Jerrine & Fraser
England, August 2017
What did you like most about Sri Lanka?
The variety of highlights and environments – in one small island pleasantly surprised that Sri Lanka contains highlands, great coastal locations, good national parks and stunning cultural highlights.
The friendliness of the people was also a real highlight.
What did you like least about Sri Lanka?
The rate of development – locations such as Ella need to be curtailed, likewise conservation efforts need to be stepped up and regulated at the coast and also the national parks.
Transportation also a hinder, we prefer to travel independently so the state of public transport and also the dangerousness of the roads was a shame.
What is your opinion of your accommodation in Sri Lanka?
Good standard throughout. Obviously we had to re-jig some options so appreciate our first choices were sometimes not available.
Fort Bliss [Galle] – nice option. I think they could easily make it better by not having the washing in the garden on display. Likewise first impression of the telly blaring not ideal. Good room and great location.
Yala Camp [Big Game Camp] – Perfect. Loved this.
Zion View – Ella. Not very happy about this option. The twin room was not a problem but our room (Room 1) was right over the large children’s play area, which started at 6 a.m. and didn’t stop till 9 at night. FYI rooms 1-6 were quite exposed to this for future reference. In fact I would not recommend this hotel to couples – it is very geared towards families and the restaurant is connected to the play area so there is no escaping the noise! We couldn’t sit on our balcony as it was far too noisy – which really defeated the point of having an option with a good view.
Disappointed by Ella in general but I think that is more the rate of development – perhaps a homestay further away from the main ‘strip’ would have been better (not sure of location of first option).
The Grand [Hotel, Nuwara Eliya] – nice option, rooms a tad tired. I can see why you normally select Jetwing [St. Andrew's] as the first choice.
Kandy – Hanthana House – loved this place, your partner [Pathi] was fantastic and a great ambassador for the company. Loved the location, view and cooking.
The Other Corner [Habarana] – utter bliss. Absolutely loved this place, could have spent the whole holiday here! Thanks so much for suggesting it.
Negombo – [Hotel] Pledge 3 – again another fantastic stay. Negombo is a bit of a dive so this makes a nice retreat.
What is your opinion of your chauffeur guide in Sri Lanka?
Niroshan was great – very friendly, well informed and punctual. Very pleased to have met him and have him share our trip.
The only thing I would say that after our stay in Galle he asked if we wanted to visit a turtle hatchery – which we agreed to. It was only after the visit that we found out how much of a tourist trap, and really quite bad for conservation, that the one we visited was (and in fact this is a problem all along the coast). After expressing this to Niroshan he agreed but said he was under pressure from the travellers to offer it – so he always gives the option. However if I had been informed before the visit as to what I was supporting there is no way I would have agreed to the visit. I would much rather have had my money go towards alternative projects which are recognized internationally for their conservation efforts. I do strongly feel that Tikalanka should highlight these issues beforehand so that a well-educated decision can be made by the traveller. [Tikalanka recommends visits to a turtle hatchery in Kosgoda that is supported by two local turtle experts. Please contact us for more details.]
Also perhaps a bit more knowledge of furniture stores – he took us to three stores but we were unhappy with the costs. In the end at Negombo we went to one independently and managed to get what we wanted for a third of the cost (same quality) – not his fault I am sure, but we would have hoped to use his presence as a positive as opposed to being fleeced by the sellers as a result of it. Perhaps this is due more to having a ‘driver’ in general and the assumed affluence that comes with it!
Also, I understand he brings books for travellers with specific interests. Perhaps he can keep books of birds/wildlife etc in the car for all travellers – would have come in handy once or twice!
Also, a small thing – would have been nice on arrival at the airport if he had some water/food in the car – after a long trip we were gasping and a faff as wanted to get straight on the road. A tiny detail but might be handy for future travellers.
What is your opinion of your flights to and from Sri Lanka?
Absolutely fine. I have a general bugbear with all airlines at waking you up at 4 a.m. to force feed you, but unless you have a contact at Qatar Airways HQ I doubt there is much you can do about this! [Arranged their own flights]
Any other comments?
We absolutely loved our honeymoon in Sri Lanka and certainly hope to come back one day! John you were fantastic in helping us craft an itinerary that suited our needs and when we had to re-jig some of it last minute you were patient and efficient in finding us alternatives. I would absolutely recommend Tikalanka to anyone travelling to Sri Lanka in the future.
Also – small tip (perhaps you gave it but we missed it?) but we should have thought to bring binoculars – the safari guide in Minneriya didn’t have any and it would have come in very handy on several occasions on our stay! Perhaps add it to a packing list?
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