Club Dolphin Hotel

Dolphin Hotel is really due for an update and refurbishment. The public rooms and bars need modernising and the guest rooms leave much to be desired.
Our room lacked any drawer space, any bedside tables, or tea and co0ffe arrangements. No fridge or mini bar.
Having said all that the staff are excellent and Sri Lankan people are generally delightful, always a ready smile for the stranger.
The food was generally very good and varied.
The two day excursion to Kandy was exceptionally good and good value for money. The trip however was very tiring because of the many many things to see and do.
All in all a wonderful experience which we would highly recommend.

I have just returned from Sri Lanka, where my parents and I stayed in club hotel Dolphin. I really had an amazing 2 weeks, enjoying a 2 day trip to the elephant orphanage and to Sigria Rock.
The hotel was always kept clean and tidy and I wouldn’t have wished the staff to be any friendlier than they were. Always there with a friendly smile. The animators really kept us entertained the whole time we were there and I believe they really made the holiday special.
The hotel is set right on a picturesque beach. However we were told to stay out of the water as the waves were very strong, although towards the end of the holiday people were starting to enjoy the waves. The food was great. I thought I would get a bit bored of the same food every night; however there were different themed nights of food. Etc American style. It was great!
There was entertainment everyday by the poolside, including darts, golf and water volleyball. This holiday was great for all ages because my parents had a perfect time, relaxing and always having a game of sports and I spent most of the time in the swimming pool. The staff are only happy to help with any problems you have.
The hotel is a 3*+, however I strongly believe that the money for the holiday is well spent. Overall I had a fantastic time, and I’m even going back for two weeks again in January so I’m really looking forward to seeing everyone again!
I think Sri Lanka is a great holiday because you get a chance to relax and also meet new friendly faces and pick up all the culture that’s available. There are trips to all the temples around, and I thought it was very interesting and something that you wouldn’t be able to find anywhere else. Sri Lanka is definitely the place to go!

My husband two friends and I had a wonderful stay at this hotel, we stayed in the cottages on the beach which were very comfortable and relaxing, so romantic sleeping to the sound of the sea.
We went to the Elephant Orphanage in Kandy, rode an Elephant too! We booked with Haraold (you will find him on the beach) he also has a shop to left of the hotel as you go out the front.

If you go to the right on your way out of the hotel there is a lovely restaurant and Sangems Jewellers, where our husbands had a beer or 2 in the restaurant whilst my friend and I had our jewellery made up from our designs, we can also recommend the jeweller at Asda on the beach passed the quite pool.

We booked an overnight trip to Yala National Park it was fantastic, and we were very lucky to get to see not one but 2 Leopards along with loads of other lovely wild life.
We recommend Sri Lanka.

Just returned from two weeks holiday at hotel dolphin. We had a fantastic time and would thoroughly recommend it to anyone thinking of going to Sri Lanka. This was our third time to the island; however we had stayed down south before.
Hotel Dolphin is an excellent place to stay and visit and is also not too far to transfer from the airport. The hotel was very clean. We stayed in a cottage room in front of the beach which was basic but very clean and very relaxing no noise around just the sound of the waves crashing all night just lovely.
The staff were very friendly and there was always entertainment going on, we stayed mainly round the quiet pool however the larger pool area was also very nice and relaxing. Food was very good and a good variety.
We took a two day trip with Tamil from asda shop next to the quiet pool on the beach. It was a brilliant trip going to elephant orphanage, Kandy Sigiria Rock (you must climb it its quiet hard but just bear with it, its amazing views at the top) and to Dambulla Rock caves, we stayed overnight in Kandy and all this fantastic trip cost only £60. Tamil gave us a great trip and we recommend his trips to anyone he is 100% safe and reliable.
Overall the holiday sights food etc were brilliant and we thoroughly recommend this hotel to anyone. We will certainly be returning again one day very soon.

Stayed at the Dolphin Hotel for 2 weeks at the beginning of June '07. Had a fab time.
Had one of the front cottages on the beach. The cottage was basic but the location suited us fine. Spent most of our time at the quiet pool just relaxing.
The staff were friendly and nothing was too much trouble for them. The food was clean and tasty with lots of choice.
We went on a 2 day tour: Elephant orphanage, Sigari, Kandy etc etc which Harald organised for us. If you go out of the entrance by the Reception area and head left, you'll find Harald's shop (which has a British flag flying outside).
Nothing was too much trouble and we had an excellent time - would certainly recommend using Harald. He organised for Michael to be our driver and David was our guide. David speaks fluent English and German and we learnt a great deal from him.
I would also recommend going on a river trip (I think it cost £2). A tip - take a large bag of English sweets because you'll see a lot of children playing along the river banks - they love English sweeties.
I would thoroughly recommend staying at this hotel and we would certainly go back again. We were a little worried about it being 'Monsoon season' and expected a lot of rain.
As it happens, it rained for 5 mins the first week and 5 mins the second week. I hadn't realised though that the Monsoon affects the tides. It was too rough to go in the sea but the crashing waves were very dramatic.

We stayed at the club hotel dolphin in august and had a wonderful holiday. The rooms were kept clean and tidy with clean sheets every day. The food was good, lots of variety and the chefs are more than happy to provide English food if needed. My children tried the food but were able to order chips as well.
The waiters were extremely polite and very helpful. We all enjoyed the animation team, they work very hard and are always smiling and ready to chat. They are brilliant with the children and keep everyone entertained.
We had such a good time we will definitely be returning to the beautiful island of sri lanka. There are some good local shops, Asda on the beach and Harolds just up the road in front of the hotel. They have some lovely gifts there and the ladies will make you some lovely sarongs and are always smiling and helpful. (They even give you gifts when you make a purchase.)

My family and I have just returned from a wonderful 2 week holiday at Club Hotel Dolphin. The location by the sea is fantastic, the facilities at the hotel cater for all ages and the food could not be faulted. The animation team provided activities throughout the day for both adults and children alike, this meant that if you didn't want to sit on a lounger at the beautiful poolside you could get involved with some fun and games to break up the day.
Outside of the hotel we went on a day trip with Tamil from the ASDA shop. We were very pleased with the tourist places we visited but were concerned by some of the erratic driving of the local Sri Lankans.
One word of caution if you agree a price for saris to be made at the ASDA shop ensure that is the price to be paid when collected as the price changed considerably for me. There is also another shop nearby called Tesco run by Edward who is a lovely man but drives a hard bargain.
He also runs trips which were highly recommended by other guests of the hotel. We enjoyed this holiday and our stay at Club Hotel Dolphin so much that we are thinking of returning next summer. We particularly look forward to meeting all of the animation team especially Pali, Asha,Shami,Sunny and Ritchie.

We had a fantastic two week holiday at Hotel dolphin. The hotel staff were brilliant, always polite and helpful. During the day there is the choice of the quiet pool or the larger, more lively pool, where the entertainment team provide activities throughout the day.
We also did a range of trips, some with First choice and others with Edward and local taxi drivers. With Edward we visited the Millennium Elephant sanctuary where we had the opportunity to wash the elephants in the river and also to have a quick 5 min ride.
During the trip we also visited the elephant orphanage and watched the elephants bathe in the river - an amazing sight. We booked a trip with a local taxi driver to visit Columbo (the capital) it wasn't what we imagined - not commercialised at all. One tip if you're planning to see the capital - take off your hotel wrist bands as we were targeted by people pretending to work at our hotel and trying to scam us!
I thought the food available at the hotel was very good - I’m a vegan and very fussy and they were still able to cater for me!
Overall we really enjoyed our holiday and we made some great friends (Hi to Caroline and James); FiFi and LaLa really made our holiday and I hope we will return soon so we can see them all again.

I had an absolutely fabulous time at this hotel, I would go back tomorrow if I could.
It's so beautiful around the pool area and beach and the rooms were lovely too. The animation team were fabulous, the hours they work is unbelievable, it just wouldn't happen in England.
They work for an average wage of about £15.00 a month so rely heavy on tourism which has dropped really badly, understandably since the tsunami.
The staff are so friendly, and always happy and smiling. A special mention to LaLa, you rock my world!

We had the most wonderful fortnight at the Club Hotel Dolphin. We were three generations together, and all six of us found our place with the activities, food and facilities, which were creative, friendly and fun. Being somewhat isolated in Waikkal, its programmes ran from 11.00 a.m. till after midnight each day.
Set amid beautiful gardens with a magnificent pool, I'd also have been content to do little more than lie around! The hotel also served as a good base from which to see more of this wonderful island. We shunned the larger organized tours and traveled with Benedict, proprietor of the ASDA store along the beach, in an air-conditioned minivan.
For £20 less per person than on the big tour buses, we saw and did far more: we scrubbed elephants down with coconut shells, rode on their backs and got showered from their trunks, visited a gem mine, a turtle hatchery, Buddhist temples, a mask factory, a tea plantation, and climbed our way up Sigiriya. Benedict proved a pleasant and energetic escort, who never stopped buying us gifts.