The Sanctuary

Ontzettend lieve mensen. We waren de enige gasten. Er werd ons van te voren gezegd dat de safari waarschijnlijk niet door kon gaan in verband met de overstromingen. Maar we wilden niet annuleren omdat ze al veel annuleringen gehad hebben. Toen we aankwamen werden we hartelijk ontvangen. De kamers zijn echt ongelofelijk mooi, ruim en prachtige badkamers. We hebben een middag safari gedaan. Dat was inderdaad spannend om er te komen, maar het was de spanning waard. We waren de enige toeristen in het park leek het wel. We hebben olifanten gezien, een krokodil, prachtige vogels. Echt een fijn verblijf.

Het ontbijt was erg mager.

El alojamiento tiene mucho encanto habitaciones grandes y muy cómodas comida buena y experiencia muy personalizada para el safari Wilpattu .

Un poco más de información en el tour hubiera estado mejor

+ Almost everything. Achini and Dula are amazing, we also had a Safari trip together, half day. + The residence looks fabulous. + They handle mosquitos very well. + Beautiful and clean glass. + Really felt taken care of and welcome!

- This isn't the place for people who have insect phobia. Thankfully, NO cockroaches, but many other flying and buzzing beetles, as well as the light bugs made quite a show at night!

This place is amazing. If you want to go to Wilpattu National Park, this is the perfect accommodation. We booked The Sanctuary half an hour before arriving and we were warmly greeted at the door by the owner Siraj. Siraj's passion for environmental protection is incredible. His knowledge of the ecology of the area is huge. Siraj and his team provided us with first class hospitality, beautiful food and a fully organized safari we will never forget (for a very competitive price). Extras like plentiful home grown bananas, a night tour of the grounds (seeing flying foxes and mouse deer) and free photos of what we saw on safari were the icing on the cake. It was a privilege to have stayed at The Sanctuary and we left enriched. I would not hesitate to return here in future.

The staff were really friendly, amazing food and really gorgeous place. They took us on a wildlife tour where we saw otters and loris all on their grounds! There is not much in the local area so you need to keep this in mind if planning to visit a shop or restaurant during your stay, it’s not really possible

Spacious, comfortable and stylish room. Lovely staff (Dinesha is a fabulous cook - our breakfast and dinner were both superb; Achini and Dula were knowledgeable and passionate about nature and we enjoyed our walking tours). It was a shame we couldn’t get to Wilpattu National Park due to flash floods making the road impassable

Felt it was overpriced compared to other places we’ve stayed. We were given welcome drinks (fresh juice) on arrival and surprised to find that we were charged 600 each for them! Also expected that the taxes/ charges would be obligatory payments but, when we queried the $18 payment on top of the $58.23 paid for the room, we were advised it included 10% service charge for the “hard work of the staff”!! Surely such a charge would normally be included in the room rate???

The family who run The Sanctuary are friendly and helpful and mum’s cooking is lovely. The grounds are well kept and attractive, although the pond was dry when we were there. The room was spacious and the bed comfortable. We used it as a base for the safari at Wilpattu, and booked our safari through The Sanctuary too, and for that it was good value. We had a wander around the village but there wasn’t much else to see. The safari was amazing but we found the full day to be too long and too tiring. The morning was perfect, many birds, deer, crocodiles, leopard and much more, but by midday it was very hot and had become much quieter. Our driver and guide finished at about 4 (we thought it went on until 6), so the elephants hadn’t yet come out for the cooler late afternoon, which was disappointing. Our advice would be to book a half day.

It was hot while we were there and we found it a struggle without air con (there is a fan). Earlier than stated finish to the safari, so missed the elephants.

The Sanctuary is an outstanding place. The building itself it’s beautiful designed and decorated, fitting in well to the natural surroundings. The room and all the fittings feel high quality and a luxurious, a real treat when budget back packing. The nature that it is surrounded by is truly beautiful and peaceful. The perfect place to sit back and relax! What makes The Sanctuary so special is the staff. So welcoming, friendly and accommodating. Their knowledge of the animals and plants that you will see on walks around the premises is amazing, so well educated and genuine. The food cooked by mum is 10/10 and you will not leave hungry. They made our safari day so enjoyable and truly perfect!! I can not recommend this place enough, it’s a new venture for the team and they do it so well!! Thank you so much to everyone involved.

Amazing hospitality, attentive staff, very comfortable rooms and the food was lovely too!We saw some amazing animals on the property on our guided walks, and the guide was very knowledgeable. Strongly reccommended

1 night was not enough!

HR Solo traveller I visited the Sanctuary on the recommendation of a friend and thoroughly enjoyed my brief stay there. Great care and much thought has been given to the furnishings of the house. It has an extensive collection of books on wildlife and birds and I could have spent many hours browsing this collection. The food was delicious and I was looked after very well by Dula and his team. There is a good choice of excursions on offer, but I chose a half day tour to the Wilpattu National Park which is only about 30 minutes drive from the Sanctuary. Dula and his wife, Achini were my guides and they took a great deal of trouble to ensure that I had a memorable experience. We were fortunate to see leopard, elephants, sea eagles and much more. I will definitely return on my next visit to Sri Lanka.