Hotel Gayan's

The room is so clean and spacious! And it’s really close to the national park! Gayon is very friendly and helpful, he gives us a reasonable price to go safari! We enjoy the journey with him! Also the vegetable curry dinner is so delicious, it’s definitely the best one we’ve had in Celon! Everyone should try it!

Really friendly kind owner, even drived me to a restaurant. Offers also breakfast after safari :-)

We had a great time staying at Hotel Gayan’s. Both Gayan and his mum were incredibly accommodating and welcoming. Helping us with arranging the safari, taking us to the elephant sanctuary, providing an amazing breakfast and some of the best food we’ve had in Sri Lanka for dinner. We stayed here for two nights and felt right at home. The rooms are spacious and bed is super comfy. We loved our stay here and would recommend the safari!

Lokalizacja - dosłownie kilka metro spacerem od pierwszej bramy do parku narodowego! Niezwykłe czysty pokój. Prawdę mówiąc, najwyższy standard ze wszystkich noclegów jakie miałem na Sri Lance - aż szkoda, że byłem tylko jedną noc!

Une super nuit dans cet hôtel aux portes du parc national. L’hôte est adorable et nous a aidé à trouver un safari + un restaurant le premier jour auquel il nous a même emmené . Les repas proposés sont très bons, nous avons vraiment beaucoup aimé ce lieu.

The owner is truly very kind and pleasant. A big advantage is the location, practically right next to the main gate of the park, so you don’t waste any time on transfers. The owner also offers a jeep tour directly (at a fair price). The room is very clean and practically new (although it’s true that the accommodation is still partially under construction). We ordered homemade curry from his mother – absolutely amazing – probably the best we’ve had during our entire trip.

La proximité de l’entrée du parc pour faire le Safari. Les repas étaient délicieux et copieux. La chambre est spacieuse, moderne. Le guide du Safari (Gune) au top, respectueux des éléphants il emprunte des chemins à l’écart des autres jeeps et coupe le moteur lorsqu’on en approche.

On dort là que si on fait le Safari, sinon c’est loin de tout.

Good location - friendly and helpful staff

Nothing very local but good for udawalewe park . My bed was very hard

Todo fue perfecto. La ubicación al lado del parque, la habitación espaciosa y limpia y las personas que lo atienden hermosas y siempre atentas, la comida deliciosa. También me ayudaron a coordinar el safari y mi transporte a Ella. Gracias!

Gayan ist ein Top Gastgeber. Das Abendessen welches von seiner Mutter zubereitet wurde wie auch das Frühstück war sehr lecker. Das Zimmer beinhaltete zwei Doppelbetten, wir benötigten aber nur eines. Sehr empfehlenswert!

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Clean and tidy. The place was home away from home. Gayan’s mum cooked us delicious dinners and breakfast. She made special olive pickle for afternoon snack. Gayan found a place to stay for our van driver and took dinner to his accommodation. We used Gayan safari jeep and the safari jeep driver was very knowledgeable.

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A charming small hotel in a fantastic location, just steps from the beach and the turtle nesting site. The downstairs rooms are lovely and very comfortable, though the upstairs rooms could use a little TLC. The staff are absolutely amazing—friendly and helpful—and the food was delicious throughout our stay. Overall, a great place with lots of potential!

Bedrooms downstairs are great. The upstairs room needs refurb.

Very nice and humble owner. Super close location to the national park. Good size for a room and good AC. Tasty and plentiful breakfast and dinner. Arranged safari and taxis.

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A very lovely familyrun hotel very close to the national park. They offer reasonably priced safari's. The dinner offered is delicious.

We stayed here one night to do the safari which was organised by the host. We also paid for the dinner and breakfast that his mother cooks, delicious! I definitely recommend it. The safari experience was also very good with our driver being knowledgeable about the animals and birds we saw. The room was clean and the bed comfy. Nothing to complain about at all.

A lovely guest house with spacious modern rooms run by Guyan and his very lovely family. A Fantastic curry and incredible breakfast was provided! Guyan also helped us to organise a trip to the elephant transit sanctuary.

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The owner was sooooo kind, we came around 12 in the night and had to leave for the safari early 6 and he prepared diner and breakfast. The Rooms are huge and ok. Wifi good The location : so close ! Perfect

The owner was very lovely. They offer homemade meals which are incredible. The room was very spacious and clean with a fan and aircon.

Quiet near the park entrance. Good food and helpful host.

No complaints

The owner gave me all useful information before arrival and organized a safari with his own staff and vehicle for a good price. The dinner and breakfast were very tasty and copious. The hotel is very close from the wild life sanctuary entrance.

Gayan’s Hotel was honestly the nicest experience. He currently has two rooms available that are perfect and have A/C. The location of the property couldn’t be better for visiting the National park and elephant orphanage. We stayed at Gayan’s for two nights which we would highly recommend. Gayan’s mum is the best cook ever! The food was amazing! Gayan’s uncle was the safari driver and guide. He was exceptionally knowledgeable having done this job for over 25 years. We saw lots of animals including 18 elephants. Having only just met Gayan it was strange to think that he felt like a friend. Nothing was too much trouble. He drove us into town and even drove us to Ella on our onward trip. We could honesty not recommend this hotel enough. Very peaceful and lovely family to stay with. We will remember our stay here forever.

There’s nothing to not like here. It was fantastic.

Very good and friendly place to everybody.

Friendly, helpful family, great breakfast and dinner, „family friendly“ private safari with the english speaking driver, who was considerate of our 6month okd baby and our 5 year old daughter

Room was spacious - had two beds. Mosquito-net was installed at both. Bathroom was too spacious with nice water drainage so much so that the water drained too quickly - I have never seen that quick in any other place I have stayed. A six-course dinner was prepared even though I was expecting simple chicken-curry and rice. Dinner was served in a spacious dining area. I also like the fact that Gayan served my breakfast as early as 0500 because I had to go for animal-safari in the morning. To top that, my lunch was also packed and delivered to me right at breakfast time - I had no way to get my lunch in the vast forest area which I was to wander the whole day. It was so user-friendly. The Udawalawa National Park was 100 meters from the hotel. It was so easy for e to easily commute to the park. At my request, Gayan also brought from the nearby grocery additional water bottles and Sprite bottles which I needed for my day-long safari in the Park. To top everything, there is a fuel station next to Gayan hotel where I easily filled my vehicle tank.

Just that a small patch of freshly painted coat has fallen from the room on the other bed. It did not however disturb me as I has occupied other bed.

Very kind and helpful staff. Delicious home-cooked dinner and great safari tour.

Clean room and comfortable beds. Location at the very entrance to the park

Loved everything about our stay here from the welcome, the safari organised by the owner, the dinner and the room. Would highly recommend!

Gayan and his mother are wonderful. We had a great experience! Very clean and cozy. Gayan also offers Safari tours. I highly recommend this place. Thanks again :)

Does what it says on the tin. Good value for money. Clean and comfortable, very near the national park also.

Great location next to the park. We were first in the queue for early morning safari. Gayan’s guide was excellent. Large clean room, large bathroom. Mom’s cooking was superb, the best breakfast & dinner. Gayan’s & his mum are very welcoming & lovely people.

Organized staff, amazing value for money and spacious room.

Sheets were thin.

Clean big room, very close to the Park. Great breakfast

Our room was very clean and comfortable. Gayan's mother prepared delicious food for us - really tasty. The hotel is also in an amazing location right next to the entrance to Udawalawe National Park. Gayan sorted a safari for us which was an amazing experience, with an extremely knowledgeable guide. We saw elephants, peafowl, crocodiles, a jackal, mongoose, and lots of interesting birds - recommend!

The location near the safari entrance was excellent and we saw elephants just outside the hotel. The hotel arranged Safari and Jeep for us during our stay which was very convenient. Food and service were excellent. We had lunch, dinner and breakfast at the hotel, all was really well made and delicious!

Lovely host, extremely friendly. Simple room but clean and very comfortable, you have everything you need for a night or two. Warm water which is quite rare in Sri Lanka. Huge beds. Very calm surrounding and walking distance from the safari. Dinner and breakfast both very very delicious,the best dinner and breakfast we had after 7days, homemade, fresh, tasty for a very good price😊 Host arranged a safari tour for just the 2 of us and took us to places where there were hardly any tourist...highly recommended.

Nice place for a short stay. Near to Udawalawe national park and not so long from Elephant transit home (by car). Pleasant owners. Possibility to order safari tour directly in the accomondation. Simple and friendly arrangement.

Not so big room for whole family (2 adults and 2 children), but if you stay only 1 or 2 nights, it is no problem.

Nice owner. They arranged our safari tour, and the owner joined us at the safari. He managed to see a lot of animals, specific different birds which were almost impossible to discover in the jungle. They also provided a good dinner for us. The breakfast was also very good and fresch. The rooms were clean and comfy.

The dinner was very expensive, but the hotel was quiite cheap so the total cost was good.

Large room, excellent host (Gayan & his mom)! The location is just next (2-5 minute drive) to the National Park entrance. They welcomed us with a cool Watermelon juice. Then later that evening had a delicious & delightful Sti Lankan dinner. The host is super courteous and friendly, respectful and polite!

Cleans and cozy room, nice bathroom, very kind host, delicious sri lankan food, beautiful and exciting safari

Incredible stay, clean and spacious room with A/C. Great location for morning safari with Gayan at a good price! We saw lots of elephants! Lovely dinner and breakfast, could not recommend more! Gayan is a great host!

Food cooked by the host’s mother was one of the best meals we’ve had on our 2 month trip! So great we asked for it for breakfast too. Location was very close to national park and we were given a safari for a good price much cheaper than we’d seen online. Host also drove us to our hotel in Ella the next day! Room was spacious and beds comfy.

Not super close to many restaurants but that’s okay as the food here is great

Location and ac and fans Clean and comfortable A bit of a challenge to get to and from restaurant but everyone tries to help

Manager tried to bill 4000 LKR more than my price on booking.com

good location for main park gate

A/C controller only intermittently worked. A/C kept tripping the fuse box and you have to ask staff to reset it. At night there were no staff to ask - so had night too hot to sleep. When A/C came back on, it beeped rest of night and kept us awake. For wildlife safari drive, truck would not start for 30 mins, then driver had very poor knowledge or I retest in the wildlife.

Right next to the Udawalawe National Park, perfect location. Food was delicious and very generous portions. Gayan was arranged for us to do a half day Safari and it was an excellent trip. Highly recommend

We stayed here one night with my cousin, excellent location, 5 minutes away from udawalawe, host was very kind and helpful, breakfast was amazing, definitely recommend

Everthing was perfect :) Delicous Food, Great Safari, Comfy Room😊

Lovely en-suite bedroom with shower room, two double beds, small hanging cupboard and dressing table. Drinking water readily available and owner will make freshly brewed (proper) coffee or tea whenever you want. Fantastic breakfast of freshly cut local fruit, yogurt, perfect omelet, pancakes if required. I had dinner both nights and do not even think of going anywhere else. Mama Dia cooked what I can only describe as some of the best food I’ve ever eaten! Gayan is a super host and I booked my safari with him. He has a magnificent safari vehicle and he is a superb guide. The property is right next to the entrance to the park yet in rural peace and quiet. He also enabled my visit to the elephant transit house 20 minutes away and he arranged my onward taxi to Ella. I stayed for 2 nights but wish I’d stayed longer.

Great location for a safari, they organised it for us. Really nice people, dinner was delicious.

We stayed in this small hotel with children. Gayan the owner is an extremely lovely host. His mum made the most delicious dinner and breakfast for us. The common are/restaurant is very simple without much decorations but the rooms are very comfortable, clean and spacious. The location is excellent almost opposite the National Park's entrance. We saw elephants on the other side of the road, behind the National Park's fence. Gayan offers safari with his own jeep, but sadly we already booked one with a friend, so we didn't use his service. But his English is really good, so I'm sure he's a good guide. We all loved our stay at Gayan's place. Thank you.

Gayan is expanding his business and there are some empty rooms upstairs needs to be finished. It didn't bother us but it has some unfinished feel.

Everything. Room was clean and spacious. It even had an ac- which is rare for this money. Comfy bed. You can chill in the garden. The hotel is only 5 minutes walking distance away from Udawalawe national park. Gayan is a very nice and helpful man. He even brought me to Elephant transit home free of charge. Btw, don’t limit your trip by visit to the national park alone- also visit Elephant transit home- cutest thing ever! You can order meals at the hotel- Gayan’s mother prepared super delicious and oppulent vegetarian breakfast- streen hoppers, fruits, pancakes with coconut and honey, toasts with jam and butter. Gayan can arrange a safari for you. There are only 2 rooms in the hotel atm so it is very quiet. Very pleasant stay!

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The room was large with two double beds, and very clean with air conditioning. The host prepared dinner for us and a packed breakfast for us to take on safari. Each meal was about 2,200 Rs for two people. We booked safari through another operator and the host did not take issue with this. I mention this as we had booked another hotel previously that did not want us to stay unless we had booked a safari through them. Overall, perfect place to stay for a night before safari!

We had the most amazing dinner there prepared by the owners mother. It was a home cooked Sri Lankan meal that you just can’t get in any restaurant. The food in Sri Lanka has all been good but this was amazing. Breakfast was fantastic and more than we could possibly eat. The room was great. No complaints at all. We enjoyed our safaris at Udawalawe that the hotel arranged for us. The safari vehicle was a little older but we saw tons of wildlife. A great place to stay!

The safari vehicle was a little old but didn’t deter from our enjoyment of the safari.

Great location for Safari and also provided their own Safari vehicle. Accommodation and Safari were fantastic value. The owner Gayan was an exceptional host. The room was very nice and spacious. The food was also good and great value.

A fridge in the room would be a nice addition.

The property was conveniently located for a safari tour. The owner was lovely and went out of his way to take us to get cash out. They also served us fantastic dinner and breakfast. Highly recommend!

The breakfast and dinner was some of the best food we’ve had in Sri Lanka. They easily arranged the safari for us. Room was quiet and comfortable.

Everything you need for a visit to Udawalawa. The room was clean, spacious and comfortable - the AC, WiFi and shower were all really good. Gayan organised a great safari for us. Thank you!

Super close to national park entrance. Room was super clean. Host was super friendly & helpful. Dinner was really delicious! Spent 2 nights with 2 different curry menus! We loved it

Very close to the Safari. Room is very clean and the owner is very nice and the dinner was very good. The owner is very friendly and I felt very welcomed.

Fantastic location. Walking distance from national park and lovely restaurant. Host arranged everything from safari, trip to elephant orphanage, a lovely evening meal. Great breakfast. Clean room. Highly recommend.

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Everything! Gayan is a lovely host who went out of his way to make our stay enjoyable, going above and beyond to drive us 20/30 mins to town to get cash out and then stepping in to drive us to Mirissa when the cab couldn’t make it. Incredible service. The safari was great and our guide was really insightful. The food is absolutely amazing, the staff cooked the best meal we had on our trip. 10/10 recommend this place for all going to Udawalawe.

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We had a great stay at Gayan's place as it is in a quiet area very close to the park so we managed to rest well before our early 5:30 am start of the safari. The dinner and breakfast were very delicious.

We arrived to an amazing dinner after a long drive. We had a hot shower (which is hard to come by) The family are really lovely and we had such a peaceful stay. Gayan organised tours around the National Park. He’s literally a few minutes drive from the entrance to the park, so that meant we were at the front of a very long cue the next morning. His ability to spot animals was incredible. We had a once in a lifetime experience and we will never forget it. Thank you!

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Hello everyone, just want to share our experience with Gayan ´s hotel. It is located very close to the main entrance of Udawalawe national park, with very kind host Gayan, who provided us the safari tour - with very experienced driver - he saw a little chameleon on a distant branchlet. How could he spot that, we still wonder😀 anyway, we really recommend staying with Gayan ´s!

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It is right by the entrance to the park so very convenient for safari

Gayan and his family are lovely. The room was super comfortable, clean and quiet and the homemade food was great. We did the safari tour with Gayan and highly recommend and he is a great guide and spotted lots of wild animals. I would definitely come back 😊

Amazingly kind and helpful family, they do all they can for their guests!

The host family is so lovely, and they look after you and organize everything you may need. I really recomend taking the safari tour with the host and trying their amazing home made dinner and breakfast. The welcome passion fruit juice was just cherry on top. The room was clean, spacious and quiet. We also received taxi service for fair price to our next location. Really thankful for the whole experience and taking such good care of us!!! Fully recharged!! :)

I recommend staying in this place exactly in front of the udawalawe national park entrance! the rooms are very clean. the owners are very kind, they welcomed us with a good fresh juice and prepared an excellent dinner. You don't need to book a safari in advance, they can organize it for you. and they also prepare breakfast for you to take to the safari. highly recommended place

The hosts made us packed breakfast and lunch so we could go on safari at 6am. They also organised the Safari for us, which was helpful. A beautiful family feel. The hosts went out of their way to help us & provide excellent service.

Shower was cold.

The best location for visiting the Udawalave safari, located just ca 1min from the entrance. We saw the first elephant directly in front of the accommodation. We went for the safari tour with Gayan, only me and my husband, for a fair price. The breakfast was delicious and Gayan also arranged for us a car driver (his brother), who took us to the south. Thank you!

We had a great time, enjoyed a delicious home-cooked dinner and got to see all kinds of different animals in the national park. The stay could not have been better. Thankyou!

Lovely packed breakfast to have on Safari

Absolutely fantastic place. For a more than a fair price you get SUPER clean rooms (travelled with family) and Gayan is a really great safari driver, knows all the spots and how to get everywhere first. Hotel is 1 min drive from the entrance of Udawalawe National Park. The breakfast prepared for the trip was delicious, nicely balanced. Oh, one more thing: lunch prepared for us after the safari was one of the best Sri Lankan food I’ve ever tried (and I’ve tried a lot). Thank you! Definitely recommend !!

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Superb host. Does a fantastic safari out the door. I arrived at 12 and we were in the jeep by 1. Excellent dinner prepared by Gayan and his wife (for ~1500). Perfect for a 1 night stay (or 2 of you're doing all day/multiday safari

Not much else going on if you're not doing the safari! 10km into town. But for safari it's 200m from the entrance!

Very kind people. Safari with the hotel owner was very good! I really recommend this place!

Awesome location right next to the national park, the owner arranged safari for us and it was a wonderful experience. Rooms are comfortable, breakfast was delicious and the owner and his family are very nice people. This is the best spot where to stay when heading to udawalawe.

Very nice hotel. the whole place is super clean and it has the perfect location directly next to the entrance of the national park. the owners are super helpful. I forgot my credit card 30 minutes away and they even drove with me to get it back. Also, they organized a safari with a very friendly and knowledgeable guide which I can highly recommend. we saw many elephants and other animals.