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This experimental gourmet wine and spirit tour is the brainchild of Essential Experiences Founder/CEO Venushe Wickramarathne, a Sri Lankan born entrepreneur who has made his way back from Switzerland with dreams of setting up shop where he says he heart belongs.
A graduate in hotel and hospitality management (Switzerland), Wickramarathne asserts that ‘Gourmet Rails’ is an experience that will push the boundaries and open up a new dimension in travel experiences in Sri Lanka.
“This is a new and unique experience that we can market to the world and it will help draw in high-end customers. We can’t keep saying we are focusing on high-end tourism without having high-end experiences to suit that clientele,” he emphasised.
Once he had the experience clearly mapped in his mind, Wickramarathne approached JF Tours and Travels, which owns the Viceroy II – the most luxurious carriage in Sri Lanka at present.
“I have nothing but praise for JF Tours and Travels and its Managing Director Pavithra Fernando. When I heard they were manufacturing the carriage, I approached them when it was still in the conceptual stage. When I proposed the concept, they backed me to the hilt,” he said.
The vintage Viceroy II has been refurbished in period style to reflect an ancient charm compatible with the authentic ‘Viceroy Special’ that made its debut in 1986.
The newly-refurbished Viceroy II has a bar, a galley kitchen, high-end sound systems and Wi-Fi facilities and is best described as a unique travel experience.
Also on board with Wickramarathne extending support and friendship which has been invaluable is Martin Strauss, a professional wine and spirit educator with a career spanning 40 years.
Wickramarathne also expressed his gratitude to some of the key partners on the project: Manoj Rasiah and Rockland Distilleries, Eric and Decanter Wine Holdings, Sujeewa Samarasekara and the Shift Solution team and Yudi Kanagasabai, CEO of PWC who he terms an unsolicited mentor for backing him when he only had a vision and an idea in his pocket.
While the ‘Gourmet Rails’ experience will evolve to feature different places and properties around the island in the months ahead, coming up is a journey to the Closenburg Hotel in Galle.
The day tour will start at the Fort Railway Station in the morning, where participants will be served a ‘Regal Champagne’ breakfast as they enjoy the stunning views along Sri Lanka’s coastline on the way to Galle.
In Galle, they will travel by luxury coach to the Closenburg Hotel. Here a four-course lunch with matching wines, carefully selected by Strauss, will be served on the Luna Terrace – the new addition to the iconic Closenburg Hotel offering an absolutely beautiful view of the southern seas. The hotel stay will last around five hours, ensuring there’s plenty of time to have a swim and do some exploring.
The best is always saved for the last, where participants will indulge in a whiskey tasting experience on the way back to Colombo on the carriage, which includes some of the finest single malts available in Sri Lanka presented by Strauss.
“With ‘Gourmet Rails,’ we will be highlighting the Sri Lankan heritage and culture and discovering Sri Lanka’s iconic properties. Some people have never even travelled by train before and this is a unique way of delivering an experience,” he said.
Wickramarathne, a Royalist, is among the young Sri Lankans championing change and introducing new concepts to the country, a man who doesn’t shy away from hard work and firmly believes nothing is impossible once you set your mind to it.
“This is just the start and it’s about creating a whole new culture. Essential Experiences has plans in the pipeline to go big and capture the experiential market and show the outside world Sri Lanka is ready to handle high-end clients,” he affirmed.
The Essential Experiences CEO also believes in giving young people a fair chance in life and doing things the right way, which led him to hire the staff for the ‘Gourmet Rails’ operation from the Ceylon Hotel School and other hospitality schools by offering them internships along with work contracts – breaking away from the habit of paying daily wages and ensuring job security as a result of his approach.
Outlining future plans, Wickramarathne revealed that apart from ‘Gourmet Rails,’ his hospitality consulting company has partnered up with Damastrategy, a highly renowned F&B and hospitality consulting company based out of Genova, Italy, and will be opening up some restaurants and bars in the near future, bringing Foreign Direct Investment into the country.
‘Gourmet Rails’ is operational now and with hoteliers just as excited as Wickramarathne about the new railway tourism concept, bookings are flowing in for the experiences that have been lined up.
Apart from Galle, other destinations that are on the cards right now include Kandy, Habarana, Nanu Oya, the tea trails and Passekudah, to name a few. Hop on board for scenic journeys featuring gastronomic delights, iconic properties and unmatched luxury.
