Buckingham Place, subtle luxury on Sri Lanka's south coast

Stay at Buckingham Place a superb luxury hotel located on a beautiful stretch of pristine golden beach on Sri Lanka's south coast.

Buckingham Place lies at the end of a track in a quiet corner of Rekawa Beach, surrounded by miles of pristine golden sands striped with the tracks of nesting turtles.

The hotel comprises of 16 individual cabanas set in lush 5 acre grounds, nestled between the Indian ocean and Rekawa Lagoon. There are two swimming pools, a stunning 33m infinity pool overlooking the ocean complete with a swim up bar and there is a second smaller "cooling off" pool in the garden area. The oceanfront area of the property features a large open plan dining and entertainment area, a bar, recreation area with pool table and the hotel reception. 

From the moment you arrive at Buckingham Place you will realise you are staying somewhere that is a bit of a one off. On arrival we were met by hotel staff at the gates / car park area who greeted us, picked up our bags and took us straight to our room. We were handed a delicious welcome drink and given brief but informative introduction to the in room amenities and the hotel in general. We felt at home immediately!

The room we stayed in ("balcony bedroom") was incredibly spacious and airy, minimalist luxury at it's best! The bathrooms are surprisingly big as well, and come complete with large spa style bathtub and wet room / walk in showering area. 

Sometimes it's the little touches (like not having to fill out forms and hand over passports / credit cards at a reception desk before being given a room key) that really make a difference. We soon discovered that our first impressions would be just the tip of the iceberg in terms of the thoughtful planning Nick (the owner) has put into practice to give his guests a special experience. One thing we really liked is that there are no set meal times at Buckingham Place, the restaurant staff are incredibly accommodating and were more than happy to cook us breakfast beyond mid day and make us up a packed breakfast and snacks for us when we out on our day safari. The evening meals are also organised on a 5 day rotation so meals can be made from fresh ingredients and you don't get tired of the menu choices (not that you could!).

Our first evening at Buckingham Place set the tone for the coming few days. We headed down to the main "Oceanront" area for dinner shortly after settling into our room. We were greeted by super friendly staff and taken to a table overlooking the pool and ocean beyond, we enjoyed a fantastic meal which included the best traditional Kotthu Roti we have tasted! We had a good chat with Nick after our meal and he explained a bit about the history of the place, how he fell in love with Sri Lanka and his philosophy of running a hotel. 

We stayed a total of 4 nights, we had 2 full days just relaxing and lounging by the pool and exploring a bit of the nearby beach and a day out on safari at Yala National Park. 

Disclaimer: All opinions conatined in this article/review are our own. All photographic work is our own unless otherwise stated.