There are destinations you visit, and then there are destinations that quietly shift your sense of time. Sri Lanka is the latter. This island reveals itself in layers—misty tea-covered hills, ancient culture, wildlife-rich landscapes, and an easy rhythm of life that invites you to slow down and stay present.
Often described as having a continent’s worth of experiences within a single journey, Sri Lanka offers remarkable diversity in a compact, deeply authentic setting. Luxury here is not loud or overproduced. It is rooted in place, shaped by history, and delivered through genuine warmth that feels instinctive rather than curated.
This story would not be complete without Resplendent Ceylon, a brand that has played a pivotal role in reframing Sri Lanka on the global luxury travel stage.
A heartfelt thank you to Malik Fernando, Founder of Resplendent Ceylon and Director of Dilmah Tea, for his vision, and unwavering commitment to showcasing Sri Lanka with integrity and pride. Through his work, luxury becomes not just about where you stay, but how deeply you connect—with landscape, culture, and people. Below, you’ll find the full, unedited conversation—part of In Conversation With, a series from Suite Sojourn spotlighting the hoteliers, innovators, and creative minds redefining the future of luxury travel.
Suite Sojourn: You’ve often been described as an “accidental hotelier.” Could you walk us through your path from studying entrepreneurship in Boston to returning home to Sri Lanka — and eventually launching a luxury hotel brand?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: I went to Babson with the clear intention of returning to the family tea business in Sri Lanka, where I spent a year interning after completing my secondary education at boarding school in the United Kingdom. I recall when I was completing my degree, the career placement officer at Babson said that they had an opportunity for me at McKinsey Consulting. I dismissed it without much hesitation, as I always knew I wanted to return home to work with my father, who had sacrificed a great deal in sending both my brother and me to study overseas.
Suite Sojourn: You grew up as part of the family behind Dilmah, one of the most respected names in tea globally. Was there ever a time when you imagined a different career path for yourself?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: Not really. My parents divorced when my brother and I were at a young age. And my father involved us closely in the business from quite early on. It was a family endeavour that my brother and I had to support and build on.
Suite Sojourn: Studying entrepreneurship abroad, was there ever an expectation to return to Sri Lanka and join the family tea business?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: Absolutely. This was always the plan. Much as my father used to joke later that no one else would give me a job. He was very keen to have me back as was I.
Suite Sojourn: After two decades working in the tea industry with Dilmah Tea, what sparked the idea to shift into hospitality? Did you set out to create a luxury brand from the start — or did that come later?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: I’ve always enjoyed luxury and design. My father used to call me a spendthrift! Classical luxury brands appeal to me. We had invested in hotels operated by others, some of them family friends. In the early 2000s, when Sri Lanka was enjoying a ceasefire in the long-drawn conflict which fortunately ended a few years later, I thought that tourism would be a nice extension. Dilmah Tea was always about promoting the best of Sri Lanka internationally, and I thought we could do the same for tourism. Sri Lanka is truly an amazing island with a continent’s worth of attractions in a small area. Our diversity is unmatched.
Suite Sojourn: Your first hotel, Ceylon Tea Trails, was located in the heart of Sri Lanka’s tea country. Was that a conscious extension of the Dilmah story, or something new entirely? Do you feel your experience in the tea business has influenced your approach to guest experience and storytelling?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: I was overseeing the tea growing side of the business at that time and spending a lot of time on the estates. To me, the emerald fields of Ceylon tea at elevations of around 2,000 metres in the Central Highlands was the most picturesque and relaxing part of the country. There were these historic British-era tea planters’ bungalows or villas which were rather disheveled and were crying out for some sympathetic restoration, which is what we did. We identified five of these bungalows spread out across several valleys, ranging from 2 to 15 km in distance from each other, and all quite different in their design. We created what is now Ceylon Tea Trails, where we have walking and biking trails connecting the five bungalows, each of which is quite distinct from each other in style.
Suite Sojourn: Looking back now, what were the biggest surprises — or challenges — in transitioning from tea production to running luxury resorts? What lessons from the tea business have shaped how you run Resplendent Ceylon today?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: The biggest challenge was that I didn’t know a bean about running hotels, and we came up with some madcap ideas. Fortunately, we got our act together quite quickly, and it’s now a slick operation behind the scenes, despite the relaxed ambience of living in a tea planter’s home. The lessons from the tea business and what my father taught me is about quality in whatever you do. Price it appropriately. Do not undersell and focus on highest levels of customer satisfaction. That is how he built up the Dilmah brand to what it is now as the flag bearer globally for Ceylon tea.
Suite Sojourn: Resplendent Ceylon currently brings together three very different properties across Sri Lanka — from the misty hills to the coast to the wild. What’s the vision behind this circuit, how do they complement each other, and does each tell a different story of Sri Lanka?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: Tea Trails started first in 2005. At that time, it was a little segue from the tea business, and I did not intend to build any more hotels. However, soon we started getting feedback from guests saying that their experience in other parts of the country did not match Tea Trails, and why don’t we think of expanding? We have this coconut estate in southern Sri Lanka which became Cape Weligama, which now sits at the heart of the so-called Southern Riviera, surrounded by surfing beaches, historic Galle Fort, cinnamon plantations, and blue whale watching. This area is the beating heart of modern Sri Lanka with a lot of digital nomads descending there in the past few years. Then we built Wild Coast Tented Lodge in the south-east next to a national park called Yala, which is well known for a high leopard population. It’s a uniquely designed safari lodge that sits between the beach and the jungle.
Suite Sojourn: If you had to describe the essence of each resort in just three words, what would they be?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon:
Suite Sojourn: Each property offers such a distinct experience. How do you ensure they stay true to a unified brand while still celebrating their individual locations?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: The leadership team, head office and the resorts interact daily and are closely aligned in terms of how we want guests to feel. Teams often move between the properties, and I make sure that my vision is clearly understood and refreshed. I have a weekly Thursday call with the full team, where we jointly review guest feedback across all the properties, so that everyone is on the same page. The rest is left to the warm, genuine Sri Lankan hospitality that our teams naturally deliver.
Suite Sojourn: Resplendent Ceylon is part of the Relais & Châteaux family — a name that carries real weight in the world of luxury hospitality. What does this affiliation mean to you? How does it elevate or guide your guest experience?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: The three properties are the only members of the Relais & Châteaux association in Sri Lanka, which I’m very proud of as it epitomises our family values. They have a lovely term for the circuit, which is “Route de Bonheur” or “Route of Happiness.” Being a collection of individual owner-managed properties, we share ideas – also there is a strong focus on sustainability (I’m a member of the sustainability committee of the association).
Suite Sojourn: Your properties feel deliberately intimate, immersive, and rooted in nature and place. What guides your design philosophy when building or restoring these resorts?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: Fortunately, we don’t have a group brand design standard. So, we don’t end up with cookie-cutter properties. They all have to have a strong sense of Sri Lankan place and a patina that develops over time.
Suite Sojourn: Sri Lanka has traditionally been seen as an affordable, mass-market destination. How are you working to reshape that narrative — especially for travelers seeking meaningful luxury? What is your message to the modern luxury traveler?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: Our country-level marketing has been non-existent, so its positioning has not been deliberately shaped, the legacy mass market positioning continued, but fortunately that is starting to change as authentic luxury seeking travellers discover Sri Lanka’s strong appeal. The moment one arrives in the country and experiences first-hand Sri Lankan hospitality; you ask why have I not come here before?
Suite Sojourn: When it comes to positioning Sri Lanka alongside destinations like the Maldives, Thailand, or Bali on the global luxury tourism map, what do you feel sets it apart for high-end travelers?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: It is the diversity, genuinely unspoiled authenticity of our people. It’s not contrived and blingy, but still relatively unspoiled. On one holiday, you see a multitude of very different areas and activities from culture to wildlife to beach. No other country to my mind has this diversity in such a small area that is easily accessed on a typical two-week holiday.
Suite Sojourn: For someone wanting to experience the full Resplendent Ceylon journey — from tea country to the jungle to the sea — how should they typically split their time between what you call the “Tea, Sea & Safari” circuit? What’s the ideal itinerary to get the full Resplendent experience?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: This best-of-Sri-Lanka circuit connects our three Relais & Châteaux properties and typically would start at Ceylon Tea Trails with 2-3 nights, then Wild Coast Tented Lodge for 2 nights, and finally end on the coast at Cape Weligama for anything between 3-7 nights, depending on how much time you have.
Suite Sojourn: You’ve spoken about luxury tea tourism in the past. For those unfamiliar, what does that actually mean? And do guests need to be tea lovers to enjoy the experience?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: You would be a tea lover at the end of your stay at Tea Trails! You stay in these historic tea planter’s bungalows that are dotted around mountains and valleys overlooking working tea estates. You immediately switch off. It’s not like any other hotel you stay in. This type of slow travel amidst the tea fields is genuine luxury.
Suite Sojourn: How do you personally enjoy the tea country? Any secret spots or rituals you have when visiting Ceylon Tea Trails?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: Nothing beats the so-called bed tea tradition where your butler brings you a steaming cup of Ceylon tea to wake you up and then draws the bath to get you ready for a classical Sri Lankan breakfast overlooking the Castlereagh Lake and mountains of the World Heritage Horton Plains.
Suite Sojourn: What’s your take on the role of tea in luxury travel? Can a humble cup of tea really become an immersive, high-end experience?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: Yes, I believe so. Tea is a ritual. Tea has as many varieties as wine. Coffee isn’t quite the same. With tea, you have to be a little bit patient, and it’s all about taking tea with family or friends and kicking back. Tea slows you down, coffee speeds you up. Tea has L-theanine, which relaxes you, alongside half the caffeine as coffee, which makes you alert. This state of relaxed alertness is a unique attribute of tea.
Suite Sojourn: You’re currently expanding the Resplendent portfolio with new projects on the horizon – Sigiriya and Trincomalee. Could you give us a glimpse into the vision behind these upcoming properties and how would they tie into the broader “Tea, Sea & Safari” circuit?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: Every property we build, we kind of stumble on the location and slowly a vision develops around it. We don’t have a rapid private equity-funded type of clinical expansion. Instead, we chance upon unique locations and then build a beautiful resort that fits in perfectly. Sigiriya in the Cultural Triangle is the most visited part of Sri Lanka with all the temples and palaces from 2000 years ago. Our property in nearby Dambulla sits alongside a lake in an ancient forest with massive trees. We call it Canopy Lodge, and it will be a series of treehouse-type pods. This project has got delayed due to a variety of reasons, and we hope to open in 2028 now.
Apart from the Relais & Chateaux circuit which Canopy Lodge will hopefully be part of, we also have a small Reverie branded circuit currently of two properties, Ahu Bay and Kayaam House, and are working on the third one, Kelburne Estate, in the eastern hills in a very scenic area called Haputale.
Trincomalee is going to be a Robinson Crusoe-style beach property in a secluded bay. Still early days with this one.
Suite Sojourn: With three successful resorts and more in development, what does the future of Resplendent Ceylon look like? Are there plans for a presence in Colombo or beyond?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: We would look at Colombo if a suitable property presents itself. It’s not a priority currently as most travellers head out soon as they land. And Colombo is currently a short stay. The development of the highway network means that travellers can head directly to the airport from the rural areas without needing to stay in Colombo.
Having said that, Colombo is also developing nicely. I’d love to do something there. A boutique bolt hole with a handful of rooms in a historic area would be nice.
Suite Sojourn: Resplendent Ceylon is deeply intertwined with your family’s legacy at Dilmah Tea. How has your role within the family business evolved over time? How do you see the next generation stepping into the legacy?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: My brother and I worked side-by-side in the tea business. Him mainly in marketing, and me mainly in operations. With the passage of time, and my passion for tourism, I’m spending most of my time on the leisure side of the business.
We jointly co-chair the holding company. We meet regularly for strategic discussions on tea, tourism, and the other businesses that we are involved in. My brother’s eldest boy, Amrit, has been in the business for the last couple of years, and my daughter, Tasha, will join next year. They have all worked alongside my father, so I would like to think that the legacy is safe for at least the third generation!
Suite Sojourn: Many family businesses face challenges during generational transitions. How do you approach succession planning and leadership within your family? What are some challenges — and advantages — of running a multi-generational family business?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: My father, as the founder, who my brother and I worked alongside for several decades, has set the culture, we have a charter guiding the business that my brother and I follow as will the third generation. The advantage is that the family generally thinks along the same lines. Inculcated with the values and passion inherited from my father.
Suite Sojourn: You seem to have a passion for detail— even noticing little things like bedside notepads in hotels by the bedside to keeping tabs through hotel apps. How would you describe your approach to leadership in hospitality?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: I love the little touches. It is fun to focus on these areas when basic product delivery is running well with a good team. Technology is great to track and coordinate things, and I constantly churn through ideas for improvement. I’m a strong believer in Kaizen – constantly tweaking. A healthy dose of paranoia is a good thing! I like to regularly feed my team with new ideas and constantly seek to make them more effective through improved processes as the frontline teams need to operate in as friction-free a way as possible.
Suite Sojourn: Tell us about your own travel preferences — do you prefer independent, character-filled hotels when you travel or a big brand name? What makes a hotel stay unforgettable for you?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: Definitely independent, quirky, with a real sense of discovery. A cosy bedroom with a great bed and well-designed bathroom is a basic. Charming, non-generic design throughout the property.
Suite Sojourn: What are your three travel essentials — the items you never leave home without?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: Sound-blocking headphones, cashmere scarf for flights and chilly airports and a rugged handmade backpack. I love well-made luggage!
Suite Sojourn: A bit of fun: tell us about your watch obsession! Which timepiece is your go-to on the road— and is there a story behind it?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: This obsession proved to be embarrassing when a vintage Rolex was literally stolen from my wrist while walking through Madrid many years ago! My go-to on travels is a GMT Master, but I’m torn sometimes with an Apple Watch, which allows me to make tons of voice notes on the go.
Suite Sojourn: What’s your favorite Sri Lankan dish, and which Dilmah tea would you pair with it for a perfect meal?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: Coconut roti with a Sri Lankan chicken curry and coconut sambol. This is my go-to, especially when I return home from travel, paired with a Nuwara Eliya region Pekoe tea from Dilmah. This is the highest elevation, almost greenish in flavour and naturally sweet, no milk required. This tea, with a Sri Lankan meal, has a lovely astringent flavour and is a mouth cleanser between mouthfuls, just like ginger slices with sushi or sashimi.
Suite Sojourn: For travelers who are visiting Sri Lanka for the first time, what do you think surprises them most?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: They say that it’s very clean. Traffic is surprisingly well-behaved. It’s the genuine warmth of the people, random strangers smiling at you from the heart. You immediately feel at home, not a stranger.
Suite Sojourn: And for guests who return — what do you think keeps them coming back?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: The warmth of the people, and given the diversity, there are many parts of the country that you can explore on repeat trips. It is affordable, even the luxurious properties.
Suite Sojourn: Between tea, travel, and storytelling, you wear many hats. What drives you personally in championing Sri Lanka on the world stage?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: Sri Lanka is highly underrated because we haven’t nation-branded, positioned the destination. I enjoy correcting perceptions and highlighting what a very special country it is. We’ve just had a bad rap for quite some time due to geopolitics, internal political mismanagement, and the occasional climate disaster. But our people are resilient and have come back time after time. Now, thank God we appear to have a good run ahead of us.
Suite Sojourn: Finally, if you could serve someone a single cup of tea that represents everything Resplendent Ceylon stands for — which one would it be, and why?
Malik Fernando Founder, Resplendent Ceylon: It would be a cup of high-grown Ceylon black tea. This region is where Ceylon Tea Trails started. Dimbula is a distinctive high-grown region, producing strong, full-bodied, flavoursome teas, best enjoyed with a dash of milk.
For travelers seeking meaningful luxury, Sri Lanka delivers something rare: diversity without distance, authenticity without artifice, and indulgence with purpose. Experienced through Resplendent Ceylon’s Tea, Sea & Safari journey, the island unfolds with intention—slow, immersive, and unforgettable.
