The Notary's House

Location: Mawathahena Watta, Gonawila, Makandura, Makandura, lk

Star Rating: 9.6 Stars

Property Type: Hotels

About this Property

Policies

Check-in: 02:00 PM - 12:00 AM

Check-out: 10:00 AM

Amenities & Facilities

• Health or beauty spa nearby
• Offsite parking discounted rates available
• Parking
• Non-smoking rooms
• Air conditioning
• Swimming pool
• Restaurant
• Room service
• Terrace
• Family rooms
• Safety deposit box
• Facilities for disabled guests
• Ironing service
• Packed lunches
• Non-smoking throughout
• Private check-in/check-out
• Board games/puzzles
• Wheelchair accessible
• Kid meals
• Outdoor furniture
• Fruits
• Staff adhere to local safety protocols
• Guest rooms disinfected between stays
• Cleaning standards that are effective against Coronavirus
• Physical distancing rules followed
• Hand sanitizer in guest room and key areas
• Cashless payment available
• Fire extinguishers
• First aid kit available
• Sanitized tableware & silverware
• Contactless check-in/check-out
• Guests can opt-out any cleaning services during stay
• Guest room sealed after cleaning
• Physical distancing in dining areas
• Food delivered to guest room
• CCTV outside property
• Process in place to check health of guests
• Access to health care professionals
• Screens / Barriers between staff and guests for safety
• Face masks for guests available
• Delivered food - securely covered
• Cooking class
• Television in common areas
• Front desk (limited hours)
• Free wired internet
• Self parking (surcharge)
• Offsite parking discounted rates available
• Internet access
• Housekeeping on request
• Private picnics
• Wine release events
• Exercise/lap pool
• Japanese garden
• Secured parking
• Health or beauty spa nearby
• Swimming nearby

Rooms Available

• Standard Twin Room

  The twin room features air conditioning, soundproof walls, a balcony with lake views as well as a private bathroom boasting a bath. The unit has 2 beds.

  Max Occupancy: 2 (2 Adults)

  • Coffee/tea maker
  • Shower
  • Safety deposit box
  • Air conditioning
  • Desk
  • Fan
  • Private bathroom
  • Sofa
  • Hardwood or parquet floors
  • Electric kettle
  • Mosquito net
  • Wardrobe or closet
  • Bidet
  • Linen
  • Clothes rack
  • Toilet paper
  • Pool towels
  • Bottle of water
  • Trash cans
  • Key access
  • Window
  • Single-room air conditioning for guest accommodation
  • Hand sanitiser

• Standard Double Room

  The spacious double room offers air conditioning, soundproof walls, a balcony with lake views as well as a private bathroom boasting a bath. The unit has 1 bed.

  Max Occupancy: 2 (2 Adults)

  • Coffee/tea maker
  • Shower
  • Safety deposit box
  • Air conditioning
  • Desk
  • Fan
  • Private bathroom
  • Sofa
  • Hardwood or parquet floors
  • Electric kettle
  • Mosquito net
  • Wardrobe or closet
  • Bidet
  • Linen
  • Clothes rack
  • Toilet paper
  • Pool towels
  • Bottle of water
  • Trash cans
  • Key access
  • Window
  • Single-room air conditioning for guest accommodation
  • Hand sanitiser

• Deluxe Double Room

  The spacious double room features air conditioning, soundproof walls, a balcony with lake views as well as a private bathroom boasting a bath. The unit has 2 beds.

  Max Occupancy: 3 (3 Adults)

  • Coffee/tea maker
  • Shower
  • Safety deposit box
  • Air conditioning
  • Desk
  • Seating Area
  • Fan
  • Private bathroom
  • Sofa
  • Hardwood or parquet floors
  • Electric kettle
  • Mosquito net
  • Wardrobe or closet
  • Bidet
  • Linen
  • Clothes rack
  • Toilet paper
  • Pool towels
  • Bottle of water
  • Trash cans
  • Key access
  • Window
  • Single-room air conditioning for guest accommodation
  • Hand sanitiser

• Deluxe Double Room

  This double room features a pool with a view. The spacious double room features air conditioning, a private entrance, a balcony with lake views as well as a private bathroom boasting a bath. The unit has 2 beds.

  Max Occupancy: 3 (3 Adults)

  • Coffee/tea maker
  • Shower
  • Safety deposit box
  • Air conditioning
  • Hair dryer
  • Desk
  • Seating Area
  • Fan
  • Toilet
  • Private bathroom
  • Private entrance
  • Sofa
  • Tile/marble floor
  • Hardwood or parquet floors
  • Electric kettle
  • Mosquito net
  • Wardrobe or closet
  • Bidet
  • Linen
  • Entire unit located on ground floor
  • Upper floors accessible by stairs only
  • Clothes rack
  • Toilet paper
  • Pool towels
  • Shallow end
  • Bottle of water
  • Trash cans
  • Shampoo
  • Key access
  • Window
  • Single-room air conditioning for guest accommodation
  • Hand sanitiser

• Deluxe Double Room

  The spacious double room features air conditioning, soundproof walls, a balcony with lake views as well as a private bathroom boasting a bath. The unit has 2 beds.

  Max Occupancy: 3 (3 Adults)

  • Coffee/tea maker
  • Shower
  • Safety deposit box
  • Air conditioning
  • Desk
  • Seating Area
  • Fan
  • Private bathroom
  • Sofa
  • Hardwood or parquet floors
  • Electric kettle
  • Mosquito net
  • Wardrobe or closet
  • Bidet
  • Linen
  • Clothes rack
  • Toilet paper
  • Pool towels
  • Bottle of water
  • Trash cans
  • Key access
  • Window
  • Single-room air conditioning for guest accommodation
  • Hand sanitiser

• Staycation Offer : Standard Double Room with Full Board upgrade & Early checkin and late checkout for Sri Lankan Passport / NIC Holders

  The spacious double room features air conditioning, soundproof walls, a balcony with lake views as well as a private bathroom boasting a bath. The unit has 1 bed.

  Max Occupancy: 2 (2 Adults)

  • Coffee/tea maker
  • Shower
  • Safety deposit box
  • Air conditioning
  • Desk
  • Fan
  • Private bathroom
  • Sofa
  • Hardwood or parquet floors
  • Electric kettle
  • Mosquito net
  • Wardrobe or closet
  • Bidet
  • Linen
  • Clothes rack
  • Toilet paper
  • Pool towels
  • Bottle of water
  • Trash cans
  • Key access
  • Window
  • Single-room air conditioning for guest accommodation
  • Hand sanitiser

• Family Suite

  The spacious family room offers air conditioning, soundproof walls, a balcony with lake views as well as a private bathroom featuring a bath. The unit offers 4 beds.

  Max Occupancy: 5 (5 Adults)

  • Coffee/tea maker
  • Shower
  • Safety deposit box
  • Air conditioning
  • Desk
  • Seating Area
  • Fan
  • Private bathroom
  • Interconnected room(s) available
  • Sofa
  • Hardwood or parquet floors
  • Electric kettle
  • Mosquito net
  • Wardrobe or closet
  • Bidet
  • Linen
  • Clothes rack
  • Toilet paper
  • Pool towels
  • Bottle of water
  • Trash cans
  • Key access
  • Window
  • Single-room air conditioning for guest accommodation
  • Hand sanitiser

Guest Reviews

• Christopher (4/5): Huge disappointment - staff labour to do best despite underinvestment by owners - Sensible location for those going north raise beautiful lake Appalling food and the facilities lack investment.
• emily (9/5): Brilliant stay at this gorgeous property - Loved everything. So beautiful and staff soooo kind and helpful Nothing!
• Laura (9/5): We very much enjoyed our stay. It was relaxing, quiet and very comfortable. - A beautiful, calm, lovely property in beautiful surroundings. The staff were very helpful and friendly. Breakfast, lunch and dinner were all great. Nothing.
• Jo (10/5): Lovely small hotel, only 45 minutes from the airport, which makes it ideal for a few days relaxing at the beginning or e - Wonderful location, very quiet, beautiful views, great pool, large rooms & lovely communal areas. High quality food, exceptional staff & outstanding service. Nice to have free walking & cycling tours provided by the staff.
• Elizabeth (10/5): Idyllic, unique,beautiful hotel in a wonderful setting. The staff were outstanding especially Kumara, the food was amazi - Everything!! Location, food, staff, service! Nothing
• Eilidh (10/5): A wonderful, homely hotel - Lovely and helpful staff, free bike tour around the lake and jungle, spacious spotless rooms. Food was also excellent. Great place to stay after a long flight. Nothing.
• Amalie (10/5): -
• Manrita (5/5): great for a remote break - the staff were exceptional and so accomodating. They took very good care of us and if it wasn't for the staff, then this hotel would not be outstanding. The rooms were lovely and big, there was a relaxing feel to the property. Unfortunately we didn't get to enjoy the pool or the surroundings as much as it rained the entire time we were there. The staff arranged for a lovely tuk tuk ride around the lake which was lovely. The food was excellent and the staff so polite and accomodating. Really welldone to the staff. It appears on booking.com that the rooms have a TV - they do not! so just to make you aware of this. Perhaps it was due to the rain but the water and electricity in our rooms kept cutting off. One morning I woke up to turn the tap on and no water came out. My showers were completely cold the entire stay at this property - again I don't know if this was due to the rain but we were without electricity for 3 hours in the morning - could possibly be longer. The staff did not seem to respond to this well. There was a lack of clarity about the prices of dinner at the hotel, we would order the food and not know the prices or a menu until after. This was misleading.
• Lucy (10/5): Wow, such a fabulous stay! Would highly recommend! - An exceptional place to stay in beautiful surroundings. A huge thank you to Dushan for his service. The breakfast and dinner were superb! Nothing
• Wendy (10/5): A quiet comfortable first night in SriLanka - A beautiful building. High ceilings, grand space but rest assured that it is an understated grandeur, set on the banks of a lake. Lovely flowers and birds. A tranquil place. Great Sri Lanka food. We didn’t try the western food, so cannot comment. Nice pool. It was about 45-50 mins from Colombo airport but a world away from the bustle of a city. English sockets was helpful. Good Wi-Fi connection. The kitchen garden is worth a tour. I cannot think of anything.
• Jacqueline (10/5): Great value withvery elegant grounds. Feels like an oasis of sophistication plus a touch of antiquit - The staff were excellent, the food was terrific and the grounds exceeded my expectation. The room was very large and majestic. I felt like a queen! Moth ball smell on the swimming pool towels.
• Michael (10/5): Home away from home! - Everything from check-in to check-out was flawless. The staff was very helpful, especially Duzhan (sorry for spelling), but everyone was great. The property is set in a large, spacious house and tastefully decorated. There is a lovely pool which we didn't have time to use, but it was amazing. The breakfast was perfect. We had a choice between a Sri Lankan or Western breakfast, and as we've had enough curry for a while, opted for the Western option. We could have had eggs, but chose yogurt, coffee, toast, etc and it came with local jam and a fruit plate. All of it served in a lovely setting overlooking the grounds. For dinner, we enjoyed a traditional Sri Lankan rice dish set in a banana leaf which was scrumptious! Honestly, this is a place not to miss if you come to Sri Lanka. Thanks to the entire team! Absolutely nothing.
• Nicola (8/5): A great start to a trip! - A great place for R&R at the beginning of a trip to recover from an overnight flight (or prior to a return flight). We again spent a couple of nights which was the perfect amount. The rooms are all picturesque, large and comfortable with air-con and overhead fans, whichever category you choose. Actually, the lower category rooms have better views of the lake! The pool is lovely. Good to have some bikes this time. Being picky, the previous chef has left and the food this time was not as memorable or delicious as 3 years ago when it was beautifully presented and some of the best we had over a month’s trip.
• Ben (10/5): A great place to relax for a few days after arrival or before departure. - The location is fantastic right next to the lake. Th flora and fauna are fascinating especially the birds in the morning. Breakfast was good with western and Sri Lankan choices. We ate there in the evenings and the food including the curry and rive were ecellent. The staff are a credit to the property and escorted us on a bike tour of the local area. We thoroughly enjoyed our two nights here decompressing after long haul flights. We would definitely recommend and return Nothing
• Janet (8/5): -
• Ruth (10/5): -
• sarah (10/5): - Beautiful location, perfect place to relax into the beginning or end of a holiday. Exceptionally friendly and helpful staff, food was excellent. Really recommend Weirdly our room wasn't cleaned during the day and had to ask for more water but really this was a minor detail.
• João (10/5): - Excellent place to relax and feel the real sri lankan atmosphere. Beautiful building/house. Beautiful and peaceful garden with a seren natural lake. A beautiful bhuddist temple near. Above all, the persons in charge of the place and all the people in general. One of the best places, ever. Nothing
• Genevieve (10/5): -
• matthew (10/5): -
• Sally (8/5): - This property is very charming, very clean and beautifully presented. The staff were absolutely wonderful and bent over backwards to look after us and host us. We really enjoyed dining outside overlooking the garden and being charmed by the wild life. The rooms were big and generous as were the ensuites. The food was a bit disappointing.
• Gintarė (10/5): Excellent - The hospitality here is top-notch. Sadly we didn’t had time to stay longer. Would definitely come back!
• Cécile (10/5): Lovely stay at the notary’s house - Beautiful location and property, the room was beautiful and clean. We also had a dinner and breakfast which were very good. Wonderful service too. Perfect way to start our honeymoon
• Delusha (10/5): -
• Andrew (10/5): Superb one night stay after a long flight - Perfect setting and location for our needs Nothing
• Henna (10/5): -
• Raf (9/5): Prachtig en rustig gelegen koloniaal hotel met supervriendelijk personeel - Supervriendelijk personeel. Prachtig hotel in koloniale sfeer met zicht op het achterliggend meer. Zeer ruime en mooie kamer, badkamer en terras. Zalig genoten van het zwembad en de lunch. Een top uitgebreid lokaal ontbijt. Ideaal om tot rust te komen na een lange vlucht en onze vakantie te starten.
• Exfux (10/5): - Ein traumhaftes, kleines Boutique-Hotel mit dem freundlichsten und aufmerksamsten Personal aller Zeiten. Wer die Ruhe und excellentes Essen genießen will, ist hier genau richtig. Wir würden definitiv wieder buchen! Da gibt es nichts zu beanstanden!
• Kaivan (8/5): A very enjoyable stay and we'll worth a return. - The staff were excellent. The location was very good. The room was large and clean The food was good and tasty. The service was excellent. The guided bike ride was very enjoyable. There was no daily house keeping.
• Francesco (10/5): Bellissima struttura immersa nella natura - Tutto Niente
• LUCY (10/5): Heavenly stay - would love to return - Thank you everyone at The Notary’s House - Absolutely beautiful!! Historical house within a stunning peaceful environment - modern facilities & staff that couldn’t more wonderful. The food was outstanding too, mainly from their own garden. It was perfect - nothing to dislike!
• Sandra (10/5): - Cudowne miejsce na relaks 🤍
• Valerie (10/5): Fantastic stay - My family and I stayed for 2 nights on arrival in Sri Lanka after a night flight. It was the perfect place to relax. The house is very peaceful and beautiful. The staff is very attentive, friendly and caring. The food was amazing. Feels more like a guest house than a hotel. Highly recommend it.
• Sarah (10/5): Perfect first night - What a fantastic place to stay for the first night of our holiday. It's a little oasis of calm with fantastic (huge) rooms that were better in person than on the website. The pool is lovely with so much wildlife, the food is great and the service is perfect. We stayed in an interconnecting family room - highly recommended. Nothing, it was perfect.
• claire (10/5): Excellent hotel. - Lovely hotel. Staff were very courteous and helpful. Excellent Sri Lankan style food, cold beers, and beautiful grounds and lovely swimming pool. Rooms were spacious, clean and had AC and a fan. Thoroughly recommend it.
• Celia (10/5): Wonderfully luxurious treat to finish off our stay in Sri Lanka. - Fabulous property with very attentive staff and second to none service. Delicious food, and wonderful room and in fact the whole hotel was stunning. Nothing
• Sophie (10/5): The staff were lovely and accommodating. Food was excellent. The property is just beautiful. It’s a great place to unwin - Stunning grounds and interiors- beautifully designed with gorgeous antiques Nothing!
• Strosberg (10/5): Warmly advise this intimate hotel - The right place to land in Sri Lanka:in a colonial building in a pastoral atmosphere and very kind and pleasant and attentive team Everything was perfect and answer ours expectable
• Alistair (10/5): Relaxing tranquil stay in a unique hotel - Very tranquil setting. Property was very impressive with lots of space to relax. Lovely swimming pool to cool down in. Service and food was also excellent. A great final stop before our flight home. N/A
• Dominic (10/5): Exceptional -
• Sue (10/5): Exceptional - Such a beautiful and tranquil location. Wished we had stayed longer. The staff are excellent. So friendly
• Daniele (10/5): Calm, beautiful hotel with the best staff ever!!! - Everything, the location, the architecture and most importantly the staff! The staff are very friendly, attentive, they go beyond and above to make sure that you are happy and feeling relaxing :)
• Subaratna (4/5): - Charged more than Expedia gave us when we booked the place That was unacceptable but I paid a s the staff at that place had nothing to do with it I do not think the company that runs the place is genuine in the price they gave me I feel I was overcharged by the local company that runs the property
• Therese (9/5): Comfortable and peaceful with a beautiful natural environment. - The staff were very attentive and looked after all of our needs. The property is very quiet and peaceful offering a good chance to unwind. We were very happy with our time at the property.
• Rob (10/5): We had a lovely time at The Notary's House . The staff was so friendly and helpful. - Beautiful setting and wonderful staff! Nothing
• Deborah (10/5): Would do it again - Friendly, clean, beautiful
• Robertus (10/5): Exceptional - Absolute suburb place and staff
• Meera (10/5): - Awesome place for families and children
• Jakub (10/5): Gorgeous place - Amazing location, beautiful design and wonderful staff, very good food, a kot of beautiful birds around, own garden. I loved everything. Nothing
• Eleanor (10/5): A beautiful place with wonderful staff and gorgeous surroundings! - The staff are exceptional, the food was delish and the actual properly are just wonderful! We had an excellent time! Nothing really, if I had to find something perhaps the lighting in the evening was quite bright but that is only a very pedantic comment, we absolutely loved it all!
• Jennifer (10/5): Exceptional -
• Jacqueline (10/5): A fabulous start to our first trip to Sri Lanka - This was a haven of tranquility after our long flight out from the UK. From the moment we arrived we felt relaxed. The staff were very friendly and attentive. We had a delicious rice and curry dinner in the evening and a tour of their garden the next morning where much of the food we had eaten was grown. I highly recommend Notary’s House for a place to relax and recharge before or after a long flight. It was the perfect introduction to Sri Lanka for our family. Nothing. Some people may find the location a bit remote but that didn’t matter at all to us.
• Peter (10/5): Exceptional -
• Rebecca (10/5): A wonderful start of our trip - perfect location, incredible staff, food and accommodation. - A beautiful old colonial house. Small, immaculately kept - obvious pride. Nothing
• Kate (10/5): Exceptional oasis of tranquility - We chose to stay here for a few days after we landed at midnight from NZ . Beautiful property. Very comfortable, everything clean and staff exceptionally helpful & friendly. The property is a wonderful historic house that has been maintained to a high standard. The pool is amazing and overlooks the beautiful lake. The food is really good and the property gardens are on an impressively beautiful lake.The staff , chef, manager were all incredible and made us feel so welcome. They gave us a tour of the property’s coconut grove and gardens with cuisine menu sourced from fruit and veges grown on site, as well as guided complementary visit to local temple , weavers and a bike ride around the lake. Nothing- it was exceptional
• Belinda (10/5): Exceptional -
• Neil (9/5): Excellent stay close to the airport - Large, comfortable room, spacious communal areas, beautiful view from the garden area, lovely swimming pool, extremely friendly staff. Was a good location for the final night of our trip and was only a 45 minute drive to the airport early in the morning.
• David (9/5): Fabulous place to start or end your trip or just to relac - Lovely place, nice rooms, fantastic staff, great food and a wonderful pool. Very convenient first or last night in Sri Lanka as 30km from the airport Staff really went to town for my wife's birthday
• Stephen (9/5): A pleasant stay with lovely views overlooking a lake - We stayed at The Notary’s House after flying into Colombo, so we were just there for one night. It was about 45 minutes drive from the airport, but was useful for us as this was then going in that direction for our next stop. The property is in a quiet rural location; we enjoyed sitting by the lake with a beer and watching the sunset. The staff were friendly. The dinner was great - Sri Lankan curry. Our room was large with a good shower. Breakfast location was very nice overlooking the lake and watching the birds in the morning.
• Malc (9/5): Preflight relax. - Beautiful location, Dining area,Pool and room. Could have been some chilled white wine with Dinner. Apart from that it was lovely
• Jane (10/5): We would definitely stay here again - Spotless, comfortable, lovely pool, fab food. Ideal stop off before flying Mosquitos!
• Nicola (10/5): Exceptional -
• Marriott (10/5): Exceptional -
• Julie (10/5): Staff couldn’t do enough for us. The food was exceptional. Would wholeheartedly recommend it! - Beautiful, clean, welcoming and so relaxing. Great first night in Sri Lanka!
• Sangeetha (9/5): Superb -
• Daniel (10/5): Perfect place to relax before flight home - The room was large, clean and cool. The pool setting is incredible (the plastic chairs have been replaced with wooden). Staff were very accommodating — we were travelling with a small child, they helped to arrange a cot for her and allowed us to check out late to accommodate for a late flight.
• Review (10/5): Amazing hotel. Perfect way to end our holiday. - Everything! Beautiful, big grounds. Superb swimming pool. Delicious food Excellent staff - best we experienced in Sri Lanka. Very tasteful décor throughout the hotel. The whole place was spotless. Wish we could have stayed longer here. There was nothing we didn't like.
• Jeremy (8/5): Lovely place with great staff. - Staff were fantastic so was the food Aircon wasn’t working properly. Not a vast amount to do.
• Lawrence (9/5): Superb -
• Verified traveler (10/5): - Beautiful estate with great food and friendly staff.

Photos