Yala Village

I stayed at Yala Villa last weekend. We told the villa in advance that there would be six adults and two children, but they gave us just two hotel rooms and a camping tent. The tent was dirty, smelled strongly of toilets, and had cobwebs. They only brought bed sheets after we asked. I messaged the owner about these problems, but still haven't had a reply. That was really disappointing. The chef was kind and the meals tasted good, though. The food was the only positive part of our stay.

The service was the best we've had in Sri Lanka, and the welcome was so warm. It's a really peaceful, relaxing place, with a pool and barbecue. The bedrooms were clean and had all the facilities we needed. The location is perfect for safari, about 10 minutes from the entrance. I totally recommend this place in Yala!

We paid in full for this villa one month ahead and reconfirmed twice before traveling. After a full day on the road with small children, we arrived to find that our villa had been given to another group. They put us in another hotel for one night and promised the villa would be ready by 10:30 the next morning. It still wasn't ready at 3pm. Our plans were completely disrupted, so we cancelled and asked for a full refund. More than three days later, the money still hadn't arrived. In 2026, delays like this are unacceptable. We also later found out they hadn't paid the hotel where they moved us. Highly unprofessional and unreliable, especially for families with young children. Avoid this place at all costs.

The villa was never ready at 11:30am. We spoke to the manager there, and other guests were still at the property then. How can the owner say it was ready? Stop misleading people, especially families with small children. Reading other comments, it seems this has happened before. Please stop lying and refund our money, along with the amount you promised to pay the hotel you moved us to. You and your company are a disgrace to tourism in Sri Lanka. This kind of experience means people won't return. Three families with toddlers booked the villa and paid in full a month in advance. We spoke with management three days before leaving, then again the day before departing Colombo. Both times, we were told everything was confirmed and ready. After a whole day traveling by bus with small children, we arrived to find the villa had been given to someone else. They spent hours "trying" to sort it out, then placed us in three rooms at another hotel, saying they'd cover the cost and move us back the next morning. Traveling with toddlers and having no immediate alternative, we had to accept. We checked out the next day and headed back as agreed, with confirmation the villa would be ready at 10:30am. Again, that wasn't true. It wasn't ready and stayed unavailable until 3pm. By then our plans were completely disrupted and we'd lost all trust in management, so we cancelled and requested a full refund. More than three days have passed and we still haven't received the refund. This is 2026, and money transfers happen instantly. Saying bank transfers take 24 hours is unacceptable when there was still no refund after 24 hours. To make things worse, we later learned they hadn't even paid the hotel where they relocated us. That's extremely unprofessional and raises serious concerns about their business practices. We've since learned this seems to be a recurring issue with the villa and its management. Please avoid this place at all costs. Unreliable, irresponsible, and completely unacceptable, especially for families with young children.