Gilly & Steve
England, February/March 2024
What did you like most about Sri Lanka?
Everything – the people are friendly and happy; the island offers such a diverse range of attractions; it has so much history to explore, Sri Lanka has kept its uniqueness and hasn’t become too sold out to tourists; the food is amazing and although hotter than we expected the climate is bearable (with light breezes, cooler in higher areas, and humidity of the rain forest area).
What did you like least about Sri Lanka?
The number of stray unwell dogs, especially around the cultural triangle. We do understand there is a charity trying to spey [spay] the female dogs to stop this population rising. [Stray dogs are an issue throughout South and Southeast Asia from my experience and it is sad to see the animals in such an unhealthy state. As you say, there are local projects attempting to ameliorate the situation and Ben Fogle highlights this in his programme about a vet in Sri Lanka – Ben Fogle: New Lives in the Wild, Channel 5, 21.00 on 02 April 2024.]
What is your opinion of your accommodation in Sri Lanka?
Every hotel was different. They were all of a very high standard, with a warm welcome, and very good and clean facilities. [Your feedback on the varied accommodation included in your itinerary is most useful and we are glad that you enjoyed all of it for different reasons.]
Lake Lodge [Boutique Hotel], Nr. Dambulla – Quaint and colonial, needs the odd repair/lick of paint but extremely comfortable, large well-equipped rooms (our toilet rocked a bit). Michelle [Michel] the owner is very hands on, all of his staff are totally attentive – can’t do enough for you – and he has a very high attention to detail. The boutique feel of this hotel is very special. The food was excellent, his wine list too, with the chef attending tables at the end of the meal to explain cooking methods/check customer satisfaction.
Theva [Residency], Kandy – Beautiful location, room was spacious, and overlooked the valley. Probably our least favourite hotel of the trip simply because the food was a little bijoux [bijou] and was the most costly meal of our trip, mainly because they added full Government taxes and 10% service charge to already high prices. However, the staff generally were welcoming and very professional.
It is a long way out of town, but they do work with a reputable Tuk Tuk provider to get you there very reasonably. I would have liked to be a little closer.
98 Acres Resort [& Spa], Ella – Amazing! We would have liked to have spent a few more nights here. Beautiful, well equipped, massive room – very eco-friendly – superb buffet breakfast, and stunning stunning views. Such a varied clientele too.
Cinnamon Wild [Yala] – So unique. Lodge was well equipped, spacious, luxurious. We did suffer the odd electricity outage, but it was quickly restored and gave a true impression of camping out in the wild. Staff were attentive, the half-board & breakfast buffets extensive (nothing was missed) and it had a general feel of relaxed enjoyment. We especially liked happy hour (the only one of our hotels to offer this!) from 6-7pm where we chatted and exchanged safari stories with our other guests, and made friends from all over the world.
Lantern Boutique [Hotel], Marissa [Mirissa] – We had the main suite here and it was amazing. The location is to die for, sea and silver sand with turtles coming onto the beach to lay their eggs, or the experience of releasing young ones back into the sea from the local hatchery. However, the undercurrent of the waves crashing on the shore was very strong, so we couldn’t swim in the sea. Something I wasn’t aware of before we went. However, the hotel pool is large enough to compensate and at the beach actually in Marissa [Mirissa] bay it is fine to swim. Slightly out of town, but we managed to walk into Mirissa in 30 mins (on a hot day). The manager was very professional, and the staff attentive and willing to knock on the door to let you know turtles were on the beach.
The Fort Printers, Galle – One of our favourite hotels for some very different reasons. Although the rooms are probably slightly more basic, they are still very well equipped, clean and airy. The location is to die for. As ex-Londoners it was so nice to be back in the hub bub of a busy, bustling area akin to the Brighton Lanes with lots of eating places, shops and places of interest to visit. We were welcomed at the hotel by two beautiful ladies in their saris, given access to our room much earlier than expected, and all of the staff were professional and attentive. We didn’t eat dinner here, but the breakfast menu was extensive and included both smoothies and granola. We wished we had stayed longer.
Boulder Garden, Rain Forest [Sinharaja] – This hotel is extremely unique and a true experience! As the only guests it was at times a little eerie, and we did not use the pool because it looked like it needed some TLC, but the welcome and attention we received from the Manager made up for all of this. Our special 7 course western menu – just for us – was served on the first night, and a superb (never ending) supper of Sri Lankan curry favourites the 2nd. There are animals in abundance (monkeys, mongoose, etc.) but I certainly wouldn’t want to be staying there in the heavy rains. The lack of air conditioning wasn’t a problem but would be if it gets any hotter.
The Villa Hundira, Negombo – This hotel is so unusual. You arrive to a door, but when you go in you find a true haven. The room was spacious and well equipped. The manager was excellent, and all the staff were attentive and truly professional. We like the fact that there is no main restaurant, with tables scattered around the site (near to your room) instead, and the food we had was plentiful, of good quality, and fairly priced. We did suffer a little plane noise as they were taking off, but nothing to disturb us too much – mind you we do live in the UK on the flight path to Gatwick. The hotel let us have a late check out on our room, as we were flying at 20.00, which was a god send.
What is your opinion of your chauffeur guide in Sri Lanka?
Unusually we had two chauffeur guides on our 16-day trip.
Mahesh – who did days 1-6, was friendly, highly knowledgeable, smartly turned out, his car was immaculate and he took us to some amazing eating places. His knowledge of the Cultural Triangle is second to none.
He was very attentive, but even though he did prewarn us he would need to take incoming mobile calls, we were a little surprised at just how many.
[We appreciate your understanding regarding the change of guides – Mahesh was leaving us to take up a position as general manager of a boutique hotel near Kandy but wanted to stay with us right to the end. This may explain the number of mobile calls he received, for which we apologise. This is not our usual modus operandi and actively discourage our guides from making or taking personal calls whilst with customers. I hope this didn’t interrupt your journeys or conversations too much. Mahesh has been a wonderful guide for us over the years and I am glad that he looked after you well. We wish him all the best in his next adventure.]
Sathees [Satheesh] – who took over from day 7 to 16 was truly ace, and without fault. He was always very attentive and willing, caring, had a good sense of humour, his car and appearance were immaculate and he was very knowledgeable of both history and nature. Although his English was not as good as Mahesh’s we could generally understand him. He usually works with Arabic tourists. As he was just that little bit older he probably suited us better.
[Satheesh has been with us for a very long time, taking Pathi and I around the island on our annual research trips as well as helping Pathi at Hanthana House. I know him really well and we have formed a close bond over the years – a genuinely open and lovely man. I am very pleased that he suited you on your travels despite his less than perfect spoken English. I hope it didn’t detract too much from your time with him.]
The handover from one to the other was OK, not helped by my (Gilly’s) mobile phone problems but switching guides did result in certain conversations (already had) having to be repeated.
It also happened the day of our train ride from Nuwera Elya [Nuwara Eliya] to Ella – which was very much a last-minute call – and so did lead to a little anxiety.
[I am surprised to hear that the handover of guides wasn’t carried out more smoothly and I will discuss this issue with Pathi. I hope it wasn’t overly stressful for you.]
What is your opinion of your flights to and from Sri Lanka?
These were organized by ourselves. We used BA for Gatwick/Doha/Gatwick legs and Qatar Airlines for the Doha/Colombo/Doha legs. Both were efficient, on time and we only had a 1-2 hour transfer wait. We prefer to break the flight duration, as it helps alleviate back and neck problems.
Any other comments?
We would just like to say how impressed we have been with Tikalanka and everyone involved. The holiday just could not have been better. John Beswetherick was superb, extremely efficient and accommodated everything we wanted into our itinerary, and nothing disappointed.
We would have absolutely no hesitation in recommending your company to all our friends and family. We know they will be well looked after both here in the UK and when visiting Sri Lanka. A massive thank you.
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