15 Days Yoga and Ayurveda Retreat in Kalutara, Sri Lanka

Facilities

The villa is a colonial home, approximately 150yrs old. It was the house of the village chief - and it now converted to consists of a living room, dinning hall, veranda and open living area all renovated in end 2015/2016.

The property consists of the main Villa and the Lodge, each about 2 minutes walking distance from each other. The Lodge is the original house of the first occupier of this colonial treasure. With time, their son built a bigger home to house his expanding family. This is the Villa.

The Villa consists of 8 rooms (2 Suite Rooms and 6 Deluxe Rooms) and the Dining Hall, Lounge, Verandahs and Spa. The Lodge consists of 6 Standard rooms and an open Verandah. Both the Villa and the Lodge were renovated in end 2015/2016 and is decorated to contemporary colonial style in keeping with the age of the property and to meet our guest comforts and modern needs. Rooms are beautifully completed with luxury bathrooms.

The retreat is focused on improving your well-being through yoga and Ayurveda in a completely natural environment. You will have daily yoga, meditation and ayurvedic treatments in addition to healthy fresh nutritious food and Ayurvedic herbal medicines. You will be cared for by our team of experienced yoga teachers, Ayurvedic doctors and therapists, who will all work with you to help achieve optimum results during your stay, leaving feeling lighter in body, mind and spirit. It is a place where life in nature, fresh air, nutrition, and herbal medicines combined with mindfulness techniques of yoga and meditation with personalized service, Plantation Villa offers a haven for guests to relax in and focus on their well-being. The Retreat Centre enjoys fabulous guest reviews and is focused on offering a personalized service to all who stay with us. As an eco-friendly Retreat Centre, we work tirelessly for the sustainment of our environment and the village people. The centre employs local staff and funds numerous village community establishments such as the village temples and schools. The Centre Supports its own charity, The Metta Trust and guests get an opportunity to join in the charity activities.

Overview

Each guest has an initial consultation on their first day. This consultation gathers a holistic understanding of our guest covering physical ailments, areas for stress for the mind, lifestyle, and wellness objectives or requirements.

Daily schedule/itinerary (Please note this is only an indicative itinerary as timing and durations can change with each retreat or guest)

• 06.30 - 07.30: Morning Yoga
• 07.30 - 09.00: Breakfast
• 10.00 - 10.30: Morning Meditation
• 09.00 - 12.30: Ayurvedic treatments. Some guests would also be doing walks in the village in the morning or having a swim before the treatment
• 12.30 - 14.30: Lunch
• 14.30 - 16.00: Rest or Join in one of our Afternoon Activities, which includes: Walks in the plantation, activities in the plantation, tree planting, cookery classes, talks with the yoga teacher or doctor etc.
• 17.30-18.30/19.00: Evening Yoga
• 19.00: Dinner
• 20.30 onwards: Evening discussions with Yoga Teacher, Meditation or Private Reading etc.

The property is located in a small village called Nehinna, 80 km away from the capital city Colombo. The village is rural and has a traditional community feel. The retreat centre property itself is a 30 acre plantation of rubber, coconut, cinnamon, and black pepper. The villa is surrounded by nature and is a habitat for rare local and migrant birds, butterflies, and a plethora of tropical flora and fauna. We have an open yoga sala where yoga and meditation classes and buddhist poojas take place. We specialize in Ayurveda which is an ancient art of healing the body and mind through nutrition, relaxation, and herbal treatments.

- Distances Colombo, 80 kilometers

Plantation Villa follow a farm to plate policy where majority of the food served come from their own organic gardens. The hotel gardens consist of a paddy field, an organic vegetable / fruit spice and herb garden. Guests are invited to join in the paddy harvesting and fruit / vegetable and spice picking. Cookery demonstrations are offered to those guests who are interested.

Guests can either hire Plantation Villa's cycles for rides around the surrounding villages or hire our car for the following day trips:

Sinharajah Natural Rain Forest - the last remaining rain forest in Sri Lanka which is lush and green and hike through this will be an amazing experience.

Whale & Dolphin Watching in Mirissa - We work with a company working with whale conservation in Sri Lanka. It is an early morning start but totally worth the experience.

Udawalawe National Park (to see Elephants) - we recommend this trip over the trip to Pinnawella Elephant Orphanage, where we have heard mixed reviews about how the animals are treated. This is an opportunity to see elephants in their own natural habitat. Holding the largest population of elephants in sri Lanka, you are almost guaranteed to see elephants here.

Kandy Town and Temple of the Tooth - The last kingdom of Sri Lanka still rich in art and culture. Kandy also has the Temple of the Tooth where Buddhas tooth is kept and is one of the most venerated sights in Sri Lanka. Apart from its religious significance, it is also a must see sight to understand the richness of Sri Lankan art and culture.

Local turtle hatchery: a turtle conservation project to help save turtles from extinction. You can see and learn about turtles and can have the opportunity to release baby turtles to the sea!

Beach: Picnic at some of Sri Lanka's most beautiful beaches

Kalutara Bhodiya: One of the most famous temples in Sri Lanka with a Pagoda with architectural value and a Bo Tree over 2000yrs old

Galle: A visit to one of the most vibrant cities in Sri Lanka where the influences of colonial time is prevalent with some world heritage sites

WarakagodaTemple: An ancient cave temple with a natural forest displaying some amazing Sri Lankan art on the rock

Richmond Castle: Left over from the British Empire depicting the influences of European Architecture

Other activities are also available like:

• Meditation
• Swimming
• Bird watching
• Day trips to local places of interest
• Activities organized by resort (Ayurvedic barbeques / outdoor dining evenings / dance or singing performances by local talent / celebrations of local festivities)

• Accommodation in a standard room
• Ayurvedic Doctor Consultation
• Ayurveda medicines according to Doctors instructions
• Ayurveda therapy according to Doctors instructions
• Ayurvedic meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner)
• Water and herbal tea at all times
• Guided Daily yoga and meditation and Daily Afternoon Activities
• Walks in the plantation and paddy-field
• Walks around the village
• Cookery demonstrations
• Discussions about yoga philosophy Ayurveda, meditation etc,
• Ability to participate in vegetable/fruit picking activities during seasons
• Ability to participate in rubber tapping or paddy harvesting during seasons

• Airport transfers and day trips

Arrival by airpplane

Plantation Villa is about 1.5 hour drive from the Colombo Airport. The hotel car is available for transfers at the rate of 65 USD for pick up. Plantation Villa suggests you arrive between 7 p.m to 7 a.m to use the airport transfer services. Alternatively one can come by train to Kalutara.

• A reservation requires a deposit of 100% of the total price.
• The deposit is non-refundable, if the booking is cancelled.