The room
The lead-in deluxe king room category feels spacious.
Walnut-brown tones give rooms a cosy charm, yet ample natural lighting and a balcony overlooking greenery radiate airiness and brightness.
Each classic-contemporary room features dark-wood flooring, fans with palm-shaped blades, and pops of colour while an oversized canvas above the bed depicts scenes across the island nation – a nice touch.
I have Galle’s famous brick lighthouse watching over my king-sized bed. I’m in a deluxe guest room with a garden view – the hotel’s lead-in room category but it feels bigger than its 42 square metres. Beyond the balcony doors is a blanket of palms below me and the ocean just to my left.
Lounge poolside … plenty of places to be a sun-kissed sloth.
The hotel has seven room categories including some with plunge pools and one- and two-bedroom suites. The largest – a two-bedroom presidential suite with ocean views – is 210 square metres.
Food and drink
Open-air Olive Restaurant and Pool Bar.
The resort features five food and beverage outlets, from the ground floor to the rooftop. The main eatery, S Kitchen, offers an extensive international buffet that snakes around half the venue. The dedicated seafood station is a highlight; I get my fill of prawns, scallops, crab and numerous Sri Lankan fish dishes such as curries and street-food snacks. For a treat, request the barbecued, marinated prawn skewers served in a hammered copper pot.
Go up as the sun goes down; rooftop lounge bar Blu3 offers plenty of seating to make the most of the daily spectacle.
Out and about
Meet local wildlife during a visit to the Victor Hasselblad Sea Turtle Research and Conservation Centre next door. Established in 1978, the country’s oldest wildlife conservation centre helps to protect five of the seven endangered sea-turtle species – green, hawksbill, loggerhead, olive ridley, and leatherback – found along Sri Lanka’s southern coast.
You may see newborn sea turtles, just days old, and get the chance to release them into the wild (I opt not to).
Visit charming, heritage-listed Galle Fort, an hour’s drive away, and learn about Sri Lanka’s history or shop for nicknacks. Make sure to visit the lighthouse, too.
The verdict
If the rest of your trip to Sri Lanka is jam-packed, take some time to unwind in this luxe oasis. It’s worth staying for the buffet alone, and there are numerous scenic spots to retreat to post-meal. After a week of sightseeing, I need just that.
Essentials
From $US100 ($148) a night. Sheraton Kosgoda Turtle Beach Resort, 1 Okanda Road Hiddaruwa, Naape, Kosgoda, Sri Lanka. Phone: +94 917 600 100. Wheelchair access in select rooms and commons areas, phone to discuss specific needs. See marriott.com
Our score out of five
★★★★
Highlight
The hotel buffet – it’s worth the holiday weight gain.
Lowlight
Bar service by the pool was on the slow side.
The writer stayed as a guest of the of Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority and Sheraton Kosgoda Turtle Beach Resort.
