"Let's head to Hikka !!!!" is a common catchphrase not only amongst travellers but anyone in search of sunny beaches and an exciting nightlife. We see a huge bunch of both locals and tourists breeze through, without ever really digging into the area's culture that underpins it.
As for the tourists they travel directly from the airport to start their classic Asian beach holiday simply to experience the fun vibe and heaps of affordable hotels and guesthouses built along a serene stretch of wide beach. You often notice backpackers who wander the sands from one café to the next, enjoying the sunset and the pleasures beyond.
My friends are often away in Hikkaduwa every weekend partying it up, indulging in the beaches or simply unwinding in the balconies of the quiet guesthouses over a nice beverage.
Although I adore the pristine turquoise waters in Hikka, I’m not quite fond of the loud and overcrowded atmosphere, especially when I’m on holiday. I vividly remember standing in awe of the seemingly endless ribbon of golden sand, and the glistening strip of the seas shining bright as a mirror in the sunlight.
This time around we discovered what I like to call ‘an exclusive hideaway’ located in the the inlands of Hikka, set amidst mangroves and bordering the serene Hikkaduwa Lake - called ‘Nature Resort’, thanks to a friend who is a resident of Hikka. You could take a left at the Hikkaduwa junction and proceed a mere 2 kms, along the Baddegame Road and bam! you don’t even feel like you’re in a beach destination.
The mushy mangroves led us through to a floating restaurant and we entered the blissful vacation we’d yearned for. That’s not all, if you decide to stay over, you could literally wake up to the lake flowing by and the fresh cool air surrounding it.
We spent hours lounging on the strong wooden chairs and the rustic deck built beside the restaurant just chatting and along came a large plate of steaming seafood fried rice, sizzling devilled pork chunks, flavourful stripes of a dark beef stew and for those who didn’t enjoy chunky meat, an ‘always welcome’ plate of salty hot butter cuttle fish.
The rooms here are eco-friendly blended perfectly with the serene atmosphere and you could choose to sail while dining.
I must say the most captivating feature of the resort is its absolute stillness and the sheer luxury of privacy within the folds of this gorgeous retreat.
For those of you who want to step out of the predictable beach vacation or have a simple urge to unwind overlooking a splendid lake with a serving of delicious food, make a trip to The Nature Resort, Hikkaduwa for an affordable and quiet vacation.
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0 Comments
Ando says:
Jun 20, 2013 at 12:00 amThis is not good. Totally illegal. This kind of things are really troubling the mangrove and river banks. Imagine the banks are fully covered by this kind of huts... nonsense, right?
Gon Banda says:
Jun 20, 2013 at 12:00 amAndo. It appears from the pictures that this resort is not too intrusive and damaging to the natural environment. Its away from the mangroves. If you have visited tourist resorts in the Caribbean and visited many of the islands, they all have nature resorts of this order for years, without any damage to the surrounding area.
Ando says:
Jun 22, 2013 at 12:00 amGon Banda. I dis-agree with you. No need to go as far as Caribbean; just visit Madu River (balapitiya) or Bentota mangrove areas to witness the destruction. One will be followed by hundreds until the entire mangrove is covered with bridges and huts like this. The other point is, the boat travellers are not able to enjoy the mangrove scenes if the mangroves are covered by the huts.