton. Our lovely driver Roshan brought us to Norwood, one of the beautifully restored plantation bungalows comprising Ceylon Tea Trails. This pioneering set-up was the brainchild of the philanthropic owners of Dilmah Tea: a diffused hotel across five bungalows 4-15 km apart on the velvety green slopes above Castlereagh Reservoir, connected by walking and cycling trails.
Each bungalow comes with dedicated staff including butler and chef, croquet lawns, swimming pools (most have Jacuzzis), muslin-shrouded beds, parquet floors and immaculate flowering gardens. Many also have billiards rooms and vintage gramophone players. I worried Esme would find the colonial heritage rather old-fashioned but she was as enchanted by the tranquility, impeccable service, delicious food, and the laid-back house party vibe as me.
We had a most splendid afternoon tea of tiered cakes, sandwiches and cream tea, and a quick game of croquet (she won) before tucking into an excellent three-course dinner of curries and rice. The dining terrace has long views across the eucalypts and emerald terraces. By the time we consumed our substantial breakfast the next day (fruit, egg hoppers, curries and pancakes), we were full to the brim. Next we headed out with fellow guests for an aromatic journey of discovery at the Dilmah tea factory, whose amazingly vintage machines are still in use.
We were brought across the reservoir by boat, disembarking at the foot of Summerville bungalow, which has the most beautiful vistas across its stepped garden and infinity pool to the lake and hills beyond. A very special 3-course lunch was savoured, the barramundi a standout.
Our chef was lying in wait as we returned to Norwood. How was your lunch? Wonderful! Oh good – for dinner I’ve prepared a five-course feast! Laughter ensued. Dinner was a delicate affair of beetroot salad followed by soup, an amuse-bouche, chicken and sticky toffee pudding. We took one for the team and ate the lot.
Stop 8: Goatfell, nr Nuwara Eliya, Hill Country
Our next stop was a 2.5 hour drive eastwards across magnificent Hill Country, past spectacular waterfalls, to another former colonial home turned intimate all-inclusive peaceful hideaway, Goatfell. This Art Deco-era bungalow also comes with an infinity pool, croquet lawn, delicious food and stellar service, and has chamfered corners and elegant fireplaces. Not to mention, being at the highest elevation of our whole trip, knock-out views down to the valleys below.
In glorious weather we embarked on a self-guided circular walk across the hills above, past women working in the tea fields, and through the colourful little village back to Goatfell. We absolutely loved that walk: the velvety emerald tea slopes with trees poking through, distant blue-hued mountains, the wayside shrine, meeting cows on the road, children playing cricket who wanted their photo taken, and the woman who came over to hold my hands with great affection.
Dinner was a gem: prawn and lentil fritters, island chowder, lemongrass prawn curry and black pork, followed by cinnamon bread pudding and a local specialty with cashew nuts and kithul syrup. Breakfast we took in the garden, with dosas, cake, eggs, pastries and a stunning view.
Stop 9: Uga Chena Huts, Yala National Park
This was the longest drive of the whole trip. The Hill Country went on and on, switchbacking through gullies and ravines, then suddenly we were on a flat plain speeding to the south-east corner of the island. Yala National Park is Sri Lanka’s most visited, famed for its biodiversity including leopard and elephant (both Sri Lankan subspecies), and habitats including waterholes and wetlands, semi-arid scrub forests and grasslands. All-inclusive Uga Chena Huts is just 10 minutes from the park entrance, beside a bird-rich lagoon, on a wild stretch of sand-dune and rocky coastline. You stay in enormous stilted cabins (so wildlife is unimpeded) with thatched roofs and private plunge pools, polished wood interiors and emperor-sized platform beds. Walkways connect you to the restaurant and bar overlooking the beach.
We were just in time for our first game drive. Our driver and guide were both excellent: the former positioning us expertly for maximum sightings, the latter with a passion for herpetology but knew his stuff when it came to other wildlife. We saw beautiful birds including the Asian paradise flycatcher and green pigeons, kingfishers, ibis and spoonbills. But it was the male leopard prowling through the undergrowth into the sunshine which brought the most thrills.
We had sundowners above the beach as we watched the sun disappear over tree tops and lanterns lit all around. Then dinner of seafood bush grill and chicken confit, lava cake, buffalo curd and treacle in the sophisticated restaurant.
The following morning we roused for our 6am game drive, seeking more wildlife on the early shift. It was magical seeing the sun ascend over outcrops and trees, lakes and grasses. We spotted a croc low in the water stalking a family of ducks. Water buffalo on the shore. Stunning painted storks in a waterhole. And a very close encounter with a feisty lone male elephant, Gemunu, who got within a metre of our truck, brandishing broken tusks. Our guide reassuringly showed us video of him overturning a tourist jeep just months before! We were lucky enough to see a leopard on this game drive too: sleeping on a big flat rock, soaking up the morning sunshine.
After, we enjoyed a late breakfast of string hoppers and fruit, lazed in the green-tiled lagoon-shaped swimming pool, wandered along the beach, saw an iguana rustling by, found frogs on the wall, got caught in a downpour, tried our plunge pool, drank cocktails to the sound of the surf pounding on the sands, and – excitingly – an elephant came right by the bar before disappearing into the night.
A personal highlight for me was one of the guides offering to take me, on his day off, at 6am to the lagoon birding on our last morning. We watched sunbirds, barbets, babblers, plovers, storks, lapwing, stilts, kites and egrets for a whole blissful hour.
Stop 10: The Last House, Tangalle
We were now on the home straight along the southern coast. First stop was The Last House, so-called as the famous tropical modernist architect Geoffrey Bawa’s last project. This showcases inside-outside design: rooms are in pavilions beside or above the main building, viewpoints flow through the living room to the garden, from the wrap-around terrace to the beach, and pleasing symmetries harmonise around the pool. Colours are sunflower yellow, teal and aquamarine. Expect antique sideboards, distressed mirrors, giant pots, poured concrete bathrooms, contemporary art, painted shutters.
Lush lawns give directly onto beautiful Mawella Beach, fringed with palms and blessed with golden sands. We weren’t staying at the very best time of year for the south coast – monsoon rains are inevitable if usually short-lived – so the beach was quite deserted. After looking for and finding lots of hermit crabs we retreated from the heat into the gorgeous interior for a relaxed afternoon and evening journalling and reading overlooking the pool.
Stop 11: The Fort Printers, Galle Fort
Few would pass up the opportunity to visit Unesco-listed Galle Fort, a unique fortified monument on a peninsula. Founded by the Portuguese, extended by the Dutch and administered by the British, it consists of ramparts and bastions with shops, temples, churches, houses, buildings of trade and commerce, barracks and schools within. We stayed at The Fort Printers, a former 18th-century college turned printing company turned boutique hotel, with original features including wide floorboards, high ceilings, teak doors and terracotta tiles. There’s a cooling lap pool in one courtyard, and a large shady frangipani tree in another where the more recent rooms are. There’s also a restaurant serving North African fusion cuisine, and a cocktail bar. The whole has an understated elegant style. We were in History in the Heritage Wing, off a handsome curved corridor which runs the length of the building.
Our driver Roshan took us on a tour. We saw the famous Galle cricket ground, climbed onto the ramparts, watched the waves and mini-beaches below. We went into the old British church, bought souvenirs, looked at the iconic lighthouse, sat on cannons, saw a snake-charmer ply his trade. Everybody says Magic Hour is the best time on the ramparts as the sun goes down and lights come up; unfortunately heavy monsoon rains that afternoon left clouds in the sky so no sunset. But we loved seeing all the families congregating, kites flying everywhere, cricket games, and tourists all together.
The next morning we enjoyed a really fascinating guided walking tour by local heritage interpreter Tharanga, who has been instrumental in preserving many of the buildings in the Fort. We went down alleyways, by schools, found a piece of wall dating to 1640, looked at the former military barracks, the gables of the Dutch church, and graves in the foundations of a hotel.
Stop 12: Sri Villas, nr Bentota
We drove westwards along the once tsunami-ravaged coastline of south-western Sri Lanka. It is still very moving. Some of the buildings that are still standing are now merely a shell. We stopped at the tsunami bronze memorial for a moment of reflection.
Our last stop, Sri Villas, feels like a beach house with staff; a home away from home. There are three interconnected double-storey architect-designed villas, each slightly different in size and layout to the next, and with their own living-dining room on the ground floor. All three share a 30m pool, which has a shallow shelf for kids, and which we lost no time jumping into, and the whole gives onto the golden sandy beach right in front. In season you can see turtles hatching, there are hatcheries nearby. Instead we had a massage each, kindly arranged by owner Eliane. Then wandered along the yellow sands to a little headland. We were in Sagara Villa, with our own balcony overlooking the ocean. For our last supper, we enjoyed Sri Lankan seafood tapas, listening to the waves, and the wind. That night a storm blew up, it was incredibly atmospheric in the dark and in the morning we saw one palm tree had fallen, but all was cleared away by the time we ate our last breakfast of hoppers and curry, to see us on our way to the airport and home.
Check out Part 1 of Nadine and Esme’s adventures in Sri Lanka.
They used Tailormade Tours Sri Lanka to construct the itinerary for their trip of a lifetime, and they are still in touch with their lovely driver, Roshan!