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Only an hour from Colombo International Airport or 20km south of Colombo, Reef Sri Lanka, is a spectacular luxury hideaway in three acres of beach side and exotic tropical gardens. With our 65m sandy beachfront, all weather tennis court, large swimming pool, lush tropical gardens, Reef sets a new bench mark for luxury accommodation in Sri Lanka. Romantic, private, and intimate and just seven exclusive, palatial suites; the ultimate in elegance and luxury and a soothing blend of warm effortless service and harmonious spaces.
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
HOTEL STYLE
Quiet
Romantic
Location
78 Samanthara Rd, Wadduwa 12560 Sri Lanka
Reef Villa & Spa
630 reviews
Getting there
Car recommended
Places to stay are graded on a 0-100 scale. The higher the grade, the easier it is for travellers to find restaurants and things to do within walking distance.
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Having spent two weeks touring Sri Lanka, we wanted to spend a couple of days relaxing on the coast before flying back to the UK. We could not have picked a better place to do this than the Reef Villa and Spa.
The hotel has the feel of a colonial villa and is set in a botanical garden paradise complete with parrots. The bedroom suites are massive, extremely comfortable and have huge bathrooms. The suites and public areas are tastefully furnished and decorated with real antiques and objet d’art.
The standard of service from the staff is exceptional, and from the moment you arrive we felt that we were treated more like house guests rather than just another hotel guest.
The open-air restaurant next to the pool, and overlooking the Indian Ocean was very good and served marvelous fresh fish and seafood.
In the morning it is fun and interesting to walk along the coconut palm fringed beach and watch the local fishing families deploy and retrieve their drag nets and go for swim afterwards in the warm sea. The ocean swim was suggested by the pool attendant who on realising that my wife was nervous about doing so, came onto the beach and kept and kept an eye on her.
We have stayed in lots of excellent boutique hotels around the world, but in terms of decor and quality of staff The Reef Villa is one of the best.
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Date of stay: January 2020
Value
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We stayed here at the end of an incredible tour of a beautiful country. Each room is about 100m2 and tastefully decorates by the English owners. Huge bed, outside shower (and inside), huge bath in stunning water gardens. The pool and garden lead directly onto the beach which is quiet where you can help fisherman pull their nets in if you feel you need the exercise and to feel like a good person.
Staff were very attentive with a genuine interest in us and what we think and want. Such nice guys. Really make your stay special. Food was great. Loved the Sri Lankan brekkie!!
The room was secluded with a good degree of privacy. Even the hotel tuk tuk was a useful service for emergency present buying. It’s quiet enough to feel you’re secluded. Beautiful place
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Date of stay: February 2020Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
This place is a must visit if you want to drown yourself in complete serenity.
The combination of nature and a pleasing selection of decorative antiques with a calm and quiet environment just alters your state of mind.
The service, specially by Dino was exceptional. Every little need was looked into.
We had minor technical issues such as the tub drainage being stuck, the ceiling fan makes an irritable noise over a certain threshold and the TV being out of place, however that didn't bother us because we were there for a short stay.
Just a few recommendations if this revreview makes it to the management, Please cater to your guests needs rather the guests catering to the kitchens needs when it comes to pre ordering the meal. We had to confirm our dinner order by 5.30 and we were uncomfortable As we had to rush to dinner.
The room was equipped with most essential appliances except for an iron and an ironing board. When called guest services, they said that they don't provide them either. For this reason, I had to wear wrinkled clothes throughout my stay.
On checkout, we had to wait for approx 10 mins until someone showed up, despite ringing the electric remote bell.
Other than these little things, we had an excellent time.
Thank you.
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Date of stay: January 2020Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from ReefSriLanka, Owner at Reef Villa & Spa
Responded 25 Jan 2020
Dear Indula Many thanks for staying with us and for your helpful feedback I am really pleased you enjoyed your stay and hope to welcome you back again. Please allow me to address some of the points you raised. The huge bathtubs are hand-carved and so require a spinner type bath waste which may seem a little unfamiliar. Sorry about that. The ceiling fans are over 100 years old. They are fully operational and refurbished but sometimes these old boys make a little groan now and again. All our suites are fully air-conditioned for your comfort. Our restaurant meals are cooked fresh to order and as we have a very large a la carte menu the chefs take care to create dishes specially for you and therefore takes a little time. Although you don’t have to, we normally request in the evening your order in advance and for your convenience ask what time you wish to dine. Obviously, something didn’t go to plan that evening and apologise for this. It is our policy not to provide ironing equipment in the guest suites for safety reasons. A hot iron could cause injury especially if there are children staying in the suite. We have our own fully operational laundry and offer a pressing service should you have requested this.
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
What a magical place! If you are a lover of antiques this is the place to be!
But......
If you are a lover of antiques, magic, ambience, service and a holiday to remember for ever, this is not a place to stay. Well, you may have better luck to tick these boxes but I did not!
1) I found the room that had not been cleaned to a standard of a 5* property let alone a 3*. Cobwebs, dust, insects (dead), ants in the rooms. These faux pas noted within 5 minutes of walking into the rooms. 2) The bathroom was stocked with half used set of shampoo/bath wash. This was evidently leftover from the previous occupants of the room. 3) No turn down service. Guests were expected to arrange and open mosquito nets and remove the numerous pillows adorning the bed, because housekeeping is not available after a certain hour. We arrived at 8pm because we drove from Colombo airport to Wadduwa having landed in the morning but decided to include a day trip to Negombo. Our late arrival was communicated in certain choice responses as an inconvenience. It was further mentioned that our annoyance at these remarks that we dont not have a sense of humour. 4) My wife has food intolerances that were communicated by the booking agent and we personally followed up and re-communicated the same to the kitchen staff at the Summer Breeze restaurant during our first night dinner, but during breakfast the next morning these instructions, whilst noted the night before, were not adhered to during breakfast. When this was pointed out this little mistake was denied even though it was physically evident on the plate of food. 5) These issues were communicated to the management and person(s) who know who they are but they were again in total denial until I decided enough is enough and I would rather check out and risk finding a lesser quality property for the rest of my stay. At this point it was agreed and an apology was offered this is not acceptable and that they had let us down regarding the cleanliness, dietary requirements and house keeping issues. But since it had to take my decision to cut short my stay to get the staff to realise they had let us down in the less than expected service, it was too late for my mind to be changed.
I am sure if you decide to stay at this property after reading my experience, I think you will find that your stay has been magic, as it should be because my experience has made the management realise they need to up their game 100 fold. I am sure you can make your own mind up.
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Date of stay: February 2022Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Brendan O'Donnell, Owner at Reef Villa & Spa
Responded 19 Feb 2022
This isn't a version of events we recognise. We do not tolerate bullying or rudeness to staff and management and threatening a negative Tripadvisor review clearly demonstrates they had another agenda.
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Where do I begin! This hotel is so unique and beautiful. On arrival, we entered a beautiful long walkway which was an oasis of trees, plants and water gardens. It felt like we were escaping into a whole other world. A complete oasis of tranquillity and nature. So that was a great start!
The main hotel and reception area is surrounded by all these beautiful antiques. I could have spent hours three exploring all the beautiful artefacts. Just on the right hand side there was another beautiful seating area surrounded by a beautiful water garden, swing sofa, and local fish. You could spend an evening there just listening to the sounds of nature and enjoying the tranquillity.
The hotel staff were very welcoming and friendly, they showed us around to hotel to help us get our bearings. We were led out to a beautiful large garden just Infront of the beach. It is surrounded by palm trees, a fabulous pool and outdoor restaurant where breakfast and dinner is served. Simply stunning.
We were then showed to our suite which was another lovely experience getting there. We were led along this beautiful walkway surrounded by tall greenery. (You feel connected to the nature at all time here)
Our suite was a complete WOW. So luxurious and completely unique. All the amazing artefacts and antiques. The attention to detail in the suite itself was so impressive and beautiful from the luxurious bedding, cushions, shower gels, bath salts, seating areas, interesting antiques to high vaulted wooded celling, 4 poster bed, gigantic bathtub, additional outdoor shower etc.
Our suite led out to a beautiful private garden and patio area (which included 2 seething areas, a swing sofa and beautiful water garden complete with fish!) We also had direct access to the garden and pool area.
Our stay here was magical and so relaxing. From laying by the pool reading our books, to taking long walks on the beach, watching the sunset etc
One night we had dinner in our fabulous suite. The staff pulled out all the stops in delivering our meals, It was a lovely experience. The food was also divine. The Sri Lankan breakfast was delicious
The owners clearly put a lot of work into creating this stunning hotel. The attention to detail has to be applauded.
It’s perfect for couples and families of all ages. You will feel like you are in paradise.
My husband and I 100% recommend this beautiful hotel . Finally, Thank you to all the team at the reef for making our stay with you so special. We are looking forward to returning in the future.
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Date of stay: January 2020
Location
Cleanliness
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We booked a wedding and honeymoon with these people and suffered the worst customer service ever, so much so that we cancelled with them a week or so after booking (and around 10 months prior to the wedding). They were unbelievably rude and agreed to refund our deposit (as they couldn’t accommodate our - quite reasonable - requests), but then refused to refund over email.
We’ve stayed in the best hotels and villas all over the world and have never experienced anything like it. My suspicion is that that they are into their product far more than their guests.
They’ll probably be ok, as long as everything goes their way. It’s also interesting to see their responses to negative reviews ;-)
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Date of stay: March 2019
Location
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Brendan O'Donnell, Owner at Reef Villa & Spa
Responded 24 Feb 2020
I have no idea what you are referring to and I can only assume you have mistakenly chosen the wrong hotel to post your comments. In an effort to understand your complaint I looked at your previous comments to other hotels and see you got married in a hotel in Sri Lanka in 2016 and you have just posted your comments in February 2020? Over four years ago. Therefore, I request you remove this review as it is nothing to do with us.
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
This was our fourth visit to Sri Lanka and the sixth occasion that we have stayed at Reef Villa. Given the pandemic that has effected the world over the last two years, we were delighted to find that the owners had been able to retain the services of many of the established staff with the General Manager, Chef, Head waiter, Head of Housekeeping all being familiar faces and helped make our holiday very enjoyable. The Island generally was still taking precautions against the virus and the controls that the Hotel exercised made us feel very safe and enabled us to stay relaxed during our stay. All our requirements were attended to without any fuss, including the search for a battery charger, which we had inadvertently left at home! There is a wide selection of food available throughout the day which is all prepared and cooked fresh, making the most of the exceptional quality of produce available on the island. We spoke to the chef and he was able to prepare our food just as we requested. The service throughout our stay was exceptional, we are so pleased that we had decided to return and are already planning another trip to Sri Lanka in a couple of years time and undoubtedly we will return to the Reef. If you are seeking a relaxing location with excellent service and quality produce, we can throughly recommend a stay at the Reef. Considering the anxiety that has been experienced over the last two years, we had been concerned at how the pandemic might have effected Reef Villa, but we need not have worried. The quality remains and will improve further as the Island reopens. An excellent location and most enjoyable stay
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Date of stay: February 2022Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Every time we visit Sri Lanka, we always spend time at the Reef Villa & Spa. We were there just before Christmas. We were warmly greeted by the hotel Manager Malith Perera followed by the hotel Owner Brendan and Bernadette and of cause by all the other staff. We always found the hotel be very inviting, welcoming, warm and friendly. We love everything about the hotel. The food was tasty and mouth watering. We felt the Chef gave personal attention to our meal and service was great by the waiting staff. We love the antiques in the hotel. Every time we visit the Sri Lanka this is one of our highlights of the trip. Thank you again for the hospitality and looking after all our requirements. We are looking forward to visiting again this year. Roshini & Michael Edwardes
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Date of stay: December 2019
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Room Tip:Fantastic place to stay
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reef Villa is a beautiful place with green spaces, stunning interiors and attentive staff. It has direct access to the beach, and a lovely pool set between the main house and the sea. The food is delicious - especially the curries - and the restaurant had perfect views to the beach. Overall a lovely quiet place to spend time at the beginning or end of a tour of Sri Lanka, or even for a long weekend from the Gulf. The only small criticism we had was that the masseur in the spa did not appear to have been professionally trained.
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Date of stay: January 2020Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from ReefSriLanka, Owner at Reef Villa & Spa
Responded 25 Jan 2020
Thank you so much for your lovely review and I am glad you enjoyed your stay. We offer a soothing range of spa treatments with our well-experienced staff and assure you that they are very well trained.
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
We have just returned from our third visit to this delightful, well designed hotel. As usual, everything was perfect.
The property is constantly maintained with lovely walks to the rooms beside the tree lined waterways and on to the garden and large pool, which we enjoyed daily.
We stayed in a beautifully decorated Ocean View suite, with its four poster bed and my favourite additional outdoor waterfall shower. The entire suite was spacious and comfortable. We wanted for nothing.
Also very much appreciated was the large shady verandah and watching the fish in the extended pool running alongside it.
Best of all was the care given to us by the staff. Thanks to Malith the manager, who was always ready to help with a smile. Dino in charge of the restaurant was there to give any further assistance, ably supported at tables. by the friendly and energetic Malin.
The food was delicious and our compliments go to our cook Asanka, for his great food. From breakfast to dinner, the restaurant is a treat.
We have travelled widely in Sri Lanka and the Reef is our favourite hotel of all. Don’t miss it.
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Date of stay: February 2023Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Stone, United Kingdom246 contributions75 helpful votes
The beach is very safe and shallow for a good way out until it starts to get deeper.
I do not think there is anything interesting to see underwater nearer the shoreline.
it´s allready long time ago that we stayed at this wonderful hotel- but I still remember very well the fantastic meals we enjoyed there. We never ate outside- except during Sightseeing-trip- because it could not have been better somewhere else. The costs were ok for this quality. We recommend the property to everybody who plans Holidays in Sri Lanka
Washington DC, District of Columbia14 contributions30 helpful votes
Hi. I don't recall for sure if every area is smoke free or not, but I don't remember being around any smoking.
It is a wonderful spot and definitely worth the stay, some of the best food we ate during our whole trip to Sri Lanka
Hope that helps.
Brighouse, United Kingdom96 contributions77 helpful votes
Hi the whole resort is smoke free. If people wanted to smoke they were directed to the beach area which is far away from the restaurant and bar and pool areas
Thanks
There are more places to choose from in the Wadduwa area.
PRICE RANGE
£231 - £414 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
reef villa hotel wadduwa, reef villa and spa, reef beach hotel wadduwa
LOCATION
Sri LankaWestern ProvinceWadduwa
NUMBER OF ROOMS
7
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