News has reached us that the Six Sense Resort are due to open a new resort in Sri Lanka. The Six Senses Group operate some of the world’s finest resorts and the stress on natural matarials and barefoot comfort means they have proved extremely popular in other parts of Asia.
It is yet another indication of the investment coming into Sri LAnka turning from a trickle to well, perhaps not yet a flood, but definitely a medium sized river, since the end of the war in June.
Long may it continue…
This week we are delighted to have Sidantha Kumara as our guest blogger. Sid is one of our finest guides – a fantastic guy who has taught us so much about Sri Lanka. He shows a side of Sri Lanka not often seen and his passionate belief and strong ideas on the positive power of tourism has led him to develop some quite extraordinary tours. His main project is the Abode, but if you are looking for an alternative view of the cultural triangle or the Kandy region Sid is very definitely your man. He also organises and guides treks miles off the beaten track – for travel hardy adventurers only! One of his treks goes deep into elephant country – and elephants are a subject he feels deeply about as the following article shows:
“Safari tours first came to light in the early 18th centaury. The west made inroads in the spheres of discoveries. Before this large parts of Asia remain obscured form travelers eye. The post war period saw a massive boom in the world population driven by successful runs in the health and pharmaceutical industry. The earth became a crowded house to live in and the ever increasing pressure on natural resources further fueled the diminishing flora and fauna. The notion to create protected sites was born as a result.
The following account has been extracted form various travelers note books and compiled unfolding timeless events in Ceylon. (more…)
I recently waded into a discussion on the fantastic Travel Rants website. Much to my surprise I then got a call from the producer of ‘Fasttrack’, BBC World’s travel programme, asking me if I would mind making the same point on a programme he was making.
I did and they did an interesting and thoughtful piece, which among other things, put my argument up against the CEO of Trip Advisor in the UK…. Which we found fairly amusing. Last heard it was still available on the BBC website.
I do feel there is a point to be made though. (more…)
Exciting news that on January 15th 2010 you will be able to experience a solar eclipse from northern Sri Lanka. Apparently it will be an annular eclipse, so the Sun and Moon are exactly in line, but the Sun will appear as a very bright ring, or annulus, surrounding the outline of the Moon.
I cannot glean much information on this as yet, but it seems that it will start from East Africa before moving towards northern Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu, before passing Bangladesh, Burma and China. From what I can tell the best place to view it from Sri Lanka will be Anuradhapura to Jaffna. Anuradhapura would be a magic place to view it from I’d think. Contact us at Experience Sri Lanka to arrange a tour around this.
Rick Stein did us a massive favour by doing a programme that focused, almost exclusively, on the area that we specialise in. Apart from Laos, all our bases were covered – Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Cambodia and of course, Thailand. A big ‘thank you’ to Rick then, as we saw a definite increase in inquiries from the sort of people keen to do something a little different and sample the true flavours of the region – something which we can deliver!
I also think we are well placed to review the show and watched it with great interest. Not only do we know the countries very well, but we are all fairly greedy and get thoroughly over-excited by the thought of South East Asian food. We also know a few of the characters featured in the programme and all of the hotels featured.
Stuck in my office in Wandsworth putting together tours for people in Vietnam is a decent way to make a living. My thoughts do wander sometimes though, to the places I am working on, and where i would like to go next.
With 2 small children, much of this is purely a pipedream, but number 1 on the list has to be Kep in Cambodia and Knai Bang Chatt in particular.
My colleague, who visited recently, came back raving about the laid back charms of Kep, the delicious buckets of Kampot Pepper Crab available in the markets at a dollar a throw, the hike up Bokor mountain to see the ethereal abandoned hilltop colonial resort up there and dreamy boat trips out to empty paradise islands. Having loved the rest of Cambodia, but missed Kep on previous visits, I am most keen to get back.
He also said that Knai Bang Chatt was the best hotel he had ever stayed in. That would all depend on what you’re looking for, but personally, the converted villas sound fantastic, and the thought of the food – a cunning French and Khmer fusion, too good to be true. (more…)
The last two posts about new eco lodges in Sri Lanka has got me thinking about the abundance of this sort of place in Asia now, coming under the somewhat subjective heading of an ‘Eco Lodge’.
The Mudhouse at night!
British Airways will fly three times a week from London Gatwick to Male, in the Maldives.’ The service starts on the 25th October.’ Aside from offering an additional direct scheduled service from the UK, passengers will also be able to fly premium economy, making the Maldives better value and more accessible for the shorter beach break.
In my opinion Singapore is one of the finest place to eat in the world – in terms of good food per square footage I would say it is totally unbeatable.
Singapore food
Sorry to keep harping on about low fares, but we have just had some even better specials given to us by Singapore Airlines. These allow you to fly in or out of Siem Reap, Ho Chi Minh, Danang (Hoi An) or Hanoi, so are incredibly flexible. Obviously Singapore Airline are second to none in terms of the quality of service they offer too. The fare part is coming out at including tax, around £350 each.
They have meant that we can take at least √Ǭ¨√Ǭ£100 per person off all our advertised website prices at the moment and in some cases up to √Ǭ¨√Ǭ£300 each! There really has never been a better value time to visit Vietnam and/or Cambodia. Hotels also have some fantastic offers and in combination we can do some amazing deals! The Nam Hai is a case in point – Vietnam’s best hotel is doing a stay 2 get 1 free offer from now until April 2010. We’ll pass you the savings directly.
You will have to hurry though – the Singapore offer ends on the 30th June and already the limited seats released for this price seem to be going fast.
