Ken & Lorna
England, December 2017/January 2018
Thanks again for organising the trip. We had a great time and apart from the odd hiccup, everything went well.
All of the people that we met were without exception incredibly friendly and helpful.
Chathura as driver guide was excellent and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend him.
A few comments on the hotels in general from our perspective, which you may (or may not!) find useful:
Lake Lodge Kandalama [Dambulla] - Despite arriving at 7.00am they went out of their way to get the room ready as quickly as possible. Food was very good and more sophisticated than [The] Elephant Stables.
[The] Elephant Stables [Kandy] - Very good hotel, with good service and great location. Food somewhat disappointing, particularly the Xmas Eve Gala Dinner. Apart from incl a bottle of wine, there was nothing Gala about it. Don't know how much extra we paid for having the dinner, but it wasn't worth it. Rice and Curry the following night was better.
[The] Secret Ella - My comments here are probably somewhat tainted by the fact that the weather was poor when we were there - cold, rain and mist. Appreciate that the new Garden Cottages have Eco credentials, but they lack character. Felt more like a Scandinavian log cabin. Food was generally good and wine was available!
98 Acres [Resort, Ella] - Loved it.
Kalu's Hideaway [Uda Walawe] - Very impressed. Room may have been on the plain side as expected, but beautiful garden and great staff more than made up for it. Food was very good.
KK Beach [Habaraduwa] - Well worth the cost. Very relaxing. Great setting and one of the best swimming pools that I have experienced. We had lunch and dinner here most days and if there was any negative, it was that we started to get slightly bored by the choice. Went to their Gala Dinner on New Years Eve, which was expensive, but on balance worth it. George Cooper made a real effort to make it something special
Deco on 44 [Galle] - The one fly in the ointment. Felt somewhat shabby and lacking in investment. Some of the common areas tired looking and certainly not conducive to spending time there. Pool area at the rear not great. Probably a mistake to go there after KK beach as it would always suffer by comparison. Also, at the time we booked, we didn't realise that KK Beach was so close to Galle and had made the trip in by tuk-tuk when we were there.
Paradise Road Tintagel [Colombo] - Difficult not to like. Beautiful hotel with great staff. Loved the food and had all our meals in the Courtyard Garden.
There is no doubt that we will visit the Country again.
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