Despite unceasing fuel struggles islandwide, Brunch nevertheless found ourselves making a trip to Kandy last weekend, and for our little sojourn into the fabled hill country capital, we made ourselves a home base at Fox Kandy, the Kandyan outpost of Fox Resorts.
About four kilometres southwest from Kandy’s train station (we took the train), Fox Kandy lies nestled in the Hanthana Mountain Range, offering guests the convenience of being close to the city while enjoying the cool climes of the hill country. Overlooking a cliff, Fox Kandy affords absolutely breathtaking views of the surrounding hills, a mix of tea plantations and forests that makes each morning you wake up there unforgettable.
Fox Kandy itself
Fox Kandy is a boutique resort that, just like its sister resort Fox Jaffna, which Brunch has also had the pleasure to experience, blends the beauty of its surrounding, modern conveniences and luxury into one wonderful package.
Fox Kandy was initially the holiday bungalow of its owner, the late R. Rajamahendran, which was then expanded with the addition of several villas, each of which contains four cosy well-appointed rooms dotted around the hotel’s infinity pool and garden.
The large four-foot-deep pool itself is a combination of a plunge pool and a swimming pool and is made for soaking in the beautiful views of the surrounding mountains – literally.
The main building of the villa is an eclectic mix of modern finishing and architecture that has a colonial, but not Kandyan, feel to it. If the pagoda-inspired, intricately carved nature of Kandyan architecture is not to your taste, Fox Kandy is certainly the place for you to take in the climes and views of Kandy in a tastefully contemporary setting.
Fox Kandy also boasts an incredibly impressive collection of art (from the private collection of the late R. Rajamahendran, who had one of the largest art collections in the country) and includes the work of modern contemporary artists (both local and international) like Dr. Shanaka Kulathunga and Olga Aparicio, Rahju, Anup Vega, Iromie Wijewardena, Eiko Yoshimoto, Albert Dharmasiri, and Anura Srinath. The collection of art around Fox Kandy also includes pieces from the famed ’43 group like Aubrey Collette’s caricatures of Sri Lankan heads of state and a fabulous piece by Rev. L.T.P. Manjusri.
The main building and stairway to the dining room are gracefully adorned with colourful and captivating art that lends a great deal to making the contemporary setting of Fox Kandy that much more insightful and engaging.
The Fox Kandy experience
We were picked up at the Kandy railway station by a driver from the hotel – pickup and drop-off to the hotel is something that Fox Kandy offers to all its guests on request. Our drive to the hotel took us swiftly out of Kandy City proper and up winding narrow roads that had picture-postcard scenery on both sides and took you past quite a few Kandyan resort properties, before reaching Fox Kandy itself, which is at the top of a hill and overlooking a cliff. This positioning is what gives Fox Kandy its unparalleled views.
After a late breakfast (a buffet that comprised all the Western breakfast staples as well as Sri Lankan breakfast favourites), we were shown to our rooms. The rooms at Fox Kandy are luxurious while also staying simple. Each room has its own colour scheme and is decorated with art from the owner’s collection and is named after each artist.
Fox Kandy General Manager Christopher Berenger sat down with Brunch for a quick chat during our visit and shared that the hotel’s peak period for locals typically tended to be between April and May, and for foreign travellers, from October to April. However, there is still demand throughout the year, and we learnt that on the weekend of our visit, occupancy was at nearly 70%, with more guests expected the following day, and with a healthy distribution of local and foreign guests.
Adventures outside Fox Kandy
Inside the hotel, of course, there is the infinity pool which gives guests the chance to enjoy a cool day out in the sun, as well as the hotel’s restaurant with the hotel’s chef and pastry chef coming together to create a wide variety of cuisine to tickle the taste buds of even the most discerning guest. Our stay at Fox Kandy was well-punctuated with an array of different food, many of which boasted understated flavours while still staying hearty.
Some of our favourite dishes included the spaghetti bolognese off the à la carte menu, the vegetarian alternative of the club sandwich (with egg), which was fresh, light, and still very filling, as well as an impressive array of seafood which was remarkably fresh and very well-done (the batter-fried prawns at dinner time were particularly memorable). The kitchen is happy to customise dishes to suit the specific needs and preferences of their guests.
Outside the hotel, Berenger also talked us through the many experiences on offer to guests at Fox Kandy. Guests at the resort can enjoy a variety of tours frequently organised by the hotel. For instance, some of these tours include visits to the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage, Sigiriya Rock, Dambulla Rock, visits to the Tea Museum and city tours to Kandy that take you to some of its most famous locations – the Royal Botanical Gardens, the Temple of the Tooth, as well as to Kandy’s famous cultural shows that let you observe Kandyan dance, music, and culture at its finest.
For the nature buffs, there are guided tours of the Hanthana mountains as well as specialised bird-watching tours. There is also a yoga practitioner available on request, and while the hotel’s spa is currently not operational, they are happy to arrange visits to nearby spas for guests looking for that kind of R&R.
The runaway favourite element of the Fox Kandy experience, Berenger shared, was of course the views, and having experienced it for ourselves we wholeheartedly concur.
A quality escape
Our experience at Fox Kandy was remarkable, to say the least; the peaceful property with its beautiful vistas served as the perfect place to unwind – the cool, but not cold, weather also helped us let go of some of the stress of city life, and surrounded by beautiful art, Fox Kandy proves the perfect place to relax.
Berenger’s words in his message to would-be guests sum up the Fox Kandy experience vividly: “We are on TripAdvisor’s 2022 Best of the Best travel list and have a 9.1 rating on bookings.com. These are achievements Fox Kandy has proven and maintained through providing quality.” And quality indeed is what Fox Kandy delivers.
