“We bought the bungalow for our own use,” said Richard Goode, “but so many friends wanted to stay with us, we had to build another house and found we had created a boutique bungalow hotel.”
Sounding bemused at how events had taken over, Goode and his wife Cary, who hail from Britain, now spend several weeks at a time in their bungalow, which they call Ellerton. “We want our paying guests to feel they are staying in a friend’s house,” said Mrs Goode. “So we added a library, a dining pavilion, a swimming pool, arbours and flower gardens, so guests can please themselves .”
When they are in residence, Richard and Cary Goode act as host and hostess but even when they are not present, guests are made to feel especially welcome by manager Ken Hetti, because of the informality of Ellerton. As the Goodes brought much of their collectible furniture, books, paintings and ornaments with them from their home in England, and designed the rooms and adjacent Valley House themselves, Ellerton has a distinctive, homely character.
Ellerton is set – at 2,400 feet above sea level - atop a 12-acre tea plantation less than half an hour’s drive from Peradeniya off the old road to Gampola. The drive is a little complicated but clear directions on how to get there are on the bungalow website: www.ellertonsrilanka.com.
The Goodes’ involvement in Sri Lanka began during Richard’s childhood when he visited the island often as his father was working here. With retirement approaching, he and his wife resolved to live here and, about five years ago, searched long and hard within an hour’s drive off Kandy to find the property they wanted. They formed a BOI-approved company and purchased an estate with the aim of producing organic tea.
“This whole valley,” said Richard proudly, “is organic so there is an amazing abundance of bird life.” The original bungalow, which the Goodes modified, was built as a planter’s residence about 100 years ago. The new Valley House addition has been built on the foundations of a small tea factory. The plantation is in the Nilambe district, once the seat of the King of Kandy.
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| A leafy entrance to Ellerton (above) and below a corner with a view |
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| Swimming pool with a view for 20 miles down the forested valley. |
Guests can stay in the main bungalow with its two double and one single guest rooms, or in the Valley House also with two doubles and one single room. All bedrooms have en suite bathrooms with hot water.
While the main house has a large sitting room, a dining room with a long table seating 12, and a study/tv/games lounge, the neatly laid out Valley House has its own library, a huge verandah and a swimming pool with a view for 20 miles down the forested valley. Breakfast and set-menu three-course dinners (at US$20 per person) are served in a separate dining pavilion overlooking the forest.
With paths and lanes criss-crossing the surrounding countryside, Ellerton is an ideal base for hiking; many walks are described in a “Walks from Ellerton” leaflet. There are also seven mountain bikes available for guests to explore the district independently.
A fact sheet in the bedrooms warns guests not to be concerned about animal noises in the night as there are monkeys, mongooses, porcupines, pole cats, wild boar, squirrel, hares, barking deer and fruit bats aplenty, as well as incredible bird life such as the Sri Lankan hanging parrot, green parakeets, golden orioles and sunbirds.
To stay at Ellerton is to be in harmony with nature while enjoying sublime comfort and an atmosphere of genteel sophistication. In spite of its apparent isolation, Ellerton is within easy drive of Kandy and Nuwara Eliya so it is a good place to stay while discovering the magnificent beauty of the hill country.
With an obliging and smartly attired staff, including five gardeners, Ellerton can be rented in its entirety by families or by the bedroom by the night. It is cleverly designed with secluded corners so guests who don’t know each other can keep to themselves, or join in the polite house party atmosphere.
In comparison with boutique hotels by the coast, a stay at Ellerton is remarkably reasonable given its exclusivity, at US$120 for bed and breakfast per couple, no service charge. The information sheet in the bedroom gives useful advice about tipping. For Sri Lankan and expatriate residents, there are special rates, particularly attractive in the off-season months of May and June.
Ellerton, Nuwa Gurukelle, Doluwa, Gampola; tel/fax 081 241 5137; info@ellertonsrilanka.com. |
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