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Welle Walauwa
Amor Villa was one of those serendipitious discoveries we made while looking to wash out the taste of a bad hotel we stayed at in Ahangama (Insight, if you must know. Godawful place.)
We were driving back toward Colombo hoping to find something nice and, just before Unawatuna proper, we passed the gate to Amor Villa. It was one of those high wooden affairs which brought forth visions of the mansions depicted in the old Sinhala teledramas with wizened old men in national costumes and high end bullock carts.
Our MO for unknown hotels is usually to walk in, ask to see a room, ask the rate and, if our ears haven't fallen off at the price, stay. We were given a tour by the decidedly - "slimy" is what comes to mind but let's just say "unsavoury" - manager.
(He even went on a rant about how locals pay less and bargain more than foreigners. In my experience - my dad was GM of a local hotel chain - foreigners are as, if not more, bargain oriented than even the stingiest locals but maybe that's just me...)
The house and staff were charming enough to overcome our initial dislike of the manager. Many beachfront holiday villas / boutique hotels like Amanda Villa next door have the problem of being too modern: they look like buildings with no history. Amor Villa, too, is nicely designed but it hasn't lost the colonial, traditional style that the Sri Lankan walauwas - "mansions" in Sinhala - were famous for.
Wood everywhere, murals, antique furniture, yes, but set off against the required modern touches of air conditioning and new toilets / bathrooms. And, most importantly, a meticulously maintained, relatively large beach front garden. And the beach is not Unawatuna Bay so it's rougher, but still swimmable.
We didn't return to Amor Villa because of the manager - he topped off our visit and strengthened our initial dislike of him by charging us LKR 500 odd extra for an egg with our breakfast without telling us beforehand. The rest of the staff were wonderfully helpful - when we had a flat on our rented car and didn't have a wheel wrench, one even went on his bike to Galle to borrow one.
I really felt bad not returning because the place has so much promise. It's a gorgeous building with a sense of history and modern conveniences. Lying back on the hansi putuwa - a rattan backed wooden chair with arms that swivel out - and viewing the garden or watching the sunset with a drink in hand, it is as if you have gone back in time to become the walauwe mahattaya, master of your (rented) domain.
Hotel Name: Amor Villa
Address: No. 430, Matara Road, Dalawella, Unawatuna, Sri Lanka
Rates: We paid LKR 5,000 B/B but that was about a year ago. Since the war finished rates have skyrocketed; Amor I'm sure is no different. Website quotes 90 / 120 USD for upstairs / downstairs rooms.
Telephone: +94 914933087 / +94-777-905205
E-Mail : info@amorvilla.com
Website: http://www.amorvilla.com
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Nice place but looks too expensive now.
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