Thirasara Leisure Village Thulhiriya Ambepussa Sri Lanka - Hotel Review - Ghandara Bungalow

If you need a place to stay on your way to Pinnawela (27km), Kurunegala (30km) or Kandy (60km) or you just want a quiet place to hang out for a weekend, you could do a lot worse than Thirasara Leisure Village in Thulhiriya. Actually, you'd have to go pretty far in any direction to find a better place in this area.

When MAS bought over and redid the Kabool Lanka factory in Thulhiriya, they wanted to make it an eco factory. What this means, I don't quite know. Last time, I asked, they started spewing phrases like carbon neutral, green roofs and Mohan Moonesinghe. After passing out from the fumes, I woke up still unsure.

As part of the eco-ing out, part of the fabric park is now a "leisure village," a collection of free standing staff bungalows completely redone in the generic Bawa/Paradise Road style that is expected of any new development.

The villas themselves are nicely done with polished cement all over the place, outdoor bathrooms with brand new, luxury fittings, fully equipped kitchens and anything from two to four bedrooms. And they're cheap, ranging from LKR 4,000 for a "deluxe" with 4 bedrooms to LKR 6,000 for a "luxury" with 2 bedrooms.

Food, however, is extra. If you want, you can go to the Training Centre in the park and eat but the meals we got there (LKR 450 to 1,600 per head) were not really worth the trip - it's about 2km from the bungalows to the centre. They will also do barbecues if you have enough of a crowd.

If it's just a few people, you can do what we did and cook in the fully equipped kitchen with gas cooker and microwave. Saucepans, crockery and cutlery - all from Gandhara - are there as well. Or just drive to Ambepussa town - 3/4 km - and buy some kottu. The Ceylon Hotels Corporation Ambepussa Avanhala also has excellent hoppers.

Sri Lanka has bungalows all over the place where families go and stay because the cost per head is relatively low. But those bungalows have, at best, the most basic of facilities. This was like staying at your boxing obsessed and wealthy uncle's holiday home.

Hotel Name: Thirasara Leisure Village
Address: Thulhiriya, Sri Lanka
Directions: Go on the Kandy road to Ambepussa, turn towards Kurunegala and 4km down is the entrance to MAS Institute of Management Training. The security will direct you. If you get to the big MAS Fabric Park entrance, you've gone too far.
Phone: +94 772 277887.
Rates (whole chalet / bungalow, no meals):LKR 12,000 and up according to commenter will
More Photos: See slideshow above or visit Thirasara Leisure Village Thulhiriya Sri Lanka on Picasaweb