Hotel entirely staffed by women opens in Sri Lanka
Posted on January 21st, 2025
By Feizal Samath Courtesy ttg Asia
In a bid to carve out career opportunities for women in a male-dominated hospitality industry, a resort staffed entirely by women has opened in central Sri Lanka.
Amba Yaalu at Kandalama is a 33-room resort led by 80 staff – all women in various positions, from resort manager to gardener. It offers panoramic views of the Kandalama Lake and the surrounding mango garden with 457 trees, while its interiors celebrate Sri Lanka’s rich cultural heritage.

Owned by Thema Collection, which has several resorts across Sri Lanka, the property was built at a cost of 800 million rupees (US$2.7 million).
Company chairman Chandra Wickremesinghe said the resort’s opening last week: We envisage a radical change with more women joining the hospitality industry; our women need not seek employment in other countries, leaving their families, if they can be gainfully employed here.”
While women make up nearly 70 per cent of the global tourism workforce, in Sri Lanka, female participation in the formal hospitality sector is low at 10 per cent. This is despite women comprising 52.8 per cent of the population and achieving high literacy rates, the company said in a statement.
Thema Collection added that due to cultural and social norms, traditional gender roles and societal expectations can limit women’s career choices and their mobility while concerns about safety and security, especially in jobs that require travel or late hours, can deter women from pursuing careers in hospitality.