Lavendish Beach Resort

Breakfast was tasty and enough, and we had a quiet room with a balcony overlooking the pool. The location is handy, right by Unawatuna beach and the main road. Basic amenities were there. The double bed was actually two singles pushed together. Still a good stay.

The room itself had several problems: it wasn’t clean, ants on the bed bit my child, and there was a bad smell from the bathroom. The mini-fridge was empty, and the pool didn’t seem properly cleaned or maintained. The food disappointed us, though the buffet staff were caring and attentive. The "bite" (side dish) menu was overpriced, and our evening tea took an incredibly long time, as did the extra cup. Getting settled was a mess. One staff member showed us to a room, and after we unpacked and used the bathroom, another said it was the wrong room and insisted we move. The replacement hadn’t been cleaned, so we had to put all our bags in our cousins' room while we were traveling together. We’d paid in advance and the hotel knew how many guests were coming for the holiday, but the staff seemed poorly coordinated. I complained to a female staff member that it felt like foreign guests were prioritized over locals. After lunch, they said we could have the original room after all, so we moved our bags for a third time. That back-and-forth ruined our day.

The main problem was sleep. Street-facing rooms are noisy, which I understand the hotel can’t do much about, but the fire alarm in my room chirped on two of our three nights. On the second night it sounded like the batteries were low, then stopped around mid-morning. I told the front desk, and they said someone would change them. I don’t think anyone came, because the next night it started again around 4:30am. I called; they said housekeeping would fix it, but the front desk guy came to listen and said someone would return at 8:30am. I was expected to keep trying to sleep with that noise, and nobody came at 8:30. At breakfast I reported it again and asked for one night refunded since I’d slept badly for two nights. The manager told us at breakfast we should have reported the problem and I could have changed rooms, although I’d reported it several times and nobody had offered that option. When we checked out a few hours later, the manager said he couldn’t approve a refund and they’d get back to us. They had hours to work it out before we left, so I assume there won’t be a refund. The rooms are basic, about what I’d expect from a 3 star hotel, and the beds had only a sheet, nothing else. Breakfast was fine and the pool was clean. The location is a bit far from the main area, but we knew that when booking.

We’ve stayed here twice and had a great time. It’s a small place, but the manager, receptionist, and rest of the staff were really friendly and helpful. Clean, new, and nice, with delicious food. We enjoyed our stays and would happily recommend it. Hope to visit again.