Colombo Residency

The noise from constant concrete drilling made this place horrible to stay in. The hotel was under construction, and nobody told me when I checked in. When I asked about it, the receptionist was rude and said they couldn’t stop the work.

I’ve been here more than four times, but I won’t be coming back. The price has gone up, and for 4,300 to stay three hours, the rooms and service should be much better. There was often a cigarette smell, and I found stains on the sheets more than once.

The staff were pleasant, and breakfast was alright, though it arrived in the room around 8 while we were still asleep. The bathroom looked newly refurbished to a decent standard, and the room was clean, but it smelled of something, maybe cleaning chemicals, paint, or smoke. I couldn’t work out which. There was too much furniture, so it felt crowded. Getting inside was odd. The front didn’t look open, and I had to be coaxed out of the taxi because I thought the hotel was closed. The lobby looked ancient and still needed renovation. The whole place felt like a Frankenstein hotel that should have shut while the work was going on. There was no working lift, even though the rooms were on the second and third floors. Our room wasn’t quite ready for guests, either. The old door frame was in bad shape, and the door only stayed shut if I double-locked it. One turn didn’t secure it. At $50 a night, it was outrageously expensive for a hotel in that condition. I stayed because it was clean, so that’s the reason for the two stars. I’m not sure how the other reviews didn’t make the situation clearer.

For the price, the room boys gave us good service. There are some good rooms here, and they do the best they can for what guests pay.