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| Sunday, 02 March 2003 |
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| News Business Features Editorial
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First 'boutique' hotel opens doors by Carol Aloysius The opening of the 'Elephant Corridor' to the public on March 1 marks a new milestone in the hotel industry in Sri Lanka. Built on 200 acres of sprawling unfenced jungle land with 48 luxury suites, each with its own plunge pool, high ceilings that open to the skies, designer furniture and breathtaking views of the surrounding jungle and the Sigiriya rock, the hotel is a trail blazer in more ways than one. The 120-member staff, who will be at the beck and call of the guests, represent the highest guest-staff ratio in any hotel in the island, and reflect the highly personalised approach to customers by the hotel management. 'Elephant Corridor' (so named after the gentle giants that roam freely in its surroundings) is likely to be the forerunner to similar hotels in the near future. "We expect to set up around 10 of these small lifestyle boutique hotels in various parts of the island including the North and East", said Chairman, Tropical Leisure Management Ltd, Prasanna Jayewardene, who is the brain behind this novel concept. He and the company's Executive Director, Susanne Filippin are already looking for new investors to put their dreams into action. Addressing a media conference held at the hotel premises last week, Jayewardene said: "What we are trying to do, is to create the next generation of hotels in this country. These small lifestyle hotels will be better suited to our environment and culture. "They will be geared for mostly up market clients. Due to the highly personalised services and luxurious comforts we hope to give them, we are confident we will have plenty of takers." Built at a cost of Rs 300 million (three million US dollars), this fully Sri Lankan-owned hotel is currently renting its 21 suites at prices that range from 150 US dollars for the smaller de luxe luxury rooms to 1000 US dollars for the Presidential Suite, which is the ultimate in comfort and luxury with two bedrooms and two separate dining rooms. Jayewardene and Filippin are currently looking at Britain, Japan, Germany and America among other countries for prospective customers. "We have had encouraging responses and some good inquiries from these countries, so we are confident we will get more clients and recover our costs as well, within the next four years," he said. 'Elephant Corridor' was officially opened yesterday. The owning company of the hotel complex is Sansun Boutique Hotel Ltd. The shareholders are Sierra Holdings Ltd, Prasanna Jayawardene and Sarath Herat. The managing company is Tropical Leisure Management Ltd. |
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