Thambapanni Retreat

Sri Lanka , Galle
Unawatuna, Galle
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20 reviews shown

8/10

Excellent

22 Jan 2025

Elliot

Nice Hotel that needs better upkeep

Nice facility, our room was fairly unique with some fake rock. Our daughter's room had a cool outdoor bathtub. You get great use of two other Thambapanni resorts in the area. Rooms are large and interesting. Very musty. The air conditioner needed to be maintained to keep mildew out. Clothes drying rack, nice bathroom and good breakfast. Super accommodating staff.

Unawatuna is a bit of a Russian tourist trap. Aggressive tuktuk drivers and merchants. Jungle Beach nice but crowded. The Sea Waves restaurant is awesome for dinner!

Friends_and_family Family

10/10

Exceptional

28 Feb 2024

dominique

everything is made to make you feel welcome, the staff is wonderful, from the cleaners to the pool technician, the cooks , the people at the reception and the manager, thank you all for this lovely stay!
the place is a little paradise on earth, the rooms, the restaurant, the swimming pool, the location, one of the best place we ever stay.
2 steps away from the beach, jungle, shopping, restaurants etc.., but away from the busy main street.
will defitinely come back!

Leisure Partner

8/10

Excellent

27 Feb 2022

Verified traveler

Cute little hotel.

Thambapanni Retreat is a cute little find in the heart of Unawatuna. I arrived late for the first nights stay and the only room left was a room above the kitchen which was extremely unpleasant and noisy with a window shining light through all evening. I have to say, Anil and his colleague ensured the next day I was upgraded due to the inconvenience and did their level best to resolve the matter.

Self

10/10

Exceptional

29 Oct 2019

Robert

Absolutely wonderful!. Great service, all of the staff on all levels are attentive and helpful. My room was fantastic, the breakfast was wonderful, location is great. I will definitely be back and for a longer stay. Yoga in the morning made my day, the massage therapists were great. I took a tour arranged by the hotel and it was fantastic. One of the nicest places I have stayed at.

Leisure Self

8/10

Excellent

25 Oct 2019

Verified traveler

A cute little hotel, made to feel special with plenty of friendly staff.

Leisure Self

10/10

Exceptional

25 Mar 2019

George

The staff were excellent and looked after us. Excellent food and the staff went out of their way to please us. Had an issue with my ears and one of the staff Arune came with us to the hospital to help us sort it out. I thank him for that. A lovely freindly guy. Stay here . Its perfect

Leisure

10/10

Exceptional

10 Mar 2019

Sebastien

Book it! Don’t wait.

Love love love this hotel! Amazing location - 5 min from the beach walking- the room was stunning and super comfy. The spa was GREAT!

Partner

8/10

Excellent

14 Feb 2019

Lisa

Lovely hotel but they overbooked our room

We were overbooked so the room with balcony which we booked via hotels.com (which was prepaid) was available. Very disappointing as we ended up being put in an inside room with no balcony/patio. After discussing with manager we were moved to another room but only after 2 days, which meant us packing and moving out luggage not ideal. So please be careful if you book through hotels.com or Expedia as all the rooms they sell should have a balcony but you may be put in an inside room. Despite the room issues we did like the hotel, the staff were very accommodating and breakfast was fantastic. It’s a shame about mix up with room as we probably would of returned.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

28 Jan 2019

Mark

Charming little gem

Great staff, so friendly. Lovely large room, a little rough around the edges but all the more charming for it. Everything worked!

Breakfast was good, good choice and super staff serving.

Yoga available 8-9.30 for 1500LKR if that's your thing. Small pool but everything you need ie:- water, sunbeds etc.
Location is great, tucked away from the busy main road yet only an easy 5 minute stroll to the beach and shops with plenty to offer.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

11 Dec 2018

Jesse

Lovely Hotel

Fantastic staff, facilities & food. Thank You

Partner

6/10

Pleasant

28 Mar 2018

sean

Very average hotel, i would stay somewhere better

First, the staff were not very welcoming. They were not churpy. We did not get the room we booked, it was much smaller than advertised so do not get sucked in like we did.

Pros
Big bathroom
Soft bed
safe

Cons
Terrible breakfast, very basic
Room service did not speak english
We ordered a Hawaiian but received a tomato pizza
Air con was terrible
Electricity kept on going out
No hot water
small bath tub
lights outside the room you cant control they were on all night
location was not the greatest, had to walk about 10 min to the beach
Checkout was slow and bad service
The door was so small
The massage was soft when i asked her hard 10 times

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

17 Mar 2018

Verified traveler

Good Value Near the Beach

Amazing staff. Buffett breakfast in the morning. Walking distance to Unawatuna Beach, or walk to Jungle Beach is a little further. Nice pool. It's set back off the road for quiet. This isn't a five star hotel, but it's a good value for what I paid and what you get.

8/10

Excellent

05 Mar 2018

Doreen

Lovely unusual hotel in a good location

This is a fantastic hotel, however at first we were put in the very top room up a flight of 132 stairs! This room has a great view of the sea, etc but my husband has a bad knee and a heart condition so it wasn't at all suitable. The next day we were moved to a fantastic room lower down, the management were excellent. We were not aware if this issue when booking
The staff in the restaurant were lovely, nothing was too much trouble,

10/10

Exceptional

27 Jan 2018

Verified traveler

Charming jungle hotel

Might find different kind of insects in the room, but that's the why it is, its in the middle of jungle, I've stayed in superior and deluxe room and I like them both, it is located 5 mins. away the busy beach. I love each room has it's own outdoor resting area nice for a book. Wi-fi is not too stable, breakfast is simple buffet with some local dishes. Front office manager was helpful, restaurant staff. the bald man is such a sweet heart, can't wait to go back!

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

22 Dec 2017

Elaine

Wonderful views and peaceful

Greated with a warm smile wonderful welcome excellent service helped me arrange whale watching and turtle sanctuary
The yoga classes are fantastic very knowledgeable teacher and very relaxing
Of all the places I visited I would recommend Unawatuna
I loved my room which was in the canopy of bamboo and palms
Every day the monkeys were a joy to watch along with the parrots
Thank you for my stay I will be back
Elaine and Savanna from Edinburgh

Family

10/10

Exceptional

17 Dec 2017

Verified traveler

5-day stay

Nice hotel, perfect for a couple of nights with a young baby. Friendly staff as well.

Family

8/10

Excellent

14 Dec 2017

Suzanne

Really friendly staff

Really warm welcome after a long journey, staff always ready to help, wonderful location, especially when the monkeys cross the grounds , clean with fresh flowers every day
Good breakfast
Great massage, and lovely masseur
Yoga every morning, with a very patient teacher
Would recommend

10/10

Exceptional

16 Sep 2017

Shaun

Great hotel two minutes from beach

Great hotel great staff great time had here for two weeks. Great start point for exploring south sri Lanka .

8/10

Excellent

12 Sep 2017

Anna

Peaceful oasis near the beach

This boutique hotel was exactly what we were looking for... classic design, comfortable, friendly and set amongst nature. Just a few minutes walk to the beach, restaurants, bars etc. Staff were excellent.. nothing was too much trouble. We loved our stay.

10/10

Exceptional

26 Jun 2017

Eddie and Tina

We had a real nice 10 days at the hotel.

We stayed 10 days at the hotel, Piomy ( if I spell her name right) was very helpfull and sweet. There are many little restaurants around, and close to the beach.