Fort Bazaar

Style

Keeping it cool

Setting

Within these fort walls

Immerse yourself in coastal city Galle’s past: stay at former spice, tea and gem trading-post turned luxury hotel, Fort Bazaar. The actual gems were likely pillaged a few centuries ago, but this stylish stay has many a valuable treasure to be discovered; unwind in the hotel’s Bali-inspired spa, dine on black pork curry and lagoon crab at Church Street Social and get some shut-eye in a comfy four-poster bed. Set in the heart of 17th-century, colonial-Dutch city Galle, the hotel’s in prime position for early-morning trips to the market, whale-watching from the fort walls and sun-worshipping on Sri Lanka’s sandy beaches.

Facilities

Rooms

18, including three suites.

Checkout

Noon, but flexible, subject to availability. You can keep your room till 6pm for 50 per cent of the room rate, and you can leave your luggage at reception and use the hotel facilities after check-out. Earliest check-in, 2pm.

More Details

Rates include á la carte breakfast (pastries and breads, fresh fruit, yoghurt, eggs, and traditional Sri Lankan curries), afternoon tea and an evening 'mocktail'.

Also

Unfortunately, Fort Bazaar is not wheelchair accessible.

Free Internet Access

Laundry

On-Site Restaurant

Room Service

Spa

At the Hotel

Yoga mats, and free WiFi throughout the hotel. In rooms: a TV, air-conditioning and fan, minibar with soft drinks and snacks, a Nespresso coffee machine (suites only) and tea-making facilities.

Our Favourite Rooms

If size matters, choose one of the Upper Suites; at a spacious 75sq m, they have high ceilings, private balconies and an adjoining seating area in the bedroom. Families with small children should stay in the Upper Family Suite which has all the perks of the Upper Suites, plus an additional loft space for kids.

Poolside

Set in lush gardens there's a L-shaped pool flanked by sunloungers and shaded daybeds.

Spa

The Z Spa has three treatment rooms; two of which are kitted out with private steam showers. Treatments use tea-infused local products; enjoy a deep-tissue massage, a restful wrap or soothing facial to get that ‘yes, I’ve been on holiday’ glow.

Packing Tips

It’s not about what you bring, but what you can take home: lots of spice jars and bags of locally grown tea from plantations and markets.

Also

Until 2006, the hotel’s site lay derelict; Teardrop hotels transformed the space with the help of Colombo’s PWA Architects, using more than 65 labourers (and three dogs, if you’re counting).

Children

Children of all ages are welcome. Interconnecting rooms and baby cots are available on request. The restaurant has children’s menus and highchairs.

Gallery

Food & Drink

Top Table

Set in the front rooms of the hotel, the indoor bar spills out onto the veranda and into the street, so your choice of seat will be determined by the city heat.

Dress Code

Stay cool with lightweight, laid-back leisurewear.

Hotel Restaurant

From breakfast through to dinner, Church Street Social bustles with hotel guests and locals. The restaurant wholly embraces Fort Bazaar’s history, from the traditional picks on the menu to the decor. However, there’s a touch of modernity too; inside, the dining room is decorated with exposed industrial lighting and an embossed metal ceiling, plus, the bar top is made of reconstituted rafters from the original building. Inspired by Galle’s multicultural past, the restaurant serves a melting pot of cuisines; take your pick of burgers and fries, Moroccan lamb tagine, spicy Sri Lankan fish curries and Asian Malay chilli crab.

Hotel Bar

Lined with cushion-topped sofas and manicured trees, the hotel's courtyard looks as if it were made for sundowners. Have one of the barmen mix you a G&T with Colombo Gin, a London dry made with four botanicals native to Sri Lanka (which were originally grown in the capital's Cinammon Gardens). Complimentary tea and coffee is served between 3.30pm and 4.30pm; if you fancy something stronger, the hotel hosts a 'Social Hour' from 5pm to 6pm, serving complimentary house G&Ts, a cocktail of the day and local beer (except during Sri Lanka's dry dates, when spirits aren't served).

Last Orders

Breakfast is served from 7am to 10.30am, lunch from 12pm to 5pm and dinner from 6pm to 10pm (last order at 9.30pm); all meals are served in Church Street Social or can be taken on the veranda. The bar is open from 10am to 10pm.

Room Service

The full restaurant menu is available while the kitchen’s open.

Planes

Bandaranaike International Airport is slightly under two-and-a-half hours away by car. Leave all your travel bits to our Smith24 Team, who can organise your flights and transfers to the hotel (which are available for an additional cost).

Trains

A daily express train connects Colombo’s Fort Station to Galle; it’s a two-and-a-half-hour journey, but beautiful beach and jungle views will distract you as you chug along the coast. Our Smith24 Team can arrange tickets and transfers from Galle station.

Automobiles

Taxis, tuk tuks and hired drivers are a relatively cheap and easy way to explore the island, but if you want to discover it at your own speed, hire a car at Bandaranaike; our Smith24 team can help you to secure a set of wheels. You’ll need an International Driving Permit and a Sri Lankan recognition permit, which you can get at the AA in Colombo. There’s no parking at the hotel, so you’ll have to find a space in Galle’s narrow streets.

Worth Getting Out of Bed For

With more than 400 years of heritage to uncover, there’s plenty to do in this Unesco World Heritage site. Your historic Galle hit-list includes the curious carvings on the tombstones in the Dutch Reformed Church, the lavish stained-glass windows of the Anglican Church, the old spice warehouses of the Maritime Archaeology Museum and the Historical Mansion Museum to see how the city’s other half (read, colonists) lived. The hotel’s staff can impart their expert local knowledge on a guided tour of the fort. Alternatively, escape the fort walls and bomb past the nearby paddy fields and tea plantations on a bike borrowed from the hotel, or head to Sri Lanka’s golden coastline for relaxing afternoons on Unawatuna beach, whale-watching in Mirissa, and snorkelling and scuba-diving around fish-filled coral reefs and centuries-old shipwrecks.

Earn or Redeem Points with World of Hyatt

This Mr & Mrs Smith hotel participates in the World of Hyatt loyalty program. As a member, you can earn and redeem points and enjoy exclusive benefits for qualifying nights. .