Kalu's Hideaway Udawalawe

Stayed here whilst touring and visiting Udawalawe Park. Small, privately owned hotel with a very peaceful vibe. Set in nice forest and gardens, our room was clean, comfortable and equipped with all you need, with nice view from balcony into the grounds. There is also a nice little pool and inside they even have a snooker table and an exhibition of the cricket memorobilia of the owner. When we first arrived we were given complimentary head/neck massages which was lovely but we had no time to make use of the spa services properly. Dinner was by set menu due to being off-season but food was very good, as was breakfast and staff all very welcoming.

What an amazing place this is on the edge of the national park, we only had one night here - wish it had been more. The room was spacious and had a large balcony with chairs and a double lounger on it. Really nice grounds to wander round and very nice table service food. The cricket memorabilia was a nice touch and made it a little bit different to everywhere else - great stay.

We loved our stay here with our 5yo - the loveliest welcome and such a warmth from all the staff. You get an instant feeling of being relaxed here and we sadly only booked one night, definitely book more if you’re visiting. By far our favourite hotel on our 14 day trip.

Kalu and his family and team have created the most perfect little escape from the world on the doorstep of Udawalawe National Park. Situated down a little track which backs on to the river, you really couldn’t ask for a better hideaway. The rooms are simple yet elegant, the menu is limited yet delicious and the service is personal and attentive without being too much. The bird life in the garden is varied and the spa is to die for and extremely reasonably priced. Two of our party had birthdays whilst we were staying there and they organised cake and put up balloons for us. My only recommendation is that you add a couple of spirits to your drinks menu, a gin and tonic would have rounded our days off perfectly!

Lovely place hidden away from sight as the name would suggest. The rooms are a little basic but provide exactly what is needed with no frills and all have a/c. They are immaculately clean and comfortable. The only small gripe we had was that the fridge did not keep anything cold but maybe it wasn’t powerful enough? The restaurant is a little warm but there are fans to circularte the air and the food is excellent. The chips were cooked in coconut oil which was so tasty and the food comes in plentiful portions. For our evening meal members of our party had chicken curry and this was very tasty not too spicy but with a beautiful kick suitable for western palates. It also came with dhal, beetroot, pumpkin curry, rice and pappadoms. We had the devilled chicken with fried rice and it was gorgeous one of my favourite things I have eaten this trip and would wholeheartedly recommend this order. For such a small hotel, only 14 rooms they were very accommodating of our party member with the severe gluten allergy, they even made her a custom soup so she would not be left out of the starters and the others had been thickened with flour. The tomato soup is divine and the garlic bread toast that comes with it sensational. We even met kalu, which given ash and his dad are massive cricket fans was just the icing on the cake! He is so lovely and passionate about the hotel, the environment and ensuring everyone is having a nice time. The bar choices are a little limited, no spirits or cocktails are available but given the hotel has 14 rooms there was plenty of soft drink options as well as wines and beers. Breakfast was lovely, plenty of choice especially given again the size of the resort. In terms of amenities there is a lovely pool area that we were only able to look at as we were on safari shortly after our arrival and were only there one night. The restaurant is lovely and there is plenty of memorabilia about which was very interesting to have a look at. Every single staff member is a credit to this hotel, they are all polite, friendly and make it their mission to ensure you are having a nice time. We 1000% would return here if we come back to Sri Lanka.

Absolutely loved our night here - beautiful hotel and grounds - a real relaxing retreat! Such a shame that it was a quick 1 night stopover as would love to have spent more time here. We had dinner which was lovely and a great traditional Sri Lankan breakfast. Must mention the staff who were all so friendly and accommodating and of course Kalu the owner who despite being a famous cricketer was lovely and very humble. Would highly recommend this hotel...

Lovley Hotel, with lovely staff, can't fault it. Great position, bed was comfy, and food was great. It has a Fantastic swimming pool including a pool for children. We've had six hotels on our travels and this is Definitely the best one we've stay at. FABULOUS....

We only stayed for 1 night which was lovely. Clean & comfortable room, helpful staff & delicious buffet dinner which was excellent value. A good choice for breakfast with freshly made egg hoppers. The garden was nice & the pool looked inviting, although we didn’t have time to use it. For a cricket fan, the museum was very interesting & unique. We would definitely stay here again.

We had a one night stay whilst visiting Udawalawe National Park. The hideaway is remote in lovely grounds adjacent to the river which whilst we were there the dam was opened and the water gushed past. It has a lovely lounge/dining area. The rooms are a little tired but adequate for a couple of nights. The buffet dinner was nice but breakfast a little chaotic with no cups and difficult to get a hot drink. The pool was lovely but needed the loungers upgraded. If you are a cricket fan all the memorabilia is brilliant.