If you love the ocean as much as we do, then you definitely have wanted to live by the sea where the ocean touches your feet, the wind gets in your hair, that salty taste in your mouth and there’s tons of seafood. Not all of us though can afford to buy a villa on the beaches of the now dubbed “Best Country in the World to Visit in 2019”. Option 2 therefore would be to find such a tranquil place and unwind.
While traversing down south we were introduced to a quaint little place that does all of the above right and adds the element of adventure to their offering. The Scallops Beach Camp in Rathgama, is Sri Lanka’s first camp site on the beach!
Somewhere between Hikkaduwa and Galle, the easiest way to get to this place if you are not driving is to take the Expressway bus to Galle and then hop a tuk for a 15 minute picturesque ride along the coast. Once you get there though it’s all about relaxing, unwinding and just letting go.
Anton and Shani along with their team have been running The Scallops for around 6 months now and have garnered quite a following on social media. The concept is to have tents set up on the beach which can sleep either 1 person, 2 people or even family tents. The tents are set up among the screw pine (Wetakeiya if you want to be local!) and are literally on the sand itself. Air mattresses are then put in depending on the number of guests. Falling asleep to the lullaby of the waves has never been this literal!
Since you can’t really spend hot tropical afternoons in a tent on the beach, The Scallops have an amazing seafood restaurant that can easily seat 100+ people. The venue can be used for parties and even destination weddings but it is the food that is the talk of the town. Prepared from the freshest catch and local ingredients much of the recipes are their own and also prepared sometimes by Anton and Shani.
We are not really sure where to begin with the overdose of seafood that we had during our two-night stay. As soon as we got to the place, there was a spread of Seafood Fried Rice, Tuna Salad and Batter Fried Calamari waiting to be devoured. That night we opted to stay in one of the A/C rooms which are also available at The Scallops. Falling asleep was a breeze after stuffing ourselves with Coconut Prawns with Mango Salsa, the namesake Scallop Salad and a massive Seafood Platter. Now we must tell you that the scallops are the only seafood that is imported from New Zealand while everything else is sourced locally. The soft, succulent scallops had our mouth-watering while the seafood platter was enough for 3-4 people and super reasonably priced.
After a good ol’ traditional String Hoppers and Milk Rice breakfast, we went on a snorkeling expedition which The Scallops can arrange for you among a host of other activities like Lagoon Safaris, Diving, Fishing and Foodie Walks that take you to local homes to talk about traditional Sri Lankan food. After catching great glimpses of Sri Lanka’s abundant marine life, we returned to Chicken Fried Rice, Prawn Salad, Grilled & tempura Fried Vegetables and a Cheesy Omelette.
You would think by now that we’d had our fill of seafood but as the sun set and the local and foreign guests streamed in we had Grilled Fish and Lobster and a classic Fish n’ Chips served up before bed.
Sleeping in a tent on the beach was a new experience for us and here we must add that we had our own bodyguard a.k.a The Scallop’s mascot Bulbul or Bully the Rottweiler guard our tent all night. In fact this place is pet friendly and encourages you to bring your pet on vacation. Bully happily prances around the property and considering that his a rotty no one really messes with him. But we know him to be a softy!
One of the best parts about The Scallops is affordability. The tents and rooms cost minimal and the menu despite its amazing dishes is not pricey either. The staff including Amila the chef, Lal, Chanaka and Sameera make you feel so much like home that you just don’t want to leave. And did we mention Bully?
Not too far from The Scallops is a 4-double room villa with a garden and water deck that can also be rented out for larger families and private gatherings. Take our word for it though and sleep on the beach!
Written by Nishu Gunawardana