Boulder Garden

This place is amazing and one of the highlights of our trip. The very large boulders are an integral part of the hotel (see some of the photos). There are many steps and turns along with a varied flora. This all adds to the physicality of the place. Some might not like the steps and somewhat dark rooms. But for us, these added to the experience.. The manager was attentive and the breakfast and dinner were excellent.

It was a calm and quiet place. The entire place was built with stones inside a rain forest. The whole location had an amazing view. A natural pool is also available. The dining area under a huge rock was attractive for dinner. This place is most suited for a set of people. Their food was delicious.

This hotel is extremely unique. The secluded setting is amazing (right in the rainforest with monkeys and a mongoose as regular visitors) it is built into the boulder laden side of a mountain. The crowning glory is the huge dome boulder which covers the restaurant area, but it does need just a little more investment/tlc to make it excellent. The rooms are well equipped yet basic, but the thing that makes the whole place so appealing is the friendly, can't do enough for you, fun to be around, onsite manager called Edward. The food is amazing, the attention detail too, and we were made to feel very special.

As we stepped up the grand entrance stairs sandwiched between mighty boulders, we realized that we were entering something unique. Nature at its very best . Many metres above us the tree canopy sparkled in the sunlight. Birds were singing and monkeys were swinging from tree to tree in search of food. But down at ground level we were completely in awe at the size of the boulders rubbing shoulders with one another. The centrepiece must be the huge boulder towering above the restaurant. Maybe 100 metres long, 40 metres across and 30 metres tall. Beside it lay the pool surrounded by dense vegetation and entombed by trees and lianas reaching into the sky. Then the heavens opened creating a surreal and magical atmosphere as the leaves glimmered in the returning sunlight. Simply true paradise. We were welcomed by 18 year veteran GM Anand, who together with his team immediately recognised us from our last visit 4 years ago and promptly allocated us to the same room as on our last visit. To demonstrate his personal caring he decorated our dining table with an artistic welcome display made out of seeds from a Fishtail Palm. We enjoyed a sumptuous Sri Lankan curry feast under the giant boulder with every table and cranny in the rockface lit by candles, a magical sight. Anand also created a special breakfast menue including buffalo curd and crepes filled with jaggery and coconut. Yet another winning meal. This personal attention to detail helps to balance out the many shortcomings of the guestroom experience, which hardly meets a 4 star rating. But all that is about to change, as the new owners plan to invest heavily to upgrade the property to a luxury level. Boulder Garden will then be a ' must ' place to stay and experience.