PA R T N E R S H I P
A hotel with A CONSCIENCE SPECIALISING IN CONSCIENTIOUS TOURISM, RAVANA GARDEN OFFERS A LUXURIOUS ECO ESCAPE IN THE HEART OF SRI LANKA
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lanked by the arresting southern Ussangoda plains and the cerulean blue water of the Indian Ocean, Ravana Garden in Sri Lanka is a game-changer in the world of sustainable travel. Offering more than just paper straws (although these are, of course, a fixture), the hotel is wholly committed to conserving, protecting and enjoying nature’s most precious bounty. Conceived as a sustainability-first hotel, the Sri Lankan outpost was built with the environment in mind at every stage – from the number of rooms (which was reduced from 15 to nine in a bid to protect the environment, despite the former being a more commercially-viable option) to staff business cards, which are electronic instead of paper. During construction, site clearance was conducted with the aid of manual labour to minimise disruption to the natural habitat, and rooms were designed with a smaller surface area than usual, enabling contractors to use 36
less building materials and to prevent uprooting trees. In a bid to empower the local community, the hotel has ensured that more than 35 per cent of staff employed is from the local area, and certain hotel services are outsourced to local providers. As a guest, you too will reap the benefits of this eco-conscious concept. In your rooms, you’ll find tablets in place of traditional menus and phone directories, and you will be encouraged to opt for electronic bills during your stay. Televisions have been deliberately left out of rooms, in order to encourage you to spend more time outdoors, in the private gardens (which have been designed as an extension of your suite), on nature walks in the surrounding area or at the beach spa, which is made almost entirely from recycled materials. As to be expected, single use plastics are kept to a minimum, with bamboo toothbrushes and no plastic bottles or straws on site. In the resident restaurant, delicious
contemporary and traditional Sri Lankan dishes are made using locally-sourced organic, semi-organic and natural ingredients devoid of MSG. Highly unsustainable food, such as lamb, beef, pork and farmed salmon, have been eliminated from the menu, along with processed food such as sausages. All of the hotel’s excursions have also been carefully considered, and are mostly energy-neutral and designed with the eco-system in mind – think challenging treks, picturesque hikes, bird watching, safari tours and lakeside picnics. On-site electronic cars provide transportation to and from the activities, and your private butler will be on hand should you need anything else during your stay. With its pioneering design and ecoconscous amenities, Ravana Garden is leading the way for sustainable tourism, providing a benchmark for the rest of the industry – and a luxurious, guilt-free holiday to boot. From £160 per night, ravanagarden.com LU X U R Y L ON D ON .C O.U K