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Reviews of Wallawwa

5 out of 5
Wallawwa
Minuwangoda Road, Nr Ja-Ela & Bandaranaike Int Airport, Kotugoda

Reviews

9.4

Exceptional

Rating 10 - Excellent. 40 out of 54 reviews" "
Rating 8 - Good. 11 out of 54 reviews" "
Rating 6 - Okay. 2 out of 54 reviews" "
Rating 4 - Poor. 0 out of 54 reviews" "
Rating 2 - Terrible. 1 out of 54 reviews" "

9.6/10

Cleanliness

9.6/10

Staff & service

8.8/10

Amenities

9.4/10

Property conditions & facilities

10/10

Eco-friendliness

Reviews

10/10 Excellent

Sachi

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Beautiful hotel and friendly staff
The hotel and the suite was beautiful. The children loved the tour of the garden. Dinesh made our stay even more special! We hope to stay longer next time.
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2023
Response from Rehana Bartholameusz on 16 Sept 2023
Dear Sachi, Allow me to start by thanking you for your time sharing your feedback regarding your experience at Wallawwa.I am delighted to know you enjoyed your time with us and it is always a pleasure to receive such great feedback, particularly about the quality of service from our team, who work extremely hard to ensure all guests are looked after.Should you have any further feedback regarding your stay, please do not hesitate to contact us at your convenience.From the team and I at Teardrop Hotels, we hope to see you again in the future!Yours sincerely,Rehana Bartholameusz

10/10 Excellent

David

Business traveller
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Beautiful property, wish I could have stayed longer!
Stayed 1 night in May 2023

10/10 Excellent

ines

Travelled with family, Travelled with group
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Sep 2022

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Travelled with group
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Fabulous building, décor, furnishing and peaceful ambiance. An oasis down a dusty track.
Stayed 1 night in Mar 2020

8/10 Good

Turbo, Dubai

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Loved the place. The staff were very friendly and helpful. The place is a great retreat, the architecture romantic colonial. Very good food.
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2019

2/10 Terrible

Al, Jeddah

Travelled with family
Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
Its a beautiful property in need of major refurbishment. Your met with a wall of ants crawling through out the hotel lobby as you check in, We had rented the Manbatton Suite with a private plunge pool their highest category. The suite when we entered was hot and you could instantly smell the dampness in the walls. The suite has 2 bedrooms as we where traveling with our son. We where shocked to see that the AC in his room had leakedand the floor was full of water. The plunge pool was very dirty and no one had cleaned it for a long time. When my wife tried to use the coffe machine a lizard popped out to welcome her. We asked for a full refund and this was denied. The staff tried their best to accommodate us by giving us another room for my son to sleep in. The staff are super friendly and they really felt bad for us but it was out of their hands. On the other hand the food was very tasty and the gardens are beautiful.
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2019
Response from The Wallawwa on 22 Nov 2019
Dear Mr. Abbas, Thank you for your comprehensive review of your stay at the Wallawwa. We are, naturally, dismayed by most of your comments and would like to sincerely apologise for any inconveniences caused during your stay with us. I am saddened to hear that you did not like our Mountbatten Suite which has been praised by many guests in the past. We do follow standard housekeeping procedures before the arrival of any guest, some of which include switching on the AC two hours before check-in, cleaning the plunge pool and testing all amenities in the room. We take full responsibility for the AC leak and hope you appreciated our swift response in providing an alternative room for your son. As you have witnessed, the Wallawwa is surrounded by acres of lush tropical gardens which in turn is also home to many birds, butterflies and unfortunately some creepy-crawlies. We do our best to ward off insects from getting inside the rooms and lobby area (via scheduled pest control visits) however sometimes they do manage to find a way in. That being said, we agree that it is not at all pleasant for anyone to be welcomed by a lizard when trying to make a cup of coffee! Thanks to your feedback the relevant department will request the pest controller to focus more on the concerns raised. We take all criticism constructively and make immediate arrangements to ensure that the guest experience is enhanced during the rest of the stay. We thank you for your acknowledgment of the staff trying their best to offer you a solution to accommodate your son. Finally, I thank you for your wonderful comments on our food, staff and overall ambiance at the Wallawwa, and earnestly hope that you visit us again to enjoy a better stay. Best Regards The Wallawwa

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
A truly special property
It really is superb. An old colonial manor, beautifully converted into a hotel, capped with fantastic service. The rooms were spacious, very comfortable, and very quiet. My only regret was I could only stay one night. When travel back Sri Lanka, I'd definitely stay here again.
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2019

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
A boutique and tranquil experience, set in beautiful gardens and surrounds. 15 mins to the airport so a great place to start or end your trip in Sri Lanka. Our only regret is that we only had one night here at the end of our trip. The staff are really friendly and helpful, great pool area, extensive board games, great food with wide variety available and the staff packed a generous breakfast for us when we had to leave at 5am to catch our flight. The room was great, generous size and large bathroom and we had a private garden. Would stay here again.
Stayed 1 night in May 2019

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Fantastic service and accomodation. Excellent location near the airport so would thoroughly recommend. Tourists need to come back and keep this country alive!
Stayed 2 nights in Jun 2019

10/10 Excellent

Brodi

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Beautiful rooms close to airport
Beautiful rooms and excellent food close to the Colombo airport! The property is exquisite !!
Stayed 1 night in Apr 2019

10/10 Excellent

Paul

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Apr 2019

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Travelled with family, Travelled with family and small children
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Very small and carefully thought out to very high standards . Could do with a gym though
Stayed 1 night in Apr 2019

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Beautiful, spacious hotel and lush gardens that are tucked away from the main road. Good dining facilities, a lovely outdoor pool and friendly staff.
Stayed 1 night in Mar 2019

10/10 Excellent

J A

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Amazing post flight recovery retreat
The Wallawwa is a 20 minute taxi from Colombo Airport and I cannot imagine any better places to recover from a long haul flight. It is beyond 5*, another level to most hotels we have stayed at globally. We arrived and immediately were given wet towels and papaya juice. We had a basic room as it was only a stop over for us but wow what a room. The bathroom was magnificent and the bedroom had everything you could wish for. The food was terrific and served by a highly attentive and happy team which promotes eco friendly values. Sitting on the terrace listening to some soft jazz was a highlight of the trip for me. A great way to start our trip. It is one of several superb hotels in the teardrop group but gave no hint of it not being an individual entity. We couldn't recommend it any higher and would be back in a heartbeat if we could.
Stayed 1 night in Mar 2019

10/10 Excellent

KatharinaM, Tunbridge Wells UK

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Beautiful place to sleep off the jetlag and adapt to climate. Definitely recommend 2-3 nights. ! night would have been too short, I followed the advice of other reviewers. Stunning location, beautiful clean and spacious rooms, delicious foods and juices. Very peaceful with a colonial atmosphere.
Stayed 2 nights in Mar 2019

10/10 Excellent

Denise, UK

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Charming, peaceful with beautiful gardens . Very helpful and professional staff. Superb food. Thoroughly recommended
Stayed 2 nights in Oct 2018

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
We had a fantastic stay at the Wallawwa. The property is stunning and its close proximity to teh airport was ideal. The rooms are really tastefully decorated and luxurious and the staff were all so welcoming and friendly. There is a really nice shop on site with the money raised going to a local Sri Lankan charity. We picked up some lovely cards and gifts. We had dinner and breakfast and both were delicious. We stayed on our honeymoon and the staff were fantastic and very congratulatory. Our only regret was not staying for longer than one night!
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2018

10/10 Excellent

Kate

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2018

10/10 Excellent

JJ, Bangladesh

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Beautiful atmospheric hotel
The Wallawwa is a lovely place tucked in the jungle down a long narrow dirt road. Feels miles away from anywhere but its actually 20 mins from the airport. Lots of atmosphere & antiques & very friendly, helpful staff. Get them to pick you up from the airport because no one else knows where the place is. It isn't far but its hard to find.
Stayed 1 night in Jan 2018

6/10 Okay

Imran

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Disliked: Staff & service
Nice hotel, really really poor service
The hotel itself is amazing - spectacular rooms (with patio) and garden, nice pool. My wife and I went for our honeymoon. The staff and service however is pretty mediocre, particularly for the facilities they have. The building is like a luxury resort, while the service is what you would expect in a youth hostel in Amsterdam or Paris. I should say, I told them it was our honeymoon beforehand and they decorated our bed and also offered u a complimentary cake. However this didn't compensate for the poor service. The hotel is clearly understaffed and staff are not properly trained (4 different people asked me for my dinner order, it takes ages to get served, everything is slow, waiters are walking around confused, doubling up on tables while other tables are waiting, many staff are not friendly, reception never picks up the phone). It is a real pity because it ruins the spectacular hotel they have.
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2017

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2017

10/10 Excellent

Jane, London

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Tranquility from Colombo
I started and ended a photography tour at this hotel. It is perfect to get over the long flight and to recharge after a busy 12 days on the go. Rooms are amazing, beds so comfortable. I used the spa and had a massage and facial which was lovely. They serve home made cakes and tea late afternoon. They also serve the best hoppers for breakfast - try them! Yes, it is expensive to stay here but worth it
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2017

10/10 Excellent

Sue, London

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
An oasis
This is a lovely hotel, in close proximity to the airport, with great facilities and warm, welcoming and efficient staff. The food is great, and well priced. The grounds are superb. Rooms are a good size and the bathrooms are a haven (especially when compared to the usual Sri Lankan shower!).
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2017

10/10 Excellent

Tara

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Beautiful
Stayed on our last night in Sri Lanka as a stopover on the way to the airport. Can't remember exactly but it's about a 20 min drive. Hence can't comment on the local area and what's around. The hotel however is wonderful. Old colonial building tastefully renovated with great attention to detail. Food was also very good and reasonably priced. A real bit of luxury in great grounds. Would certainly recommend it. Just as a side note - a made an error while booking the hotel, Hotels.com were less than helpful initially, but the hotel were amazing. Their level of customer service was exceptional.
Stayed 1 night in Jul 2017

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Lovely area and not far from the airport.
Stayed 1 night in Jun 2017

8/10 Good

Mr Cooper, australia

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Beautiful-colonial charm- close to airport.
Only stayed one night unfortunately on our w as y home. Would book again though as it was quite a unique hotel.
Stayed 1 night in Jun 2017

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great welcome to Sri Lanka, with outstanding food and service.
Stayed 1 night in Jun 2017

8/10 Good

Kyle

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Jun 2017

10/10 Excellent

Nathan

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great Surprise
This was such a nice surprise. Absolutely stunning building, design, landscaping, decoration: which is a shock given its proximity to the Colombo airport (and frankly, the only reason I booked it). They've done a great job tastefully exposing the colonial bones of the original building and have made some thoughtful upgrades. Staff couldn't have been kinder or more accomodating. Food was great if you stick to Sri Lankan. In terms of location, I have no idea if this place is convenient to anything other than the airport, which is a shame. It might make a nice jumping off point for Negombo but I didn't get a chance to visit. Prob a little too far in the country to serve as a base for exploring Colombo, but to be honest, you only need a day to see what Colombo has to offer.

8/10 Good

Julian

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

8/10 Good

Stephanie

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Decent stay for a short layover
I was only at the Wallawwa for a quick layover, so I cannot comment too much on the hotel. The airport transfer was a bit unorganized and caused some confusion. The room was large and comfortable. I would only stay here for a layover though..otherwise better to stay in Colombo or Negombo.

10/10 Excellent

Jacqui, H

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Wonderful destination in itself.
Fantastic hotel, beautifully appointed and only 10 mins from airport. A real find.

6/10 Okay

Roger, Singapore

Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
Disappointing stay
Unfortunately we have expected much more - everything is mediocre nothing special. Especially all the our pillow cases on the lounge and the chairs in our room were very dirty and we ask for new cover sheets. Also outside mostly all sitting accommodations were filthy too. Nevertheless all the staff were very friendly.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great property in a beautiful location
Great location very close to the airport and perfect for a layover of any duration. Top notch hotel with a nice ambience in a beautiful country setting. Professional and very friendly staff. They are very genuine and really willing to assist with all your requests. Highly recommended for a short stay in Sri Lanka as centrally located to all the historic attractions in Colombo and Kandy as well as the tea country.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Oasis near the airport
We really enjoyed our brief stay at this impeccable boutique hotel. Room was spacious and modern, gardens were lovely and peaceful. Has a great facial in the spa. Delicious dinner and breakfast. We'll definitely return.

10/10 Excellent

Graham, Scotland UK

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Perfect Peace
This hotels situation is perfect for relaxing. Beautifully proportioned. Manicured gardens. Lots of on site amenity and spaces to move around. Super balance between convenient comforts and nature. The whole place is at ease wth itself. Staff seem pleased to be there. Food is very good too and they will go out of their way to accommodate any request it seems no matter how bespoke the requirement. Will call in again when next in Sri Lanka!

10/10 Excellent

Marquee, Pinjarra, Western Australia

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Best hotel in SL for food, relax, tastefulness!
Great food, really calm and peaceful gardens, very friendly and attentive staff, tasteful décor and timely service

10/10 Excellent

Mark, Milton Keynes

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Wonderful stay. Hope to be back.
Beautiful hotel. Wonderful staff. Excellent service and great food.

10/10 Excellent

Isma, Sydney

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Beautiful hotel close to airport
Delicious food, amazing service clean rooms, highly recommend

10/10 Excellent

FELD, Miami

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nice place near to Airport.
Arrived for the second time in Colombo and we did not expect as good as it is. It is pretty close to the airport and it is very nice. Bathrooms are large, beds are comfy, and the hotel is very up to date in facilities and comfort. It is a small "hacienda" colonial estate house with 25+ rooms, very calmed and nice.

10/10 Excellent

Matt, Muscat, Oman

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Best "airport hotel" you'll find anywhere
Check in staff were welcoming and gave quick orientation to the facilities. Like many smaller hotels, this has a unique character that makes staying here memorable and pleasant. The rooms are quite large - the bathroom was simply enormous - and best of all, it is peaceful.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Amazing.
Great place if you want to forget everything and just relax.

8/10 Good

adrian, liverpool

Liked: Cleanliness, room comfort
Beautiful hotel
Beautiful hotel, wonderful room and surroundings. Nice food. Beautiful evening tea which was free! Only problem was Internet which was pathetic when you compared it to the rest of the hotel

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
The best hotel experience
We couldn't fault it. How's that! Truly! Even we are surprised to be writing such a comment.We were picked up from the airport in the Wallawwa Van driven by your very charming, trustworthy and safe driver (always appreciated) and delivered to your residence via the lush driveway.Congratulations to management for 'nailing it' in every way. Interior decoration is beautiful. Staff friendliness and attention- perfect.BEST breakfast, BEST afternoon tea, BEST FRESH COOKED FARE, the most relaxing and aesthetically pleasing swimming pool, delightful bunch of fellow guests...............no I haven't been paid to write this.I will certainly return and recommend your heavenly haven to all of my friends. It is so good when someone gets it so 'right'. And The Wallawwa certainly has!

8/10 Good

Philipp

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Lovely
Lovely hotel, great food, excellent stay. Only point to note was that they wanted to charge USD40 for the 18 min airport transfer which is just too much.
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2023
Response from Rehana on 27 Oct 2023
Dear Philipp, Allow me to start by thanking you for your time sharing your feedback regarding your experience at Wallawwa.I am delighted to know you enjoyed your time with us and it is always a pleasure to receive such great feedback. I have noted your comment regarding the rate of the airport transfer. Unfortunately, as we outsource our transportation, we are unable to make any changes to the rates.From the team at Wallawwa, we hope to see you again in the future!Yours sincerely,Wallawwa Team

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 1 night in Jul 2019

10/10 Excellent

Heidi

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Gutes Hotel vor oder nach Rundreise in Sri Lanka
Bevor wir nach einer 3-wöchigen Rundreise wieder nach Hause flogen, haben wir zwei Nächte im Wallawwa ausgeruht. Sehr grosse Suite, leider ohne Aussicht, links und rechts Betonmauern und ein Bambusstrauch. Nicht wirklich, was man sich von einer gardensuite vorstellt. Service war top, sehr freundliches Personal, im Restaurant und im Spa. Hilfe von der Reception wegen Probleme beim Flug war ausserordentlich , danke.
Stayed 2 nights in Dec 2018

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
自然に囲まれた良い雰囲気のリゾートホテルです。 ホテルの方々もすごく親切で、幸せな気分になりました。 また、スリランカに来たときは、ゆっくり過ごしたいです。
Stayed 1 night in Jan 2018

8/10 Good

コルマ, 東京

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
ホテル敷地が大きく特に敷地内で野菜果物も作りホテルに供している 全ての設備が空間を余裕をもたせて作られてユッタリ感があり、機能も適切に考えられていた。