Santani Wellness Resort & Spa selected as best wellness resort in the world by Travel+Leisure

• Tablet hotels also recognises Santani Wellness Experience as one of the most unique wellness experiences in the world

In a short span of four years, Santani Wellness Resort & Spa has put Sri Lanka firmly on the world wellness map and still continues to grow its collection of international accolades. In the heels of being recognised by TIME Magazine as one of the 100 Greatest Places on Earth, CondeNast Traveller’s Best New Hotel in the World, Vogue Magazine’s Best Wellness Retreat in the World, Tatler’s Best Spa in the World, Forbes most unusual hotels of the world, and many more, Santani was recently selected by Travel+Leisure India and South Asia readers as the best Wellness Resort in the World. The award was unveiled at a virtual awards ceremony held on 26 November. 

In another recent feature, Tablet Hotels Magazine, which is owned by the Michelin Star guide and now considered as the Michelin guide for hotels wrote: “We’ve been singing the praises of Sri Lanka’s boutique hotels for some time now, but we’ve got to admit, this one took our breath away. Santani Wellness Resort and Spa puts together so many of the things we love about this island – the unbearably scenic landscapes of the interior, the homegrown tradition of tropical-modernist concrete architecture, and the legendarily welcoming Sri Lankan hospitality – that it might be worth a return trip all on its own.” Santani goes beyond having a great location, architecture, cuisine and service and infuses a philosophy and experience into their brand, where everything is curated, designed and engineered to promote relaxation and peace of mind. From the framing of the views in the rooms and spa to the combinations of flavours in its once-in-a-lifetime gastronomical experience – a product of ancient ayurvedic theory merged with modern fine-dining wellness cuisine, nothing happens in your stay at Santani without it being designed while managing to be subtle and unimposing. Vickum Nawagamuwage commented on this latest accolade with a big grin on his face. “Four years later, I still feel the same joy when Santani receives international recognition. It really is a great honour to win the Best Wellness Resort in the World by Travel+Leisure especially with how crippled the industry is because of the pandemic. Our focus on Human Sustainability, our core philosophy, has enabled us to design a product that is truly focused on the Wellbeing of the guests, and Tablet Hotels Magazine has communicated that in the most beautiful way.”

He further went on to say, “Getting this kind of international recognition is not any tougher because we’re Sri Lankan – it’s a matter of understanding customer needs and quality and sticking to it no matter what. 

The team and I are constantly aware that when promoting Santani to the rest of the world, we aren’t just representing Santani but we’re also representing the country as a whole and we have to remain mindful of that responsibility. Sri Lanka has immense potential as a wellness destination and we should all work together to make that potential a reality.

 The awards, accolades and recognitions that Santani wins are something that all Sri Lankans can be proud of and I’d like to thank the whole team for making that possible.”