Haritha Villas + Spa, a luxury resort near Galle in Sri Lanka, that has recently reopened after Covid-19 pandemic is aggressively targeting the discerning, luxury travellers from across the world, notably India. Boasting of two colonial mansions and seven villas, the luxury resort is set in the lap of luxurious forests and offers a unique experience to travellers.

Though it had to shut down in March 2020 due to Covid-19 pandemic, within three months of its opening in December 2019, Dietmar Koegerl, Partner at Haritha Villas + Spa and a hospitality professional of over 30 years, tells India Outbound that his sales team has already been to India twice in last two months, thanks to a highly encouraging response from the Indian market.

How has the business been since you reopened? Where are most of your clients coming from? 

Quarter 1 of 2022 was exceptionally satisfying for Haritha Villas as we ran with 90 pc occupancy despite being a new resort. Main markets are UK and Germany. However, the business dropped during the low season, particularly due to the political issues the country went through.

You had recently been on a roadshow to India. What was the response like? 

Our Sales and Marketing Manager has been twice in the last three months to India to further cement the Haritha brand in this market. We have had a great response as our product is a niche product with only nine villas. It offers a very personalised experience and our butlers are not only with our guests in the resort, but they also are their tour guides for excursions within a range of 100 km from our resort. This has been very well perceived and sets Haritha apart from our competition.  Moreover, due to our size we are ideal for buyouts (privatisation of property).

What are your expectations from the Indian market for 2023? 

We believe that the Indian market will come back very strongly in 2023, provided there is no further political issue. We are very optimistic and are targeting the top end Indian clients. As we are a product of choice we try to target only la crème de la crème like cricket players and Bollywood actors.

For which market segment are you best suited?

Due to our compact size and location, we are ideally suited to welcome couples, honeymooners, families. It is also ideal for a buyout if someone wants to celebrate anniversaries and birthdays in complete privacy.

What is the USP that you are banking on?

There are several unique aspects of service at Haritha that would attract the right kind of guests.

Villa Master Service: Villa Master are not only with the guest within the resort they also accompany guest outside and act as tour guides in the vicinity of the resort.

Unscripted dinning: Our chefs discuss with each and every guest their meal plan according to their preferences.

Farm to table concept: Many of our items are offered are coming from our own garden.

Spa: We work with celebrity products such as Elemis and Margaret Dabbs for facial treatments and manicure and pedicure. In the Ayurveda Centre, we offer holistic treatment such as singing bowl, acupuncture, acupressure and cupping treatment.

Personnel: Every guest facing associate has a minimum of 10 years of experience in top end resorts outside Sri Lanka such as Ananatara, One & Only, Jumeirah, Ritz Carlton, Six Senses or Aman Resort to ensure maximum service levels.