Staying on your own exquisite private island is pure decadent luxury. Just the sight of this small rocky foliage embraced islet from the golden shoreline of Weligama’s broad bay is enough to send you into dreamy fantasies about what it would be like to live here, seemingly cut off from all of civilisation yet not actually so. As you wade through the warm turquoise water of the Indian Ocean to reach this paradise isle you are warmly welcomed by staff proffering towels and a beautiful tropical garden whose greeting is both colourful and aromatic. A stone pathway leads up into the exquisite Neo-Palladian five-bedroom octagonal house that was built in the 1920s by the eccentric French Count de Mauny Talvanade.

The Count de Mauny was a fantasist and a gentleman of leisure who indulged in carpentry and designed not only the house on Taprobane but also the magnificent gardens. Today this exotic wonderland with its cascading terraces and sandy pathways is filled with frangipani, palms, flame trees, hibiscus, bougainvillea, heliconia and bromeliads that spill onto the verandahs of the house. Stone seats and wooden benches mark some of the most breathtaking spots for appreciating the magnificent 360 degree views of the sea, bay and blushing sunset. Each of these places offer not only pockets of privacy but also locations for writing, drawing or painting with each scene changing as the sun makes its journey across the sky.

Ageing colonial furniture, faded fabrics, interesting artefacts, well-loved books, photos, maps and framed letters give the house a nostalgic ambiance and personalise the property. Few guests choose to leave the island aside from swimming or snorkelling around its entirety or playing cricket with the locals on the beach. A staff of seven expertly takes care of your every need from carrying your luggage across the sea and finding you local transport, to cooking your meals and setting your dining table in a different location each mealtime. Taprobane is an elegant unique retreat ideal for honeymooners, families and groups of friends and is perfect for special celebrations.

• Main Dining (10 persons)
• Ceiling Fans
• Hairdryers
• Hotplates
• Internet (WiFi)
• Iron/Board
• Laundry Service (Sent out)
• Book Selection
• BBQ
• Bed Linen
• Board Games/Toys
• Car Parking
• CD Library
• Baby Cot
• Massage Beds
• Food Menu
• Microwave
• Oven/Hotplates
• Safe
• CD Player/Stereo System
• Swimming Pool (Private)
• Towels
• Security
• Service Staff
• Shopper
• Masseuse/Spa Therapist
• Babysitter
• Housekeeping (Full time)
• Chef/Cook (All meals)
• Manager

Period	Net Rates
from 1 May 2012 to 31 July 2012	$ 1000
from 1 August 2012 to 31 August 2012	$ 1750
from 1 September 2012 to 14 December 2012	$ 1000
from 15 December 2012 to 31 January 2013	$ 2200
from 1 February 2013 to 30 April 2013	$ 1750

As you climb the stone steps up through the garden from the white gate, you enter the house through a majestic eagle topped doorway into a porch that leads into the heart of this octagonal house; a grand central space with terrazzo floors and a 30ft high roof featuring a cupola to ensure the fresh flow of air throughout the property. Three of the bedrooms – two atmospheric doubles and a petit twin - the living room and the dining room open from here in a design that is as open plan and sociable as possible.

Each of the double bedrooms has an attached bathroom and is uniquely decorated with elegant colonial furniture, Sri Lankan artwork and framed photographs. French windows open onto private furnished terraces that spill onto the landscaped garden and overlook the majesty of the expansive ocean that carpets the earth uninterrupted all the way from here to Antarctica. The Living Room is separated from the garden only by rattan blinds and furnished with cushioned day beds, planters’ chairs and a writing desk. Board games and a CD player provide entertainment. A split-level dining terrace boasting book-filled cabinets, rattan furniture, cushioned concrete seating and a table overlooking the sea to the west wraps around the house and provides plenty of scenic spots for dining.

As you descend from the main house to the south of the island you reach a further two double bedrooms; the Glass Room, so named for its wall of glass on one side to maximise views of the ocean; and the Bottom Room, lower down the hillside within a whisper of the sea and just above a magnificent sunset dining terrace that offers sensational views of the ocean and bay. Both of these bedrooms are elegantly furnished with colonial antiques and feature lounge areas and cosy en-suite bathrooms. They are the most secluded and romantic rooms on Taprobane offering perhaps the most privacy for those staying within a group.

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