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Resplendent Ceylon unveils curated voyages

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Resplendent Ceylon, offering the only Relais & Chateaux properties in Sri Lanka, has introduced a hand-picked collection of curated journeys that connect travellers with unique narratives across Sri Lanka. 

Conceived by the Fernando family, Sri Lankan tea producers and founders of Dilmah Ceylon Tea, Resplendent Ceylon’s collection of small, luxury resorts offer the discerning traveller a remarkable circuit across Sri Lanka, with a range of authentic experiences. This best of Sri Lanka circuit features three resorts - Ceylon Tea Trails in the Central Highlands, Cape Weligama on the southern coast and Wild Coast Tented Lodge near Yala National Park.

Malik J Fernando, Managing Director, Resplendent Ceylon, tells TTN in an interview, “Within five hours flying distance and so many flights, it is easy to travel from Dubai to Colombo. Head straight to Ceylon Tea Trails, the first stop on the journey. This is simply the gold standard for small luxury properties. From here, you go to Wild Coast Tented Lodge, which is a beautiful safari lodge near Yala National Park, home to the highest density of leopards in the world – it’s got one leopard per square kilometre, so you can imagine how exciting the safaris will be. From here, you go along the coast to Cape Weligama, which is a nice coastal resort.

“We are seeing that travellers have no hesitations extending a typical one week vacation to two or three weeks once they arrive”
– Malik J Fernando

 

“It is a beautiful circuit from six to eight or ten days if you're coming from the Middle East - or you can make several short trips. Just go to tea trails or mix and match between the three experiences for your clients. We have a whole bunch of local Emiratis as well as expatriates visiting because honestly it's heaven on earth – the people, the food, the nature, wilderness and the scenery! Also it’s great value for money because the three experiences are very different from each other - you feel like you've been in three different countries.

“Sri Lanka is about 65,000 square kilometres – no other country has so much variety and diversity in such a small space. I’m very bullish about Sri Lanka because it offers everything that travellers want. The desire to travel is higher than ever, travellers are richer than they were before the pandemic and we see this in their spend this year – they're coming for longer and they're not negotiating.

“People realise life can be short so they want to tick off their bucket-list experiences. Even if you're a digital nomad and not a high net worth individual, when you travel, you can take your office with you thanks for technology. We are seeing that travellers have no hesitations extending a typical one week vacation to two or three weeks once they arrive,” says Fernando.

The classic ‘Tea, Sea and Safari’ journey illustrates the perfect holiday across three inimitable and stylish resorts; offering travellers insight into cultural, natural and culinary heritage. this bespoke itinerary is strengthened by the introduction of a series of new journeys – active, cultural, wilderness, culinary, spiritual and wellness and more. 

Maheesha Ratnayake, COO, Resplendent Ceylon, said, “The journeys capture the essence of our beautiful island in a very divergent manner. We want our guests to be able to experience it unlike any other; making their way across off-the-beaten-path, unexplored territory and creating memories and having experiences they otherwise wouldn’t on a regular tour of Sri Lanka. On the whole, they are individual meaningful journeys that connect guests with the heart and soul of our island.”

Sri Lanka’s relaxed restrictions have now made it possible for a fully vaccinated guest to travel to any resort of their choice directly from the airport. If you arrive with a negative PCR report within 72 hours of embarkation and have completed 14 days after receiving the recommended doses of vaccination, you don’t have to isolate and there is no need to conduct an on-arrival PCR test. 

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