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Santani Wellness Kandy
Kandy, Central, Sri Lanka · Santani · Grand Luxury
Chalets on steel stilts by Thisara Thanapathy sit on a former tea estate at the edge of the Knuckles Conservation Forest, a Geoffrey Bawa Award design that TIME put on its 2018 World's 100 Greatest Places list. Santani opened in 2016 as a purpose-built Ayurveda retreat with no TVs and Wi-Fi kept off the shared spaces, so the 16 rooms and a three-level spa (salt soak, sauna over paddy fields) do the quieting. A resident Ayurvedic doctor sets each programme.
- 16 rooms
- Opened 2016
- Neighborhood: Hedunuwewa Junction
- Rooms from 360 sq ft (33 m²)
- Architect: Thisara Thanapathy
About Santani Wellness Kandy
- Architect Thisara Thanapathy won the Geoffrey Bawa Award 2016/2017 for Excellence in Architecture for these steel-stilt chalets, his first hotel, inspired by nearby Buddhist meditation caves.
- TIME named Santani one of the World's 100 Greatest Places in 2018, the first Sri Lankan entry on that list.
- Founder Vickum Nawagamuwage built it on a 48-acre abandoned tea estate about 2,800 feet up, beside the UNESCO Knuckles Conservation Forest.
- Guest rooms have no televisions. Wi-Fi is withheld from shared spaces, so disconnecting is the default rather than an extra.
- MICHELIN awarded One Key in 2025. The three-level spa holds a cedar sauna facing paddy fields and an open-air thermal salt pool.
The setting
28 km from Huluganga Falls.
Restaurants and bars
- Santani restaurant — Restaurant · Gourmet wellness cuisine (Ayurveda-based, Rasa Haya philosop
Experiences
- Daily group yoga and meditation — Daily yoga and meditation held each morning and evening, open to all guests, in two dedicated yoga shalas.
- Personalised dining and cooking classes — Meals prepared to a customised plan with the in-house Ayurvedic doctor; hands-on Sri Lankan cooking classes on request.
- Hulu River Walk — 4 km, 2 hours walk offered daily, complimentary for all guests.
- Tea Experience — Approximately 2.5 to 3 hours.
- Bird Watching around Santani — 2 km, 2 hours.
- Hanging Bridge Walk — 7 km, 3 hours.
Amenities
- Spa
- Indoor pool
- Sauna
- Yoga
- Butler service
Awards
- MICHELIN Two Keys (2026)
- MICHELIN One Key (2025)
- TIME World's 100 Greatest Places (2018)
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