We had 15 nights in The Fortress and Spa for Christmas 24 and into New Year 25. The most wonderful time at the most wonderful time of year. The views as you walk through the enormous wooden gates are fantastic. Beautiful hotel, fabulous food, amazing staff, brilliant atmosphere, the superlatives dont even come close to describing reality. We stayed in an Ocean Loft Suite - a treat to ourselves as it had a few extras and we had a patio as well as a balcony, but all the rooms were amazing. Our bed was the most comfortable we had ever had in a hotel - and I mean that !!! Each night our bed was turned down but I insisted on opening the blinds - if I woke up I could still see and hear the sea from our bed. We stayed on an all inclusive package - we had everything we could possibly wish for. Each day breakfast was a mix of English, continental, fresh fruit, traditional Sri Lankan, delicious local breads, with hot stations serving waffles (if thats your thing), eggs cooked to order, but my favourite, Hoppers and Egg Hoppers. The infinity pool was brilliant, never too busy, and with views out into the waves. The staff around the pool were amazing - nothing was too much trouble and we always enjoyed sharing family stories with the team. We rarely had lunch (breakfast was too amazing). Evenings started with a cocktail followed by the most amazing dinner fare. Sri Lankan, soup, salads, sushi, anti pasti, seafood cocktails and a grill station with the most mazing seafood. Wonderful wines - the list goes on. Outside the hotel, the traffic had a beautiful chaos about it - pedestrians and cyclists alongside Tuk-Tuks, cars, trucks and buses - oh the buses challenging tuk tuks to that space ahead but with respect from both sides - we should adopt that attitude in the UK. We had a list of experiences before we arrived and the hotel staff helped us achieve everything we had wished for - and a whole lot more. Our sincere thanks to our drivers Subash and Ashintha. Udawalewe National Park with our friend Subash. A fantastic day with elephants. On Christmas Eve we had a walk around Galle Fort, Lion Beer in The Ivy, then back at the hotel we saw Santa who presented gifts to all the children before an amazing gala dinner. Our Christmas Day was wonderful - after breakfast we walked along the amazing beach from the hotel - almost nobody on the beach. We visited the turtle sanctuary - baby turtles seem so helpless..... Boxing Day was the 20th anniversary of the devastating tsunami and we were humbled to visit the tsunami memorial and statue at Hikkaduwa with our driver Ashintha. We shed many tears for the people of Sri Lanka. The next day was an early start with Subash as we went to Ella via 9 arch bridge. Then a train ride from Ella to Bandarawela in an open carriage, then onto Liptons seat and ending the day hiking to and swimming in the pools at Upper Diyaluma Falls - an absolutely wonderful day. Our next adventure was whale watching - wow. A speed boat out to the whales
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