Ceylon Tea Trails - Relais and Chateaux

We stayed here for 2 nights in the Dunkeld plantation house. There are only 5 rooms and the service is personalised and exquisite. Nothing is too much trouble. The view over the lake and tea plantations is magnificent. The food is top quality and the chef comes in the morning to ask what you would like for dinner. There is also an amazing tea. There are plenty of walking trails and you can visit any of the 4 other plantation houses spread around the lake. We also had a free very informative visit around the tea factory. It is an effort to get here unless you come by float plane but it is well worth it. I can’t recommend it highly enough.

We spent three nights in the Norwood Bungalow, one of five bungalows in the Tea Trails. We also had lunch at two other bungalows: Castlereagh and Tientsim. All of the bungalows are impeccably presented - beautifully presented, well-maintained with polished floors, crisp linen, hot water, lovely gardens, breathtaking views, a swimming pool…. and most of all, wonderful staff who are professional and courteous. The food is outstanding in both quality and variety. We toured the nearby Dunkeld Tea Processing Centre and were looked after by Bernard, who explained the history of the tea trade and the processes for making tea, from growing the bushes through harvesting the crop, sorting and rolling the leaves, producing the loose leaf tea and pancaking it for auction. Fascinating.

This was out first stop of our honeymoon and it was the most tranquil peacful start to our trip. We stayed in Dunkeld bungalow and it was beautiful, very clean and the staff were all so attentive and friendly. Our Butlers Samantha, Priyantha and both house attendants Sathsara and Varun were excellent and made our stay really enjoyable. The food is excellent too. We walked from our bungalow to another one for lunch and the staff and food were equally as delicious there. Whilst we were there we did a guided walk with our very knowledgable and friendly guide Wasantha. We also went out on the lake for a kayak ride and our guide Dhanushka was also extremely knowledgeable and friendly. I could not recommend this hotel more! I have been lucky enough to visit some amazing hotels as my father was the founder of Small Luxury Hotels and this is up there in the top 5 hotels I've been to.