My name is Dinesh. I co-founded Foozoo Mantra with Damith and Bjoern after we fell in love with this old house and couldn't leave it alone. What draws us to hosting is simple — we believe the best travel experiences feel like being welcomed into someone's home. Not a hotel. Not a service. A home, with all the warmth and honesty that comes with it. Anura has been cooking at Foozoo Mantra for years. He knows the spice gardens, the local markets, and the techniques passed down through generations of Sri Lankan kitchens. Sandun runs the ground operations with the kind of quiet efficiency that makes everything feel effortless. We are a proudly inclusive space. Everyone is welcome here — regardless of who you love, where you're from, or how you travel. If you have questions before you arrive, reach out. We'll tell you everything we know about the south coast — the secret beaches, the best rice and curry, the right time to go whale watching. We look forward to welcoming you

This is a 100-year-old Walauwa — a traditional Sri Lankan manor house — once home to a Weda Mahaththaya, a traditional medicine man who practiced Hela Wedakama, the island's oldest healing tradition. The house has been lovingly restored around its original bones. At the centre of the house is the Meda Midula — a lotus courtyard whose pink blooms open at dusk. The pool is set into the ruins of an older structure on the grounds. The tropical garden quietly takes over your plans. Chef Anura cooks Sri Lankan food from scratch daily — the kind of meal that recalibrates your expectations for everything else you eat on this coast. Sandun and the team are on-site and look after every guest with genuine warmth and care. Five rooms. Each one different. One of them has an outdoor bathtub in a private garden. One overlooks the lotus pond. One takes up the entire top floor. Weligama's beaches, surf breaks, and the south coast are 10 minutes away. The house is reason enough to come. Proudly LGBT-welcoming. Pet friendly on request.

Foozoo Mantra sits in a quiet residential lane in Kumbalgama, 1km from a small, largely unknown beach that most visitors to Weligama never find. The main Weligama beach — Sri Lanka's best beginner surf spot — is 1.8km away. Mirissa, famous for whale watching and beach bars, is 8km west. Ahangama, with the south coast's best café scene, is 12km west. Galle Fort, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is 26km. Tuk-tuks are everywhere and cost almost nothing. The coastal train station is a 2-minute walk. A scooter gives you the whole south coast within an hour in either direction. This part of Weligama is quiet, local, and unhurried. The kind of neighbourhood where people wave at you from their gardens.