Paradise Road The Villa Bentota

"Sri Lankan design guru Shanth Fernando takes his Paradise Road brand’s minimalist palette to this 1880s colonial mansion that was redone in the early 1970s by the founder of tropical architecture, Geoffrey Bawa. Here in Bentota, halfway down the coast between Colombo and Galle, the 15 rooms and suites are each unique but come with elegant woven cane furniture and a blurring between indoor and outdoor living through gracious balconies and terraces. All but three face the Indian Ocean and work best for guests wishing to avoid the occasional sound of trains running along tracks between the property and the long, palm-fringed beach. Fernando fills the many public spaces with his prodigious collection of far-flung artifacts: Jaffna wooden animals, Chinese celadon pots, Sri Lanka objets d’art from the Portuguese period, and Dutch door frames. An alfresco dining pavilion facing Galle Road has a bountiful menu that includes classic Sri Lankan black pork and cashew curry with gotukola sambal and sweet mango chutney. The efficient, all-male staff look out for guests around the clock, serving romantic breakfasts on the sprawling lawn, organizing visits to Bawa’s nearby gardens at Lunuganga, and delivering mosquito coils to guests at sunset."