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EllAone selling overpriced tea and other drinks at
the summit.
For an easier walk (2.5km from town)
without a guide, follow the route to Ella Rock
but only go as far as the small Rawana Falls.
4 Sleeping
Touts might approach you on the train with
tales that the hotel of your choice is too expen-
sive, closed down or rat-infested. In fact, Ella
has a high standard of accommodation (but
higher prices than many other Hill Country
towns), especially for guesthouses, so they’re
most likely telling fibs.
During the peak Christmas/New Year
period, prices can double from the standard
high-season prices.
oElla Flower Garden Resort g UESTHOUSE $
(map p184; %205 0480; http://www.ellaresort.com; Pas-
sara Rd; s/d Rs 3000/4000; W) Appropriately
named, this place, which sits right beside
the trail to Little Adam’s Peak, is a horticul-
tural paradise with blooming flower gardens
all around and cages filled with paraquets,
budgies and cooing love birds. Rooms are
spacious, well maintained and very good
value, and the family who runs it always has
time for a good chat.
Sita’s Heaven g UESTHOUSE $
(map p180; %205 0020; off Passara Rd; r Rs 2500-
4000; W) Down a quiet forested lane five min-
utes’ walk from central Ella, Sita’s Heaven offers
the best of both worlds, with privacy and
great views. It’s the kind of place where visi-
tors end up staying longer than they planned.
Sun Top Inn g UESTHOUSE $
(map p180; %222 8673; [email protected]; r
incl breakfast Rs 3500-4500; W) The owners of
this sunset-orange guesthouse extend such a
warm welcome you might feel they’ve been
waiting all their lives for your arrival. Rooms
are small and well-kept, and bikes are availa-
ble for cycling adventures (Rs 1500 per day).
Freedom Guest Inn g UESTHOUSE $
(map p180; %071 689 7778; freedomguestinn@
gmail.com; 132/1 Passara Rd; r incl breakfast Rs 4000;
W) This is a sweet little three-room homestay
with comfortable mattresses and roses on the
beds (yeah okay so they’re plastic, but it’s the
thought that counts), and a pretty covered ter-
race to eat breakfast on.
Little Folly CHAlET $
(map p180; %222 8817; [email protected]; Pas-
sara Rd; cottages Rs 3500-4500; iW) Quaint Lit-
tle Red Riding Hood wooden cottages squir-
reled away in a forest that, if not the home of
a big bad wolf, is probably home to a monkey
or two. The cottages are airy, bright and clean
and everything is made of wood. There’s a top-
notch roadside tea-and-cake shop.Chamodya Homestay HOmESTAY $
(map p184; %357 5432; r incl breakfast Rs 3400,
without bathroom Rs 2500) This is a cute, little,
hidden-away homestay fringed by jungle,
bathed in peace and run by a lady who barely
stops smiling. There are only two rooms (one
of which has a shared bathroom) so try and
book ahead. A three-wheeler ride from town
costs Rs 200.Eeshani Guest Inn HOmESTAY $
(map p180; %222 8703; eeshaniguestinn@
yahoo.com; r Rs 2000-4500; W) This five-room
homestay is run by an endearing old couple
who’ll bustle you in and sit you down for a
nice cuppa and a chat. The house is filled
with sepia photos of the couple’s sons and
daughters on their wedding days and there’s
a pretty flower-filled garden.Okreech Cottages C OT TA gES $
(map p180; %077 238 1638, 077 779 4007; r Rs
4000; W) We have to thank the trees for sac-
rificing themselves in order to create these
rough-wood, timbered cottages, each of which
contains two comfortable rooms of unusually
good value. It’s very new and so the gardens
still need time to mature before the guest-
house really comes into its own. Not much
English is spoken.Rawana Holiday Resort g UESTHOUSE $
(map p180; %222 8794; [email protected];
r Rs 2500-3500; W) Perched high on a hillside
overlooking Ella, this family-run guesthouse
contains six fairly basic balcony rooms with
views, plus four less-expensive interior rooms.
Good food (rice and curry Rs 500) is served in
the spacious open restaurant.oPlanters Bungalow HiSTORiC HOTEl $$
(map p184; %077 127 7286, 492 5902; http://www.planters
bungalow.com; 10 mile Post, Wellawaya Rd; d/family
incl breakfast US$80/120) Just stepping over
the threshold into this divine converted tea-
planters bungalow, with gardens constantly on
the verge of blossoming out of control, brings
on a sense of total calm.The three rooms have
been impeccably renovated and are filled with
religious imagery, fine antiques and works of
art (the English owner used to work in art
publishing).