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Jetwing Mahesa Bhawan is a four-room villa in Jaffna, a 1935 family house restored by Jetwing on the quiet 3rd Cross Street in the heart of the town. Once the home of the Cooke family, it is run with a 24-hour butler rather than a reception desk, and Jetwing describes it as the first luxury villa in Jaffna: a pool in the garden, a common living room and northern home cooking.
The four rooms are named after the animals painted in murals on their walls, and each is a single room rather than a category, so the name you book is the room you get. All have a private bathroom with hot and cold water, Link Natural toiletries, an electronic safe, drinking water and free Wi-Fi; tea and coffee things, an iron and a torch are brought on request.
Each room takes two adults, and children can share with their parents. If you need twin beds, book Monkey; for a little more space, choose Flamingo. Booking all four rooms gives a family or group of friends the whole villa.
Meals are cooked in a traditional Jaffna kitchen on a firewood stove and served in a small dining room, with eight seats inside and eight outside, at any hour of the day. Expect northern dishes such as pana kalingu (palmyrah sprout), thattai vadai, Jaffna grape juice and nelli or mango sorbet alongside the region's curries.
It feels more like staying in a private house than a hotel. There is a swimming pool in the garden, a common living room, room service, laundry, daily housekeeping and a doctor on call, and bathrobes, slippers and umbrellas are provided. The butler can arrange a car, bicycle rides through the suburbs and excursions further afield. The villa is within walking distance of the town market and close to the main bus and rail terminals.
In town, the Jaffna Public Library, the colonial-era Jaffna Fort and the Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil, which holds the island's longest annual festival, are all within the town. Off the peninsula lie Nainativu, sacred to Buddhists and Hindus alike, and windswept Delft island. Around the peninsula you can visit the sacred spring at Keerimalai, the Kadurugoda temple ruins, the ancient port of Dambakola Patuna and Sakkotai Cape near Point Pedro, the northernmost point of Sri Lanka. Birdwatchers can head to the Chundikulam sanctuary on the north-eastern shore.
Yes. Jaffna railway station is on the Northern Line from Colombo and is one of the town terminals close to the villa, so the last part of the journey is a short taxi or tuk-tuk ride.
Jaffna is about 398 kilometres from Colombo, a long day's drive. From Bandaranaike International Airport, north of Colombo, the most comfortable way is a private transfer from Colombo airport to Jetwing Mahesa Bhawan, which takes you all the way to the door. The peninsula also has its own Jaffna International Airport at Palali.
It suits couples, small families and friends travelling together who want a quiet, personal base in Jaffna with real local food, rather than a large hotel. Two or three nights gives time for the town, the islands and the northern coast. For more choice see our places to stay in Jaffna, or the other Jetwing hotels around the island.
Pre-book a private vehicle for arrival, departure, or onward travel.
