The Beach beckons

“Please refrain from eating the squirrels as they are pets.” I blinked as my tired brain misinterpreted a sign on the top of the television in my bedroom at the Jetwing hotel in Negombo, The Beach. I had been flying for hours overnight and had come to The Beach because it is only 20 minutes from the airport and I couldn’t face the long drive home. I had glanced at the 40-page booklet extolling the green virtues of the hotel concerning energy optimisation, waste and water management, and biodiversity conservation. Another notice in the bathroom addressed me as “Dear Friend” and said “Thank you for sensing [sic] your towels.” It was signed “Mother Nature.”

No wonder I was confused. Then there was a knock at the window pane and I turned to see a squirrel bouncing against the full length glass door of the balcony, apparently attracted by the fruit basket in the bedroom. I read the sign on the TV again and realised it actually said: “Please refrain from feeding the squirrels, as they are not pets.”

The Beach is the star of Negombo and tries its best to make its setting sparkle. Once inside, up a short flight of steps from the road, the reception lobby gives a view of the long swimming pool and the glorious broad swathe of sandy beach. This is a resort for the holidaymaker who wants a touch of class as well as a chance to hobnob with fellow guests, the fisherfolk hauling their catamarans up the beach, and the eager squirrels. Originally opened as The Royal Oceanic in 1987, the hotel was revamped in 2004 to make it the best address north of the airport.

This has resulted in architecture I call “chunky” with polished cement floors, concrete beams, bedrooms that are large but basic with low ceilings and solid wooden furniture. My standard deluxe room, number 209, was up a short flight of stairs to the first floor. Ground floor rooms are one flight down from reception and open onto the garden, pool and beach.

The entrance to each bedroom is impressive. The first thing I saw was the bathtub as the walls of the bathroom are entirely glass. There are blinds for privacy but these glass walls give the bedroom an air of space, which it needs to counteract the gloom induced by the low ceiling. The lights are controlled by putting the key tag into a slot (thus energy conservation) but the air-conditioning is central, with a switch to turn it off by the bed. There is a full-size bathtub and an igloo-like rain shower with fashionable refined cement walls.

The ample closet contained bright orange bathrobes, a mini safe and spare pillows. There was a vanity counter with tea/coffee making equipment, a long wooden chest as luggage rack, and a solid wooden cupboard supporting the TV and minibar. The sole armchair faced a wooden coffee table with brass-edged corners. There was no carpet in the room, only tiles which, although practical because of the sand brought in from the beach, create a somewhat Spartan ambience.

Unusual even for a hotel of this calibre was the choice of welcome drinks offered when I checked in: iced tea, wood apple juice or king coconut water. The iced tea was perfect, letting the zestful flavour of the tea speak for itself. The Beach has a special tea menu of some 15 premium Sri Lankan leaf teas. These feature in High Tea which, with a selection of sandwiches, pastries and scones with jam and cream, costs Rs 850 per pot.

I was surprised when I checked in to see a list of meal preferences (low fat, vegetarian, etc) on the registration form, an indication of the care given to guests’ requirements. My first meal was lunch in The Sands Restaurant with its sides open to the garden and beach. The mushroom cappuccino proved to be a foretaste of the good food to come, as I discovered when I had a delicious dinner in the upstairs fine dining restaurant, Black Coral.

The hotel’s bar, I regret to report, is not designed for drinkers, being more like a dispensary walling in the Sands Restaurant. However, since it is designed to serve guests on the beach, by the pool, in the lounge and in the two restaurants, it is practical if not convivial. Wines, on the other hand, have been chosen for connoisseurs and the extensive list contains some superb (and not expensive) wines available only at Jetwing Hotels.

The Beach has a special rate for Sri Lanka residents of Rs10,900 for a double, bed and breakfast, with supplements at peak times, and a premium of US$200 for the top floor suites with interior courtyard bathroom and separate sitting room. www.jetwinghotels.com