Sarras Guest House

The staff were helpful, and I got a large discount because the water wasn't working on the night I stayed. I also noticed some things had been missed during cleaning. Sarras Guest House has recently been expanding, and its new suites cost a little more than the price I saw in Lonely Planet, just so you know. With working water and a cleaner room, I'd give the accommodation four stars.

There are two buildings here, a newly built one and a renovated older one. We stayed in the old building, so these comments are just about that part. The place has good points and some things that could be better. It's in a quiet, upscale neighborhood in the middle of Jaffna, a nice setting if you like peace and quiet. The price is very cheap for the facilities compared with other places in Jaffna. There's parking, and the property is walled, so security didn't worry us. There's also a restaurant. The caretakers don't speak Sinhala, but they speak good English and Tamil. The promised facilities were all there and working, including air conditioning, fans, and a hot-water shower. Beds, sheets, and chairs were clean. The floor was dirty and hadn't been swept. I didn't notice because I had my shoes on when I checked the room, which was my mistake. I would have asked them to clean before unpacking if I'd seen it. The windows were dirty too. There were lots of mosquitoes, probably coming from the bathroom. No mosquito nets were provided, and the vaporiser didn't help much. There was no sink in the relaxing area, so we had to use the bathroom whenever we needed to wash something. It's a good, inexpensive stay if you're willing to put up with those inconveniences.

The room was large, with a nice view of the garden, and the refurbishment work going on around the premises didn't affect our stay. For room service, you have to call the hotel number. The woman answering was pleasant, though it seemed she had to be available around the clock for every call. There was no hot water, perhaps because the equipment was broken or not working properly. They don't provide toiletries, towels, or bedsheets, so bring your own.

Sarras was in a really quiet neighborhood, and the staff were so friendly and helpful. They went out of their way to help us around the area and had great conversations with us. We stayed there in 2016. The rooms were clean and basic, with everything you need. I'll stay again when I'm back in Jaffna.