Ceylon Tea Trails - Norwood Bungalow — Hotel in Sri Lanka

We first saw Ceylon Tea Trails featured on an episode of Amazing Hotels - Life Beyond the Lobby and decided it would be lovely to explore Sri Lankan highlands tea plantations from one of these beautifully restored bungalows. We chose Dunkeld Bungalow - it has a lovely view of Castlereagh Reservoir, with a cold water infinity pool, and hot tub/jacuzzi sharing the same amazing view. While initially seeming quite expensive, it is all-inclusive (some Curated Experiences do have additional costing), and the service and food is outstanding. Private chefs took into account my husband's allergy to crustacean, and served up the best food we had in Sri Lanka. The chef at Dunkeld was very, very good. A stand out was the tea-infused dinner. Service was timely and impeccable, as you would expect from a Relais & Chateau property. The whole bungalow has been lovingly restored and all the rooms are beautifully outfitted in a style complementing their historic nature. We enjoyed being able to visit and dine at the other bungalows (although we think the chef at Dunkeld was the best), and the visit to the tea factory was informative and fun. It was lovely walking through the tea plantation and enjoying the ambience and scenery. We did spend quite a bit of time relaxing at a little table on the grass patio, in the beautiful country garden, with stunning views across the reservoir and surrounding mountains, reading books, drinking tea and wine, and generally watching the world pass by.|Thank you, Ceylon Tea Trails, it was a lovely experience, and we do...

There are five different locations making up the Tea Trails "hotel". This review relates to the Castlereagh Bungalow only, we did not see the others. We stayed two nights in a Garden Suite. ||There was some confusion on location and jhow to find the correct venue. In fact we had to find Summerville Bungalow and were taken across the lake by private boat to the Castlereagh side, as apparently the road around is long, windy, and bumpy ||The charming bungalow has only five rooms (perhaps six). The vibe is old colonial and personal service. There are no room keys for example, which is lovely. The stay is all inclusive including wine and spirits, and all designed to make you feel like you are a plantation owner ||The butler, Janaka, ensures everything is set up for a relaxing time and catering for your every need. ||The chef will suggest menus for lunch and dinner, and amend according to your likes and dislikes. And he can cook well, we absolutely loved the Sri Lankan meal he created with nine different curry dishes. ||The decor, of the room and the public areas is fully old world charm. The views over the gardens and lake are beautiful. ||I can recommend the tour of the nearby tea factory, where the guide is knowledgeable and entertaining. We learned a lot and were not bored in the slightest. ||We thoroughly enjoyed our stay and hove no hesitation...

This bungalows is in another world !!! A lush garden in full bloom filled the surroundings with a heavenly, serene charm. The gardeners tended with loving care, leaving the garden neat and fair. We had our afternoon cream tea at the patio before strolling around the beautiful garden. The relatively big pool encircled by the green foliage is a real nice place to rest and relax . Blue mountains at a distance beautified the scenery from the pool side. The rooms are spacious and named after British and Scottish tea planters lived in Ceylon long before.. we stayed in one of the loveliest garden suites which was so spacious including all the necessary amenities. The management tried their best to keep the original structure to maintain its original colonial vibe. We ate our fill whilst dining in the patio area, enjoying the warmth of the heaters nearby. The dinner was scrumptious, super meals by the wonderful chef!! After dinner, I went to bed which was cushy and comfy with a hot water bottle tucked under the blanket. Following day , we did an informative tea factory tour with a tea tasting experience at the Dunkeld Tea Factory before setting off for Colombo. The staff at Tientsin Bungalow was outstanding and their service is commendable. Special thanks should go to Nilantha , Janidu and Tahanie. You guys took a good care of us !! Thank you..with...