Kani Lanka Resort & Spa

14 readers found this review helpful

We got married in Sri Lanka, at the Kani Lanka. It was perfect!!!!!
The hotel was amazing, the people were lovely.I honestly can't say one thing
bad about the place or the people.Infact i'm saving up to go back,best place on the planet!!!!!!!

18 readers found this review helpful

we both had a fabulous time at kani lanka, we loved the variety of food especially the sri lankan dishes. The rooms were lovely and clean, they were cleaned daily. The pool is lovely, just what you need when it gets too hot. We booked half board and were pleasantly surprised at how low our bill was for the two weeks, we had lunch every day and drank plenty, you have to so that you dont get dehydrated. The fresh fruit juices are yummy. We both had a massage at the spa, and had the 7 course meal one evening(we thought we were going to explode!) The bill at the end of our hols came to just a little over £200. We had visited sri lanka previously and stayed in negombo further up the coast. How shocked were we when one of the beach boys called jumbo spoke to alan my husband and asked him if we had stayed in negombo at a particular hotel in 2005!! He invited us to his house (which was at the time on the tsunami camp). I can say how ashamed i was of my cooking after his wife cooked us an absolutely beautiful meal on nothing more than a two burner primer stove! she even cooked me a veggie dish(banana curry) which was delicious. Glad to say Jumbo, his wife and 3 children have recently moved out of the camp to proper housing. The reps do tell you not to use the beach boys, but to be honest we never encounted any problems at all. we used jumbo and his tuk-tuk (great fun) everytime we wanted to nip anywhere,theres a small supermarket just a tuk-tuks drive away, they sell lots of branded toilettries and suncreams so its great if you run low or dont want to cart it all there in the first place. You do need a car and driver for longer distances though, dont miss the elephant orphanage at pinnewala under any circumstances, its at least a 4hr drive but well worth it, you can visit a tea factory en route also.Nearer by is the turtle hatchery, which is very interesting its free entrance but they do ask if you will leave a small donation, you get to hold baby turtles too. Food is very cheap when you eat out if visiting other places. A meal for two with drink costs about £3-4! I would say not to order a sandwich when eating out as this is one thing the sri lankans dont seem to be able to do very well. I think this is because due to the heat by the time it gets to you its curled up at the edges and died. Well, because we love this fantastic country so much we are off again on 22 july2008, we have decided to go to kani lanka again too. We will be sprawled out on the sunbeds soaking up the sun drinking gorgeous refreshing watermelon juice, with a few beers thrown in too. Hope its as good as last time, we cant wait. If you see jumbo, please use him and his friends and tell him alan and tracy look forward to seeing him soon. The people of Sri Lanka are very poor by our standards but always look a million times happier than British people. Tipping seems to be expected and everybody can at times seem to be after a share of your money. I suppose to them we must appear to be millionaires. dont let it get to you if you feel you are getting bugged a little.We only seemed to be hassled when we visited dambulla caves and sigiyria rock fortress(both worth a visit also) We found that a firm but polite no is all that was needed. Have fun!

8 readers found this review helpful

We had the most fantastic time at this hotel when we went in February for our wedding. There were 8 of us in our party and I can honestly say that each and every one of us had a great time.
The staff at the hotel looked after us so well from start to finish. I don’t know if this was because we were getting married but they really did go out of their way to make sure everything about our holiday was perfect.
We didn’t get the free room upgrade we were promised by First Choice, but I think this was due to the girls in the travel agents not knowing what they were talking about rather than it being the hotels fault, but the room we had (416) was fantastic. It was at the far end of the hotel on the second floor and we had fab views overlooking the sea. The sunset every evening was amazing. We never had any problems with dampness in the room or any of the other problems other people have commented about. The room boy Lal did an exceptional job at keeping it spotless and the flower arrangements on the bed every day were amazing.
The food was fantastic. There were lots of fabulous curry dishes, which you would expect in Sri Lanka, but they also had a good selection of other food for those who don’t like spicy food.
I would definitely recommend having an Ala carte meal. It will cost approx £20 pp but we had a 7 course banquet for this and the food was fabulous.
Our Wedding day itself was just the best. The hairdresser did a fantastic job of my hair and makeup, and the whole day went without a hitch. Monica the elephant was very well behaved and the photo’s we received were very good. We paid a little extra to have fireworks in the evening during our 7 course meal, which was worth every penny and were enjoyed by everyone.
We booked our trips with Jambo one of the beach boys and they were all very good, and cheaper than the rep. He also tailored the trips to what we wanted which was great as we were able to pick and choose where we went.
People have commented on having to tip all the time and this is true, but 100rupee’s (50p) every now and then is well worth it for the service we received. We found that tipping at the beginning and end of the holiday was the best thing to do.
As you can probably gather we really had an amazing time and couldn’t have asked for a better setting or hotel to get married at.

2 readers found this review helpful

We have just come back from a wonderful holiday in Sri Lanka what a beautiful place. Overall the hotel was lovely although we did have some problems with our room and thought the Management was quite rude and indifferent.
The staff were wonderful especially Lal who looked after our room, the pool boys were fabulous too.
The hotel was so clean and the food was wonderful.
We did go out on some trips which we booked through the guys on the beach, we booked our trip through Philip and would recomend that you speak to him, he was a lovely man and our trip was everything he promised us it would be, he took us to meet his wife and children what a lovely family. Don't belive what the tour operators say about these guys, Philip was a star.
The entertainment staff were Italian and only encouraged the Italian guests to join the activities which was disapointing.
All in all though the holiday was wonderful!

5 readers found this review helpful

What a fantastic hotel the Kani Lanka is, more of a 9.5 really, the staff are genuinely warm and friendly, the service is excellent and if you accept that tipping for good service is the norm then you won't be disappointed. An average tip is about 100 rupees which is only about 50 pence! It is also well worth spending a bit of time talking to the staff and getting to know them. The hotel is nice and quiet and is more suited to couples than families with children.
For any trips or excursions use the local beach boys, we did and would highly recommend you seek out Sunny for your trips. He did an amazing job organising the trips we wanted, including overnight accommodation at Kandy, entrance at various attractions and guides where appropriate. Nothing was too much trouble and it was genuinely a case of if we were happy then he was happy. His local knowledge was second to none and using him meant that we got a one to one service, which we wouldn't have necessarily got with the rep, at a fraction of the price and the advantages of having your own local guide cannot be underestimated.
Sri Lanka is a fantastic place to visit which I would recommend to anyone, whether you just want to lay by the pool or want to get out and explore and we'll certainly be going back.

5 readers found this review helpful

It's well worth going half board if you don't drink a lot of alcohol as buffet lunch is only 4 pounds and bottled water is supplied free of charge in your room.
Excellent hotel, the rooms were smaller than expected as we had toured around Sri Lanka and had much larger rooms in other hotels. Food was high quality and staff are very helpful.
One annoyance was that guests reserve sunbeds by paying the pool attendants up to 1000 rupees to ensure they get their chosen sunlounger for the duration of their stay. The staff stated this wasn't policy and nothing appeared to be done about it.
Although the staff speak relatively good English I found making my opinion heard fell on deaf ears. It also means that 'reserved sunbeds' are often left unused if people are on excursions.

2 readers found this review helpful

I’m currently staying in the Kani Lanka Resort and must admit the hotel is amazing.
I'm over here for the cricket, which is not going too well! The place is gorgeous! The only thing that lets you down is everyone wants a tip or is trying to scam you. I might be paranoid but when they tell you to get off at the wrong rail station you know they are having a joke!
Weather is beautiful and the sunsets are pictures.

5 readers found this review helpful

Sri Lanka was a spur of the moment decision to us as we had no idea where we wanted to go, but we wanted it to be hot.
As soon as we arrived in the country the people were great. Our transfer to the hotel was an experience in itself. The driver was great and wanted to explain everything to us as our journey proceeded.
Once we were at the hotel we were met by a stunning reception that was picturesque. The staff at reception were very friendly and gave us a tour of the hotel and showed us to our rooms.
The rooms themselves were amazingly clean and stylish. The way they made the beds twice a day astonished me, each in a different way.
The second day we met with our rep who put us off using the beach boys for any kind of excursion. I have to say the only reason for this could have been for them to make the sale. We were recommended a beach boy (Mark) who spoke perfect English and organised a cheap excursion to the south of the island for us. He was happy to include whatever we wanted within the tour and take out what we didn’t want.
We did however use the tour operators for an excursion also; this was to Kandy for days. This excursion was very tiring but also worth it.
Great holiday.

4 readers found this review helpful

We would HIGHLY recommend the Kani Lanka resort in Sri Lanka. It was a perfect setting in a fantastic holiday destination. The hotel lives up to its 5* status over and over. We were thrilled that we paid a little extra to upgrade our room to a superior suite, we had two balconies... one over looking the ocean and the other looking out to the lake.
Every night you return to your room and the room service lads would scatter flowers on the bed... so romantic, don't get that treatment at home! We didn't have one bad meal. There was always a good selection of different foods. The staff were all a credit to the resort, so friendly and helpful.
We had a mixed bag of weather while we were there in October, a few nights there were torrential downpours but it would all clear up by morning and be beautiful and hot again. All in all a brilliant destination, we will return in a few years time!

1 reader found this review helpful

Best holiday ever, the hotel was excellent, the staff were very helpful always smiling despite the very long hours they worked and food was first class. Me and my husband went there with 12 other people for my friends wedding and we have all said we would go back again. If going on trips go with the beach lads half the price and they are very nice men ask for Freddie and Laurance top blokes.