The Villa

A house like houses used to be.

Tall ceilings. Wide verandahs. Gently turning ceiling fans. Rooms that breathe. The unhurried comfort of a house built to be enjoyed, effortlessly.

Cassia Hill main villa
The House

Designed by the renowned hotelier George Cooper of Kahanda Kanda.

Cassia Hill was renovated in the spirit of the Ceylonese planters’ houses of the 1920s and 30s — classical columns, wide wrap-around verandahs, and tall, shuttered doors — but reimagined for how a contemporary house is actually used. Vintage furniture sits with modern pieces, and the walls are graced with antique prints and contemporary art.

The main villa comprises four ensuite bedrooms, a generous indoor dining room, and a living room that opens to the first-floor verandah. A separate lower house holds two further bedrooms with a shared bath and its own small living area.

The living room
Infinity pool
The Pool & Verandah

An infinity pool that runs almost to the treetops.

The pool sits on the veranda of the main villa, where you feel you can swim out almost to the treetops and distant hills. Sunbathe on the surrounding deck chairs, or lounge on the long verandah with coffee and the paper, fans turning slowly overhead. Many days, guests don’t leave the property.

Staff

A fully staffed house.

Butler, chef, houseman, gardener, and round-the-clock security. The rhythm is quietly attentive — staff are in the kitchen or on the grounds during the day, available when needed, invisible otherwise. At the end of the day they leave, and the villa is entirely yours overnight, with a guard quietly watchful at the gate.

The full staff is included in the daily rate. For meals at the villa, guests pay for groceries at cost (the chef provides receipts); a small daily tip is customary.

The villa butler
Location

Near Habaraduwa, southern Sri Lanka.

Cassia Hill is on a hillside eight minutes from the sea, twenty-five minutes from the gates of Galle Fort, and about two and a half hours from Colombo airport on the Southern Expressway.

Driving Times

By car or tuk-tuk.

Habaraduwa beach8 min
Koggala beach9 min
Unawatuna beach12 min
Galle Fort25 min
Hikkaduwa30 min
Weligama30 min
Matara40 min
Colombo city2 hours
Colombo airport — CMB / Bandaranaike International2–2.5 hours

Most of the drive from Colombo is on the southern expressway — scenic and generally traffic-free. The villa butler can call a tuk-tuk any time; for longer excursions, we can recommend reliable local drivers. Driver accommodation is available at the property at no additional charge.

Appointments

The particulars.

House

  • Six bedrooms — sleeps 12 in beds, 16 with fold-outs
  • First-floor infinity pool
  • Wrap-around verandahs
  • Indoor & outdoor dining
  • Library & board games
  • Mosquito nets and air conditioning in all bedrooms

Technical

  • Broadband Starlink WiFi
  • Large-screen TV, multi-region DVD, satellite
  • High-end bluetooth sound system
  • Backup generator
  • 24-hour security
  • British 3-pin sockets (round & square)
“Photos just can’t do Cassia Hill justice.”
— A recurring line in guest reviews