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A blend of hospitality and eco - friendliness

Tea Factory Heritance goes local

“We already have the ethics,” said Roshanlal Perera, the general manager of The Tea Factory. “We just added some fine tuning to be a Heritance hotel.”

A hotel with ethics? Yes, if it’s a Heritance property. Heritance is the brand name of the Aitken Spence hotels that have bonded with the local community, accepted ecological and social responsibility, and upgraded to elegant luxury coupled with superb locally-inspired cuisine.

A guest used to care little for the philosophy of a hotel. Now, however, savvy tourists are concerned about the carbon footprint that catering for them creates. And, as the general manager of the newly re-branded Heritance Tea Factory has learned, ethical values and practices not only encourage eco-awareness but also strong staff-commitment.

It all began in 1992 when G.C. Wickremasinghe saw an abandoned tea factory at 2,072m above sea level while on a visit to the Hethersett tea estate. There, etched against the misty sunrise, crowning a plateau above deep, fertile slopes, was the silhouette of a grey, abandoned factory – standing sentinel over a century’s heritage of tea - inspiring an incredible vision. He resolved to turn it into a hotel.

The Aitken Spence group leased the factory and architect Nihal Bodhinayake transformed it into a unique hotel while retaining its original exterior. Since it opened in 1996 it has proved popular with visitors and now its refurbishment as a Heritance hotel has added a finesse that makes it a fulfilling place to stay.
It’s fulfilling for guests because they are helping sustain the environment instead of destroying it. For instance, a biomass gasifier fuelled by farmed gliricidia wood, instead of atmosphere-polluting diesel, provides hot water and central heating. Income generation and career opportunities for a neglected area have been created, while villagers have taken to organic vegetable cultivation for better yields and to supply the hotel.

The 4km drive from Kandapola up a winding trail, through hillsides bright with tea and beside dry waterways turned into rivers of vegetables, seems to lead further and further from civilisation. A tea factory, looking like all the others in the hill country, comes into view as the road swings around into Hethersett village. A kovil forms the centre while green-roofed bungalows skirt the hill on which the factory stands.

One of the bungalows houses the ultra-modern Hethersett water bottling plant, another provides quarters for drivers, and one has a glorious rose garden. There is a putting green and a garden of ornamentally clipped hedges, like a miniature Versailles, and a bungalow turned into a micro tea factory.
On arrival guests enter a lobby that, with refurbishment to the Heritance theme, has been transformed into a vestibule of wonders. The reception desk is a solid glass slab laid on huge, spoked cogwheels.

This is the nerve centre of the hotel where young men in black draped with maroon scarves coordinate operations. Plump sofas and armchairs look out onto the garden giving glimpses of tea pluckers hurrying past. A steward in the tea bar serves the hotel’s own organic tea and flavoured varieties too.

The lobby’s atrium rising five floors is hung with huge wooden drying fans from the old factory, while the basement houses the original generating plant – and the Six Senses Spa. A wood-burning stove by the ancient elevator radiates heat in the evenings. Accommodation is in 57 comfortable rooms and suites on what were the tea drying floors. Girders have been painted green and red instead of being concealed; exposed pipes painted yellow and silver carry water or electricity lines.

The stunning visual impact is matched by the exceptional food quality, a hallmark of Heritance hotels. Where possible, ingredients are sourced locally and prepared traditionally, and even the set menu meals are presented with artistic flair and gourmet care. Fine dining is to be had in a converted narrow gauge railway carriage adjoining the main restaurant, where a seven-course meal, with several choices for each course, is well worth the journey.

Guests booked only for one night wish they could stay longer. They quickly build a rapport with the staff, such as with Meiyappan, the hotel’s nature trekking guide. Born in the village of Hethersett he joined the hotel when it opened and is in demand to lead nature trails through the Kuduratte Jungle three times a day. He seems to know every wild bird personally as he imitates their calls. He is passionate about pleasing guests who want to discover a little about the Hindu culture of the village.

He plans his two-hour walking tours according to guests’ ability. He also helps guests who want to try their hand at tea plucking; with a packet of the tea they have plucked being presented to them the next morning.

But tourists who stay at The Heritance Tea Factory take away more than tea; they have memories of an enjoyable yet eco-friendly experience as a highlight of their visit to Sri Lanka.

(www.aitkenspencehotels.com; double rooms from US$114, BB; special rates for locals.)

 
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