Family Room with Mountain View
Main floor, king bed, ensuite with hot water, and the panoramic glass wall guests write home about. The mountains from your pillow.
from Rs 7,000 / night
Gomaraya · Kandy District · Sri Lanka
A tea estate in the clouds, at the foot of the Knuckles.
A family-run homestay and campsite on 25 acres of tea, spice and forest. Waterfalls and five-peak hikes from the door, home-grown food on the rooftop, and a private peak with a 360° view.
The estate
Tea, spice and forest in the Knuckles foothills
Rohana Estate is a working 25-acre tea estate above the village of Gomaraya, where the Kandy hills meet the Knuckles Mountain Range. The four-floor bungalow sits in the middle of it, looking out over the Hunnasgiriya and Knuckles ridges, with Gombaniya, the range’s highest peak, on the skyline. The bungalow has recently been fully renovated.
Between the tea grow kithul palms, coffee, black pepper, cloves, cardamom, cinnamon, avocado and mango; barking deer and sambar wander through in the early morning, and hawks ride the thermals off the valley. After rain the clouds sink below the house and you eat breakfast above them.
Your host is Rohana Iddawela, a retired engineer, farmer and lifelong hiker who has travelled the world and come home to the hills. He briefs every guest on the trails, lends his telescope at night, and will drive you to a trailhead himself.
- Guest rooms on three floors, most with a mountain view
- Open rooftop hut for dining, yoga, camp-style sleeping
- Private peak “Gomara Fortress 360”, 10–15 min walk
- Home-cooked Sri Lankan meals, veg and vegan welcome
- Free Wi-Fi, free parking, luggage storage, shared kitchen
- Check-in 11:00–20:00 · check-out by 11:00
Stay
Simple rooms with a serious view
Rooms across three floors; most look straight out at the mountains, some from the bed. Rooms are simple and clean (“everything you need”, as one guest put it); the view and the rooftop do the rest. Extra beds on request.
Family Room with Balcony
Main floor, king bed plus a single, ensuite with hot water, and a balcony onto the Knuckles side of the valley. Sleeps three.
from Rs 7,000 / night
Main-floor Double Room
The newest room, next to the living room and the rooftop stairs. A 4 ft double bed, bathroom next door, mountain view.
from Rs 5,000 / night
Lower-floor Double / Twin Room
Two rooms on the lower floor with a shared shower and western toilet. The cheapest beds in the Knuckles, with the same rooftop, food and peak.
from Rs 4,000 / night · 2 rooms
Local direct rates per room per night, double occupancy; 50% advance for direct bookings. Booking.com and Airbnb prices and room names differ a little. Cash only at the property. Pets not allowed; children of all ages welcome.
Camp
The open hut and the 360° peak
The rooftop hut
The top floor is an open, roofed hut with a view across five mountain ranges. This is where meals are served, where yoga happens at sunrise, and where you can sleep camp-style on mats under the roof with the whole valley in front of you and only the wind to hear. There is a telescope up here for the far peaks and the night sky.
The peak
A ten-minute walk (or a bumpy ride) above the house is the estate’s own summit, Gomara Fortress 360, with the ruins of an old rock fortress and a full-circle panorama. Guests camp up here, watch the stars, and come up for sunrise when the clouds sit below the peak.
From the top, left to right: the five Knuckles peaks · Knuckles Range · Kotaganga plains and falls · Rangala · Pidurutalagala · Sri Pada (Adam’s Peak) · Hantana · Victoria reservoir · Bahirawakanda Buddha · Bathalegala · Nelligala · Alagalla · Hunnasgiriya · Kelebokka · Huluganga town and falls · Gombaniya · Lebanon Falls.
Hikes & nature
Waterfalls, five peaks and quiet village trails
The estate sits on the Kandy side of the Knuckles Conservation Forest, a UNESCO World Heritage cloud-forest range. Every hike below starts at the gate or a short drop-off away. Rohana gives a detailed pre-hike briefing; experienced hikers go unguided, and a guide can be arranged for the big days.
A five-day plan from the gate
- Day 1, arrival. A 10–15 minute mini hike to the private peak, Gomara Fortress 360, for a bird’s-eye view of the terrain. If there’s time, walk 45 minutes down Marieland Estate Road for a swim at the Thawalanthenna anicut.
- Day 2, waterfalls. The four-falls loop (or six): Jodu twin falls, Kaluwala (the Black Pool), Lebanon 1 and Saree Ella, on foot from the gate through tea estates and a monks’ residence; bus or tuk-tuk back from Bambarella.
- Day 3, the five Knuckles peaks. From the Thangappuwa or Dawatagala trailhead, over all five knuckles. Fit guests have done it unguided in seven hours; Rohana handles the drop-off and pick-up.
- Day 4, Gombaniya. The highest peak in the range, 1,906 m, right on the estate’s skyline. A long, rewarding day for strong walkers.
- Day 5, Kotaganga falls. A seven-fall cascade: start at Rangala and descend to Thangappuwa. And the list goes on.
Jodu, Kaluwala, Lebanon & Saree falls
Twin falls, a black rock pool and two more cascades in the forest below Lebanon Estate, a half-day on foot from the gate. Swim in all of them.
The five Knuckles peaks
The classic day in the range: open ridges, cloud forest and the full sweep of the central hills. The trail is on AllTrails for unguided hikers.
Gombaniya & Kotaganga
The range’s highest summit, and the seven-step Kotaganga cascade from Rangala down to Thangappuwa: two big days, best with a guide.
Easy days
The Thawalanthenna anicut and the Rangala natural rock pool for a swim, the Gomaraya temple ten minutes down the hill, and village paths through tea and pepper vines.
Hunnasgiriya & Thunhisgala
The peaks you see from the rooftop. Hunnasgiriya is a steep half-day; Thunhisgala, deep in the range, is one of Sri Lanka’s toughest hikes and a two-day expedition.
Birds, deer and the night sky
Hawks and hornbills from the balcony, barking deer and sambar in the tea at dawn, and a telescope on the roof for the stars and the far-off lights of Kandy.
Leeches live in the wet tea in the rainy months: bring leech socks or repellent. Evenings are cool; pack a layer.
Food
“The best food we had in Sri Lanka”
Guests say it over and over, on every booking site. Meals are proper Sri Lankan home cooking made by the family’s women, moderately spiced, veg or non-veg as you like: rice and curry with a dozen small dishes, hoppers for breakfast, desserts, fruit off the trees, and unlimited tea and coffee grown on the estate. Tell Rohana your preferences and spice level when you book; vegetarian and vegan guests are well looked after.
Full board is Rs 5,000 per person per day: all meals, desserts, fruit and unlimited tea and coffee, with lunch packed to go on hiking days. Prefer to cook? Use the shared kitchen for a small daily utility fee.
Living lightly
A small place that grows what it serves
From the estate to the table
Tea, coffee, pepper, cloves, cardamom, avocados and mangoes grow on the estate, and some of it ends up in your cup and on your plate. Much of the rest comes from the village.
Run by a family, for the village
The lodge is owned and run by the Iddawela family, the cooking is done by local women, and guides, tuk-tuk drivers and shopkeepers come from Gomaraya. Your stay stays in the valley.
Forest, not resort
A handful of rooms, no pool. The house sits inside a working tea estate with deer, hornbills and hawks for neighbours, and hikes leave on foot or in one shared drop-off rather than a convoy.
Walk softly in the Knuckles
The range is a protected World Heritage cloud forest. We ask guests to stay on the trails, carry their waste back down, skip single-use plastic, and take a local guide on the big peaks, which keeps both hikers and forest safe.
Guests
What people say when they get home
Rated 9.0 “Wonderful” on Booking.com from 84 reviews (location 9.6, staff 9.6), 4.7 on Google from 105 reviews and 4.87 on Airbnb. Every quote below is a real review, word for word.
An amazing place. Best view we've had in Sri Lanka, period! Also a lovely host that recommended many hikes and sights nearby. Worth hiking to the top of the hill on the property at sunrise. It's magical.
One of the best stays we have had - Rohana is a wonderful host. So friendly, helpful, and goes out of his what to make your stay enjoyable. Amazing food for every meal, two kittens to play with, avocados picked off the tree, deer roaming free in the garden, a private 360 viewpoint just 10 min walk up the hill. Truly an amazing experience
We had the most beautiful stay at Rohana's - Rohana was incredibly helpful with planning our hikes, transport, and helping us to make the most of our time in Knuckles. The rooftop is truly magnificent, and the food was easily some of the best we've had in Sri Lanka.
An unforgettable experiences. The area is among the most beautiful we’ve ever been to. Stunning nature with lots of waterfalls and beautiful hikes nearby, with magnificent views from Rohana‘s estate. The homecooked food is lovingly prepared by the family’s women and the best we had in Sri Lanka. Rohana was also super helpful in advising on different things. A true gem, highly recommended!
Rohana, the owner is a very dedicated and caring host who perfectly knows the area. We got all the recommendations where to go for hiking (e.g. several waterfalls, a natural pool, different routes around knuckles mountain range). Also we got to eat the best Sri Lankan Food on our trip so far, which we enjoyed on the rooftop terrace with the most amazing view over the mountains. This rooftop dinner itself is worth the visit.
Rohana's place is truly unique and the view from the terrace (and from the room we had) is absolutely astonishing. It may be a bit more rustic then some luxury hotel, but the magic spot in the clouds, near the top of the mountain, is priceless.
We could spot hawks, barking deer and great samba deer from our balcony. Mr.rohana is very friendly and experienced traveller who knows what a visitor needs. Peak viewpoint is a unique experience where one could see whole Knuckles Range and many distant mountains. Waterfalls and mountain trails are abundant.
The Sri Lankan meals cooked on site were delicious, we got even breakfast to-go when we went hiking prepared exactly the way we liked it. We felt very well taken care of. [...] For nature lovers this is a perfect choice.
What a wonderful place and wonderful host. The view over the mountains and valleys in the morning while having breakfast on the balcony was amazing, and so peaceful. Rohana was a great host - friendly, informative, giving great advice on the hikes and driving us / guiding us himself to get us started. The food was excellent - including fresh from his own garden with deer roaming free. Would highly recommend.
Read them all: Booking.com · Google · Airbnb · Tripadvisor · Trip.com
Gallery
Around the estate
Getting there
Come the smooth way, via Teldeniya
The estate is about 45 km north-east of Kandy, roughly two hours by road, above Gomaraya village at the end of a good tarmac road, opposite the Gomaraya temple. Ignore the shortest route on the map. Google Maps sends drivers over the badly broken Panwila–Huluganga road; the right way is Kandy → Teldeniya → Rangala → Gomaraya, smooth all the way to the gate. Rohana sends exact directions after you book; check your messages.
- By car or tuk-tuk: about 2 hours from Kandy on the A26 via Teldeniya, then Rangala. Tarmac to the gate; concrete and brick-paved roads inside the estate. Pick-ups can be arranged.
- Bus, the smooth way: Kandy → Teldeniya, then the Rangala or Thangappuwa bus to Duckwari tea factory and a tuk-tuk for the last 7.5 km; or the Galabadawatta / Nagolla bus to Rangala Natural Pool and a tuk-tuk from there. More buses, a few extra kilometres.
- Bus, the short way: Kandy → Wattegama, then the Gomaraya bus, which ends at the estate gate (few a day); or the Bambarella bus to Haagala Junction and a tuk-tuk for the last 6 km. Short and scenic, but bumpy.
- From Colombo: about 4–5 hours by road, or the train to Kandy and the road above.
Marieland Estate Road, Rohana Estate, Gomaraya 20838, Kandy District, Sri Lanka
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Book
Come and stay
Pick your dates below to check live availability and send a booking request straight to Rohana, with no booking fees. Or message him on WhatsApp for camping, groups, long stays, meals and pick-ups. Direct bookings: 50% advance after Rohana confirms.
Prefer another way?
Email rohanaid@gmail.com · Facebook: Rohana Estate Lodging & Camping – Knuckles Gomaraya