Galawatta Beach Cabanas and Villa

Food was over priced, took over an hour to come out when there was only 2 tables including us. Food was very average when it did come and I had to remind d them 4 times that I ordered a drink, then had to walk into the kitchen to get it. There is heaps of better places to eat around that area

This is the closest to paradise I have ever found. Especially when you have little kids - the natural tidal pool is incredible. I can't recommend this place enough.

Great location right on the beach, some snorkeling and a big turtle often there. You can also swim at night which is just great. Breakfast was good and the Cabanas have everything you need.

We were a group of 7 looking forward to our well earned Christmas break, Galawatta Villa looked ideal on the website, stating that "The beauty and tranquility will give an unforgettable experience". I can't argue that it was an "unforgettable experience" BUT for all the WRONG reasons.
The villa itself had been just been refurbished summer of 17 but what the management forgot to mention it was still a building site, the staff excitedly greeted us upon arrival to tell us we were the 'first guests' since this refurb. They had added whole new first floor but had run out of time to finish it so we were looking at just joists in the high ceiling, no floorboards at all. There was also some kind of large extension which was just concrete blocks at the side of the villa with building supplies dumped there. The master bedroom didn't have a door so we have no privacy whatsoever, there wasn't a shelf, a cupboard or any kind of place to put your clothes in this room.
The unfinished house is just 3 metres away from the one of the busiest roads in Southen Sri Lanka and running parallel to this road is the main railway line 20 metres from the house, the railway also has a crossing there, the trains pass constantly throughout the day honking horns at the crossing every time which is so loud you jump every time it passed leaving your ears ringing, these trains started at 5.30am everyday and they continued around every half hour until late evening.
The road is extremely busy and noisy with constant buses, lorrys, coaches and the tuk tuks all beeping horns constantly, the pollution it off the scale!
The villa was so damp, my guess was that it had just been plastered and not been allowed to breathe, it had been left open to the elements (monsoon) whilst the work had taken place, my clothes were hanging in the only area offered by the outside ensuite bathroom where most my clothes and shoes were ruined by serious mould, when I showed Amal (manager) I explained that some items would been to be sent to a dry cleaners to be fixed, he agreed and took them away, these came back 4 days later completely ruined by being washed in a machine, I lost £900 worth of items, he lied to me and didn't show his face again the entire trip after this happened.
I like animals, but I didn't find sharing the villa with big brown rats on a daily basis very enjoyable, the staff would bring cages to set every evening, they would collect the rodents just as the first train of the day sounded its horn.
This brings me to the villa being self catering, we didn't cook or prepare any food in the kitchen because of these rats often seen running across the kitchen counter, nobody wanted to risk ill health!
We all spent days looking for a way for some actual sleep, finally some friends arrived with silicone ear plugs, these plugs promised to block up to 22 decibels of sound, we could all still hear trains.
On the upside, the beach is only 30 metres in front of the villa, there are a couple of broken gates onto the beach, which led to a constant flow of people coming up to the private house asking us about other rental huts on the property.
The sun loungers were mostly all broken, I had a beach bag of things stolen from the garden.
We finally demanded to speak to the Swiss owner as the staff on site were not able to do anything to make things better, we were repeatedly told that the owner was on his holiday, but so were we. Finally he emailed us back stating that he knew that the villa was really noisy as he used to live there himself! He eventually offered a 10% discount on the final cost knowing that this was truly unacceptable to offer a house in an unfinished state in the first place.
We had one couple leave after only one night, and the rest of us booked flights home as early as possible.
The only nice thing I have to say is that the staff working there are lovely people, the chef makes the best Sri Lankan curry but I feel sorry for them working for such a fraud. I do not recommend anyone to stay here if you are looking for relaxation or sleep!

Location is incredible, right on the beach and has a great spot for swimming (next best is quite a walk away at Unawatuna, which is a busy and noisy tourist hub). We had breakfast on our balcony overlooking the beach every morning, and slept to the sound of waves. Best in the area if you ask me - and we walked a good few kilometers both ways. These are very rustic beach cabanas though. Suited the Sri Linkan experience!

Fantastic place to stay. We loved the bungalows and the food. Also a great place if you want to meet a turtle while snorkeling:)