Location: Kitulgala
Top Hotels in Kitulgala
Top Things to do in Kitulgala
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Kitulgala Hotels | Places to Stay in Kitulgala
Discover the best hotels in Kitulgala, Sabaragamuwa Province including Palmstone Retreat, Moksha at Kitulgala, Rafters Retreat, Borderlands, Paradise Eco Garden, Adventure Base Camp Kitulgala, Gallene Gala Nature Resort, Aqua Adventure Kitulgala, Sisira's River Lounge, Royal River Resort.
Things to do in Kitulgala
1. Palmstone Retreat
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 260 reviews
Situated in dense rainforest in Kitulgala, Palmstone Retreat is a five star boutique hotel consisting of six luxurious suites. There are two categories of rooms: One having a private plunge pool and steam room while the other has a river view deck and Jacuzzi. The resort has an outdoor pool and the restaurant offers both international and local cuisine.
Complete escape in nature
Reviewed By 413arnis_We spent 2 nights with my family here after arrival and it was a very good choice to start the trip to Sri Lanka. There is such a beautiful nature here, a peaceful atmosphere that all the problems of everyday life and work had been forgotten the very next morning... The rooms are large, perfectly clean with a great bathroom. the view through the window is simply unbeatable. Hotel staff can also arrange activities for more active people - hiking in the surrounding area. The staff is very, very kind, responsive. The best emotions about this place remained in my memory
2. Moksha at Kitulgala
Overall Ratings
5 based on 21 reviews
Moksha@Kitulgala has a restaurant, outdoor swimming pool, a bar and shared lounge in Kitulgala. This 5-star hotel offers a garden. The accommodation offers a hot tub, karaoke and room service. All guest rooms at the hotel come with air conditioning, a seating area, a flat-screen TV with satellite channels, a safety deposit box and a private bathroom with a bidet, bathrobes and slippers. At Moksha@Kitulgala all rooms are fitted with bed linen and towels. The accommodation offers a continental or à la carte breakfast. Moksha@Kitulgala offers a sun terrace. The area is popular for cycling, and car hire is available at the hotel. Kandy is 41 km from Moksha@Kitulgala, while Nuwara Eliya is 39 km from the property. The nearest airport is Ratmalana International Airport, 63 km from the accommodation.
Moksha is stunning
Reviewed By guerre64Moksha is a boutique hotel owned and run by a Sri Lankan family, with amazing staff who will cater for your every need. The accommodation is in a stunning location, with a gorgeous stream running alongside the entire property, providing soothing sounds of running water. You can even swim in the natural pool, through a small gate near the top of the guest areas of the property. The food is simply amazing and the current Chef, Pradeep, is quite the artisan. Every meal here was absolutely delicious and feast for the eyes. Anthony, the Butler, will mix you one of his famous cocktails and pamper you. The owner, Mr. Hemantha, is wonderful and accommodating and his vision for the property is truly incredible. We stayed only for two nights, but it was a truly wonderful start to our Sri Lankan adventure, and we have no hesitation in recommending this wonderful hotel.
3. Rafters Retreat
Overall Ratings
4 based on 197 reviews
Location
Reviewed By cathyascottIncredible essentially outside room’s looking directly over the river. The kids loved rafting, I loved the nature. Shame we didn’t do more. Zip line currently out of action, all the staff were so nice.
4. Borderlands
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 426 reviews
Borderlands Adventure Eco-Lodge offers comfortable riverfront accommodation, in 4 tents and 11 cabanas (3 of which have en suite facilities) which are fully kitted with beds (which can be arranged from singles to doubles, with up to 5 beds able to fit in a family cabin) and have electricity throughout so guests can charge their laptops, phones and cameras. Each tent and cabana is located on a wooden platform with a private deck, with views overlooking the Kelani River and the surrounding mountains. All meals are served in The Long House, a great place to chill out at the end of the day. A full music system means guests can listen to their Ipods. Evening Movie Nights are offered, which is a great hit with kids. As well as offering accommodation, Borderlands runs white water rafting, canyoning, and white water and flat water kayaking activities from our ecolodge, and offers the largest number of sit-in and sit-on-top kayaks in Sri Lanka. Other activities include abseiling, hiking, biking and swimming.
Trip to Sri Lanka
Reviewed By cremedelaemm_Our stay at Borderlands was good, the staff were very helpful and so good at the activities they take you out on. We stayed for 2 nights last week on our tour around Sri Lanka. The atmosphere at the camp was really great, we experienced the rolling blackouts of Sri Lanka but it was special to socialise by candlelight in the middle of the jungle. We did white water rafting, canyoning, the hike and kayaking. All the activities were fantastic, even in a monsoon the staff made them enjoyable and the rain added to the experience. The view from the eco lodges is special and right onto the river but be prepared for living a simple life. We really enjoyed this. The only issues we had with our stay was that the evening meal was the same choice for both nights of our stay. Not a massive deal anyway. We felt like we were trying to be fobbed off when Wade said he had made an error in scheduling and he asked what time we were leaving in the morning, this suggested to us that we were not as important as the VIP clients that were attending at the same time as us. We were told there weren’t enough kayaks for us to join but when our guide took us to get our gear, there was plenty of boats. When we all got out on the river, we had a great time and the issue was resolved. I mention this only as I have read in another review a similar issue, Borderlands needs to decide if it is for families or corporate events and treat all guests equally. The owner Wade and his family are very interesting people and we enjoyed listening to their stories. Thanks Borderlands!
5. Paradise Eco Garden
Overall Ratings
4 based on 56 reviews
We are an eco-hotel, set amidst an 80 acres organic farm with Two wooden cottages, one villa with private pool and four other rooms with amazing mountain and jungle view. Our location is remote and is ideal for a quiet holiday getaway. we offer all local food prepared mostly from our organic farm. Packed lunches can be requested. Room service is available. Our location offers spectacular views of mountains and rain forests with infinity natural swim pool. We have our own beautiful natural waterfall and plenty of streams and walkways through plantations and rain-forest. There is a large variety of fish, birds, and wildlife in the gardens. We also have a wide variety of cultivated organic spices fruits vegetables and Green Tea which we manufacture in our own tea factory. The accommodation will provide you with a patio, seating area with sofa and work desk. There is also an electric kettle mini-refrigerator in some rooms. The private bathroom comes with a shower. You can enjoy mountain and pool view from the room. We are 80km away from Bandaranaike International Airport.
Great relaxing place
Reviewed By KJgreatThe location is full of mind relaxing and quite place. We enjoyed the peaceful environment at wooden cabana. Best customer service by the staff. Highly recommended this place and great place to visit.
6. Adventure Base Camp Kitulgala
Overall Ratings
4 based on 65 reviews
Dirty, Loud and Horrible Food
Reviewed By ajtravels1972This is a place for locals not tourists. The location should be nice but there is a Chinese dam being built across the way. So your view is a construction site. The river is muddy brown and smells horrible. The hotel is basic and the rooms I have seen have broken air conditioners, stains on the sheets, sewer smelling bathrooms and no hot water. There is no planting of flowers and the floors are filthy and need daily mopping. On the river bank is trash that they need to pick up. The river is a Class 2 at best and is about 10min of rapids. Not worth the effort. The WiFi only works in the reception area with 6 wooden chairs to sit on.
7. Gallene Gala Nature Resort
Overall Ratings
4 based on 22 reviews
Avoid - Bad behaviour from the staff and owner
Reviewed By 868dilankajIf you read some of the reviews on this property (which includes one on sexual harassment), you would stay away - Went with my family for a relaxing stay, however my wife noted that she was subject to very lewd comments by the staff under their breath, including the owner. We had wanted to stay here for 3 nights during a long weekend , but we went elsewhere after the first night. Learn to behave yourselves and treat your guests with hospitality first.
8. Aqua Adventure Kitulgala
Overall Ratings
4 based on 6 reviews
Poor experience on low river
Reviewed By Y1903JTclaudiar-no waiver or personal information taken -unable to give safety instructions -river water level was too low -unsafe practices -inexperienced guide -aged, poorly fitted safety equipment We booked a rafting tour through our hostel, when we arrived we were not asked for any information and rushed to the river. No safety demos or information was given. They gave us poorly fitted helmets & lifejackets which were very torn and old. When we got to the river after a few minutes they decided the river was too low to raft, we were fine with this and said we were happy to swim then go back. We swam and were ready to leave then 2 smaller boats come and we were rushed to the boat. A new guide showed up and tried to give us some basic info and was looking at the first guide for assistance then the first guide just took over the intro. We had to go with the inexperienced guide. The water was extremely shallow and we got caught constantly on rocks. During one rapid when we were stuck, the guide told 2 of us to get out of the boat and stand on a rock amongst the rapid. It was slippery, strong water rushing towards us and another raft full of people came down the rapid could have easily knocked us out and into the rocks. Luckily a local person was able to help the guide pull the raft up, and we had to walk across the rapid to get back into the raft. It was extremely unsafe and stupid. Although in the end they admitted it was unsafe, no apologies were given and we were expected to pay full price. We agreed on a lower price after negotiating, however we left unhappy with the experience. We write this review in hopes that the company review their safety practices, and potentially reduce the risk of someone being hurt due to stupid and unsafe decisions.
9. Sisira's River Lounge
Overall Ratings
3.5 based on 16 reviews
Sisira’s River Lounge, Kithulgala, is a fantastic rainforest Lodge situated just 80 kms from Colombo. There are five eco lodges nestled in lush foliage overlooking the spectacular Kelani River and the biodiversity rich Kelani Valley Forest Reserve. Sisira’s River Lounge is an ideal base for adventure and nature eco tourists. For nature lovers who like to take things easy, the lowland tropical rainforest of Kelani Valley Forest Reserve is ideal for a relaxed rainforest walk to witness some of the rare and endemic biodiversity, which are threatened mainly due to habitat loss.
Good birding, nice food and location
Reviewed By Ramit SI stayed at Sisira's River Lounge for 2 nights - in a very nice room with a balcony that overlooked the river. As a birder, I was very pleased with the location as the grounds had some nice Sri Lankan endemics and others like the Hornbills, Owlets, Brown-capped and Orange-billed Babbler, Junglefowl, Dwarf Kingfisher, friendly Spot-winged Thrushes, etc as well as great views of the forest and river. The town center is a short walk away but you feel very far when at the resort. The food was great, especially when prepared by the chef and owner - by far the best rice and curry I had throughout my entire time in Sri Lanka. The staff were nice and courteous. Rooms are a bit basic, but clean and spacious and they get the job done. The open bath was an interesting one as it was raining often while I was there. On a whole, I'd be more than happy to stay there again. Reasonable place and great location to be at for birders. Be wary of the leeches any time you get off the marked paths. I seemed to be the only guest staying there at the time and so it may have been particularly The only annoyance was that the place across the river played loud music every now and then, which was especially disturbing when out birding (but I guess the resort owners can't do much about it)
10. Royal River Resort
Overall Ratings
3.5 based on 3 reviews
Avoid at all costs
Reviewed By duncanworldtravellerIf you are a tourist - please avoid this hotel at all costs. Terrible service and hard to get outside help given remoteness. Zero response after booking after calling and emailing multiple times. When we arrived we were told we needed to pay extra for a tuk tuk to get up the bad road leading to the hotel. Bedroom was ok however aircon stopped working. Book elsewhere.
