susiesan

I am trying to get in touch with Boutique Sri Lanka which has been recommended here as a reliable SL travel agency. I am starting to plan a trip for Feb. 2016. The emails I sent come back as undeliverable.

Is Boutique Sri Lanka still in business? Has anyone used them recently?

Any suggestions of reliable TA's to use for a 2 week private tour of Sri Lanka? Who has everyone been using recently?

Kathie

I know others here have used them in the last year. Their website looks current: http://boutiquesrilanka.com

Go to their website and fill out a contact form. Their main email address may have changed.

Smeagol

I used them just last month, sometimes Doris's email is full agree fill out the contact form from their website. I would urge you to stick with BSL we used them for our Nov 14 trip and were VERY happy.

susiesan

I did fill out their form but I do not think it went through. That is why I emailed direct. When the message bounced back it said the email was full. I'm surprised someone in business does not check their email.

smeagol, what sort of trip did you do? Was it the typical 14 day around Sri Lanka? I've only heard back from one TA I contacted, Reddot, and their price was way out of line from what I told them my budget and travel style were. For what they say is a 16 day tour they have the following cost summary:

Holiday Cost: US$5,670 (for 2 people in total)

Cost breakdown:
Accommodation – US$3,490, 15 hotel nights
Transport – US$1,370
Entry fees – US$810
This seems excessive for a mid range tour. That has the car and driver at $85 a day but he wouldn't actually be used every day.

How long does it usually take BSL to respond?

tripplanner001

I'm using BSL in February. They usually respond in one to two business days. When did you contact them? Wouldn't be surprised if part of the slow response is due to the holidays.

crellston

All agencies in SL appear equally incompetent in their communication protocols. We tied out a few, BSL and reddot included and it took a week or more to elicit responses and then only by telephoning them to ask them to check their emails! Sadly, your experience appears to be the norm.

The figurs you quote seem excessive. Much higher than those we paid which, as I recall worked out to approx.£120 per day onc.

thursdaysd

I agree that those fees seem high. However, it should be easy enough to check some of them. Entry fees are uniformly high in SL, but you should be able to find them in any guide book, add a bit for inflation. Look the hotels up online.

Smeagol

A friend of mine used reddot and said the service was so so.. I was VERY happy with BSL. And they responded within 24 hours of every email I sent. I didn't experience the issues Crelleston did.

We had an 11 day tour they booked all hotels, driver and a cultural show for me. When it was apparent we wouldn't need the driver for 3 days ( as we would be at the beach) they released the driver as said it would be more cost effective for us! We paid a 10% deposit for hotels but the rest we paid direct at check out to the hotels . The only hotel we had to pay in full was tea trails ( but easily the best hotel we stayed at)

susiesan

I got one other reply from a company called MoonLanka. His price was less than half of what Reddot quoted as a rough estimate. He sounded like he wanted to work with me and would tailor a trip to what I wanted. I sent a reply 2 days ago and have not heard back. Why would the Christmas holiday matter in a Buddhist country?

thursdaysd: I looked a few of the hotels proposed by Reddot and they are $175-$200 a night places. I told them my budget was for less than $100, guesthouses and small hotels. They didn't listen.

crellston: which TA did you use? Was the 120 pound a day figure for 2 people for car and driver and hotels?

Perhaps it would be better if I just get a price for a driver and car for the days I need it, book all the hotels myself, pay the admissions as we go whatever they are.

Craig

Boutique Sri Lanka is located in England, I believe. Thus the Christmas holiday. They do have a presence in SL, but their sales team is in England to be close to their main customers.

Kathie

Reddit give me a very high bid years ago - high enough that I didn't bother to work with them a bit to see if the price would get better.

You may find that an agent can get better hotel prices than you can get on your own. But check it out.

crellston

Sissies an the £120 per day included transport, accomodation, entrance fees ( which are expensive as I recall) but not food. There is usually a limit on th number of kms included per day but it is usually adequate - do check.

Reddot do have an office in England but they were no better at responding.

If you click on my screen name it will bring up my TR from 2011 which is quite detailed. You will see that I was not impressed with rhe service from Reddot. I would not use them again but spoke to other who did have good experiences. It really depend on which guide you get. We changed halfway through the tour partly because our car broke down and partly because our guide was useless. The second guide was great.

I advise you to check out the guide you will get getting very carefully. Some are a lot more experienced and personable than other. Interrogate your agency before deciding!

Mohammed

Why would the Christmas holiday matter in a Buddhist country?

Ha ha, Christmas is a huge celebration in Sri Lanka, everyone (buddhists, hindus, muslims, christainas) share in the joys and celebrate it!

Tell me a child who does not wait for Santa?

Smeagol

I think BSL head office is in Nottingham England. However all my dealings were with the office based in Sri Lanka.

annhig

susiesan,

we too used BSL and were very pleased with their service, and the itinerary we worked out with them, which came in on budget which for me [just over 2 years ago] was £100 per night for b&b plus the cost of the driver.

click on my screen name for more details of pricing which I believe are on my TR.

We had the odd delay with replies from them over weekends etc., but given that you are not intending to travel until February 2016, the agents taking a few days' holiday over Christmas is not going to inconvenience you unduly, is it?

Jathu

Im not sure abt BSL, the site looks old. and if BSL operated from Sri Lanka it will be holidays. most of SL travel companies closed in these days. i saw some advertisements in youtube about Travablue seems new site. why dont you try them ?

Smeagol

We'll Jathu as mentioned by SEVERAL people above we have all used BSL ( me just last month) you wouldn't happen to work for Travablue would you?

annhig

to be fair, Smeagol, I just checked Jathu's profile and unlike most advertisers, he tells us where he lives, and about trips he's taken and wants to take. So I would give him the benefit of the doubt.

susiesan

Yes, my trip will be in Feb. 2016. Because I will be using ff miles to get there, I want to have an outline of a tour plan before booking award tickets. I want to know how long would be a good amount to stay in SL to see the highlights for a first timer. Once the award tickets are booked it costs a lot to make changes to them.

I know I will be flying on CX and the flights from/to HKG arrive and depart around midnight. Those times will impact the daily plan activities.

Smeagol

We had 11 days and ideally we would have had a couple of days more.... I guess though it depends, what do you want to see?