Holiday Reviews
We invite every traveller who books a holiday via us to send in a review. Because we don't run the holidays they're completely independent and unedited... remember to read between the lines though, as two people on the same trip can have different views!
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Sri Lanka holidays, tailor made, independent reviews
 Reviewed 5 Sep 2008 by Anna Phillips |  |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Wonderful people, great food and amazing scenery.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Visit the hill country and get off the beaten track - also stay up in one of the tea plantations. We stayed in Warwick Estate Bungalow which was just magical. Be prepared however for the rain!
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Yes although we were concerned about the number of plastic water bottles that seemed to be discarded and wondered whether some sort of recycling scheme in the country was in place.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Excellent - our driver was also fantastic and provided us with peace of mind.
Read the operator's response here:
Water safe to drink is mostly available in sealed plastic bottles around Sri Lanka, although many larger hotels provide clean drinking water on tap. Like many countries around the world, plastic bottles are becoming a real environmental problem on the island and to date Sri Lanka does not routinely recycle plastic bottles. However, we encourage our customers to purchase large-volume water bottles to reduce the amount of plastic needlessly discarded and to refill bottles with clean water at hotels where water safe for drinking is available on tap.
| Reviewed 1 Sep 2008 by Claire Swan | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
The Perahela in Kandy was breathtaking. A huge parade of elephants, fire juggling, dancers and drummers. The atmosphere was nothing like I have experienced before and I’m not sure I ever will. A truly memorable evening. A very close encounter with a bull elephant in Minereya National Park also got the pulse racing, as it charged towards the open topped safari jeep I was in. I wanted an up close and personal elephant experience, which is why I chose Sri Lanka, but this one was pretty terrifying!
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
The dodgy roads making getting anywhere hard work, so allow enough down time between activities, as just getting to some sites can be exhausting! Set out very early in the day if you are attempting to climb anything or do any physical activities, as the heat can really make things much harder. Travel light, laundry services were really cheap and fast. Take anti-bacterial hand treatment, there are rarely washbasins, and if they are provided you are unlikely to get any cleaner using them! ALWAYS carry a loo roll!
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
I feel local people certainly benefitted from our holiday and us being there, they needed the tourist numbers to rise dramatically to pre - tsunami / Tamil tiger trouble days. We also donated cash to a few charities as we struggled with some of the issue they faced and had no support with. As for the environment I had mixed feelings. We travelled by mini van non stop for 2 weeks. The air pollution was so bad my husband, who has asthma couldn’t breath and has only just recovered, and we felt we just added to the problem. Some hotels still changed the towels and bed linen daily, even if we asked them not to and often in a bid to offer excellent service needlessly wasted resources. For example in one hotel they changed our napkins twice during the meal when we went up to the buffet! Minor things but when tourist numbers increase they would struggle to keep such things from damaging the environment and getting into bad habits.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Top notch. A wonderful experience. We had high expectations as we had spent a large amount of cash for us and waited a long time for this trip, and it exceeded our expectations. We had concerns that we were not seasoned travellers, neither of us has been anywhere remotely unusual or had a gap year etc, and we felt totally secure, confident and taken care of throughout our trip. Its will be a long time until we can repeat this type of trip and we have some wonderful memories and experiences to keep us going!
Read the operator's response here:
A tour of Sri Lanka will inevitably mean travelling around by road and we try to keep the distance travelled to a minimum wherever possible. The vehicles used by our chauffeur guides are regularly serviced and well maintained in an effort to reduce unnecessary air pollution. Unfortunately, there appear to be no regulations limiting vehicle emissions in Sri Lanka and so other vehicles are polluting. Many hotels pride themselves in providing clean linen and towels on a regular basis, however we do promote water conservation to our accommodation providers in an attempt to reduce unnecessary water usage and environmental pollution, and we also feedback comments from our customers to them.| Reviewed 1 Nov 2006 by Peter Brill | |
 |  |  |  |  | Take a look at Peter & Sheila Brill's photos from this trip. More… (click photos to enlarge) |
We went to Sri Lanka for 8 days courtesy of this operator. The trip was meant to be a special treat for a special Birthday but they made it the trip of a lifetime.
From the moment we arrived in this magical country to the time we sadly had to depart, we experienced every aspect of this island of contrasts. Despite our concerns only days before we travelled because of Tamil and army activity, John in London and Pathi in Sri Lanka did everything they could to make our trip safe, hassle-free and enjoyable.
We stayed in some of the finest hotels we've ever experienced - particularly Kandelama and Kandy House - and with Pathi as our guide we were able to get an honest and true feel for the country and its people. Although we saw the tourist sites, with Pathi's guidance we were able to make small contributions to an economy suffering because of tourist's fears of danger from the conflict (totally unfounded in our experience). We also had the chance to experience non-tourist aspects of the country which was rare and wonderful.
All in all, a 5 star rating. There is no question that we will use Responsible Travel recommended agencies again and this operator in particular.
| Reviewed 12 Jun 2008 by Joanne Christopher | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Elephant ride.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Don't always take the drivers advice and read around each area before you decide to go there.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Not overly. We were in top hotels and whilst they employed local people there was a great divide visible within the country.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Excellent, the accommodation was amazing and we had an excellent time.
Read the operator's response here:
Staying in better quality accommodation away from everyday life may accentuate a country’s inherent economic and social divides without showing how your stay benefits the local community. All of the accommodation we offer employs local people, and most is Sri Lankan owned and run. We actively encourage responsible and sustainable travel by only employing Sri Lankan guides, promoting small family-run guesthouses, eating at local restaurants, supporting community-led projects, and ensuring travellers are aware of their impact on the environment and people of Sri Lanka. We are sensitive to our customers’ experiences and appreciate any comments received. Immediate and appropriate action is taken when holidays drop below our very high standards.| Reviewed 6 Apr 2008 by Hugh Williamson | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
The beauty of the country and friendliness of the Sri Lankan people. Watching wild elephants together with our very thoughtful and learned guide Kapila.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Have plenty of smaller denomination notes with you on your outings if you want to give tips to helpful locals. And when you don't want the help offered just say a firm but friendly "No thank you".
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
It will have benefited local people a great deal. Apart from the necessary journeys, the impact on the environment will have been very small.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
It has been a great and very memorable experience.
| Reviewed 1 Apr 2008 by Lyndsay Long | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Very difficult to decide - there were so many amazing experiences on this holiday - from the rock temples of Dambulla to the architecture of Geoffrey Bowa plus all the nature in between. Finally, I suppose, it was a safari around Uda Walawe where apart from the herds of elephants we saw, our guide was able to point out more than 30 different varieties of birds. Truly memorable.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Book through this operator. They are excellent and really flexible. Read "when memory dies" by A. Sivanandan during your holiday. A fantastic insight into the last 80 years of Sri Lankan history and its many trials and tribulations. It certainly gives an insight into the unrest that exists there today.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Absolutely. Our guide tried to ensure that places we visited were not tourist hot spots but places frequented by locals. Many of the places we stayed were owned by Sri Lankan people not huge resort hotels.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
A fabulous 2 weeks. A wonderful mix of relaxation, cultural experiences and some physical activity. It was good to see the extent to which Sri Lanka has recovered since the tsunami.
| Reviewed 6 Feb 2008 by Michael Dunstan | |
We had a great holiday with this tour operator. Apart from missing visits to two national parks because of insurgent activity, the holiday was exactly as described.
Pathy, our dedicated chauffeur/guide made everything easy, and saw to it that our personally chosen itinerary went smoothly. Both my wife and I are fairly experienced travellers and I, when on business, have experienced some top class luxury hotels. None surpassed those we stayed at in Sri Lanka. We had our chosen mixture of culture, beautiful scenery and relaxing beaches.
Pathy, our dedicated chauffeur/guide made everything easy, and saw to it that our personally chosen itinerary went smoothly. Both my wife and I are fairly experienced travellers and I, when on business, have experienced some top class luxury hotels. None surpassed those we stayed at in Sri Lanka. We had our chosen mixture of culture, beautiful scenery and relaxing beaches.
| Reviewed 5 Jan 2008 by Diana Hunter | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
The most exciting part of the holiday was probably river rafting and the most memorable bits were many: watching a turtle laying 100 eggs on a moonlit beach at midnight, letting baby turtles have freedom in the sea, visiting Buddhist temples, seeing large groups of elephants, walking down a perfect and deserted beach with my 12 year old.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Go. Allow yourself a bit more time at places. We went to too many and the roads are such that they require a lot of time spent travelling on them.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
I felt guilty about being only 2 people in a large passenger van. We could have done the trip in a car or with others in the van. Yes I felt that it benefitted locals but I would have been happier off the beaten track a bit more rather than going to the touristy restaurants, shops.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Excellent. Just what I wanted and more.
| Reviewed 4 Jan 2008 by Christine Ennew | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
We differed in our views - for me, it was difficult to choose between the rock fortress of Sigiriya which was starkly spectacular with amazing views and the remains of the ancient capital at Poloonawura. For one of my friends, it was wild elephants while another chose the delightful Kandy House which was a thoroughly charming and delightful place to spend a couple of nights.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Heritance Kandalama is a truly amazing place to stay but it is a large luxury hotel and the new year's eve dinner, although superbly well done, was a bit too reminiscent of a formal dinner dance for our tastes, so I guess my tip would be to avoid the Kandalama at New Year if you're not a big fan of such events.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Our guide, Pathi, was very good in terms of advising about what was and was not acceptable in terms of local customs and what was appropriate in terms of tipping. We did draw significantly on local businesses and were strongly encouraged to be culturally sensitive. Activities involving wildlife did place an emphasis on minimizing any adverse impacts, again courtesy of our guide. The hotel at Kandalama is famous for its environmental concerns, but these did seem to be rather underplayed by the hotel itself and the Jacuzzi's in the rooms did seem somewhat extravagant in that context (though I must admit that they were rather nice!).
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
A great trip - thoroughly enjoyable and seemed longer than it actually was. This was my first visit to Sri Lanka and it did not disappoint - either in terms of the sights or the places that we stayed. The Royal River Resort was a wonderful, slightly quirky, 4 room hotel miles from anywhere in a delightful setting by a waterfall. The Kandy House was just delightful and possibly one of the nicest places any of us have stayed. Scenery was spectacular, people were friendly and there was very little hassle. Culturally, the cave temples at Dambulla, the ruins at Poloonawura and the fortress at Sigiriya were well worth the visit. I felt Kandy was perhaps a bit over hyped (but maybe that's more of a problem with respect to my expectations rather than the place itself).We spent comparatively little time in the tea growing areas but what time was spent at a tea plantation was very enjoyable. Finally, although we covered a lot of distance and did a lot during the week, we also managed to get a significant amount of time for R&R - which was much appreciated.
| Reviewed 22 Dec 2007 by Hilary Roberts | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Meeting the Veddha people of Sri Lanka.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Take mosquito repellent with Deet in it, and rainwear.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Yes - don't know about the environment as we drove around in a car much of the time.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
It was pretty much exactly as I expected it would be, so it met my requirements and was very enjoyable.
| Reviewed 9 Oct 2007 by Jessica Hill | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Many different parts. Seeing the elephants enjoying their natural habitat, the amazing temples, great curries and the warmth and friendliness of the people.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
None.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Yes, we feel it benefited local people - it was great to meet them.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Fabulous! Many thanks.
| Reviewed 19 Jul 2007 by Victoria Brough | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
The whole country was amazing, but I guess the Sri Lankan people really made it. That, and seeing baby elephants in the wild...
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
There's lots to do in Sri Lanka - full of wildlife, culture, beaches, lovely magical small hotels, great curries, hills and lakes. If you go try and see some of the country rather than just stay in one place.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Yes, to a point. Occasionally you felt you were only being shown what Sri Lanka though tourists wanted to see: though I think it was a genuine attempt to present the best of their country rather than a false impression
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Excellent. Unless you are a package king or queen, I cannot recommend Sri Lanka highly enough.
| Reviewed 27 Nov 2006 by Siobhan Lee | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Visiting Sigirya Rock first thing in the morning before any other people were around. We were able to explore the ruined fortress alone, imagining what it must have been like when people used to live there up among the clouds with the amazing view over the surrounding countryside. We're used to having to share such sights with hundreds of other visitors and so to have it to ourselves was wonderful.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Be prepared for the roads and the expectation to tip everyone you have even the slightest encounter with. The roads are quite an experience and it took me a while to relax enough to be able to happily look out the window and enjoy the scenery without worrying that we were going to be involved in an accident. As it was we didn't even see any accidents in the whole time we were in Sri Lanka let alone be involved in one. As an English person tipping is not something I felt comfortable with on the regular basis required for the trip. The amounts you are expected to give are only very small and so its not an issue from a financial perspective more just making sure you always had lots of small notes on you that you could hand out when necessary. I believe that tipping should be something you do if someone provides you with a good level of service but we found in Sri Lanka that some people expected tips regardless of whether they had provided a service you required or not. This is probably a result of the lack of tourists in Sri Lanka at the moment though - there's not a lot of money around and so people are keen to get any support they can from the tourists that are there.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
I hope so. We often ate in local restaurants (in fact we had the best meals of the holiday in these small restaurants) and we tried to make sure that we thanked the local people who took care of us both verbally and with tips. During our trip we made offerings to a monk friend of our driver to help support him during his studies.
4. Any other comments?
We weren't sure what to expect from Sri Lanka and we were nervous about going with the current troubles. However we needn't have worried - we never felt in any danger from being involved in the dispute being played out in the North and East of the country. I can't recall any other country I have visited where there are so many amazing sights to see. We were able to design our own holiday through this operator to ensure that we saw all the sights we wanted to see with the benefit of our own local guide who knew the best times to visit and who could tell us the history of the places we were visiting as well as telling us more about his country in current times. We were invited to take tea at our guides house with his family which was very special and meant the trip was more than just a holiday but a once in a life time experience.
| Reviewed 11 Sep 2006 by Jaime Webb | |
Our honeymoon trip was organised through this operator and was due to be 2 weeks of culture, nature and beaches. It was the first time we had used a tour organizer, but with the stresses of the wedding we thought it the best approach to take any further hassles away. John at the operator was fantastic throughout, nothing seemed too much trouble and he was also full of advice about the island. So we set off for Ceylon, after a wonderful wedding, with a great deal of anticipation and excitement for what lay ahead.
As part of the package you get your own personal driver/guide for the whole trip. Our driver was called Patti and he was at the airport to meet us. Patti was a bit of a legend. A native Sri Lankan, about 5ft tall with a cheeky grin. He was very professional and highly informative whilst working, but also great company and very funny. I don’t think we would have seen half of what we did without him and he certainly kept us entertained throughout. One of the best nights of the trip was meeting Patti’s family in Kandy and we always thoroughly enjoyed chatting to Patti over a glass of arrack at the end of the day.
The organised tours were designed to give us a taster of Sri Lankan history, culture and way of life. The trips were all different and included such diverse locations as temples, ruins, spice gardens and massage centres.
The highlight for me was the jeep safari through Minneriya National Park. We were fortunate in that it was the end of the dry season and the herds had gathered around the depleting water supplies, in this case a lake. There were two hundred or so elephants visible from our jeep some of them as close as 10metres! The Sigiriya Rock Fortress is also a fascinating trip, but be prepared to get up early to beat the midday sun. In fact all of the trips were thoroughly enjoyable and interesting in their own way. After so much sight seeing the beach break at Tangalle was welcome. Despite the occasional rain storm we had a very relaxing time in the beach front cabanas.
Suffice to say the accommodation and hospitality were all first class, particularly so at Tangalle. The food was great. All curry...curry for breakfast, lunch and dinner and if you fancy a snack there’s always curry. Fortunately, the curries were made up of a variety of different dishes, usually about 7 or 8, of all sorts of curried vegetables, meat and fish. The dishes and flavourings were also different in each region so we were never bored of curry and I always looked forward to meal times.
I'd definitely recommend a trip to Sri Lanka, especially post-tsunami as the tourist dollar/pound is more important than ever. A visit really can contribute to saving lives. The director of this operator is heavily involved in the reconstruction of the island so I am confident that a proportion of the cost of our trip is being put back into the island. Also, don't let the civil strife put you off. Most of the fighting is taking place in the north and east of the island a long way from the tourist areas and we didn't see any hint of the troubles.
As part of the package you get your own personal driver/guide for the whole trip. Our driver was called Patti and he was at the airport to meet us. Patti was a bit of a legend. A native Sri Lankan, about 5ft tall with a cheeky grin. He was very professional and highly informative whilst working, but also great company and very funny. I don’t think we would have seen half of what we did without him and he certainly kept us entertained throughout. One of the best nights of the trip was meeting Patti’s family in Kandy and we always thoroughly enjoyed chatting to Patti over a glass of arrack at the end of the day.
The organised tours were designed to give us a taster of Sri Lankan history, culture and way of life. The trips were all different and included such diverse locations as temples, ruins, spice gardens and massage centres.
The highlight for me was the jeep safari through Minneriya National Park. We were fortunate in that it was the end of the dry season and the herds had gathered around the depleting water supplies, in this case a lake. There were two hundred or so elephants visible from our jeep some of them as close as 10metres! The Sigiriya Rock Fortress is also a fascinating trip, but be prepared to get up early to beat the midday sun. In fact all of the trips were thoroughly enjoyable and interesting in their own way. After so much sight seeing the beach break at Tangalle was welcome. Despite the occasional rain storm we had a very relaxing time in the beach front cabanas.
Suffice to say the accommodation and hospitality were all first class, particularly so at Tangalle. The food was great. All curry...curry for breakfast, lunch and dinner and if you fancy a snack there’s always curry. Fortunately, the curries were made up of a variety of different dishes, usually about 7 or 8, of all sorts of curried vegetables, meat and fish. The dishes and flavourings were also different in each region so we were never bored of curry and I always looked forward to meal times.
I'd definitely recommend a trip to Sri Lanka, especially post-tsunami as the tourist dollar/pound is more important than ever. A visit really can contribute to saving lives. The director of this operator is heavily involved in the reconstruction of the island so I am confident that a proportion of the cost of our trip is being put back into the island. Also, don't let the civil strife put you off. Most of the fighting is taking place in the north and east of the island a long way from the tourist areas and we didn't see any hint of the troubles.
| Reviewed 22 Feb 2006 by Kathryn White | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
We had a superb trip to Sri Lanka with this operator. Our guide, Pathi, was excellent at knowing the best times to visit places in order to get the most out of the experience. The most memorable part was being at Anuradhapura in the early evening for the full moon festival. We felt very honoured to be allowed to take part in this very significant religious festival.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Wandering around the market in Kandy is to be recommended - the sights, sounds and smells are amazing - but if you're a vegetarian (or just a bit squeamish) stay away from the meat stalls! Anyone planning to travel around Sri Lanka should take into account the poor condition of the roads, it takes much longer to get anywhere than the distance would suggest.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Having a local guide meant that we learnt a lot about the country, its people and their religion. We were encouraged to buy local produce from local people. The hotels we stayed in were all environment conscious in terms of conserving water and disposing of rubbish responsibly. This operator sponsors the Forgotten Village Sri Lanka, a project offering long-term support to communities affected by the tsunami. GB £30 per person is contributed to this project for all holidays booked directly.
4. Any other comments?
I'd definitely recommend this holiday - so that's 4 stars.
| Reviewed 16 Jan 2006 by Mrs A von Hofmannsthal | |
This operator was terrific. They had one month's notice, over the New Year period, and booked us flights and wonderful hotels exactly where we wanted to be. I definitely felt the holiday benefitted local people and I think it is important to actually visit Sri Lanka and see for one's self how they are coping post Tsunami.
A couple of tips. Always check how long it takes to drive from a to b before booking hotels and arranging to look at sites. The distances seem small but the roads and the driving is so bad that you spend hours driving a very short distance. For example it took us 7 hours to drive about 180 kilometres. If you are based anywhere for a few days a great way to get around locally is to hire a tuk tuk by the day. You can do this for about GB £8 and your driver will be at your disposal all day.
We had a lovely guy who took us to all sorts of places we would never have found on our own and I think he was thrilled with the money. And it seemed very cheap to us. We asked our driver to stop at local places en route for lunch. They were brilliant and incredibly cheap. We always ate the curries and never an adverse reaction! All in all a very enjoyable **** holiday. All found by accident through Responsible Travel on the web.
A couple of tips. Always check how long it takes to drive from a to b before booking hotels and arranging to look at sites. The distances seem small but the roads and the driving is so bad that you spend hours driving a very short distance. For example it took us 7 hours to drive about 180 kilometres. If you are based anywhere for a few days a great way to get around locally is to hire a tuk tuk by the day. You can do this for about GB £8 and your driver will be at your disposal all day.
We had a lovely guy who took us to all sorts of places we would never have found on our own and I think he was thrilled with the money. And it seemed very cheap to us. We asked our driver to stop at local places en route for lunch. They were brilliant and incredibly cheap. We always ate the curries and never an adverse reaction! All in all a very enjoyable **** holiday. All found by accident through Responsible Travel on the web.