Villa Santé is a five-room boutique villa on the Kalpitiya peninsula, set among coconut palms with an uninterrupted view across the lagoon to the ocean, an infinity pool and its own kitesurfing school. Designed by architect Hirante Welandawe with a sleek white interior, timber beams and floor-to-ceiling glass in the living area, it can be booked room by room or taken as a whole house.
Each of the five rooms has its own name, mostly borrowed from famous cars, and its own style. All of them have air conditioning, a ceiling fan, a mosquito net, a writing desk, a balcony or patio, a shower with hot water, a hairdryer and bathrobes. The names below are the ones you will see when you choose a room.
Each room sleeps two adults, and children can share with their parents. The villa can add an extra single bed to any room for a small charge; a third adult cannot be booked online, so ask us before you book.
The house is furnished with reclaimed antiques and a mix of local and foreign pieces, with oversized cushions on deep sofas, and the glass walls of the living area let in light and the sea breeze all day. Outside there is an infinity pool with loungers, an outdoor lounge, and a television and entertainment area with a DVD library inside. A manager, a chef, housekeepers and garden and pool staff look after the villa, and a washing machine can be used for an extra charge.
The villa's chef cooks for the guests, and you can choose between three places to eat, indoors or out. Guests often single out the Sri Lankan dishes, in particular the crab and fish curries.
Kalpitiya is known for its steady kitesurfing winds, and the villa runs its own kite school with IKO instructors and North Kiteboarding equipment, offering everything from a half-day discovery session to a three-day full course, private lessons and equipment hire. From November to April, boat trips leave early in the morning to see the large pods of spinner, Risso's and Indo-Pacific dolphins off Kalpitiya Beach and, further out, sperm and blue whales. For snorkelling, the Bar Reef, with more than 150 species of coral, is about two hours away by boat, and a smaller reef lies about 15 minutes offshore. Deep-sea fishing trips go out at dawn and dusk for tuna, seer fish and sailfish. On land you can visit the old Dutch Kalpitiya Fort, the long sands of Alankuda Beach, the pilgrimage church at Thalawila and the birdlife of the Anawilundawa wetland sanctuary on the way south.
Yes. Wilpattu National Park, the largest national park in Sri Lanka and named for its many small lakes or villus and one of the best places on the island to see leopards, is about an hour and a quarter away by road. The villa points out that from here you can see a whale in the morning and an elephant in the afternoon. The ancient city of Anuradhapura is about two hours away.
The villa gives the drive from Bandaranaike International Airport as about two and a half hours, and from Colombo about three hours, travelling north up the coast through Puttalam. The simplest way to arrive is a private transfer from Colombo airport to Villa Santé, which takes you all the way to the door.
It suits kitesurfers, couples who want a quiet room by the lagoon, and families or groups of friends who would like the whole house, the pool and a chef to themselves. For more choice on the peninsula see our places to stay in Kalpitiya.
Pre-book a private vehicle for arrival, departure, or onward travel.
