Reviews of Blue Turtle Hotel 3 stars

Grounds and pool area were great. Room large and comfortable with great balcony. Loved that there were often peacocks and lizards to see on the property and cows being herded past each day. The Arak cocktails were lovely- we indulged a lot! Good location for safaris.

Food was not as good as what we ate elsewhere on our holiday-a bit bland. In general, it felt slightly grasping as a business- lots of upselling. Every time we left our room or returned from somewhere, one of the staff was asking us if we wanted to book in for dinner or breakfast in advance and safaris offered by the hotel were much more expensive than those we ended up booking for the same thing.

Recommended

Great stay if going out to do a safari. Rooms are slightly dated but perfect for the price. Swimming pool is amazing. Highly recommend staying here instead of any expensive hotels in the area. A long way from other restaurants, but they will call a tuk tuk if you ask. Also the hotel resturant is good with reasonably priced food.

Really enjoyed the pool here and the outdoor seating area was also very nice. The staff were also an absolute pleasure.

We did have a few unwanted incests in our room over the 3 day stay including a few large roaches and one centipede in the bathroom. The small frog in the bathroom wasn’t a problem. Location is somewhat off the main road, but that keeps it a bit more quiet.

What a gem of a hotel! This hotel had really friendly staff- checking us in late and night and letting us stay at the hotel after check out, until our driver picked us up. The hotel has an amazing pool, it is really big and very clean and surrounded by lovely gardens - with peacocks! The room was spacious and clean with a lovely balcony, over looking the garden.

There weren't many restaurants nearby - however we enjoyed the Smoothie Bun at the end of the road, and Oak Ray for dinner.

Lovely hotel and staff great breakfast

Set in a nice gardens with a large pool, open air bar and restaurant, serving good meals. Room was large with comfortable bed and large clean bathroom. Wifi was a bit hit and miss, as with much of Sri Lanka. we had an early safari departure, staff made up a breakfast bag for our 5:30 departure, much appreciated

Restaurants and other facilities about 15-20 mins walk, helped that we had a car and river, main town of Tissa about 15 mins by tuk tuk

The staff were excellent ,they were very helpful, palways available for any request, and smiling. The garden was amazing, lovely plants and trees, beautifully tended by the gardener. The pool was fabulous, large and perfect temperature.

Nothing.

Quiet hotel with a sparkling 25m pool and well kept gardens. The staff were friendly and helpful, the room was clean and beds comfortable. The breakfast was very good with sri lankan or western options. We had dinner at the restaurant one night which was also good. A 5 min walk to a Cafe, restaurant and small supermarket. We also booked our safari through the hotel and don't think the experience is any different to the ones you book online which are more expensive.

The only issue we had was the wifi kept dropping out and it seemed to be off during the night which is reasonable I guess.

A slice of heaven in a remote area! The pool was fantastic, and the food was good (but basic) We had a ground floor room with balcony over looking to pool.

Basic restaurant options, but you can walk to other restaurants within the area. Take a head torch.

Our second time at this lovely hotel. Nice room with balcony overlooking the beautiful gardens and pool. Nice breakfast. Friendly and helpful staff, who very kindly provided beautiful flowers on my wife's birthday. What more can you ask for?

Nothing, all good.

Beautiful pool. Nice, quiet place. Good choice of breakfast. Daily cleaning of the room (first in Sri Lanka) Walking distance from eateries, etc. Very helpful and friendly staff. The owner takes time to personally check that everything is to your satisfaction. I can really recommend this place.

NA

It felt like a little haven, beautiful pool with peacocks a chipmunks running about. Staff were friendly, food was good. We stayed for one night as we were doing a safari which the hotel arranged for us and even made us breakfast to take with us. I would recommend

N/a

This is a great hotel if you’re planning to go on a safari in Yala National Park. The rooms are comfortable, there’s hot water, and the staff is incredibly friendly. One of the highlights is the large swimming pool, which adds to the relaxing atmosphere. Plus, the roaming pheasants everywhere make the place feel even more special. The staff is also very helpful when it comes to arranging safari trips—even if you book externally, which I’d recommend since the hotel’s safari prices are quite high. Overall, we really enjoyed our stay and would recommend it to anyone visiting the area! We stayed only one night, took in the morning 7h safari, come back at 12:30 and still have time to take shower (which is must after Yala) and pack up, even it was almost 2h after checkout time.

The restaurant could do better, but it is on place so you don't need to walk to town. Salads lack sauce, or it's too little. Burger was good. Wife enjoyed margaritas, there are also chicken nuggets for kids.