Jetwing Yala

For centuries, the incredible destination that is Yala has been revered as an unparalleled testament to the beauty of the wild, in its purest and rawest form. Arguably the best place in the world to spot leopards, sloth bears, elephants, and a whole host of birdlife, Yala promises unforgettable discoveries and exciting adventures.Akin to a phoenix rising from the ashes, Jetwing brings a truly one-with-nature concept to a more refined and elegant form with Jetwing Yala. Set within the immediate outskirts of the Yala National Park, this beacon of the south boasts a tremendous commitment to sustainability and the environment even hosting one of the largest privately owned solar parks in Sri Lanka. Jetwing Yala offers a wildlife experience complemented with the finest in luxury and comfort and features beach access complete with a beach bar, lounge area and manned by internationally trained lifeguards.

Accommodation

As one of the largest hotels in Yala, our home of Sri Lankan hospitality hosts 80 luxurious rooms amidst the coastal wilds which border our island’s most popular national park. Designed to harmoniously coexist with our magnificent natural surroundings, each room at Jetwing Yala features hues of red and green to immerse you in the tropical vibrancy that paints our wilds with enchantment and adventure. An additional point to note is that 10 of the rooms at Jetwing Yala have also been built to be wheelchair accessible.

Our home of Sri Lankan hospitality features three distinct types of rooms for your stay with us. Firstly, our 45 Superior Rooms are available with either a private balcony or terrace that looks out into our resident coastal wilderness. Our 34 Deluxe Rooms share the same features with the luxury of added space, while our exclusive Family Room is the epitome of wild luxury in Yala with a generous 106 square metres of elegance that also includes a separate living area.

Each room at Jetwing Yala has been tastefully designed as contemporary spaces to reflect your progressive lifestyle. Modern amenities come as a standard of our hospitality, and include a well stocked mini-bar to ensure you stay refreshed, free Wi-Fi and a telephone with I.D.D. facilities to keep you connected, along with a dedicated sitting area and plush bathroom with a luxury shower enclosure for your absolute comfort among a host of other room facilities. Staying true to our spirit of harmonious coexistence with nature however, perhaps the most defining feature of every living space at Jetwing Yala is the open-air balcony or terrace, which seamlessly integrates with the beauty of our natural surroundings for a memorable experience in our luxurious wilds of Sri Lanka’s deep south.

Location

Sprawled over 38 acres of uncharted coastal wilderness; Jetwing Yala is the closest hotel to Sri Lanka’s most popular natural reserve. An icon of wild luxury among Yala National Park hotels, our home of Sri Lankan hospitality rests upon a peaceful shoreline in the deep south of our island. With characteristic dunes and an eternal blanket of sunshine that falls upon the habitat we share with spectacular creatures, Yala is undoubtedly one of the most exciting pockets of adventure in Sri Lanka.

Located in close proximity to the crossroads where our southern and eastern coasts meet, Yala is a 4-hour drive away from our capital of Colombo via the rapid convenience of the Southern Expressway. The journey through provincial greenery and coastal roads is one of the most scenic on our island, and is topped off with the pleasure of arriving in our resident grassland at the edge of Yala National Park.

Dining

Delivering above the expectations of any hotel, Yala and its coastal wilderness provide a dining atmosphere like no other. With a world-famous natural reserve on one side and the great Indian Ocean on the other, you will find yourself savouring meals as magnificent as the environment that surrounds us.

Overlooking our exclusive coastline, The Restaurant at Jetwing Yala is our prime dining space. Live action stations plate up a range of global and local delicacies that include seafood, tapas, and more, for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Complementing the fine dining experience at our home of Sri Lankan hospitality is Thambapanni – an alternative dining option specializing in Asian Fusion cuisine with dishes that draw inspiration from our island home and nations from India to Indonesia and beyond.

To keep you in high spirits, The Bar also looks into the colourful horizon that serves as the backdrop to our hotel, with both indoor and outdoor seating to experience the best of Yala’s inviting ambience while looking over the Indian Ocean, while the Pool Bar serves as a more laid-back option to enjoy a cocktail in the calm waters reserved for you on our wild coastline. Towards the edge of the ocean however, our Beach Bar and its exclusive lounge area rest upon the sands of our shore, and is a great spot to watch the sun set over the blue sea with a refreshing drink in hand.

As a pleasure of our hospitality, Jetwing Yala also offers five Signature Dining experiences should you wish to indulge in your meals amidst unique settings within our resident landscapes. For instance, you may choose to enjoy your dinner atop the characteristic dunes of Yala’s coastline, or alfresco under the starlit sky of our wild landscapes. The option of dining by our poolside is also available, along with the preparation of a Wild BBQ for the more adventurous. But if you wish to keep things simple, you may also dine from the privacy and comforts of your own room.

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Wild Coast Tented Lodges

Wild Coast Tented Lodge is adjacent to the Yala National Park, renowned for its dense leopard population. This spectacular luxury tented camp is situated in a stunning location where the jungle meets a pristine beach, overlooking the blue waters of the Indian Ocean. Wild Coast Tented Lodge’s unique design, masterminded by a consortium of Dutch, English and Sri Lankan designers, sees the man-made structures blending seamlessly into the surrounding landscape thanks to the use of carefully selected natural materials. The use of arched fabric structures allows each of the twenty eight cocoon tents to take on the shape and colour of the rocks and boulders that lay scattered nearby, whilst a clever layout in the shape of a leopard’s paw print alludes to the area’s most famous resident. While our main buildings, made of bamboo, blend in with the distinctive rock formations of Yala, our uniquely shaped tents, called Cocoons & Urchins, truly represent a luxury five star resort room under canvas, offering all amenities including air-conditioning. The open-air bamboo-clad Bar and Dining Pavilion – designed to mirror the boulders scattered across the golden beach beyond – wrap around the resort’s enormous free-form swimming pool. Guests can enjoy creative daily-changing menus of authentic Sri Lankan cuisine in the restaurant, as well as sundowner cocktails and picnics al fresco on the sand dunes, watching dusk settle over the Indian Ocean. The library doubles up as an educational centre where guests learn about the wildlife in the park and watch documentaries, further explained by the lodge’s expert guides.

Accommodation

Our Cocoon tents brings to mind an anchored airship. A space that travels from one place to the other and stations temporarily at one location. When it departs, it leaves no footprints. Inspiration is also drawn from the tents of historic military campaigns, especially the concept of a mobile, elaborate interior filled with specially designed, sometimes eccentric dismountable campaign furniture made for travel. The intention is to suggest an atmosphere of antique futurism, a pre-digital era with a mechanical mind frame that evokes a bygone era of luxurious travel.

The interiors fuse expedition chic with contemporary design innovations, from freestanding handmade copper bathtubs to sumptuous four-poster beds. Teak floors and canvas walls complement dark leather touches and repurposed metallic hardware for an eclectic and design-led aesthetic. Four secluded beach facing Pool Cocoons offer private plunge pools, whilst a further sixteen Cocoons, in clusters of four, are dotted around watering holes designed to attract a variety of birdlife and amphibians, which can be viewed from each Cocoon’s outdoor viewing deck. The family area Cocoons sport an adjoining twin-bedded 20m2 Urchin tent, perfect for kids and young adults, and offering privacy and space for parents and children alike.

Location

Yala National Park is Sri Lanka’s second largest, and most visited park. Located on the southeastern tip of the country, it is bordered by the sea. The area was declared a national park in 1939 and it occupies almost 1,000 square kilometers divided into five blocks each with its own vegetation and characteristics. The park’s vegetation features forests, scrubs, grasslands, lagoons and everything in between. Although its 44 mammal species and 215 birds are all protected today, the park was originally a hunting grounds during colonial times. What made Yala famous recently is research that indicated that it may have the highest concentration of leopards in the world (although this does not necessarily correlate with exponentially more frequent sightings).

Yala is also a public, national park and appeals to both local and foreign visitors and offers a different experience to that of a South African private game reserve. Our talented team of rangers manage such parameters using their guiding prowess to track animals, avoid crowded areas and deliver an entertaining and detailed narrative – from the smallest critters, flowers, and birds, to the larger, more celebrated species – to deliver a world-class wilderness experience.

Dining

Two Dome-shaped pavilions house the Ten Tuskers bar, restaurant and library, crafted from a woven grid shell bamboo structure clad in reclaimed teak shingles. Large, arched openings and high vaulted ceilings create a strong sense of space and welcome ocean breezes. The pool winds itself between the restaurant and the bar, which are connected by a bridge.

The Ten Tuskers bar serves an array of signature cocktails with local ingredients. The restaurant features gourmet safari cuisine with a Sri Lankan flair. Or dine romantically in our beautiful natural beach garden under a star-studded night sky.

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Leopard Trails

During the grand era of the British dominion, Ceylon was one of the world’s most sought after locations for truly exotic expeditions. Leopard Trails bespoke tented safaris returns to the original spirit and true essence of safari, reminiscent of a golden era – an era of elegance, romance and adventure.

We aim to provide a unique Sri Lankan safari experience in spectacular solitude and soothing comfort – with only the canvas walls of your tent separating you from the wonders of our remarkable bio diversity.At dusk, return from your evening safari and make your way to our jungle bar.

Fill your heart and soul with good drink and good company while you bear witness to Mother Nature’s masterpiece – the jungle orchestra!

Yet while you enjoy the luxurious air-conditioned canvas tents, the curated local dining experience and the authentic ambiance of a tented camp, what truly sets Leopard Trails apart is our team of internationally qualified and locally experienced safari guides; a team that is often described by returning guests as the best in the business.

Accommodation

Location

If viewing a diverse array of wildlife is at the top of your agenda then Yala national park is the place to visit. The vegetation consists of scrub jungle, lakes, and brackish lagoons to riverine habitat. Is one of the most visited national parks in the country and is divided into 5 Blocks and it is Block 1 which covers over 14,000 hectares that is most frequently traversed.

Yala’s main draw is the leopard and it is said to be one of best places in the world to view leopards. It has been theorized that Yala may have the highest density of leopards in the world. However, on a safari with Leopard Trails we make it a point to showcase the diversity of wildlife that Yala has to offer. On a two night stay it is possible to spot and identify over a 100 species of birds. The density of mugger crocodiles within Yala is also quite an underrated feature of the park. Yala is also one of the better places in Sri Lanka to come across tusked elephants.

At the end of the North-east Monsoon (February), the park is also very good for butterflies. There are 2 main rivers flowing through Yala, the Manik Ganga and the Kumbukkan Oya and these two rivers serve as the lifeline to the park during the drier months.

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Chena Huts by UGA Escapes

In Sri Lanka’s deep south, the rustic farming villages round Tissamaharama are divided from the teeming animal and bird life of Yala, Sri Lanka’s oldest and second-largest natural reserve, by a belt of semi-protected Jungle running down to the sea. For centuries, people here have farmed small clearings in the forest called chena, sleeping beside their crops in modest huts to protect them from hungry elephants.
Here today, nestling among dunes and trees at the ocean’s edge, you will find Chena Huts, the latest addition to Uga Escapes’ portfolio of luxury hotels. Overlooking a beach where sea-turtles come to lay eggs by moonlight and elephants wander down from the nearby forest to play in the surf, Chena Huts is fringed on one landward side by tropical jungle and on the other by a saline lake where ibises, painted storks and even flamingos may be seen, wading in the shallows.
For guests at Chena Huts, easy access to these natural wonders involves no compromise with comfort or good taste. At this small, select property, the “huts’ are in fact luxurious detached, private cabins offering fine views of the surrounding wilderness and seascape.

Accommodation

To intensify the wilderness experience, this spacious Tacre property accommodates only fourteen 1130 sq ft cabins. This includes a 781 sq ft climate controlled living space. Exteriors, featuring design cues from the vernacular architecture of the region, are designed to harmonize with the jungle environment; interiors gently emphasize the ‘safari theme, with log furniture and rustic motifs that belie the ultra-modern comfort and convenience within
Each of these well-appointed cabins offered on all inclusive basis contains of a living room, bedroom, en suite bathroom and shaded outdoor deck with built-in plunge pool and an outdoor shower. The luxurious bathrooms feature free-standing bathtubs and His and Hers vanity consoles.

Location

Surrounded by unspoilt wilderness, Chena Huts is well off the beaten track, lying at the end of a specially-built road that connects with the main Tissamaharama-Yala highway a few minutes from the Yala park entrance. It is 315km from Colombo’s international airport and 26km from Tissamaharama, the nearest town. This is a place to get away from it all, to observe the magnificent profusion of wildlife and commune closely with nature.

Restaurant & Bar

Taking its name from the nearby reefs and lighthouse, famed in seafaring history and lore, the Basses restaurant is decorated to an appropriately nautical theme and features urbane dining in a spectacularly setting overlooking the Indian ocean. The Bar, filled with memorabilia that illustrate the history of Yala and its environs, is the perfect venue for a post-safari drink before dinner. Chena Huts also consists of a poolside bar (concealed behind a waterfall).

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