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Historic hotels of the hill country
The back story
About Historic hotels of the hill country
Nuwara Eliya and the tea estates around it have three of the most characterful historic hotels in Sri Lanka, each with its own in-depth story on its page.
The Grand Hotel
Built around Barnes Hall, the bungalow of Governor Sir Edward Barnes in the 1820s, and a hotel since the early 1890s, the Grand has a mock-Tudor façade, wide gardens beside the golf course and high tea on the Grand Veranda.
The Hill Club
Founded in 1876 as a planters’ club, in a 1930s clubhouse, the Hill Club keeps its log fires, its billiard room and a jacket-and-tie dining room. Visitors stay as temporary members.
Tea by the fire, a stroll on the golf course, and a night in a room where the tea leaves once withered.
Heritance Tea Factory
On the Hethersett estate at Kandapola, a tea factory rebuilt in the 1930s and closed in 1973 became a hotel in 1996, with bedrooms in the old withering lofts, a working mini-factory and a restaurant in a railway carriage.
Choosing between them
Choose the Grand for a classic hotel in town with gardens, the Hill Club for club atmosphere and tradition, and the Tea Factory for a night among the tea, about 14 km out of town.
And a cup of tea on the way
On the drive up from Kandy, stop at the Labookellie tea centre, long known as the Mackwoods tea centre, for a short factory walk and a cup of tea among the estates.
Our advice: stay at one, and visit the others for tea: high tea on the Grand Veranda and a club tour at the Hill Club both need a reservation.
Why it's on our list
- The Grand Hotel
- The Hill Club
- Heritance Tea Factory
- Choosing between them
- A cup of tea on the way
Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with Historic hotels of the hill country before you go.