A getaway in the hills

Nice English weather, a cozy blanket, a nice cup of coffee and a grand old bungalow sounds like the perfect calling? Well pack up your bags and make a reservation at Royal Cocoon, Nuwara Eliya. Nestled in a relatively quiet area a few minutes away from the Nuwara Eliya town, Royal Cocoon is a colonial bungalow built long before Sri Lanka gained its independence and to date maintains that old charm and grandeur that would have been existent many years ago.

To make the best of your stay at the hotel I would definitely recommend leaving Colombo the night previous to your check-in date or really early in the morning which makes the drive more pleasant and less stressful. Having reached the property at 2.30am, I was all set for the cozy looking bed and no sooner than my head hit the pillow I was out like a light. The heater provided in the room adds warmth although in this period of the year it is not necessary to turn it on as it is relatively humid.

The hotel comprises of 7 rooms which includes one family suite. The rooms are extremely spacious and are homely and cozy. Breakfast that morning was quite good, the usual platter of fruits followed by Coconut Rotti and the spiciest “Lunu Miris” ever! So if you are a foreigner and not too fond of spices take the extra mile and make sure to inform the kitchen the night before as to how spicy you would like your food. Following breakfast if one would like to explore the area a little bit I would recommend taking the five minute walk towards Victoria Park. Although the prices charged from locals and foreigners have a huge difference, the park is not the greatest especially for a foreigner who has to pay 300LKR just to walk around the relatively small park.  But if you don’t want to do any walking around other than in the hotel, one can enjoy the beautifully maintained gardens and lush lawns of the bungalow itself which is situated on one acre of land.

I came back straight for lunch and the hotel’s chef had prepared a rice and curry to die for! The greens, chicken and what I believe was homemade mango chutney accompanied by everyone’s favourite papadam had me in gastronomical heaven and had me cheating on my diet on a day that I was not supposed to.

Evenings can be spent in the games room playing a number of board games that are available in the room or try out your badminton skills with the equipment provided at no extra cost by the hotel.

If your stay is short in Nuwara Eliya I would recommend you to walk down to Gregory Lake and while you are at that check out the stables and take a horseback ride. I guess it would be great if you could hire out a horse and probably explore the mountains but unfortunately the few people I spoke to regarding the matter quoted some insanely high prices to do so.

As for dinner we ordered a grilled fish with vegetables and French fries which proved to be quite good but in a relatively small portion although once you are done with the fries you tend to be full.

Other facilities at Royal Cocoon include extremely fast wifi (although I wouldn’t recommend getting hooked unto it), hot water, TV and most importantly a dedicated staff who try their best to ensure that you have a comfortable stay although I must add that some of them need a bit more training. But all in all I had quite a pleasant stay and would definitely recommend Royal Cocoon to anyone.

For more details visit www.cocoonresortandvillas.com

Or email [email protected]

By Reihan Stephen
Pics by Kithsiri De Mel