Araliya Safari House

I was driving through Udawalawa with my family a few weeks back and was thinking to stop over for the reputation that this place had on a booking site. After making an online reservation our driver navigated to find this incredible place. The pool was filled with dirt but it didn't matter as we just wanted to stop over. The host and the wife nicely greeted and welcomed me and my family until they heard that we were not interested in taking their safari. The host rudely said that they will not let us stay as we do not wish to do the safari and kicked us out regardless our online booking. I wish I could have read the reviews on other online platforms before going there without wasting our time which explains the scam that this couple is running. The host lay a TRAP for tourist with a cheap price including breakfast and lure you into doing a ridiculously overpriced safari that they outsource and make a huge commission to profit over. At least mentioning that all the guests have to book a safari with them would have saved our time. They don't do that so that they can make more profits by putting travelers in a helpless situation. I'd advise you to read all the comments before going to this tourist trap so that your trip to Sri Lanka would not be ruined by this couple!

Had booked on *********** but already booked a safari tour elsewhere. They told us to go find another accommodation unless we do the safari with them which is like more than double the price that we were offered by the safari tour.

Extremely disappointed. We were made to cancel our booking because we had already booked our safari with another company. They were very rude over WhatsApp. It is not made clear on booking that you need to book a safari with them if you want to stay. Awful service and very rude people. Do not stay here!

WARNING. Check-in at the hotel is possible only if you buy a safari tour from the hotel. When I arrived at the hotel, I was informed that staying at the hotel is possible only if I buy a safari tour organized by the hotel. I only needed accommodation, so I had to refuse and immediately look for another hotel. This caused great inconvenience. I am outraged because the owner did not mention this information anywhere. It looks like manipulation. For the first time in my life, I meet such a strange condition for settlement.

Amazing place in a beautiful setting! The rooms are really comfortable, spacious and well furnished. And the home-cooked food was awesome, some of the tastiest food I had on my trip!Thank you very much for your hospitality and kindness

The staff was amazing!!! Two guys helped us with everything ve asked and even with what we just thought about :)) And they prepared a room for us by a special request ( it is our honeymoon and guys brought us fruits and flowers by the check-in time). They are true professionals and great people!!The Garden is great.The restaurant is very tasty.The Safari with Madura is the best and also the Sri Lankan Breakfast was perfect. The staff is really helpful and friendly as family.

Beautiful facility at a small price. It's like the pictures. There's a fish tank to keep your feet in so they nibble. Very quiet in the evening. Food in hotel Restaurant at great prices and really delicious. Also the more western food. Safari was booked directly by the property. Great driver, no beasts. Regular staff information on the current crisis situation in Sri Lanka. One of our most beautiful accommodations in Sri Lanka.

The accommodation is in a great location near the park. Rooms were 100% clean and everything was beautiful. We had a BBQ that was ready right after we arrived. Jidla was a lot. We've all eaten enough.The owner's got his boots to take you straight from the lodge. We were very satisfied with the professional approach and unloading from the driver. Breakfast is available. The owner is very friendly. We'd love to come back.