Jetwing’s pioneering voyage Yathra uplifts Lankan tourism
The first of its kind and a trailblazing joint venture between Jetwing Hotels and MMBL Leisure Holdings (Pvt.) Ltd. Yathra by Jetwing beckons you to experience a new dimension of relaxation through floating leisure; another milestone in Sri Lanka’s thriving foray into sustainable eco-tourism.
Inspired by the Kettuvallam, a wooden-hulled and thatch-roofed houseboat, used to advantage for tourism in the backwaters of India’s Kerala state, Yathra by Jetwing is the first of five luxury houseboats in a joint venture between Jetwing Hotels, Sri Lanka’s premier hospitality brand, and MMBL Leisure Holding (Pvt.) Ltd – the leisure arm of MMBL-Pathfinder Group of Sri Lanka.
Yathra by Jetwing, the first locally built houseboat since the padda, revives the dynamic boating culture of the past, with an infusion of elegance and luxury, to provide a deeply satisfying and soul-stirring experience. Crafted from bamboo for an exotic oriental ambience, with classic teakwood floors in the upper and lower decks, Yathra by Jetwing has a thatched roof sheltering two plush air-conditioned cabins, with private balconies and attached luxury bathrooms.
The galley in the aft is equipped to prepare fresh food for every meal, and is also able to accommodate passenger requests for dishes of freshly bought fish, crab and shrimp, along the way.
This is the magnificent outcome of a two and a half year process of creativity. Meticulously envisioned and designed by Sunela Jayewardene, a leading environmental designer, and built by experienced boatmakers Neil Marine (Pvt.) Ltd. Yathra by Jetwing has a pre-set 18-kilometer voyage plan for about four hours, up the undisturbed, mesmeric Benthara River.
The voyage starts from the Dedduwa Boat House by Jetwing in Bentota, all the way up to Avittewa, a small scenic hamlet 18 kilometers from Bentota. Yathra by Jetwing docks at Avittewa, and is another adventure on the horizon, as the Benthara River forks a short distance upstream to become the Pelawatte River and Pitigala River, and invites the traveler to imbibe more of nature’s treasure troves especially a peek at the robust birdlife in the area. Small boat excursions are available to venture further into this ethereal realm, to ride down the Elpitiya Ela, estimated to be about seven meters above sea level. Another fascinating waterway dotted with men with wicker baskets diving to collect sand, is located downstream close to Dedduwa Lake. Among the reposeful, gigantic flora of the mangroves, smoothly navigating the wave less waters, Yathra by Jetwing opens up a new world of natural discovery to the modern traveler, to heal and relax, far from the madding crowd.
Chairman MMBL Leisure Holding (Pvt) Ltd, Bernard Goonetilleke, who tirelessly worked alongside Jetwing to make the houseboat project a dream come true, says, “Sri Lanka’s tourism industry needs to be innovative and responsive to the untapped segments of the market, like the 25-35 age group. We have to provide novel recreational pursuits and be ready with new tourist products to entertain, indulge and captivate visitors to our island in search of serendipity”.
Family owned and in the tourism industry for the past 41 years, Jetwing Hotels is consistently focused on pioneering ventures, to infuse elegance, comfort and opulence into sustainable tourism.