Snazzy comfort amidst lapping waves

The accommodation for visitors along the strand of beach between the 65 and 68 kilometre markers at Induruwa on the road from Colombo to Galle, represents the old and the new of tourist establishments in Sri Lanka. While there are cheap, beachside guesthouses and mass-market, package holiday hotels, there are also some snazzy properties in the boutique mould.

Just because a hotel is small and privately owned doesn't entitle it to dub itself 'boutique’. A certain sense of style and exclusivity is required as well. The newly opened Temple Tree Resort at Induruwa has the right idiosyncrasy that bestows cachet to this stretch of beach.

The exterior conceals the pleasingly clever but simple architecture behind a high white-washed wall fronting the road. It is only when the uniformed doorman, with enough gold braid to make him look like an admiral, activates the mechanism for the broad wooden gate to roll open, that the visitor becomes aware of arriving at somewhere special. There is a small area for cars to park directly behind the gate, and open space from there to the beach and the ocean. This has been intelligently adapted in a minimal and rigorous fashion to provide open-sided public areas where the breeze (and a tsunami tide) could flow through unhindered.

The reception desk is a cement slab beside the entrance courtyard that leads to the tiled-floor lounge with a range of pew-like benches and solid, heavy coffee tables. Square cement columns support the roof, creating a utilitarian atmosphere. At the other side of a central staircase is the bar counter lined with stools but with no drinks on display. Fear not, the bar stewards are experts at making cocktails and the drink list features well-chosen wines and top brand spirits. Aligning the bar is the restaurant area, also open-sided to the beach, with comfortable, body-enveloping chairs and chunky dining tables. The restaurant's a la carte menu has only a few dishes and this ensures everything is always available.

There are nine rooms and one suite at Temple Tree Resort, spread over the building's two upper storeys and reached by stairs (no lift) so this resort is for the fit. It is also for the modern holidaymaker in search of a bedroom with a difference since these are defiantly cool with darkly-stained kitul wood parquet flooring, white walls brightened with abstract orange-themed paintings, and wooden closet doors done in antique green. The furniture is angular with occasional tables filling space, and the bed plump and inviting.

The wow factor is the bathroom that runs the length of the bedroom from entrance door to sea-view balcony, separated by floor to ceiling glass panels, hung with blinds. The bathtub is circular, set so a guest taking a bath can gaze out of the windowed wall to the sea; there is a rain shower in a glass cubicle at the other, non-view end.

Bathroom walls are of the cut and polished 'titanium' cement that is a feature of so many new buildings here. One wonders if the reason for all that exposed cement is, perhaps, a lack of enough good quality bathroom tiles at a practical price. Or is it just a fad that, in time, will date a building as much as red-polished cement floors hint at a house's 1970's origins?

The bedrooms are equipped not only with smooth AC and fan, and a flat-screen television, but also with a safe that is large enough to stow a laptop and other bulky valuables safely. It is remarkable what the architect, Vinod Jayasinghe, has created with contemporary elegance in a small land area. Even though it is open to the beach beyond the lawn and the shallow swimming pool, the resort (which also boasts a spa) is a unique retreat where guests can feel special.

Refreshingly, all the quoted prices include service charge and government taxes instead of these being unexpected extras on a bar or restaurant bill. There are discounts on the rack rate of US$300 a double, with bed and breakfast, for local residents.