Owned by Romesh Kaluwitharana, part of Sri Lanka’s World Cup (ODI) winning side of 1996, the hotel has just 14 rooms set in five acres of attractive gardens just 10 minutes from Udawalwe National Park gates.
We were warmly welcomed at reception with a cold towel and drink and our check in gave rise to two photograph opportunities. One being the traditional lighting of the oil on an ornate stand, the other being with the cricket great Kalu himself when he came out to greet us.
We were staying in a chalet room (107) on a dinner, bed and breakfast basis. The room was a little bit of a walk from reception and involved a number of steps, including gaining access to the first floor where the room was located. The hotel staff advised me that there are paths that provide step free access to all the hotels facilities, with specific rooms used for guests with mobility issues. As always individuals should check direct with the hotel to ensure their specific needs can be met.
Room 107 was a good size with two large single beds placed together to form a huge double (bigger than king size); we enjoyed a good nights sleep in it. The room had a rustic feel with dark woods, including the open apex ceiling and a marble (or marble like) floor. Rooms are well equipped with TV, complimentary WiFi (quite a good speed), fridge, complimentary (plastic) bottled water, tea and coffee station, mini safe (at eye level in the wardrobe – good design), mosquito plug in and variable speed ceiling fan, plus air conditioning.
The covered balcony had nice views over the garden and included a double day bed, a table and two chairs and was perfect for relaxing after a game drive.
The bathroom had a decent sized shower and complimentary toiletries (small plastic bottles) and hairdryer.
The hotel claims to be Eco friendly and I’d like to see it remove the single use plastic mentioned above and plastic bottled water from the restaurant to enhance its claims.
Breakfast and Dinner are in a large airy space overlooking the pool/gardens and is buffet style. There was a large selection of hot and cold (cold items e.g. salads and fresh fruit are kept in a cold room) dishes, both western and Asian selections. Eggs are cooked to order at breakfast and the Chef was available at both breakfast and dinner to help us with our choices. Both meals were delicious and I enjoyed a dinner of local fish, pineapple curry and rice, followed by fruit crumble and ice cream. Staff were attentive, helpful, polite and friendly throughout the hotel.
We’d like to thank Kalu’s Hideaway Hotel for our complimentary nights stay and would love to stay here again for a longer period and make full use of the hotel’s facilities e.g. SPA.