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Review submitted by Sally from Qatar (Submitted: 8 May 2013)
Ive been to review this property for a long time. We spent 2 weeks at the villa back in November 2011. Plenty of space, as there was only four of us. We hired Lal to cook for us, and he was a brilliant chap. Whilst we were there the was a electricity cut due to a storm, but there were flash lights in the villa, and we always carry candles whilst on holiday.
THe villa owners family, took care of us extremely well, I would like to thank them personally.
We hired tuk tuks to venture out to go into town, overall it was lovely holiday, I particular didnt enjoy the food in town. The rest of the group like spicy food.
The only downside to the holiday was due to the rain etc, it brought out creepy crawlies, Just petrified.
Review submitted by Gino from Glossop (Submitted: 15 Apr 2013)
An absolutely outstanding property in a superb setting. Having the cook, Lal, was an absolute god-send and he was very helpful and accomadating. The owners were also very helpful and answered all our queries. One slight way of improving things were if you put a number/name on the property etc as it was very difficult to find initially. Also the left turn off just before the Police station would be a better description of where it was
Review submitted by Jane from Dubai (Submitted: 15 Apr 2013)
Our second holiday at this villa and we werent disappointed.
Looked after from the start with Chat the friendly tour guide meeting us at airport and suggesting interesting trips for the week. Jungle Beach was fab and the bat walk memorable.
At the villa we were catered for excellently by Lal, who cooked fantastic food all week.
Its a lovely villa and the owner continually tries to improve it.
Well back, Im sure
Review submitted by andrew from bedfordshire (Submitted: 6 Jan 2013)
We had a fantastic holiday in Sri lanka, and a wonderful stay at Hikkavilla, made that bit more special by Lal our brilliant chef who cooked up a storm in the kitchen. The villa was big and well organised, and the pool was clean and very safe for the children. Will certainly recommend to friends and family.
Review submitted by Jacky from Redhill (Submitted: 22 Dec 2012)
The villa was a truly delightful place to stay. It had everything you could need or wish for. The people who took care of the villa were friendly, helpful and nothing was too much touble for them. The cook Lal was a real bonus and made the stay at Hikka Villa perfect. The location of the villa is just right and away from the general bustle of the beach front. The pool was lovely and looked after daily. This was our first holiday in Sri Lanka and having such a lovely place to stay made the holiday one of the very best we have had. We would reccommend the villa and also i think we will go back!
Review submitted by Alexander from Moscow (Submitted: 20 Oct 2012)
We were staying 8 peoples for 10 days and really enjoyed it. Big house with average rooms(3 on the first floor is ok, 2 on the second - poore) but with nice hall to spend evenings all together. Swimming pool with airmassage and 2 rabbits(!) in the garden. Very good house location: far enough to be a calm place to rest and close enough to main Hikkaduwa city activity (~2km). We rent scooters and it took 5 min to reach beach, restaurants, massage, 7 min serfing place. Cant imagine this place without scooters.
There are two people who make this place magic for us is Chat(house manager,guide) and Lal(cook). Chat is the key person to organise anything and to provide you any information. He help to rent surfing with instructors, scooters, trip to tea plantations, turtle farm, jawel shop, waterfal.. Lal is the great cook could satisfy your any cuisine requests, especially with sea food.
Very recomend this place.
P.s.: extra thanks for owner brother - doctor, who helped us in very important moment.
Review submitted by Alexander from Moscow (Submitted: 20 Oct 2012)
We were staying 8 peoples for 10 days and really enjoyed it. Big house with average rooms(3 on the first floor is ok, 2 on the second - poore) but with nice hall to spend evenings all together. Swimming pool with airmassage and 2 rabbits(!) in the garden. Very good house location: far enough to be a calm place to rest and close enough to main Hikkaduwa city activity (~2km). We rent scooters and it took 5 min to reach beach, restaurants, massage, 7 min serfing place. Cant imagine this place without scooters.
There are two people who make this place magic for us is Chat(house manager,guide) and Lal(cook). Chat is the key person to organise anything and to provide you any information. He help to rent surfing with instructors, scooters, trip to tea plantations, turtle farm, jawel shop, waterfal.. Lal is the great cook could satisfy your any cuisine requests, especially with sea food.
Very recomend this place.
P.s.: extra thanks for owner brother - doctor, who helped us in very important moment.
Review submitted by Badr from Riyadh (Submitted: 26 Jun 2012)
We snend nice days at this villa woner and his family are frendly to us
walking short time to beach.claean house .
Review submitted by Sam from Bristol (Submitted: 17 May 2012)
My husband our 2 young children and myself stayed in Hikkavilla for just over a week in February 2012. We thoroughly enjoyed our time there and can wholeheartedly recommend it. The villa is huge and would make a good party house for a large group. The Internet connection was excellent and Sky TV is available, but I recommend you request it when booking so the owner can ensure the necessary channels are available on your arrival.
There is a team of English speaking staff on hand to assist in your every need should you wish: Lal the cook/housekeeper, Chat the travel guide and Chanaka the owner.
If you are able to hire Lal, the cook/housekeeper, I urge you to do so. Lal can cook all manner of foreign dishes, but we preferred a more local menu at which he excelled. Lal is a very honest and kind man who will do his very best to make your stay so much more relaxed and trouble free. If you give him a menu request for the following day and some money he will shop for ingredients and ensure your meals are ready at the time you specify. Lal always gave us change from his shopping trips his integrity cannot be faulted. On comparison we found Lal’s excellent cooking to be far better value than eating out every night. I have returned to England with recipes and instructions from Lal’s kitchen.
Hikkavilla is located a little out from the town centre and beach front and this is a real bonus if you want the ability to retreat to your own sanctuary. Chat or Lal can arrange for a tuk-tuk to taxi you around, but we found it convenient to pop down to the local shop to use the excellent tuk-tuk driver based there. The villa owners are a locally well-known and respected family, so just tell any tuk-tuk driver you want to go to Chanakas place and he will know where to go.
After a long day it was a delight to return to the peace of our private garden and pool. We got a lot of pleasure from swimming whilst surrounded by coconut palms (complete with adorable monkeys), banana palms, figs and a whole host of other exotic flora and fauna. The children searched for the resident Chameleon and touched every bit of sleeping fern they could find (ask Lal to point it out to you).
It is wise to arrange for Chat, the very attentive travel guide, to meet you at arrivals in the airport. The journey to Hikkaduwa is beautiful, but lengthy and you will be glad of Chanaka’s very comfortable air-conditioned people carrier.
Chat is an excellent choice for arranging day trips as he knows the local area well. He is truly fantastic with children and we frequently used him to look after our daughter when we were out and about together. Chat is a young man who will do his best for you, but will not give you the hard sell if you are not interested
Once we had returned home we continued to be impressed by the care the villa owners showed us. My daughter had left a bag in Colombo. Chanaka collected the bag and posted it back to England without charge to us. I think that illustrates the kindness afforded travellers in Sri Lanka and at Hikkavilla in particular.
Review submitted by gary from dubai (Submitted: 13 Feb 2012)
large Villa, enough room for 8 people, long walk to beach so tuc tuc advisable.
good condition and very clean.
good pool, good garden.
real star of the show was Lal the cook/cleaner etc, great breakfast and cooked a top quality sri lankan curry selec tion one evening.
Hikkaduwa beach is long with big waves, good enough to surf in.
Owner reply:
Thanks for the feedback.
Review submitted by Vidhi from Mumbai, India (Submitted: 11 Feb 2012)
The villa is beautiful, majestic and has all the amenities you would need to enjoy your vacation in Hikkaduwa. The smallest of details have been taken care of to make the stay comfortable and hassle free. From a beautiful fully equipped kitchen to a lovely dinning area to warm comfortable rooms to a mini library on top with guitar next the to couch to a lavish living room to a personal pool with a jacuzzi. Everything you need is right there in the house. And it is extremely safe as we were five girls and were staying there for a couple of days and the time of our arrival we were welcomed and taken care of by Chanaka, the caretaker of the house. He was extremely helpful, warm and greeted us with a smile every single time. The local rep Chat was so helpful and friendly and pointed us in the direction of some excellent trips which lead to us having many unforgettable memories. We also had freshly cut coconuts - the king coconuts from their garden, which was a real treat. All in all a fabulous stay. Thank you Chanaka & Chat.
Owner reply:
Its nice to hear great feedback from our guests. many thanks for sharing your genuing feedback.
Review submitted by Sergey from Russia, Moscow (Submitted: 20 Sep 2011)
We together with the wife and my kids spent wonderful holiday in this Villa. Owners of the house, which kind have very much liked, sympathetic and are ready to helpany minute, even at night. It is not necessary to worry about troubles about health, as the brother of the owner of the Villa the doctor with the European education that is very important in Asia. A place very silent, many singing birds, around of a palm tree and flowers. The child spent greater time in pool, the sea was even not necessary, though this unique place, I so think in Sri Lanka where never happens big waves, because in 100 meters from coast there is a reef which forces down a wave.
The owner owns also travel agency, and has pickedcould find for us wonderful excursion on the country.
Have fine spent time. I recommend.
Review submitted by Suzie from Southampton, UK (Submitted: 26 Mar 2011)
We had a wonderful relaxing holiday in this beautiful villa. From the moment we arrived until we left we were cared for royally by Chanaka, who lives next door. Both Chanaka and his wife are so friendly and accommodating, nothing is too much trouble for them. They provided us with some authentic Sri Lankan breakfasts, which we did not expect and really appreciated. We also had freshly cut coconuts from their garden, which was a real treat. The local rep Chat is so helpful and friendly and pointed us in the direction of some excellent trips. We also had our own tuk tuk driver, who like most of the Sri Lankans we met always had a big smile for us. I can highly recommend hiring the chef for some or all of your stay, we had him for one evening and he provided us with a feast to remember! All in all, I highly recommend this place and all of us who went, will I am sure return.
Review submitted by Shanti from London (Submitted: 15 Feb 2011)
Met all our expectations and more. Excellent, friendly and helpful caretaker, Chanaka who was always on hand. Property comfortably accommodated 10 residents and also held party for 40 guests - Chanaka did an amazing job organising caterers, fireworks, Kandyan dancers, music, tables, chairs and decorations - an absolutely spectacular event and nothing was too much trouble.
Also helped to arrange reasonably priced tours via his friend Chat, e.g. 2 day trip to Kandy and back including rubber plantation, pineapple grove, spice gardens, elephant sanctuary, half-board overnight accommodation, evening entertainment, tea factory, hill country with fulltime guide = approx £100 per person (based on 14).
The pool will be a welcome addition as will the Expressway, which should make the journey to/from the airport/Colombo much quicker.
The main town of Hikkaduwa is approx 5 mins by tuk tuk and it is an easy walk to the station - train to Colombo Fort (for shopping!) took 2 hours.
The location is quiet and there are a couple of small shops near by that supply basics and a supermarket which is a 15 min walk or 2 minutes by tuk tuk and only cost approx £1 - £1.50.
Main tourist beach again is a 15-20 min walk, although quieter stretches of beach can be found at the other end of Hikkaduwa - about £2.50 by tuk tuk (head for the Cinnamon Gardens Hotel).
There are some great restaurants in Hikkaduwa, including Spaghetti & Co (authentic Italian) & St Francis Hotel (huge portions of Chinese & Sri Lankan cuisine). The Cool Spot and The No1 Roti Shop also recommended. Would recommend tuk tuks to all the restaurants, especially after dark as the main road is very busy, with fast driving traffic and is also not well lit.
The accommodation provided everything we needed and we look forward to returning soon - possibly for a wedding!
Review submitted by Sue from Dubai (Submitted: 12 Feb 2011)
Weve just returned home after a fantastic week long stay at this villa. We travelled with six adults and three young children and there was plenty of space for all of us - and more! Its a beautiful property - the nicest of any that we saw during our time in Sri Lanka, wih a wonderful garden - complete with bananas, coconuts, monkeys and even a resident monitor lizard! Very tropical. The house is well equipped and provides a home from home. Channaka and his wife were extremely accommodating and hospitable and did everything they could to make our stay enjoyable. They arranged an airport pick-up, provided mosquito repellant and medication when we needed it, as well as giving slides/paddling pool for the children to enjoy in the garden. They also cooked us a full Sri Lankan breakfast on our last day, and were on hand to provide us with advice on everything - from trips to go on, the best tailors and where to buy beer! Their resident tour guide Chat was also lovely, offering us excursions - but leaving us to decide whether we wanted to go - no hard sell. The property is extremely well placed for both peace and quiet - and partying - youre only a short tuk tuk ride from the many restaurants/bars nearby. We recommend Top Secret! Great for families/groups. Were told that the new pool will be ready by September. Also that a new road from Columbo to Hikkaduwa will be in use, cutting the journey time to around an hour. Thank-you for a wonderful stay. Would definately recommend.
Review submitted by Robert from Purkersdorf (Submitted: 21 Dec 2010)
We, an extended family of 8 people, have enjoyed our stay very much. The house has all it needs, plus the landlord and his wife, living next door, are extremly helpful, interesting and attentive.
Very quiet surrounding, no traffic, only a few minutes drive by tuktuk or scooter to the beaches and bars etc.
Review not verified by RentalSystems* (Submitted: 6 Jun 2009)
We stayed for 7 weeks and had a wonderful holiday. Our friends joined us and were really taken with the villa. Thanks to the family for looking after us so well. All the village people were very friendly and the tuk tuks great. We will be back again when the pool is built.In all a great holiday. Highly recommended. Norman and Pat.
Review submitted by Parag from London (Submitted: 22 Apr 2009)
This house and the host family, who live next door, exceeded my expectations and allowed me to have a wonderful break in april. There are 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a large kitchen, a patio area, and a balcony. The living and dining areas have a very open feel that was well utilized by our party. There is also a garden with sun loungers if you fancy topping up your tan. The indoor pond/water feature is also a nice touch. The kitchen is well equipped and coffee, tea and basic provisions for arrival were provided so that we could relax before hitting the supermarket. There are many local restaurants but my, budget range, favourite was Sams restuarant and bar, and slightly more expensive (but very good food) was ‘refresh’. The family who own the house introduced us to a local restaurant owner, and some tuk tuk drivers that they knew to be reliable and fair on prices (keeping in mind that they were usually outside 10 mins after a phone call). I recommend getting a SIM card for 300 rupees at the dialog shop and 500 rupees credit easily lasted the whole 9 day stay. We also found some of the hotels (20 min walk away) allow you to use their swimming pool for the whole day for a small fee (approx $2).
All in all, the house was lovely and I would not hesitate to return. I hope that others will visit so that the family can slowly gain enough income to afford their next project, which is rumoured to be a pool!
Review submitted by Benjamin from Seoul (Submitted: 26 Jan 2008)
This house was located in a quite neighborhood outside of hikkaduwa, about 1.8km from the main beach. About a 20 minute walk or $1 tuk-tuk ride. The house was huge, with a full kitchen and an excellent dining room. There were many open living areas and a waterfall/pond in the main living room. The second floor balcony is a great place to relax. We were really well looked after and anything we needed was provided. Even fresh coconuts when we wanted and a new years breakfast! Great value!