Gal Oya Lodge

Following our departure from Kandy, we journeyed from the populous centre of the island to the sparsely populated East. The journey took us over several mountain ranges, the descent of which was slightly terrifying but offered spectacular views of the jungle below. Our guide, Charles, mentioned that he hardly ever took his tour groups to Gal Oya, which filled us with a slight trepidation at what we were in store for.

We needn't have worried. The Gal Oya Lodge is a beautiful jungle hotel, immersed in the forests of the Gal Oya national park, miles away from any major town. There are 10 lodges, of which ours were located at the highest point in the estate, which felt very rustic and were even equipped with atmospheric outdoor bathrooms..perfect! Our lodge was clearly also the ‘home’ of a couple of ‘wild’ dogs who slept on our settees but were no problem.
The hotel is overlooked by the intimidating Monkey Mountain, which could be climbed if guests were feeling adventurous. It is one of the very few hotels located near the Gal Oya national park, the entry into which is very tightly controlled - only a maximum of 10 groups may enter the park on any given day - and so the animals that call the park home are much more wary of humans than in Yala.

On the night of arrival, we took part in a night walk around the lodge, which was a little unsuccessful, although we did see several insects, scorpions and glimpsed the bright eyes of a tiny loris up in a tree. We’re looking forward to a boat safari, a jungle walk with an elder of an indigenous tribe, and a birdspotting walk, all of which are going to be guided by a lovely gentle guy called Rajitha.Read more