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Reviews of Mount Lavinia Hotel

4 out of 5
Mount Lavinia Hotel
100 Hotel Road, Mount Lavinia

Reviews

8.4

Very good

Rating 10 - Excellent. 254 out of 590 reviews" "
Rating 8 - Good. 225 out of 590 reviews" "
Rating 6 - Okay. 66 out of 590 reviews" "
Rating 4 - Poor. 23 out of 590 reviews" "
Rating 2 - Terrible. 22 out of 590 reviews" "

8.2/10

Cleanliness

8.6/10

Staff & service

7.4/10

Amenities

7.6/10

Property conditions & facilities

7.0/10

Eco-friendliness

Reviews

4/10 Poor

Pavithrini

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness
Disliked: Staff & service
Lovely location and we enjoying visiting this beautiful colonial beach hotel however we were charged twice for drinks consumed in the lobby and moved to the terrace area despite explaining to the staff at the time and showing my receipts. Be careful and double check your statements as they take your bank card and disappear with it. They don’t need a pin or a signature to take money out. Shocking!
Stayed 1 night in Mar 2024

8/10 Good

MAHESH

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
This is a historic property with an amazing history that evokes nostalgia. With a bit of an upgrade it will be back to its former glory. It has the potential to become Sri Lanka’s own Raffles Hotel.
Stayed 6 nights in Apr 2023

4/10 Poor

Andrew

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 3 nights in Jan 2023

2/10 Terrible

Abdulla

Stayed 3 nights in Jan 2023

2/10 Terrible

Linda

Stayed 2 nights in Dec 2022

8/10 Good

Ashley

Liked: Staff & service
Nice hotel great location
Hotel is in perfect location. Steeped in history and a very grand building. However this shows in its condition in places. Some corridors do smell very damp but is very clean. The bathroom we had showed signs of tiredness. Our room was ground floor and had a family of pigeons nesting on out window box . Poo everywhere. Private beach is nice but I preferred public beach. Nice hotel and great location.
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2020

10/10 Excellent

Angela

Business traveller, Travelled with partner
Liked: Staff & service
Great location and friendly, courteous and helpful staff. Great to be back after some 15 or so years. Only request is to the staff on the terrace. Please cast your eyes over the guests more frequently. It is sometimes hard to catch your attention!!
Stayed 11 nights in Feb 2020

8/10 Good

Algimantas

Liked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
One year 2019 was better
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2020

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Business traveller
Variable quality attributes
The hotel has some great features. All public spaces, restaurants and food are excellent. Amazing location too. Service is variable. Some excellent staff and some not so great. But the problem was the room. It was really basic. Not a single lamp stand in the room. It was dark and I was unable to read anything from the ceiling lights. The shower had a bad smell. I stayed at the Kingsbury in Colombo, paid the same rate, and the room was fabulous. Can't understand this difference in standards.
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2020

10/10 Excellent

Jane, Uk

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
This was our third visit and I hope it won’t be our last. It has an amazing old colonial feel with a wonderful history behind it. Very relaxing. The food is amazing. They have one of the best chefs in Sri Lanka who has become famous for his books and television appearances. The staff great too. Nothing is too much for them. Then there is the private beach with fish restaurant and happy hour watching the sun go down over the sea
Stayed 2 nights in Feb 2020

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Stayed 6 nights in Feb 2020

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 3 nights in Feb 2020

4/10 Poor

Enoka

Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2020

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Stayed 6 nights in Feb 2020

6/10 Okay

Zahirali

Disliked: Property conditions & facilities
This place is tired.
The only good thing I can say is the location and the view. Restaurant is great. It may be a 200 yr hotel and it is supposed to be grand and all but you desperately need to update the place especially rooms and all if you are charging top dollar.
Stayed 2 nights in Feb 2020

8/10 Good

stephen

Liked: Staff & service, room comfort
Grand old Duchess that has style
The staff are well trained and very helpful. The choice of eating palace and food adds greatly to the pleasure. The value is first class I was recommended and I will recommend in turn. It was a second visit in two weeks
Stayed 4 nights in Feb 2020

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2020
Response from Eshan on 11 Feb 2020
Dear Valued Guest, Greetings from Mount Lavinia Hotel! Hope you enjoyed the stay with us. Looking forward to seeing you soon again.

8/10 Good

William

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 2 nights in Feb 2020
Response from Eshan on 11 Feb 2020
Dear Valued Guest! Greetings from Mount Lavinia Hotel! Hope you enjoyed the stay at Mount Lavinia Hotel. We look forward to welcoming you back.

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
We had a pleasant stay staff were very attentive and facilities good
Stayed 3 nights in Feb 2020
Response from Eshan on 11 Feb 2020
Dear Valued Guest, Greetings from Mount Lavinia Hotel! We are pleased that you enjoyed your stay with us at the resort in the city. We hope we see you soon again!

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
This hotel has a private beach very close to the property. Some of the staff working at the property are helpful and friendly
Stayed 6 nights in Jan 2020
Response from Esh on 6 Feb 2020
Dear Guest, Greetings from Mount Lavinia Hotel! We are pleased that you enjoyed your stay with us at the resort in the city. At out hotel all guests are a warmly welcome to enjoy the breathtaking sunsets, scrumptious food and our sandy private beach. We will make sure that all the staff working at the property will be very helpful and friendly. We hope we see you soon again!

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Beautiful old property with amazing history. Staff absolutely lovely and the pool is best we visited while in Sri Lanka.
Stayed 2 nights in Jan 2020

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
The staff were all lovely. When the man on reception learnt that I was going to change in the bathroom before going to the airport (we had already checked out) he allowed us to use a guest room for a quick shower - it was greatly appreciated. Lovely property with a great beach and the seafood restaurant is really fantastic.
Stayed 4 nights in Dec 2019
Response from Eshan on 11 Feb 2020
Dear valued guest, Greetings from Mount Lavinia Hotel! Thank you for your wonderful review about our hotel. We are indeed proud of being the beautiful and historic resort in the city and the magnificent views that the hotel provides. The governor's restaurant, seafood cove especially caters scrumptious food that keeps your taste buds tantalized. We are glad that you enjoyed the stay with us. Please do visit us soon again!

10/10 Excellent

Reginald

Business traveller
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Buffet Food Variety is grately reduced
The following is very much in the hope that the hotel will know how to improve. Mt.Lavinia H is one of my favourite hotels, So all improvements would be great for me. As is usual this time too was excellent service & staff were friendly. The choice of food in the breakfast Buffet apears to be much reduced though. I found that the fruit stall was restricted to 3 or 4 fruits Any time I asked for a mango i was told that there was none available even though it was quite early in the mornings. I know there was plenty of mangoes available outside the hotel so really was no excuse. The fruits at breakfast time used to be a highlight with wide variety and generous potions. Compared to atleast two other hotels i stayed at, the Breakfast Buffet at Mt.Lavinia was very very poor this time, which made the breakfast not worth the money. Cutting costs is great, however, when it means the food is reduced in variety & quantity you are cutting down on your good name and your hard won reputation. Hope this is constructive criticism proves helpful. Reg David +447931713943
Stayed 9 nights in Dec 2019

10/10 Excellent

Yuchao

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 2 nights in Dec 2019
Response from kavisha on 20 Dec 2019
Dear Mr. Yuchao, Greetings from Mount Lavinia Hotel! Thank you for your wonderful review about our hotel. Looking forward to seeing you soon again with us!

10/10 Excellent

GinaTurner, LasVegas NV.

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
I love this Place. I ate at the buffet and didn't get sick. Safe and relaxing with AMAZING views. I was treated like ROYALTY. 2nd time I stayed here and both times was such a pleasant stay.
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2019
Response from kavisha on 18 Dec 2019
Dear Ms. Turner, Greetings from Mount Lavinia Hotel! We are pleased that you enjoyed your stay with us at the resort in the city. At out hotel all guests are a warmly welcome to enjoy the breathtaking sunsets, scrumptious food and our sandy private beach. We hope we see you soon again!

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Stayed 3 nights in Dec 2019
Response from kavisha on 16 Dec 2019
Dear Guest, Greetings from Mount Lavinia Hotel! Thank you for your review of our hotel. We are glad you enjoyed the splendid views, scrumptious food of our resort in the city. We look forward to having you with us!

10/10 Excellent

Mr.Albarri, New York

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
The management were amazing! We had a few issues, but when I explained the problems they took care of them striaght away. Best Manager in the Hotel is Ms. Costa, she is head of Housekeeping, but truly took care of our every need. It was like personal service. She knew the History of the Hotel, all the secret places, and gave a personal tour. Amazing Service from Ms. Sriysnythi Costa
Stayed 2 nights in Nov 2019
Response from Imasha Dahanayake on 6 Dec 2019
Thank you for your review. We will pass on your comments to Ms Costa. We look forward to welcoming you back.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
The Hotel main building is very old but well maintained. The location provides a scenic view of Colombo City along the coast ! Great restaurants. One of the best places to relax!
Stayed 4 nights in Nov 2019
Response from Kavisha on 30 Nov 2019
Dear valued guest, Greetings from Mount Lavinia Hotel! We are indeed proud of being the beautiful and historic resort in the city and the magnificent views that the hotel provides. The governer's restaurant, seafood cove especially caters scrumptious food that keeps your taste buds tantalized. Please do visit us soon again!

10/10 Excellent

Ian

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Stayed 3 nights in Nov 2019
Response from kavisha on 26 Nov 2019
Dear Mr. Ian, Greetings from Mount Lavinia Hotel! Thank you for your feedback regarding our hotel and we look forward to seeing you soon again with us!

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveller

Travelled with partner
Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
I called ahead due to the elections and I asked if everything would be opened and if they were fully staffed and they said yes. Upon checking in we were informed that none of the bars were open!!!!!!. It was our anniversary and we planned on basking by the pool with cocktails and going to happy hour with the supposed live music. None of that happened! Upon entering the best room they had which is what I booked it smelled heavilly like smoke, must, dust, mold. I immediately went to the front desk and spoke with the manager, she asked a maid to go to the room as they had no other rooms like it to switch us to. She had no remorse about us calling first and being lied to about everything being open. She also wasnt understanding about the smell and my allergies to smoke. It smelled slightly better but after ordering dinner to the room I had two bites of food before i had a major allergy attack to where my lips swelled and my lungs tightened. Our romantic night out turned into me taking 2 allergy pills due to the overwhelming cigarette smell, dust and mold and going to sleep early. The food was terrible. The facilities need a huge overhall. The manger needs a LOT of training. The only good part was the lady who took our order from room service she was very sweet and sent us a cake for our anniversary. Dont waste your time or money, the Kingsbury is a million times better and the same price.
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2019
Response from Imasha Dahanayake on 17 Dec 2019
Dear Valued Guest, Thank you for contacting us and highlighting these issues. We sincerely apologise for the shortcomings from our side. Addressing the issues you have raised, we were required by Government regulations to ensure liquor was not served during the days of the elections. However, we did have a bar open exclusively for residents. We have also taken into serious consideration the other issues that you have highlighted and the investigation is on going. Please be assured that corrective action will be taken. We hope that we will be able to welcome you back at the Mount Lavinia Hotel and we look forward to serving you better. Thank you

2/10 Terrible

KP, London, UK

Travelled with partner
Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
DO NOT GO to this Hotel. Good history BUT NO MAINTENANCES and worse than third class. DERELICT CONDITION though out. Written to Expedia, Hotel Resident Manager & CEO but most of the things in the hotel including not working showers, boiling hot water without cold water, 3rd class house keeping & room services, cheap quality food, derelict furniture, rotten conditions such as smelly carpets & lifts etc are still the same. We changed rooms two times in day one and the third room given to us was a lot cheaper than I paid BUT hotel has NOT refunded the money. They did have an offer for Sri Lankans Rupees 10,000 per half board (£40 per day) for this room we stayed and we are Sri Lankans BUT did not refund the money!!!
Stayed 8 nights in Oct 2019
Response from kavisha on 26 Nov 2019
Dear Ms. KP, Greetings! We are sorry that you did not enjoy your stay with us and we extend our sincere apologies on behalf of the entire management of the hotel. We have taken your review very seriously and have contacted all relevant departments for further action. Once again we would like to apologize about your stay with us.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2019
Response from kavisha on 14 Oct 2019
Dear Guest, Thank you for your wonderful feedback! We look forward to having you soon again with us!

4/10 Poor

Verified traveller

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Property conditions & facilities
Stayed 12 nights in Aug 2019
Response from Team MLH on 20 Aug 2019
Dear Valued Guest, Thank you for taking the time to rate us.

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveller

Travelled with family and small children
Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Rooms are not clean and washroom lock wasn’t working properly so we want to leave after one night and they still charged us 2 nights 3 days saying Expedia don’t give them refund...
Stayed 3 nights in Aug 2019

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Travelled with family
Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness
Sri Lankan food was amazing. The view was breathtaking. I expected more cleanliness than served in room. The towels and bath robes were very old.
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2019
Response from Team MLH on 20 Aug 2019
Dear Valued Guest, Thank you for taking the time to review and rate us. We thank you for your most valuable compliments on our food and amazing views. We do however apologize that certain elements of your stay didn't meet your expectations. We look forward to serving you better on your next visit to the hotel.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Business traveller
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Outstanding food. Lovely pool terrace. Rooms can be a bit damp.
Stayed 6 nights in Jul 2019
Response from Team MLH on 20 Aug 2019
Dear Valued Guest, Thank you for taking the time to review and rate us. We are glad that all our efforts have been successful in making your stay memorable and enjoyable. We thank you for the compliments on our food, pool and terrace. We also appreciate your constructive feedback on our rooms. We look forward to welcoming you back soon.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Business traveller
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 5 nights at this nice hotel with scenic sea view.
Stayed 5 nights in Jul 2019
Response from Team MLH on 20 Aug 2019
Dear Valued Guest, Thank you for taking the time to share your recent experience at the hotel. We are glad that all our efforts have been successful in making your stay memorable and enjoyable. We look forward to welcoming you back soon.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Good hotel and good facilities
Stayed 2 nights in Jul 2019
Response from Team MLH on 17 Jul 2019
Dear Valued Guest, Thank you for taking the time to review and rate us. We appreciate your most valuable compliments. It gives us great joy in knowing that all our efforts have been successful in making your stay memorable end enjoyable. We look forward to welcoming you back soon.

10/10 Excellent

Shahadath, Stevenage, uk

Travelled with family and small children
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Breakfast, lunch and dinner buffet was everything plus more than what we expected. Ranjith the doorman was incredibly helpful and a joy to talk to. All the staff at mount lavinia hotel are incredibly nice and polite. We will definitely be back for a third stay here.
Stayed 2 nights in Jul 2019
Response from Team MLH on 5 Jul 2019
Dear Valued Guest, Thank you for taking the time to share your recent experience with us. We sincerely thank you for your most valuable compliments on our food and friendly staff. It gives us great joy in knowing that all our efforts have been successful in making your stay memorable and enjoyable. We thank you for staying with us and we look forward to welcoming you back soon.

10/10 Excellent

Lynn

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
A step back in time
The initial impression of Mount Lavinia Hotel is impressive. Beautiful old building harking back to British colonial days with doormen decked out in British uniform regalia to greet you at the front entrance beside the paved courtyard and fountain. The rooms themselves could do with a spruce up and new décor, but the ocean view is stunning. The service is fantastic and the food is tasty and plentiful. The buffet breakfast has everything and more you could possibly want for the first meal of the day and it gets better with the lunch and dinner menus, especially the fresh seafood on the beach. It was a wonderful relaxing two night stay at the end of our trip around Sri Lanka. Our guide around the hotel knew all about its fascinating history and he was proud to show us the living history of the museum and the tunnels connecting the lovers. Romantic and full of charm. Thanks for a lovely stay in your first class hotel.
Stayed 2 nights in Jun 2019
Response from Team MLH on 4 Jul 2019
Dear Valued Guest, Thank you for taking the time to share such outstanding feedback. It gives us much joy in knowing that all our efforts have been successful in making your stay memorable and enjoyable. We sincerely thank you for the compliments on our colonial ambience, friendly staff, service, food, Seafood Cove restaurant, special history tours and amazing views. While we appreciate the positives we would also like to thank you for your constructive criticism on our rooms. We believe that it is only by accepting and working on constructive feedback from our guests, that we can achieve the highest levels of service that we aspire towards. We thank you for staying with us and we look forward to welcoming you back soon.

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Stayed 1 night in Jul 2019
Response from Team MLH on 11 Jul 2019
Dear Valued Guest, Thank you for rating us.

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Great service and facilities. Older parts of the complex could be upgraded as they are showing their age.
Stayed 3 nights in May 2019
Response from Team MLH on 14 Jun 2019
Dear Valued Guest, Thank you for taking the time to share your recent experience at the hotel.We appreciate your compliments on our service and facilities. We also thank you for your constructive criticism and value your feedback. Nevertheless, we are glad that you enjoyed your stay and we look forward to welcoming you back soon.

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
I think security's is to be improve because uf some body comes immediately security open the gste. Its we are not satisfied.
Stayed 7 nights in Apr 2019
Response from Imasha Dahanayake on 13 May 2019
Dear Guest, We are sorry to hear about this confusion. The security was tightened and we didnt allow anyone to come inside without a body check and bag check. Thank you for highlighting this.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Nice hotel. Amazing history. Friendly and helping staff
Stayed 3 nights in Apr 2019
Response from Team MLH on 23 Apr 2019
Dear Valued Guest, Thank you for taking the time to rate and review us. We appreciate your generous compliments on our historical ambience and friendly staff. We are glad you enjoyed your stay and we look forward to welcoming you back soon.

4/10 Poor

Selvakumar, Toronto

Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Visit to Sri Lanka. April 7 th to 17th 2019
Room cleanliness is not to the standard. Bathroom shower curtain was dirty and no telephone shower or bidet. Food was very average. Service was good.
Stayed 11 nights in Apr 2019
Response from Team MLH on 23 Apr 2019
Dear Valued Guest, Thank you for taking the time to review and rate us. We appreciate your constructive criticism on our rooms, bathroom, food and service. We believe that it is only by accepting and working on constructive feedback from our guests, that we can achieve the highest levels of service that we aspire towards. We apologize for any inconvenience caused and we hope to serve you better on your next visit to the hotel.

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness
Disliked: Staff & service
Stayed 1 night in Apr 2019
Response from Team MLH on 23 Apr 2019
Dear Guest, Thank you for taking the time to rate us. We hope to serve you better next time.

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Stayed 3 nights in Apr 2019
Response from Team MLH on 17 Apr 2019
Dear Valued Guest, Your feedback is much appreciated. Thank you for taking the time to rate us.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
We liked everything about the hotel. The pool, beach, room, restaurants and the history of the old hotel. If I really had to nitpick I would suggest beach umbrellas that can be anchored in the sand. There are some shady spots but farther back from the ocean and you keep having to move your chairs to follow shade.
Stayed 3 nights in Apr 2019
Response from Team MLH on 16 Apr 2019
Dear Valued Guest, Thank you for taking the time to share your recent experience at the hotel. We appreciate your most valuable compliments on our pool, Paradise beach, rooms, restaurants and historical ambience. Thank you for your suggestions on the beach umbrellas. We believe that it is only by accepting and working on constructive feedback from our guests, that we can achieve the highest levels of service that we aspire towards. We are glad you enjoyed your stay and we look forward to welcoming you back soon.

6/10 Okay

TrevorD, Hampshire, UK.

Travelled with family, Travelled with group
Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Average hotel in a nice location. The ocean view suite is a better than the average room. The hotel is of Colonial style but tired, not well maintained and is dirty in many public areas. Pool terrace shares dining terrace and can be difficult early evening when restaurant is preparing for dinner service. Good selection of average quality buffet food in the restaurant. Service is very slow with counters not replenished through the service. Tables are often unserviced or cleaned. Could be a very nice hotel if better cared for.
Stayed 2 nights in Apr 2019
Response from Team MLH on 16 Apr 2019
Dear Valued Guest, Thank you for taking the time to share your recent experience at the hotel. We believe that there's always room for improvement and we appreciate your constructive criticism. It is by working on constructive feedback from our guests, that we can achieve the highest levels of service that we aspire towards. Please accept our sincere apologies for any inconveniences caused and we hope to welcome you back soon.

8/10 Good

Neil

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Apr 2019
Response from Team MLH on 8 Apr 2019
Dear Valued Guest, Thank you for taking the time to rate us.