Hotel Riu Sri Lanka

The hotel is perfectly located, has a friendly atmosphere and gives a modern impression.

We arrived at the Riu Sri Lanka today at 1 p.m. and were immediately disappointed. Although we had explicitly stated our preferences when booking – a nice view, two beds, top floor, and a quiet location – we were told upon arrival that we would only be given a room on the third floor. No alternative or compromise was offered initially. We were also firmly informed that the rooms would not be available until 3 p.m. sharp. While we were told that someone would contact us if the room was ready earlier, this never happened. Instead, we had to wait in the lobby with our two small children, while other guests were apparently able to check in earlier. Especially with tired children after a long journey, we found this behavior to be completely unacceptable. When we finally arrived in our room at 3 p.m., we discovered that none of our requests had been fulfilled. Instead of a nice view, we only had a partial sea view, there was no quiet room, and instead of the two beds we had requested, there was only one 180 cm bed for us and our children. This caused us enormous stress. Furthermore, we find it completely incomprehensible that other guests apparently received free upgrades to rooms with direct sea views and twin beds, even though we had specifically requested and expected these amenities when booking. Only after another complaint was our room changed – and even then, only very reluctantly. We don't understand why something like this should happen in a hotel of this category. In addition, we had significant problems with booking directly through Riu's own portal beforehand. We were promised a free transfer for direct bookings. However, since booking at the beginning of November, we waited until yesterday for confirmation or the transfer voucher. Since we obviously couldn't wait until our arrival, we ultimately had to organize the transfer ourselves and traveled to the hotel at our own expense, costing €50. Here, too, we feel that we, as direct bookers, were not taken seriously. Overall, we are therefore left wondering what advantage booking directly through Riu's own portal actually offers. Despite providing our requests in a timely manner, they were not taken into account, and we did not find any discernible added value compared to other booking methods. Therefore, our first impression is unfortunately very negative. We sincerely hope that the service will improve significantly during our stay.

Highly recommended. Cool place, good food, great location.