Thambili House

Thambili House is a restored home of around three hundred years old inside the walls of Galle Fort, the UNESCO-listed old town on Sri Lanka’s south coast. Once the house of a Dutch cinnamon trader, it is a place of arches, pillars, timber lattices and breezy verandas, with the lighthouse, museums, cafés and boutiques of the fort all a short walk from the door. With three suites, it suits a family or two couples who want to stay right in the heart of the old town.

Behind the front door lies a leafy courtyard garden built around a curving pool, tiled in natural green stone and edged by a stone terrace with sun loungers. A covered terrace alongside holds rattan sofas and the dining table, so meals come with views of the water. Upstairs, balconies look over the frangipani to the terracotta rooftops of the fort and, from one suite, out to the sea.

The living rooms are furnished with colonial antiques, hand-carved wooden sofas and dark wood cabinets, with art and framed photographs on the walls. All three suites have antique four-poster beds draped in mosquito nets, air conditioning and en-suite bathrooms with rain showers and twin basins. The Ginger Suite has two double beds and a terrace with pool and lighthouse views, while the Nutmeg Suite has a sea-view balcony and a large soaking bathtub. Breakfast is included, and housekeeping, a gardener and night security look after the house.