Sri Lanka’s KumbukRiver has been picked among the world’s 10 best eco-lodges, for the 2nd year running by the World Travel Awards.

The 7th Frontier, an ad agency which developed and promotes this eco lodge, said in a press release that KumbukRiver, a 14-acre up-market eco-lodge by the waters of Kumbukkan Oya in Buttala is famous internationally for a spellbinding 40ft elephant edifice which serves as an exclusive villa for visitors. It will vie for the top slot when professionals from over 160,000 travel agents in over 200 countries vote for the Green Awards category at the 15 year-old event hailed as the most coveted awards scheme of the travel and tourism industry.

The nomination by the WTA puts the eco-lodge from Buttala on the world tourism map, not for the first time, with KumbukRiver securing two other international accolades. KumbukRiver was short-listed for an award at the Virgin-Responsible Tourism Awards last year, while Times-Online voted it among the world’s 50 best green places to stay, making KumbukRiver the hottest Sri Lankan destination in the world of responsible tourism, the release said.