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Thambapanni Retreat is a hillside hotel in Unawatuna, set among bamboo and tropical trees a short walk from the bay, with an Ayurveda and yoga centre at its heart. Set into the hillside beside Rumassala hill, it mixes modern tropical architecture with Dutch colonial furniture, wooden floors and four-poster beds, and it is one of a family of hotels run by Thambapanni Leisure around Unawatuna.
The hotel is split between the main building around the pool and a separate annex known as Block B, which overlooks the main premises. Every room has an en-suite bathroom with hot water, air conditioning, a minibar and satellite television. The names below are the ones you will see when you choose a room.
If you want to be close to the pool, restaurant and wellness centre, choose a Superior, Grand Deluxe or Classic Double room in the main building. The Block B rooms are a short walk away and tend to be quieter.
The wellness centre sits in the middle of the hotel and is built around Ayurveda, Sri Lanka's traditional system of medicine. Treatments include Ayurvedic oil massages using sesame oil, and there are yoga classes, guided meditation and a herbal steam sauna built of natural wood and open to the sounds of the surrounding garden. Ask the hotel in advance if you would like to combine treatments into a longer programme.
The restaurant cooks Sri Lankan dishes alongside European ones, and seafood is its strength: grilled snapper, lobster and prawns are among the dishes it recommends. For guests following an Ayurvedic programme there is a natural-food menu that applies Ayurvedic principles to fresh seafood and organic produce, and the kitchen is known for its fresh fruit smoothies. There is also a bar by the swimming pool.
The hotel stands on a quiet lane off the main road, and Unawatuna Beach is about a five-minute walk away,, with the shops and cafés of the village in between. The Japanese Peace Pagoda stands on the Rumassala headland just to the west, and the ramparts of Galle Fort are about 4 kilometres away in a straight line, with the Galle Lighthouse at their southern point. Further along the coast are Koggala Lagoon and Mirissa, the main harbour for whale watching on the south coast, and the Sinharaja Forest Reserve makes a full-day trip inland.
Yes. Unawatuna railway station on the Coast Line is only about 600 metres from the hotel in a straight line. Galle railway station, where all coastal trains call, is about 4.4 kilometres away, a short tuk-tuk ride.
The hotel is about 136 kilometres in a straight line from Bandaranaike International Airport, and most of the journey is on the Southern Expressway, which bypasses Colombo and runs down to Galle. The easiest way to arrive is a private transfer from Colombo airport to Thambapanni Retreat, which takes you to the hotel gate.
It suits travellers who want Unawatuna's beach within walking distance but would rather sleep somewhere green and quiet, and especially those interested in Ayurveda, massage and yoga. It is not on the sand, so if waking up to the sea matters most, look at its sister hotel Thaproban Beach House on the bay, or browse all our places to stay in Unawatuna.
Such friendly staff! Bonus was we got to use the pools at their partner hotels. They also gave us a free upgrade as the hotel was quiet. Massage was good too!
Been here 2 nights during our tour. Super nice hotel beautiful room and fantastic staff. Nice massage taken in the hotel.
Amazing hotel - fantastic service and staff do what ever they can to make your stay enjoyable. The hotel rooms are so clean, place and pool beautiful and the staff including lachman who works so hard to make sure you have a brilli…
Ratings and reviews provided by TripAdvisor for Thambapanni Retreat.
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