For a lot of people, when Sri Lanka or Ceylon is mentioned, tea is the first thing that comes to mind. You can’t blame them, for Ceylon tea is some of the best to be found in the entire world. Indeed, I know some people who will not settle for anything less than Ceylon tea.

If you are a tea enthusiast, then Ceylon should be at the top of your list of travel destinations. Naturally, you would expect to find accommodations that highlight this national specialty. If we’re to rely on the opinions of experts and seasoned travelers, you will not go wrong in choosing the Tea Factory Hotel. The name itself tells you what to expect – what you see is what you get.

The Tea Factory Hotel is a hotel located in the premises of a tea factory. It is as authentic as you can get, really. The edifice used to be a tea factory, and the current hotel bedrooms used to be the areas where tea leaves were withered. For those unfamiliar with the tea making process, withering is the first step in manufacturing black tea. Once the tea leaves (still green) are picked, they are delivered to the factory to be withered. There is no doubt about it – even in your very room, you can feel the genuineness of the tea factory experience in this hotel.

The Tea Factory Hotel is located in Nuwara Eliya, a town about 160 kilometers from Colombo. It is set at 2,200 meters above sea level, making the conditions perfect for growing tea. The hotel is classified as a 4-star hotel, making sure that guests enjoy the luxury and pampering that they are yearning for. There are 57 rooms in the hotel, 4 of which are deluxe. All of the rooms are heated or cooled, depending on the needs and preferences of the guests. Rooms are also equipped with satellite TV, phones with IDD access, and Internet ports. For a relaxing bath after a long day of rambling around the estate, the attached bathrooms are equipped with bathtubs and showers (with hot water, naturally).

Within the hotel, there is a small tea factory, which is open for the use of guests. An experience that you must not miss is picking your own tea leaves from outside of the hotel and then turning them over to the factory for processing. At the end of the whole process, you may enjoy a cup (or two) of tea made from the very leaves that you picked up!

Around the estate, guests may enjoy the ambiance of an authentic tea plantation. You will certainly enjoy interacting with the plantation workers, who find it a pleasure to share their craft with others. There are also natural springs around the area. The best time to visit this area is from March to May, which are the hottest months of the year. Be warned, though, that April usually draws in crowds of people yearning for the authentic Ceylon tea experience.

One of the most interesting places to visit in Sri Lanka is the Yala National Park. With the interest in eco tourism continuously increasing these days, this national park welcomes a steady stream of visitors. Eco tourism is perhaps one of the most significant developments in the travel industry today. We have all seen – and are seeing – what we’ve done to the environment. And, while we can travel all we want, we cannot ignore the fact that we need to pay more attention to our surroundings. No matter how luxurious a trip to Sri Lanka may be, we also need to take a look at the impact of our activities on the environment. And, that’s where eco tourism comes into the picture.

Going back to the premier eco tourism destination in Sri Lanka – Yala National Park – any environmentally conscious visitor absolutely cannot miss it! Yala National Park is not very near Colombo. In fact, it is about 300 kilometers from Colombo and is much nearer to Tissamaharama – about 24 kilometers northeast.

This national park covers a huge tract of land, more than 100,000 hectares of it! With this size, Yala National Park offers visitors a huge variety of ecosystems – the eco tourist’s idea of heaven! From monsoon forests (both humid and dry) to thorn forests to deciduous forests – you can find them all in the national park. There are also wetlands as well as sandy beaches. Indeed, Yala National Park will not bore you for one minute.

If you’re a leopard enthusiast, then you will Yala National Park as it is widely recognized as one of the best places in the world to observe this magnificent animal! For this activity, you have to visit Yala West (Ruhuna) National Park , which covers a huge block of land. FYI, the Sri Lankan leopard is the largest of its kind in Asia. There are about 30 leopards in the park; and, while that may seem few, it is the highest density of leopards in the entire world!

There are countless land based and water based activities that visitors can undertake in the national park. For the former, you can take your pick from leopard watching, bird watching, caving, cycling, mountain biking, hiking or trekking, offroad adventures, rock climbing, and safaris. For the latter, the choices are just as varied: fishing (both inland and deep sea), kayaking, snorkeling, scuba diving, surfing, turtle watching, whale watching, dolphin watching, white water rafting, water skiing, and wind surfing. And, that’s not even the full list!

Important info: the best time to visit is between May and August, when the weather is quite dry. Also, the park closes for a bit sometime in September and October.

If you’re interested – and I can’t see why anyone would NOT be interested – in visiting Yala National Park, you can visit their web site for more specific information. In this day and age, responsible and conscious tourism (as I like to call it) is something that we all ought to engage in.

Spending a luxurious holiday in Ceylon is not at all that hard to do, and of course, your “home base” for your holidays will be at the center of it all. There are a lot of places where you can stay in Ceylon, and one very highly recommended hotel is the Galle Fort Hotel.

Situated on Church Street in Galle Fort, this boutique hotel has already received a lot of attention from foreign visitors as well as the press. It is no wonder, really, as the hotel is perfect in so many ways! Take a look at this list to see what reputable entities have to say about the hotel:

• Conde Nast Hot List 2005
• Chosen by Conde Naste as one of the best new hotels in the world under $200
• Most desirable hotel bed linen in the world Wallpaper magazine
• Winner of the 2007 UNESCO Award of Distinction for cultural heritage conservation
• Selected by The Australian Travel Magazine as “ one of our top five places in the world to chill and relax”

Conde Nast has spoken – no need for further questions, don’t you think? Most desirable bed linen? Count me in! And of course, to be the recipient of such an award from UNESCO speaks volumes.

The hotel is housed in a piece of property dating back to the 17th century, ensuring guests of a stay steeped in history. It is reminiscent of what colonial Ceylon used to be and at the same time showcases the chic modern side of the culture. The hotel has a total of 11 rooms and suites, all of which are quite spacious. Indeed, many a traveler has described their rooms as enormous. In this day and age where chain hoteliers put such a high premium on space, the size of Galle Fort Hotel’s rooms is very much welcome. The design and décor of the rooms are a mix of Sri Lankan and Chinese – very minimal but extremely relaxing.

One of the best features of the hotel is the pool, which is in the courtyard. It really is a simple pool, not very large, but the whole setting is very serene. I doubt that you would want to leave once you find a shady spot to relax in!

Of course, I have to talk about the food, which has garnered so much praise from its guests. The food that the hotel serves is mainly Chinese and Thai, although chef Christopher Ong has quite a few tricks up his sleeve. One thing is for sure – you will have all the fresh seafood that you want! For cocktails, wines, teas, and other drinks, the front verandah is the place to be. It is also open to outside guests, making it the perfect meeting place for a lot of people.

If you’re looking for a quiet and luxurious place to stay – at an affordable price – then you can’t go wrong with the Galle Fort Hotel. For more information, visit the Galle Fort Hotel web site.

To follow up this, we thought it would be interesting to compare how Old Ceylon has evolved into the New Sri Lanka over the last century using photographic imagery.

To start us off, here is a picture of Pettah, in Colombo:

And here are some other wonderful examples of how Old Ceylon has become New Sri Lanka…

Galle Face Hotel, Colombo

Air Ceylon

York Street, Colombo

Khan Clock Tower, Colombo

Colombo Harbour

We will be posting more of these soon

This fabulous beachside property 7km from Galle certainly lives up to its name. Ambalama means ‘resting place’ in Sinhalese and it is an ideal villa in which to live out dreams of a relaxing tropical holiday. The construction of the villa celebrates its exotic location, seamlessly merging the indoors with the out. Highlighted by many fascinating antique pillars and doorways this villa may takes its inspiration from Bali, but its warm hospitality and glorious setting confirms its authenticity as Sri Lankan.

Ambalama offers plenty of luxe for the traveller. Its four equitable bedrooms are highlighted by comfortable four-poster beds adorned with the highest thread count linen to be found in Sri Lanka. With multiple sets of doors opening onto the front sea view verandah, louvers provide the rooms with enough of a breeze for you to hardly ever need to use the air conditioning or fan, although both are available. With two of the modern bathrooms featuring an enclosed open air shower surrounded by a soothing tropical garden, this is barefoot luxury at its best.

The main living area of Ambalama is an airy space with cool floors, high roof and a scattering of antique furniture and local art. To one end is a cosy lounge area whilst at the other is a circular dining table for eight, overlooking the pool, garden and sea. The villa is perfectly convivial and suits many group arrangements; it can easily be transformed from relaxed and intimate into something more formal depending upon the occasion. The villa has a full complement of staff, so all you have to do is ask.

The Balinese tiled swimming pool is one of the villa’s best assets. Located just footsteps from the bedrooms and living areas, the pool has an especially inviting ledge to one side from where you can sit in the sunshine and admire the view. Surrounded by a wide sun drenched terrace dotted with loungers, it is ideal for alfresco wining and dining at any time of the day. Ambalama is totally private and to the front is a large grassy lawn with access to the pristine stretch of beach just below.

One particular highlight of Ambalama is its cuisine. A lot of effort has gone into finding a great chef to create cuisine worth staying in for. Indeed, the new chef at Ambalama has worked in two of the island’s five star hotels and designed a menu that amply reflects this. From succulent seafood to sensational salads and wicked desserts, there is plenty to satisfy even the most demanding guest. And, whilst you might be enjoying five star cuisine, remember you’re not paying for it; guests only pay for the cost of the ingredients. Perfect! Three courses it is then.

The quoted rates for Ambalama Villa range from $600 per night in the value season to $900 per night in the peak season. We suggest that you contact the very efficient and friendly Tai via the website contact form.

This blog is not one about the news or politics coming amount of Sri Lanka. However, given the recent momentous events that have occurred in the country with the end of a 26 year old Civil War, we feel it would be unnatural not to address it. Apart from anything else, it does of course have a huge impact on the tourism industry in terms of safety and security, which as we explained in our very first post has been a primary reason why many people have decided not to visit the country.

The picture we are using was sent to us by a friend from Sri Lanka and was taken on the final days at the battlefield in Mullaitivu. The inherent emotion is obvious and during our recent trip, such feelings were reflected by every local we talked to. No individual or family has not lost a son or friend in this battle. They are now jubilant and hero worship their President Rajapaksa, who is assured re-election next year. And it is widely believed, despite the many negative stories and reports regarding the humanitarian catastrophe that exists, that tourists will soon return in abundance.

This remains to be seen, although many hotel owners we spoke to feel that after a “period of respect”, Sri Lanka will once again become a choice destination. There have been many views about what really went down with the end of this war. We tend to agree with a rather unconventional, independent view by Atlantic Monthly correspondent, Robert Kaplan:

The biggest takeaway fact about the Sri Lankan war that’s over now is that the Chinese won. And the Chinese won because over the last few years, because of the human rights violations by the Sri Lankan government, the U.S. and other Western countries have cut all military aid. We cut them off just as they were starting to win. The Chinese filled the gaps and kept them flush with weapons and, more importantly, with ammunition, with fire-fighting radar, all kinds of equipment. The assault rifles that Sri Lankan soldiers carry at road blocks throughout Colombo are T-56 Chinese knockoffs of AK-47s. They look like AK-47s, but they’re not.

They’re building a deep water port and bunkering facility for their warships and merchant fleet in Hambantota, in southern Sri Lanka. And they’re doing all sorts of other building on the island.

Now, why did the Chinese want Sri Lanka? Because Sri Lanka is strategically located. The main sea lines of communication between the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea, and between the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean. It’s part of China’s plan to construct a string of pearls – ports that they don’t own, but which they can use for their warships all across the Indian Ocean.

Sri Lanka defeated, more or less completely, a 26 year-long insurgency. They killed the leader and the leader’s son. But there are no takeaway lessons for the West here. The Sri Lankan government did it by silencing the media, which meant capturing the most prominent media critic of the government and killing him painfully. And they made sure all the other journalists knew about it.

The Tamil Tigers had human shields by the tens of thousands, not just by the dozens and hundreds like Al Qaeda. They put people between themselves and the government and say “you have to kill all the people to get to us.” So the government obliged them. The government killed thousands of civilians…The U.N. is investigating whether as many as 20,000 civilians have been killed during the last few months.

It was the only insurgent terrorist outfit that had a navy and air force…They had a few planes that they used for bombing missions over Colombo. Not even Hezbollah has either of those, and Hezbollah is the most sophisticated Islamist terrorist group in the world.

We at Ceylon Luxury pray for the Sri Lankan people- that there will be peace, harmony and prosperity in future years. They have waited a very long time and certainly deserve a chance to heal as a nation now.

On our recent visit, we only visited the South (kids were in tow!), but the end of this war does now open up various areas in the North renowned for their beauty, most notably Trincomalee and Jaffna.

More on these after our next visit….

Perhaps one of the most obvious and desirable things to do when traveling to Sri Lanka is to to visit the tea country. As TeaAuction.com writes:

“The Sri Lankan tea industry is the country’s largest employer providing jobs directly and indirectly to over a million people. It also contributes a significant amount to Government revenue and to the gross domestic product. Sri lanka is the 3rd biggest tea producer with a market share of 9%. The total land used for tea cultivation is approximately 187,309 hectares. Sri Lankan tea has unique characteristics and reputation as arguably the best teas in the world. The ideal climatic conditions of the plantation give the teas a variety of rich flavours and aromas, which indicate high quality.”

But with such a huge variety of choice and large distances to cover, where should the luxury traveler go to get a taste of the “Ceylon tea experience” while at the same time being able to relax and travel in style? We recommend Tea Trails…..

Tea Trails is in central Sri Lanka, four hours from Colombo by car to the Castlereagh Lake. It lies in the Bogawantalawa Valley, known as the Golden Valley of Tea and home to old Ceylon, replete with rolling green hills, plantation bungalows, high tea and exquisite service. Sri Lankan locals like to call this area “Little England” as it rains so much! The estate sits at an elevation of 4000 feet above sea level. There are four classic colonial bungalows built for British tea estate managers in the days of the Raj. These historic houses have been restored by Dilmah Tea with the co-operation of Bogawantalawa Tea Estates, to offer guests the unique experience of life on a working tea estate. Bungalow sizes range from 4 to 6 rooms- in all there are 20 luxurious rooms and suites. However, it is the ambience that makes the hotel so special in our opinion:

“Life in all its variety is played out in the living rooms. Pale tones and natural wood create equilibrium in the midst of a hectic life. Each bungalow has many sitting areas, old wooden desks to write postcards with real stamps and not just email. Silk cushions, regency stripped footstools, huge spaces warmed by roaring log fires. Mulled wine or the finest spirits, a drink that thrills the heart. Old books, old prints, antique maps, rooms filled with flowers in vibrant colours. Wide verandahs. Time for relaxing on cushioned cane chairs, waited on hand and foot by the discreet butler. Long expanses of slate to spend long afternoons, with a gimlet, white wine and cucumber sandwiches or fresh roasted cashews. Watch the lake and study the garden bees, while reading Somerset Maugham.”

The cuisine at Tea Trails is also excellent:

“Long teak tables and chairs in old gold. Moonlight through the window gently glows in the room, filled with the light of candles. Fine cuisine. Tea infused dishes. Sri Lankan classics. Seafood grills, fresh tropical fruit, rich chocolate cakes, the finest wines and vegetables from organic plots around the estate. A formal dinner or a simple alfresco lunch. Meals, wines and spirits included in your rate, no bills to sign. A butler at your beck and call.”

All in all, Tea Trails is the perfect place to explore Sri Lanka’s tea country from- a truly luxurious, “boutique” travel experience. You set your own pace while at Tea Trails and can unwind in the beautiful gardens, visit a factory for a gentle education in the art of Ceylon Tea, have a spa treatment or spend an adventure-filled day biking, trekking and white-water rafting. The views from all parts of the hotel are incomparably stunning.

Accommodation rates vary hugely according to how many are in your group. For a double room, prices range from $200 – $300. Best to contact the hotel directly to arrange what suits you best. Tea Trails is also part of the Sri Lanka In Style group who can also arrange a luxury tour for you.