Charitha Rest, Ампара, Шри-Ланка

Charitha and his family were great hosts and extremely attentive to all our needs (ready to go above and beyond). The food was delicious, the room was large and clean with an air conditioning that worked almost too well, there is a seating area in the garden from which you can hear birds and witness monkeys walking along the electrical wires. The property is walking distance (30 min) from Owagiriya Natabun Viharaya (Buddhist temple ruins) and as we were on our way Charitha kindly gave us a lift, as well as to another destination later during our stay. Both the father and mother are absolute sweethearts, and are more than happy to sit down with you for a chat (I had a little well needed Sinhalese crash course). From what I can see they are building more rooms/bungalows and a restaurant in the back, but as of February 2025 it truly had that quaint local feel I look for when I travel.

We loved the kindness and hospitality! Charitha and his parents are fantastic, informative and welcoming. Arranged a fantastic tour with a picnic and a guide who knew everything about the region and took great care into making sure we saw a lot of it. The village is small and everyone is incredibly nice, curious and inviting. All smiles wherever we went. Charitha's mother is probably the best cook on the entire island. There aren't many restaurant options around so this was such an unexpected pleasure. I'll dream about her lady fingers (okra) for a good long time to come. The house is spacious and has a nice surrounding garden. 100% recommend.