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Taj Samudra

Taj Samudra, trading as TAL Lanka Hotels PLC, is a five-star luxury hotel in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The hotel is a listed company on the Colombo Stock Exchange since 1982 and the majority of the shares are held by Taj Hotels. The hotel is located right opposite Galle Face Green facing the Indian Ocean. The hotel is one of the oldest five-star hotels in the city of Colombo.[2] Brand Finance ranked Taj Samudra 78th amongst the 100 most valuable brands in Sri Lanka for 2021.[3]

History

The hotel company was incorporated in 1980 and in 1982 was listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange. Admiral Clancy Fernando, the commander of the Sri Lanka Navy was killed in a suicide bombing in front of the hotel on 16 November 1992.[4] The New Zealand national cricket team was staying at the hotel at the time.[5] After a renovation amounting to US$20 million, the hotel reponed in March 2018. 71 rooms and 15 suites have been renovated with the aim of increasing the occupancy rate by five to eight per cent.[6] Taj Samudra has been named a "Great Place to work" for five consecutive years. Despite that, the employee turnover had increased in Taj Samudra, a study has found in 2018.[7]

Easter bombings

One of the Easter bombing perpetrators, Abdul Latheef Mohamed Jameel failed to detonate his bomb. His target was the hotel's breakfast buffet. Instead, the perpetrator detonated the bomb in a motel in Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia.[8] The perpetrator entered the Ports of Call buffet restaurant at 08:32 AM. The CCTV footage showed him looking restless and trying to do something. Shortly afterwards, he has exited the hotel with a backpack and two-wheeled luggage.[9]

COVID-19 pandemic

In 2020 November, four of the staff of Taj Samudra tested positive for COVID-19.[10] During their 2021 Sri Lankan tour, the India national cricket team stayed at the Taj Samudra hotel. Despite having booked the entire hotel for the team, Krunal Pandya, one of the players tested positive for COVID-19.[11]

Amenities

The hotel has 300 rooms and suites with either ocean or city views.[12] The hotel has six restaurants, Navratna, an Indian restaurant, Golden Dragon, a Chinese cuisine restaurant, Crab Factory, the hotel's seafood restaurant, Ports of Call, a buffet and à la carte restaurant, and Pebbles and Lattice, two lounges that serve finger food.[13][14] The hotel's other amenities include a swimming pool, tennis and squash courts, and a fitness centre. Taj Samudra also has a business centre and provides conference facilities.[12]

Operations

TAL Lanka Hotels also manages the Gateway Hotel Airport Garden, in Seeduwa, near the Bandaranaike International Airport.[15] The Colombo Club is located on the premises of the hotel.[16]

See also

External links

References

  1. Annual Report 2022/23 cse.lk, TAL Lanka Hotels PLC, retrieved 29 August 2023^
  2. Taj Samudra Colombo, Sri Lanka telegraph.co.uk, Telegraph Media Group, retrieved 14 August 2021^
  3. Sri Lanka 100 2021 Ranking brandirectory.com, Brand Finance, retrieved 14 August 2021^
  4. Razeek A. H. M.. Remember a true patriot, great officer and gentleman The Sunday Times, Wijeya Newspapers, retrieved 14 August 2021^
  5. Rex Clementine. How Kiwis bailed Sri Lanka out of cricketing isolation island.lk, The Island, 13 August 2021, retrieved 14 August 2021^
  6. Pradipti Jayaram. Refurbished Taj Samudra targets business travellers to Sri Lanka BusinessLine, The Hindu, 12 March 2018, retrieved 14 August 2021^
  7. M.D.N.A. Goonetileke, H.M.U.S.R. Samarasinghe. Impact of Motivational Factors on Employee Turnover Intention in Taj Samudra, Colombo Global Journal of Management and Business Research: Administration and Management, November 2019, retrieved 14 August 2021^
  8. Alasdair Pal, Shihar Aneez. The Western-educated bomber who botched Sri Lanka hotel attack reuters.com, Reuters, 26 April 2019, retrieved 14 August 2021^
  9. Details of attempted terror attack at Taj Samudra revealed at PCoI adaderana.lk, Ada Derana, 25 May 2020, retrieved 14 August 2021^
  10. Statement from Taj Samudra, Colombo adaderana.lk, Ada Derana, 13 November 2020, retrieved 14 August 2021^
  11. Kunal Dhyani. ND vs SL 2nd T20 postponed: Entire Taj Samudra booked for Team India, BCCI & SLC confused how Krunal Pandya tested COVID positive IndiaSport, 28 July 2021, retrieved 14 August 2021^
  12. Taj Samudra reddottours.com, retrieved 14 August 2021^
  13. Dining tajhotels.com, retrieved 14 August 2021^
  14. Taj Samudra yamu.lk, retrieved 14 August 2021^
  15. Tal Lanka Hotels PLC ft.com, Financial Times, retrieved 14 August 2021^
  16. Colombo Club City's elite social hub Sunday Observer, Associated Newspapers of Ceylon, 9 October 2016, retrieved 14 August 2021^