South Sri Lanka Coast Kid friendly Holidays

Food quality is not up to the mark.

The Fortress Resort and Spa is a five-star hotel. It boasts a prime location—if your travel destination is the famous "stilt fishermen," several such sites are just a two-minute walk from the hotel. From the hotel grounds, guests can enjoy panoramic, spectacular views of the ocean. The hotel offers top-notch service and world-class facilities. Its restaurant, however, is merely average; the variety of food available does not quite justify the price point.

We went for this hotel based on the trust in the Riu brand, location, all inclusive basis and general good reviews. Overall the hotel was very good. We’d stop short of rating it as excellent based on some of the amenities looking / feeling slightly tired - probably on the basis of having been worked hard. Some key thoughts; We visited during the Middle East war / crisis and consequently the hotel was much quieter than normal. Therefore everything felt more spacious, less crowded and easier to access. We wondered how our very good experience might of been if the hotel had been close to full as we were told is the normally the case. The food was outstanding - particularly for an all inclusive. The choices were broad and quality excellent. The themed restaurants were also superb and easy to book. The Pan Asian and Sauté restaurants were particularly good. The staff were brilliant, so polite, helpful and curtious - a real credit to the hotel and Riu. There were 3 big pools but only one with an easy bar access which was also strictly (and enforced) adults only. That suited us but with parties including under 18s may be an inconvenience and something to consider. The rooms were big, clean with functional facilities and simple decor designs. The hotel is right on a stunning public beach. You can swim but need to take care due to big waves and strong currents. Overall, we’ve done lots of all inclusives and this one is defiibately up there as one of the better we’ve experienced!

Overpriced for what you get, quality of the upkeep and maintenance is lacking

I wanted to extend a heartfelt thank you to the restaurant manager, Pramodha, and all the wonderful staff at breakfast and dinner who made our stay so enjoyable and special. Thank you for going above and beyond to make my dad’s birthday extra memorable — it truly meant so much to us. I would also like to sincerely thank Hansaji for helping me organise important documents for my exams, and Sunil for such a warm and welcoming introduction when we first arrived. Feeding the fish was such a lovely experience and the perfect way to begin our stay.

I wanted to extend a heartfelt thank you to the restaurant manager, Pramodha, and all the wonderful staff at breakfast and dinner who made our stay so enjoyable and special. Thank you for going above and beyond to make my dad’s birthday extra memorable — it truly meant so much to us. I would also like to sincerely thank Hansaji for helping me organise important documents for my exams, and Sunil for such a warm and welcoming introduction when we first arrived. Feeding the fish was such a lovely experience and the perfect way to begin our stay.

The Fortress Resort and Spa is a five-star hotel. It boasts a prime location—if your travel destination is the famous "stilt fishermen," several such sites are just a two-minute walk from the hotel. From the hotel grounds, guests can enjoy panoramic, spectacular views of the ocean. The hotel offers top-notch service and world-class facilities. Its restaurant, however, is merely average; the variety of food available does not quite justify the price point.

We went for this hotel based on the trust in the Riu brand, location, all inclusive basis and general good reviews. Overall the hotel was very good. We’d stop short of rating it as excellent based on some of the amenities looking / feeling slightly tired - probably on the basis of having been worked hard. Some key thoughts; We visited during the Middle East war / crisis and consequently the hotel was much quieter than normal. Therefore everything felt more spacious, less crowded and easier to access. We wondered how our very good experience might of been if the hotel had been close to full as we were told is the normally the case. The food was outstanding - particularly for an all inclusive. The choices were broad and quality excellent. The themed restaurants were also superb and easy to book. The Pan Asian and Sauté restaurants were particularly good. The staff were brilliant, so polite, helpful and curtious - a real credit to the hotel and Riu. There were 3 big pools but only one with an easy bar access which was also strictly (and enforced) adults only. That suited us but with parties including under 18s may be an inconvenience and something to consider. The rooms were big, clean with functional facilities and simple decor designs. The hotel is right on a stunning public beach. You can swim but need to take care due to big waves and strong currents. Overall, we’ve done lots of all inclusives and this one is defiibately up there as one of the better we’ve experienced!