Clingendael
Kandy

Clingendael is one of Ampersand's Top 10 Secret Gems.

Tucked away in the rolling hills just outside Kandy, Clingendael is a secret worth keeping. Perched at an elevation of 80 metres on the prestigious Victoria Golf & Country Resort, this grand manor-style residence channels a bygone era of tropical glamour, where leisurely breakfasts stretch into lunch and evenings begin with G&Ts under the frangipani trees.

Built in the elegant Dutch-Sri Lankan style, Clingendael is both generous in space and rich in atmosphere. Constructed with period materials dating back to 1782, the property is an ode to old-world refinement with sloping terracotta roofs, creamy white colonnades, cool flagstone floors and wraparound verandahs where ceiling fans lazily stir the air. Five individually designed suites are draped in silk and filled with antiques and artworks collected from across Asia. Each has its own identity, but they all share a singular sense of comfort, intimacy and character, the kind of place where you immediately feel at home.

The heart of the house is its magnificent terrace, offering a 230-degree sweep across the Victoria Reservoir, the Knuckles mountain range, and the wild, jungled landscape beyond. On misty mornings, you’ll find yourself wrapped in birdsong and silence. On sunny afternoons, the lush and manicured gardens, draw you towards the infinity pool below, edged by tropical blooms and flanked by the sound of cicadas.

Clingendael is not a hotel in the traditional sense. It’s more like staying in the private home of an impossibly charming host, one who happens to have a team of impeccable staff and a private chef at your disposal. Here, meals are served wherever and whenever you like; eggs and hoppers at sunrise on the veranda, afternoon tea in the garden, candlelit dinners under the stars. Cuisine leans effortlessly from Sri Lankan to Western to Thai, with a culinary team that listens and adjusts to your tastes daily.

The pace is unhurried, the mood genteel. Guests often arrive with a list of things to do and promptly set it aside. Still, for those who wish to explore, there's golf at your doorstep, nature walks through the surrounding estate and Kandy’s temples and gardens just a short drive away.

Clingendael is where time stretches out, where afternoons are for naps, swims and page-turners; where every detail has been considered, but nothing feels overly polished. It is romantic, refined and quietly unforgettable. A true hidden gem.

There are no foreign lands. It is the traveller only who is foreign.
Robert Louis Stevenson