Discovering Southwest Sri Lanka:

The Safari Hotel, the perfect base

by Royston Ellis

The Safari Hotel is aptly named as it is the perfect base for safaris to the Yala National Park as well as being within easy driving distance to the Bundala Bird Sanctuary.

It is located on the banks of the Tissa Wewa, the king-made reservoir that is a paradise for birdlife and wonderful for a boat safari. For pilgrims it is the ideal place to stay, being within a short drive of Kataragama.

The Safari Hotel's splendid location, on the way to so many attractions, made it a popular spot for a resthouse, where travellers of the past stayed while exploring the area. Over the years, the rest house expanded, first to a resort and then opening in April transformed into The Safari Hotel. The rustic image has been retained, however. The roof is covered with thatch and the lobby lounge columns are huge tree trunks.

The drive-in entrance brings vehicles right into the portico of the hotel; there are no doors and no air-conditioning in the open-sided reception pavilion.

Guests relax in armchairs sipping a welcome drink based on iced tea and cinnamon, without having to queue to check in. The natural breeze billowing in from the languid reservoir across the sparkling blue swimming pool, keeps guests cool.

Good tastes

The 50 bedrooms share the distinctive features of a modern and stylish makeover. I found it difficult to believe that the bedroom I stayed in when The Safari hotel was the Tissa Resthouse has been transformed, like all the other rooms, with contemporary good taste into a pleasantly agreeable place to stay.

Gone are the creaky ceiling fans, replaced with the latest individual air-conditioning units. Instead of curtains, there are sliding blinds; there is even a blind shielding an unexpected glass pane that gives a view of the bathroom. The wardrobe doors slide open to reveal another sliding door opposite that enables clothes to be accessed from the bathroom as well.

The bathroom itself has been brightened by the installation of glass bricks that allow light to flow in from outside. There is a modern glass, rain shower cabinet that doesn't flood, and a chunky hand basin; a shelf of towels is topped with lots of pots of lotions and gels.

To maximise space, an alcove beside the narrow doors opening into the bathroom has been utilised for keeping a kettle with packets for making tea and coffee, and complimentary bottles of mineral water. Underneath it, a pair of slatted wooden doors conceal the minibar fridge.

Fascinating photographs

Lighting is bold with big switches that are easy to find and operate. There is a large flat screen satellite television hanging like a picture from a wall where it can be angled for easy viewing from the bed, or from the couple of comfy chairs in the room's lounging area. Real pictures are fascinating photographs of old Ceylon scenes and a pair of painted wooden panels hang above the minibar.

There is a slim table as a work desk, with sockets for laptop or for charging a mobile phone. The room telephone is there too, not beside the bed. Of course, the main feature of the room is the bed, in this case it has a plump and comfortable mattress, swathed with top quality linen sheets.

Ground floor rooms open with sliding doors on to the garden, with the pool just a couple of paces away. It is perfect for a pre-breakfast swim or a leisurely dip after a day's driving. There is also a sundeck over the bank of the reservoir with plenty of wooden sun-lounges, and sunshades.

Of course, tasteful refurbishment and modern infrastructure alone does not transform a resthouse into a good hotel. Keen and cheerful staff members are necessary too.

So I was delighted to find that the young staff working at The Safari hotel really take extra care in what they are doing. For example, a pencil I broke and left on the desk, was sharpened by the housekeeping staff when they cleaned the room. The food and beverage staff showed keenness too. There is only a dispensary bar but the barman made a difficult cocktail with flair. As I didn't want to eat in the air-conditioned restaurant, the stewards quickly set up a table for me on the verandah outside, overlooking the pool.

All meals (with vegetarian, fish or chicken choices) are available as buffets as this suits guests in a hurry to explore the area, or who return late after a pilgrimage to Kataragama.

For the domestic tourist staying at The Safari, Kataragama is top of the list.