Rukgala

The whole experience was positive. Great food, facilities, surroundings and activities. For me, perfect.

Der See zum schwimmen und paddeln ist super. Die Ausflüge die angeboten werden sind sehr schön und passen sehr gut in das Rahmenprogramm. Das Essen war sehr lecker. Es wurde sehr auf meine Wünsche eingegangen.

I loved staying at Rukgala. I arrived stressed and left relaxed - that was all I wanted.

At Rukgala, everything is taken care of by a wonderful team: I had a wonderful room that was clean at any time, I enjoyed healthy and very delicious meals three times a day, was taken to nice hikes in the neighbourhood and got spoiled with coconut water after hikes.

The yoga sessions in the mornings and evenings have been my highlight! Both yoga teachers offered very professional and well-instructed sessions to grow and calm down🙏

Na 2,5 week fietsen in Sri Lanka en overnachten in home stays, was ik wel toe aan wat luxe, verzorging en ontspanning. De mensen van Rukgala zijn ontzettend vriendelijk en servicegericht. Ik houd van rustige (yin en vinyasa) yoga. Dus voor mij was mijn verblijf perfect!

Rukgala has it all! Great views, beautiful rooms, friendly staff, the best chef that easily catered to my food sensitivities, a beautiful yoga shala, fresh flowers, amazing massages and just the vibe I was looking for.

Great hike, paddle boarding and the most beautiful sunset walk among palm trees.

I hope I have time to come back for one more stay before I leave.

I spent 3 days and nights at Rukgala the week before Christmas. What can I say? The vibe of this place, the lovely and kind hosts and even the mad, but loveable little doggy duke make you feel at home in no time. I enjoyed the yoga classes held by Rose and Alex (cannot rate Alex, but she's been a lovely instructor !) immensely. They started and ended every day on a beautiful relaxing note. The hike to Pettigala with Akash was filled with fun anecdotes, conversations about hiking in Sri Lanka and Germany and I'm really grateful for the experience. Great to see that Akash and his group of friends can make a living off of their passion to enjoy the outdoors and opening that up to tourists as well. Lastly, food has been great and abundant. Judging from the pictures, I was a bit worried if Rukgala would be too perfect to have a retreat vibe. But I'm my opinion it has the perfect balance of comfort and down to earth charm that befits a yoga retreat. Something I noticed strongly (also in retrospect ) is that Rukgala encourages a stronger bonding with local employees. In other places this is not necessarily the case. Lastly for real this time: the massage was 10/10!

Everything about this retreat was exactly as I hoped it would be. Friendly and accommodating staff, facilities that were stylishly finished and carefully maintained, delicious and nutritious food and a flexible activities program that allowed for guests to enjoy themselves if they wished to join in.

I would absolutely recommend this retreat to those seeking to unwind with a flexible program in a calm and welcoming environment.

I loved everything! The location, the accomadation, the staff, the yoga classes, the other activities, the message and the food! Everything was perfect

Besonders positiv hervorzuheben waren die Freundlichkeit und Herzlichkeit von allen Mitarbeitern, die einem jeden Wunsch von den Augen ablasen und gute Gesellschaft leisteten sowie der Rundum-Service - von der Organisation von PCR-Tests als auch flexibles Eingehen auf jede Sonderanfrage. Außerdem natürlich das herausragende und vielseitige Essen, die traumhaft schöne Lage mit dem besten Ausblick, den man sich vorstellen kann, die Natur und Ruhe, sehr schöne und geschmackvolle Einrichtung und Deko (es ist noch schöner als auf Fotos), die traumhafte Yogashala, die Outdoor-Aktivitäten mit dem sehr guten Guide. Ein rundum gelungener sehr schöner Urlaub.

Boutique resort, lovely rooms, super friendly and knowledgeable staff! The food was incredibly good (almost felt more like a food-holiday) and lots of activities to do around (kayaking, hiking). The yoga was very mindful with a nice meditative focus in the evenings, the shala has a very special atmosphere.

I hope to come back soon and reconnect!

The whole experience is fantastic, a real detox from the chaotic and fast world we are all immersed. The perfect way for my boyfriend and I to start our 3-week trip in Sri Lanka. Everything in Rukgala was above our expectations: the building is really beautiful and well-kept; the food is AMAZING, the chef makes new dishes, mainly veggie, every day in the typical Sri Lankan; the staff is super nice and friendly; the yoga classes take place in a beautiful wooden "shala" in the jungle and the teacher we had classes with, Emma, was a really good one; the ayurvedic massage we had was very deep, the way I like it! During the day they organize fun activities around the lake close to Rukgala: one day we went hiking with the amazing guide Sanke who took us to the top of a mountain and it was a very fun experience, definitely recommended.

What shall I add?! Just book your favourite retreat at Rukgala and leave! It's an experience that will never forget.

I loved everything about this stay. I will be back. I’ve already recommended this place to many of my friends. The place was beautiful and everyone was so friendly and helpful. The food was amazing too. Yoga was great, lovely and relaxing. A visit to the tea plantation was also arranged for me at the sister hotel and that too was a wonderful experience. Thank you, I will treasure the memories and the wonderful experience I had there and look forward to when I can next visit.

I love the hospitality of this place — everyone is so friendly and nice! Not to forget, the food was AMAZING! I love how the chef prepared a huge variety of food specially for us on our last day! Room was also very comfortable. Will miss everyone at Rugkala!

The nature was amazing, the yoga and food was excellent and the staff was very friendly and helpfull.

Rukgala is the most idyllic yoga retreat.

It’s set in beautiful grounds with a jaw dropping pool and yoga shala, along with great rooms and facilities. But what makes it stand out from the crowd are the amazing teachers, Emma and Jasmine, and the whole of the team who look after you as friends, they really are exceptional. You can relax, switch off and recharge (I did a lot of this!) or keep busy between the brilliant twice daily yoga classes which are customised to everyone’s needs along with being incredibly varied and really fun; with swimming, paddle boarding or kayaking on the lake or walking the local area. And finally the food, simply the best food I had throughout my trip to Sri Lanka.

I simply can’t recommend this place and the team highly enough.

We loved the Rukgala family. Everything was perfect to us: the yoga and our beautiful teacher, the food was just finger-licking-delicious, the hikes to the temple, the lake and the top of the mountain was funny and astonishing thanks to our guide. We really had an excellent experience and can recommend this place to everyone that wants few days to get completely zen and feel appreciated.

Es war alles wirklich viel besser als erwartet. Das Retreat ist wunderschön, super sauber, sehr luxuriös und liegt in einer extrem schönen, ruhigen Umgebung. Die Yoga Sessions bei Jas waren traumhaft: jede Einheit hatte einen wundervollen Flow mit viel Freiraum, das Schwierigkeitsniveau wurde an alle perfekt angepasst und sie hat immer eine wahnsinnig positive, entspannte Atmosphäre geschaffen. Danke Jas!! :) Zudem war das gesamte Rukgala Team super nett, sehr zuvorkommend und immer um das Wohl der Gäste bemüht (sogar mehr als das - hab mich wie zuhause gefühlt). Die Massage sowie auch die organisierten Ausflüge waren ebenfalls top und das Essen einfach nur sensationell - vorallem das Frühstück!! Danke an alle für diesen unvergesslichen, wunderschönen und entspannten Aufenthalt!!!!

Everything. Rukgala has the most beautiful surroundings. Everywhere your looking, there is nature and bird songs, and sometimes you can see the monkeys playing in the trees or on the roof. The food is amazing and healthy. The yoga teachers, Ems and Jas, are really helpfull, welcoming and very skilled. If you want to completely relax and have new energi, this is the place to stay.

Everything was amazing, the villa is beautifully furnished, food is excellent and the staff are lovely. Emma and Jas are awesome yoga teachers. Thank you so much!