Primrose Guest house

The ocean was beautiful, and that's what I came for. I got used to the lizards on our room walls and even the huge cockroaches that showed up. Breakfast was eggs every morning, and by the end I was used to that too. If you want to visit Sri Lanka for nature, you might be able to overlook a lot here. The hotel is comfortable enough in some ways, but it has plenty of BUTS. We saw monkeys on the grounds, a peacock on the roof of the neighboring building, and an employee showed us their chipmunk and a monitor lizard swimming in the drain beside the hotel. I was charmed by all the animals and already liked everything. We were put in a reserve room for one night. Its front door wouldn't close, there were no shower gels or shampoos, just a tiny piece of soap, and the refrigerator had mold in it. None of the sockets worked, even with an adapter, so I couldn't charge my phone. The room only had wall sconces for lighting and stayed dim all the time. In the morning there was no water at all for brushing my teeth. The next day they moved us to the main building, where the room was a little better. Breakfast was the same each morning: fried eggs or an omelet, toast with butter or jam, a glass of natural juice, and coffee or tea. The location is excellent, the building is beautiful, there's a lovely garden behind the hotel and lots of animals. The staff were helpful, and the room we moved to almost always had hot water. You can manage a vacation here if you have no complaints at all. I went to the ocean, and it was gorgeous!

The owner was welcoming, and the location near the beach was good. The outdoor seating area is nice too. Sadly, the bathroom smelled strongly of vinegar and had blood stains, while the bedroom had a musty toilet smell.

The owner was friendly, spoke great English and was easy to bargain with. There was a mix-up with our reservation, so we spent one night in a cheap place next door, but he paid me the difference in cost in cash. This was one of the nicest places we stayed in Sri Lanka: clean, airy and spacious. I just wish we'd been able to stay longer than one night. I'd suggest calling a few days beforehand to check that the reservation is correct.

We spent 10 days at Primerose and it was great value for the price. You can reach the beach in about 30 seconds on foot, and the location has restaurants, coffee spots, fruit shops, laundry and small groceries right below. The WiFi worked really well, there was hot water, and we liked having a balcony to sit on. Tissa, the owner, was kind and helpful.