KAYAAM HOUSE SRI LANKA

This nine-key affair at the southern end of the island near breezy Tangalle is all about the vibe

- Salil Deshpande

A road winds down the coast from Colombo, hugging the beaches of Bentota, Ahangama, and Weligama. Colourful tuk-tuks and heaving buses slow you enough to read the name of every surf school and café en route. Park this route for another time. Instead, take the expressway straight out of the airport. The 200-odd kilometres of metalled road takes you through Sri Lanka's picture-perfect countryside, past forested hills and paddy fields, initiating you into the buzz-free, meditative holiday that Kayaam House is built for.

As locations go, this one is tough to beatin many ways, at the very edge of the largest continent on Earth. A crow, if it were to risk it all, would have to fly at least 10,000kms till it reached Antarctica. But this is not some Crusoestye "island of despair". There are a few small hotels down the strip though thankfully there is no scene-no shacks, no bars, and no watersports. All that is about 30 minutes away in Tangalle. What you get instead is a mile of unspoilt beach. Unlike in Mirissa and Bentota, the ocean here comes rushing at you, which makes it less than ideal for a swim. But the waters are pristin the sands are clean, and the scene is nothing short of dramatic.