Brizo Paradiso

Brizo Paradiso is a small boutique villa hotel in Polhena, on the southern coast of Sri Lanka, built around a pool courtyard a few minutes' walk from the sea. Eight guest rooms, a rooftop sun terrace, a pool bar and an open restaurant make it an easy base for the beaches, reefs and whale grounds of the deep south.

Location

The hotel stands at 1310 Samson Dias Road in Polhena, a quiet residential stretch of Matara on Sri Lanka's south coast. Polhena Beach is about 600 m away and Madiha beach about 300 m. The sheltered reef off Polhena keeps the water shallow and calm, which is why it is one of the safest swimming beaches on this coast and a dependable spot for snorkelling and turtle watching. Matara town and the ramparts of Matara Fort are a short drive east, while Mirissa and Weligama lie fifteen to twenty-five minutes west. Colombo (CMB) Airport is about 180 km away, roughly two and a half hours by road on the Southern Expressway.

Accommodation

There are eight guest rooms across five room types, all air-conditioned and all with attached bathrooms. The three duplex rooms — Twin, Blue and Black — are split over two floors and open onto a balcony above the pool; the Twin is laid out with two single beds, the Blue and the Black with a double. The Courtyard Room sits at ground level with its own private courtyard garden. The Captain Suite is the family room, with two double beds and space for up to four adults.

Facilities

The swimming pool and its jacuzzi are the centre of the property, with a pool bar alongside. Above them a rooftop sun terrace seats up to forty and is used for sundowners and private functions. There is a co-working corner, Wi-Fi throughout, free parking, bicycles for the short ride down to the beach, room service and a garden. Airport transfers are arranged on request. Check-in is from 2.00 pm and check-out is at 11.00 am.

Dining

The restaurant is open to house guests and day visitors alike, with a resident chef cooking to order. Breakfast can be served in the pool as a floating breakfast, and the kitchen runs themed evenings through the year — a Pirates BBQ night in late August, Halloween at the end of October, Diwali, Christmas and a New Year's Eve gala, with weekend theme dinners in between. The pool, terrace and restaurant can all be taken by non-resident groups for the day.

Excursions

Most of the south coast's set pieces are between ten and forty minutes away by road. Whale watching boats leave Mirissa harbour in season, surf lessons run at Weligama, and Coconut Tree Hill, Secret Beach and Hiriketiya are all within an easy half-day. Closer in, the beach bars at Doctor's House and Shima Guni are about a kilometre along the shore, boat safaris on the river just inland of Matara go looking for saltwater crocodiles, and Galle Fort is about an hour up the coast.

Good to know

Brizo Paradiso suits couples, families, groups of friends and solo travellers, and the house makes a particular point of looking after women travelling alone and small groups celebrating together. Rooms here are quoted on request — send us your dates and we will come back with availability and a price.