Puttalam District hotels & places to stay

We stayed here for 2 nights at the beginning of our tour. The staff were amazing and went out of their way to make sure we had everything we needed. We stayed in a deluxe room overlooking the sea, with a huge bath. We were on our honeymoon and the staff had decorated the bed with flowers and hung up little heart decorations. The room was clean, and very nicely decorated, with a divide between the living area and bedroom. There are two large pools directly overlooking the sea, although the sea was very choppy so wouldn't recommend swimming in it. The food at the hotel was also very good, we had the buffet for breakfast and dinner and also selected off the set menu for lunch. All meals we had were very tasty and of a high standard. The lunch we had was one of the best meals we had whilst in Sri Lanka. I would definitely stay here again and recommend this hotel.

We were a bit concerened on our short ride from the Marawila town due to the remote location of the hotel, there's hardly a surrounding restaurant - cetainly not any that I would have ventured out to try out at least. Our entrance to the lobby wasnt that spectacular either with the area being quite dull. I can distictly remember my wife saying that she didnt like the look of it as soon as we arrived. Anyway we got our keys and made our way to our room. It was a fair walk as we had been given what turned out to be one of the furthest rooms from the lobby. Once we made it to our room and entered - wow! It was lovely. A spacious AC room with a big bed and a nice clean bathroom. Although most (90%) of the rooms are on ground level the view into the lagoon was amazing. It felt like we were the only people around due to the quiet surroundings. They even have a modestly priced inroom service menu. We were keen on looking at that due to the lack of restaurants outside the hotel not to mention the distance we would have to go just to leave the hotel gates. We had an inroom service meal for dinner but looking back I would have paid for the well priced buffet 1500 per person. The food was great - good variety, and taste. The service was at times slow but nothing to complain about really. One of the best features is the pool. Its very large and theres room even for a casual swim. All in all a great place which I will certainly go back to if in the area. Highly recommended.

Dolphin Beach was the first stop on our 10 day tour of Sri Lanka and we spent 4 amazing nights here. The rooms were beautiful with some great quirky features - only complain I would have is that you cannot lock the tents. Not too much of an issue for us but may be concerning if you had young children or anything super valuable? Dean the manager was very friendly and easy to talk to - I don't think our stay would have been the same without him. He goes above and beyond and nothing is too much trouble. The food was some of the best we had in Sri Lanka and we really liked the flexibility. When we arrived it was pizza night, but Dean correctly assumed we would want some Sri Lankan food on our first night in Sri Lanka, so he had the kitchen make us a great lamb curry dish which was delicious! One day for lunch Dean had his mother cook up a squid ink risotto with fresh cuttlefish - another amazing dish! Another highlight was the 7 week old puppy. Nero who lives in the resort. I absolutely fell in love! The next resort we stayed at was 5 star hotel chain and had no where near the service and uniqueness that we experienced at Dolphin Beach.

I loved every minute of my time at Bar Reef; it was tranquil, supremely relaxing, and the highlight of my stay in Sri Lanka. The staff was the best I had experienced in a month in Sri Lanka-- very helpful, friendly and also highly professional, attentive to detail, and creating an atmosphere of respect and peace, which allowed me to enjoy the quiet of being in nature. The 40m long saltwater swimming pool was divine and the food delicious, and for me one of the most special aspects was being able to do yoga at sunrise and sunset on the beach with Marina. I had a wonderful time and miss this place already-- thank you to everyone for such a great stay!

Aarya marked the start of our trip, and the staff takes great care of its guests. We booked the dolphin tour through the resort and it was a beautiful, magical experience. The resort property was beautiful, with 6 rooms that give you a view of the lagoon. The chef was amazingly competent and served us fantastic meals - must-try the garlic butter squid and curry cashews! Only suggestion to the team would be to be more fastidious in their checks before letting guests check-in... our bath towel, & pillow cases were stained which marred our initial impression of the place, but housekeeping took care of that quickly! All in all, a great place to chill out and relax.

The Hotel is located at Marawila Beach away from hustles of City. Place is not for shoppers and Party animals, but its awesome for relaxation and romantic couples. Staff totally exceeded our expectations in every means. Rooms were clean, Pool was cleaned every day. Breakfast was average. Food in general is above average. My wife celebrated her B'Day here. We asked if a dinner could be arranged at Beach Side and the hotel staff happily arranged a nice candle light dinner at the beach. They even arranged a Cake for the celebration free of charge for us. The stay for 3 days was great. Pros:- Value for money, Friendly Staff, Awsome Location, Clean, Willingness to exceed your expectation Cons:- They do not give normal drinking water in room and charge money for Bottled water ( You can neglect this if you want to decide about the stay) Overall... Awesome

When we arrived the owner was surprised we had a booking, he look at his laptop .oh yes I've upgraded you to a better suite and charged us more than the price on Agoda, the property is either under renovation or is new but is unfinished , there was nothing but a bed in the room and a couple of plastic chairs, there was a door that led out onto a concrete floor with piers sticking up (for further constructionofother floors)with no lighting and no hand rails around the edge, other than that it had a great view of the ocean and a dirty beach and the staff where friendly

We found a true gem in Dinuda Resort! We were met by the most genuinely friendly staff. We have traveled around a bit, and the rooms were the cleanest and nicest we had on our trip. Comfortable bed and large bathroom. But the best was the view from the terrace. It has a panorama view to both the lagoon and the ocean! The sunsets are just breathtaking and very romantic.. The resort had only five or six rooms of very different style - and that made it much more cozy than a big hotel and the staff there became like our friends. They really did all they could for us, giving advice about day trips and activities. Unfortunately we didn't have much time, but we already plan to go back and spend some more time there and to take up kite boarding on the lagoon. We learned a bit about it, it's a nice sport! The beaches are beautiful, and you can walk up the beach to the right by the lagoon, or down the beach to the left to the ocean for a nice sea bath. We had all our meals at Dinuda Resort, with fresh seafood straight from the sea. The staff cook as you wish, and the food was great! I really recommend this place to anyone who love peaceful and untouched nature - it's the best place for both relaxation and water sports on the lagoon. We will certainly be back!

Newly-established property. (+) Shibi and the team are all very kind and friendly. Food is just outstanding. It is a story of Sri Lankan food culture, colours, textures, and flavours. Beautifully set-up with eco design and furnishing. Shibi is very concerned about the wellness of the guests. She would check if we were comfortable, or if we would need an afternoon snack, packed breakfast, etc. The kitchen staff are just very sweet, polite and helpful. I tried to speak to them but I did not get any response so I am not too sure whether they understand me. But if I bring in an empty bottle, they would comprehend the situation and fill it in for me immediately. Very picturesque lagoon, you can easily spend days watching the trumpet fish, the water birds, the crows, the sun setting, the cute spider and the flame-back woodpecker (endemic) around the property. Very good location. Wilpattu National Park entrance is less than an hour away, Bar Reef is a boat away. Generous amount of attention for each and every customer. Ana and Kurumba (cheeky yet very well-mannered). (-) The cleanliness could be improved. Traces of rodents during my check-in, blood stains on the bed sheet (not mine), towels that leaves blue fluff on your skin and itchy pillow cases. On my third night, there was a loud party next door until 4 am in the morning (I used ear-plug, but you can feel the terrible bass anyway). I might not mind a party but not necessarily when I need to wake up at 6am for a boat tour. :) (+-) some things to consider if you are visiting: - Mosquitoes, mosquitoes and mosquitoes. A lot of mosquitoes. Get lots of strong repellents. - It is a long drive to Kalpitiya from airport, it took me 4+ hours. - The location is rather remote so understandably, wifi is barely ever working. (I did not mind too much, but if you need to sort out bookings or to use it for work, it can get really frustating). Overall, a resort with great hospitality, care and potential. Will I retur

the hotel is rather far from puttulam/ kalpitya. very quiet ! a new beach area in development! good for kite surfing!diving etc! the very friendly owner just has started this hotel.my staying in a nice cabana non a/c was nice with some starters problems. ...like cleaning up.power cut!sri lanka's problem! amazing the lovely private shower outside the cabana. the owner will do his best for a nice stay! even being his first guest ...i had a pleasant stay!

before coming here, i had booking in the sea garden hotel. after the shock i've experienced in that one, c & i beach hotel was for me like a deep breath with clean oxygen. this place is really amazing!!! from the first step i’ve understood that is the place i want to stay. the entrance was so welcoming; the nature outside the hotel, the room was like arranged specially for me, with everything clean and well organized. there i felt better than home, which is very strange for me. my advice to all of you is to go there at least for one week and experience these unique feelings. i wish you happy new year and all the best to you all!!!

We stayed one night at Chilaw City Hotel on our journey North from Negombo. We were the only guests; the main business of the hotel seems to be hosting weddings and parties. Our room was plain with bed, wardrobe and dressing table. The staff were fiendly. The food was fresh but not special. The hotel has a great swimming pool which was very welcome after a hot motor bike ride from Negombo.

I initially planned on staying one week at the Sanmali resort as my first stop in Sri Lanka, but enjoyed it so much I added another week The staff was so friendly & accommodating it was easy to feel like I lived there. The pictures fail to do the sunset justice, I would (in fact, will) stay there again. However, some notes for the potential visitor: -The Wi-Fi is hit & miss: sometimes it's great, other times you get little to no signal even standing next to the router. Be prepared if you need to regularly check e-mail or similar. -There are a lot of insects in & around the hotel. No harmful ones beyond mosquitoes, but if you come expecting "showroom floor" room you will be dissapointed. Small spiders, bees, & other bugs abound as well as a large number of geckos. Personally, these qualities make the place MORE appealing, but if you enjoy vacations as sterile as your living room, this is not the place for you. That's it. I'd recommend this resort to anyone.

We were amazed by friendly, multilingual and attentive hosts. Owner Upul, Venoja (sorry if miss-spelled) and all the staff of that place made us feel like a part of the family. We have arrived at 4:00 AM and were met by owner, ate delicious breakfast and were placed in the cool and clean room in meter of minutes. Later that day we have seen fishermen pooling their nets, and had lunch made with fish we have picked still in their net. Next day we have bought big prawns and had them barbecued. Food is delicious and tea is the best we have ever tried. Menu is printed in english and prices are low. Upul is you best source of information about tourist attractions, including most sufficient routs, transportation and money-saving tips (we saved time, effort and money thanks to his advises). Hosts will help to get transportation to and from airport for about $15. We liked this place so much, that changed our plans and stayed there two extra-days. Great value for money, and one of not so many businesses with a face and a soul. We will recommend it and return there again.

Elements is a litlle gem and a pradise for kitesurfer. I was travelling with wife and baby and i was looking for a place where they could have fun while i am kiteboarding. Elements brought more than that! Staff are super friendly, the bungalow deserve more than a 3 stars, the pool is amazing with a superb view of the lagoon, direct access to a private beach (kite spot) but the most important is this feeling of beeing privileged as we were part of the very few lucky people of enjoying this paradise! I really recommend this place and i will go back with my kiteboarding friends :)

Overall we were very happy with our stay at St Annes Lagoon House but there was some issues. Our room was fantastic. Lovely bed, outdoor bathroom and lounge room. The issues with the room were little hot water, the blinds provided no privacy, and all towels reeked of mothballs. The White Room which we had (which appeared to be the best by far) also opened up onto the pool which was nice, however families of Sri Lankans were using the pool and always sitting on our doorstep. The food served was fantastic. No menus but traditional Sri Lankan cuisine which was some of the best food we had over a month in Sri Lanka. The manager tended to wait while we ate which was good service but not great for a private dinner. Only tea and coffee were part of the full board which was not good, nor was getting charged $6 for stale jam sandwiches before we went dolphin watching. The gardens were nice and the pool was great. Only a few dollars to get to the dolphin boats. Not as close as some others but we had a look at some of those hotels, including Palagama, and they didn't look as nice as St Annes.

We arrived from the train station in Puttalam, 15Km away, by tuk-tuk Rp650 and were very impressed with the first impressions of this resort. Apparently it only opened 8 months ago. The open air restaurant, with a large roof was quite unique. There are only 8 rooms, 4 chalets (with ac) and 4 cabanas. We stayed in a chalet, which was quite comfortable, but sparsely furnished. The TV only had local stations airing. There is a large shallow pool with a huge waterfall feature on 2 sides, very stunning, but the floor tiles are cream, which makes the water look muddy - it is supposed to look natural, I guess. For a new resort, I was very impressed. It still has a few teething problems to sort out, but I would definitely go back.

I was very disappointed by my stay here. The staff were very rude. One member lied about the bus times to avoid having to make my breakfast at 7.30 (breakfast was over-priced, and I had already paid for it). I was under time pressure to get a bus to take me to the airport, and the staff rudely demanded payment for a drink they had forgotten to add to my bill two days previously (and left it until the very last minute to tell me about this). A very horrible end to my stay, and I left the hotel in tears, though thankfully I made my flight. A nice hotel, and the room is cheap compared to other places in the area, but the horrible rudeness of the staff definitely had a very negative impact on my stay. I would be slow to recommend this hotel.

I've stayed in many hotels of various star quality but I've never experienced such amazing service and adventure. Firstly, we got in a boat and were taken to the island with our belongings. We then got into a tractor to take us through the rugged terrain (beach tracks) to the resort. I was with a few older couples who also thoroughly enjoyed the experience but I imagine the younger crowd would enjoy this more. When we got to the resort, it reminded me of fantasy island. We had biscuits, cake and tea ready for us with friendly staff ready to pull out our seats for us as we sat down. We had the whole resort to ourselves and the staff went above and beyond to meet our requests. As it is an eco resort, the rooms were built around trees, leaving the tress in tact which means we had lovely trees within the rooms itself. We stayed in the chalets which had a fan but no air con. The beach breeze was enough to keep us cool anyway. There's heaps of things to do. Pretty much every water activity there is including jet skis, kite surfing etc. Whether you're looking for a solitary, relaxing experience or beach adventure this resort is the place for you. An amazing gem of a place which we're glad we found!