Hyldale The Villa

romantic getaway. It is also the perfect place to let kids run around in the garden, while

you enjoy a hot cup of tea on the verandah, looking onto a valley of tea plantations.

Hyldale was once the holiday home of Sri Lanka’s first executive President. Purchased

by President Jaywardene’s wife, Elena, a wealthy heiress, for their private family

vacations, it had been used with love and care for a quarter century by the presidential

family.

The current owner’s family has been living at Hyldale for over 50 years, having

purchased it from the President’s family. She has restored the house with all the

luxuries of modern living, while retaining the villa’s period architectural features and

colonial ambiance. The villa is resplendent with wooden flooring, an extensive verandah

overlooking the rolling hills and tastefully decorated rooms.

Hyldae is also a nature lover’s dream destination. With annual maximum temperatures

of less than 20C, Bandarawella is the home to endemic flora and fauna of Sri Lanka’s

mountain regions. From Hydale you will be able to hike to breathtaking viewpoints

through rustic mountain pathways, visit tea estates, bike down village roads, getting

glimpses of people you will rarely encounter on the usual tourist trail or wander into

village churches built by the British. It is a place where an artist’s would find space to let

creativity flow in the peace of the surroundings or an exhausted executive would be able

to recover from a busy year. All the while, Hyldale’s cook will turn out delicious home

cooked meals for you, catering to whatever mood you are in. A table laden with local

vegetables in creamy coconut milk gravy or a perfectly done main course will arrive at

your table if you call for it. Or you could stroll into town for a range of other choices.