The Kandy House is a carefully-renovated old colonial Walauwa (ancestral mansion) in the spice-growing hills that surround Kandy. Its completion heralded what the hill-country-capital has been waiting for so long: a brilliant small boutique hotel capable of offering stylish and private accommodation and attentive personal service in a beautiful natural setting.  The inspired refurbishment of the Walauwa, with its light white interiors, polished hardwood floorboards, jackwood staircase, Dutch-style antique furniture and careful injections of colour, has been a triumph. Channa Daswatta, one of Geoffery Bawa’s protégés and Sri Lanka’s leading modern architects, provided the creative inspiration. The bedrooms are unquestionably the finest in Kandy.  The freshwater infinity pool in the garden provides an irresistible opportunity to unwind and relax under the shade of tropical trees. The wide verandas provide the perfect place to doze-away with your favourite novel.  The Kandy House was once the seat of the king’s Chief Minister, Ratwatte Adigar, who betrayed his king to the British in the early 19C as Ceylon fell into colonial hands in 1815. Old Ratwatte family photos and antique furniture still remain. The Kandy House was added to the Conde Nast US Traveller Hot List in 2006.  Note:  Children are welcome, although they must be over 12 years.

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Accommodation
Nine luxurious bedrooms take their names from varieties of Kandyan butterflies. They all have a colonial character updated with contemporary silks and cottons. All have four-poster beds with mosquito nets, ceiling fans and floor to ceiling shuttered windows overlooking the gardens. They split into three categories: three Deluxe Rooms, three Super Deluxe and three Ultra Deluxe.

• Deluxe Rooms: Monkey Puzzle: This is a small twin-bedded garden room, the smallest in the house, situated on the lower level of the courtyard. The bedroom has low ceilings and the bathroom has shower and single basin. As it adjoins the Garden Suite, the two rooms can combine to offer excellent family accommodation.
  
  Sunbeam and Lime Butterfly: These are two gallery rooms, both doubles. The Sunbeam Room has an appealing bathroom with double basin, a vintage cast-iron bath tub and shower. The bedroom has ceiling fan and four-poster bed with mosquito net. The room overlooks the swimming pool and overlooks the courtyard. The Lime Butterfly Room is very comfortable and also has a lovely bathroom, double basin, with old cast iron bathtub and shower. Ceiling fan and 4 poster bed with mosquito net.
  
• Super Deluxe Rooms: Indian Red Admiral and Cornelian: These are both gallery rooms on the upper floor and overlook a large courtyard. These double-bedded rooms open onto a private verandah complete with chaise longue where you can settle back and gaze upon the pepper trees and jungle views. An extra bed can be added to the Indian Red Admiral, for appropriate surcharge, to create a triple room.
  
  The Pioneer is a garden room with its own verandah in a beautiful garden. The bathroom has a shower, but no bath. A double swing-hammock is installed by the verandah. An extra bed can be added to The Pioneer, for appropriate surcharge, to create a triple room.
  
• Ultra Deluxe rooms: Black Rajah Garden Suite: This is an Ultra Deluxe Room and the only suite in the house. It has arched doors opening out from the large living area onto garden below. This is an Ultra Deluxe room with arched doors opening out from a large living area onto the garden. The bedroom has a low king-size bed and a romantic bathroom with a tiled, octagonal two-person bath and massage area. A new double swing hammock is installed in the garden by this suite.
  
• Peacock Royal and Red Spot Duke: These two verandah rooms are the most spacious and are also classified as Ultra Deluxe. They open out onto a wide wrap-around verandah, dotted with cane chaises longue, reading chairs and antiques. All the bedrooms have four-poster beds with fitted mosquito nets. The bedrooms are not air-conditioned, but the cooler hill-country air and ceiling fans anyway make this unnecessary. Stylish concrete-washed ensuite bathrooms have private bathtubs and shower and twin washbasins.

Facilities
The freshwater infinity pool in the garden provides an irresistible opportunity to unwind and relax under the shade of tropical trees. The wide verandas provide the perfect place to doze-away with your favourite novel.  The restaurant offers a daily 3-course European set menu. The fusion food is imaginative with an emphasis on sweet flavours and local ingredients. There is also the option of a ten-course Sri Lankan curry feast which rivals anything available in Kandy. The hotel offers 24-hour room service, daily laundry, safe deposit boxes and left-luggage storeroom. There is a magnificent freshwater infinity pool in the garden surrounded by jungle - one of the great pools in Sri Lanka. Yoga and massage are available on request.
 
  
Excursions
Visit the ancient Degaldoruwa Cave Temple in Gunnepana, just a walking distance from the Kandy House through rural villages.   The city of Kandy itself is steeped in history, culture, and is surrounded by nature.  Interesting activities include a visit to the Temple of the Tooth where a sacred tooth relic of the Lord Buddha is enshrined; Peradeniya Botanical gardens, with its orchid collection and formally laid-out trees; nature walks in Udawatte Kelle Forest Reserve; and Kandy’s rich ancient arts and crafts including drum making, Dumbara mat waving, and crafting Kandyan jewelry, and traditional Kandyan dance and drumming.  The magnificent Victoria Golf and Country Club with its picturesque fairways, is also located nearby.