By the Best Mountain Hotels editorial team ·
Madulkelle Tea and Eco Lodge is a collection of luxury tents on a ridge above a working tea estate, looking out across the valleys to the Knuckles Mountain Range, a UNESCO-listed wilderness north-east of Kandy. At around 1,000 metres, it is cool enough to need no air conditioning, and it combines the romance of a safari camp with the calm of Sri Lanka's tea country, an infinity pool and a spa.
Madulkelle Tea and Eco Lodge is a collection of luxury tents on a ridge above a working tea estate, looking out across the valleys to the Knuckles Mountain Range, a UNESCO-listed wilderness north-east of Kandy. At around 1,000 metres, it is cool enough to need no air conditioning, and it combines the romance of a safari camp with the calm of Sri Lanka's tea country, an infinity pool and a spa.
Location: the Knuckles Range, Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka's hill country rises steeply from the island's tropical lowlands into a cool, misty world of tea estates, waterfalls, forests and mountain villages, where the tea that made the island famous as Ceylon still grows on terraced slopes.
Madulkelle stands on Hunas Mountain, around 1,000 metres up, on a working tea estate overlooking the Hulu Ganga valley and the Knuckles Range, a wild, misty massif of forest and peaks protected within the Central Highlands World Heritage Site. It is about 27 kilometres, or around an hour's drive, from the centre of Kandy, and about four hours from Colombo's international airport.
Tents and suites at Madulkelle
There are 14 deluxe tents, three two-storey family tents sleeping four to five, and two suites, a Honeymoon Suite with its own infinity-edged plunge pool and a Penthouse Suite. The tents stand on platforms along the ridge, each with a balcony facing the sunrise over the Knuckles, and combine canvas walls with proper beds, bathrooms and comfortable furnishings.
Facilities at Madulkelle
The infinity pool looks across the tea to the mountains, and the aromatherapy spa offers massages and treatments, with yoga in a thatched pavilion. The restaurant, in the main building, serves set menus of Sri Lankan and international dishes, with produce from the lodge's organic vegetable and spice garden.
Guests can tour the working tea estate and taste its tea, trek through the Knuckles Range with a guide, and visit nearby villages; Kandy and its Temple of the Tooth are an hour away.
The mountain moment
The defining moment is waking before dawn, unzipping your tent and watching the sun rise over the Knuckles Range as mist fills the tea valleys below.
In the afternoon, swim in the infinity pool facing the mountains, then walk through the estate as the tea pickers finish their day.
Why Madulkelle is one of the best mountain hotels
Madulkelle earns its place for its setting, its sense of adventure and its value. It offers a different side of the hill country from the colonial bungalows, wilder and more relaxed, with some of the best mountain views in Sri Lanka.
Nearby, Santani offers a Michelin Key wellness retreat in the hills above Kandy. For tea country further south, see Ceylon Tea Trails and Heritance Tea Factory.
When to go to Madulkelle
The hill country is pleasant all year, with warm days and cool nights at this altitude. The driest months around Kandy are usually from January to April, the best time for trekking in the Knuckles Range, while the monsoons, from around May to September and October to January, can bring heavy afternoon rain and mist, as well as lush, green landscapes.
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Questions, answered
- Where is Madulkelle Tea and Eco Lodge?
- Madulkelle is on a working tea estate on Hunas Mountain, about 27 kilometres, or an hour's drive, from Kandy, overlooking the Knuckles Mountain Range.
- Is Madulkelle a glamping lodge?
- Yes. Guests stay in luxury tents on platforms along the ridge, with proper beds, bathrooms and balconies, as well as two suites.
- Does Madulkelle have a pool?
- Yes. There is an infinity pool facing the mountains, and the Honeymoon Suite has its own plunge pool.
- Is there air conditioning at Madulkelle?
- No. At around 1,000 metres, the climate is cool enough not to need it.
- What can you do at Madulkelle?
- Tour the working tea estate, trek in the Knuckles Range, enjoy the spa and yoga, and visit Kandy, an hour away.
