Hotel Suisse

The Hotel Suisse is a heritage hotel located in Kandy, Sri Lanka.

Hotel Suisse
General information
LocationKandy, Sri Lanka
Address30 Sangaraja Mawatha, Kandy, Sri Lanka.
Coordinates7°17′18.24″N 80°38′34.44″E
OwnerCeylon Hotels Corporation
ManagementGalle Face Hotel Management
Technical details
Floor count4
Other information
Number of rooms83
Number of suites7
Number of restaurants1
Website
http://www.hotelsuisse.lk/

History

The building was originally the residence of Pilimatala Gabada Nilame, the Chief Minister of the Royal Granary, and was built in the 17th century. It was located on Migon Aramba, 'the place where the King’s buffaloes grazed'.[1] Following the Great Rebellion of 1817–18 the building was confiscated by the British in 1818,[2] and given to a British officer, who renamed it Haramby (Aramba) House.[3] In 1846 it became the residence of George Wall, the manager of the Ceylon Plantation Company. In the early 1880s the building was occupied by the Kandy Club.[1] In 1887 the club moved to a building vacated by the Orient Bank, which had gone into liquidation, later became part of the Queen's Hotel.[1] In 1924 the building was acquired by a Swiss lady, Jeanne Louisa Burdayron, who operated it as a guest house[4] before it became a hotel.[5][6] At one stage the building was also used as a maternity ward for planters' wives.[7] During World War II (between April 1944 and 1945), it was used as the headquarters of the South East Asia Command,[8] under the command of Lord Louis Mountbatten.[9][10]

In 1951 the government took over the building for use as government offices.[11]

Facilities

The hotel has 90 rooms, including seven suites, a lounge bar and restaurant. It also has an outdoor swimming pool, Ayurvedic centre, sauna and spa.

References
  1. "Kandy and the Kandy Club - [Reminiscences of the Kandy Club]". The Kandy Club. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  2. Nihal Karunaratna; Madhyama Saṃskr̥tika Aramudala (1999). Kandy, past and present, 1474-1998 A.D. Central Cultural Fund, Ministry of Religious and Cultural Affairs. p. 189. ISBN 9789556131215.
  3. Ceylon: Its History, People, Commerce, Industries and Resources. Plâté Limited. 1924. p. 157.
  4. A. Baur & Co. Ltd (1997). A. Baur & Co. Ltd: 100 Years in Sri Lanka, 1897-1997. A. Baur & Company Limited. p. 113. ISBN 9789559509004.
  5. Ellis, Royston (5 June 2016). "When holidaying here was a genteel affair". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  6. Weerasuriya, Sanath (13 June 2010). "Hotel Suisse Grand ole lady in Kandy". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  7. Jayasinghe, Jayampathy (21 August 2011). "Steeped in history...Hotel Suisse caters to a wide clientele". Sunday Observer. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  9. "Hotel Suisse adding luxury to the property". Daily News. 25 August 2011. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  10. Mountbatten, Louis; Ziegler, Philip (Ed) (1988). Personal diary of Admiral the Lord Louis Mountbatten, Supreme Allied Commander, South-East Asia, 1943-1946. Collins. p. 99. ISBN 9780002176071.
  11. Ceylon Year Book. Department of Census and Statistics. 1951. p. 275.
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