tansmets

Any recommendations for travel agents in Sri Lanka other than Boutique Sri Lanka? I have sent them two emails this week and have not received a reply. Hopefully they eventually get back to me, but in the meanwhile, I'd like to look around since we definitely need a driver. The hotel prices I can find on my own via Agoda seem pretty good.

crellston

One of the problems with travel agents in Sri Lanka is that they take forever to respond to email. I tried BSL and it took several attempts and a couple of week before I got a reply ( and that wasn't what I asked for). In the end, I tried Reddot emailed them several times, no response so I phoned them and they were from then on, responsive and helpful so I went ahead and booked. Big mistake! We had a lot of problems with them when we arrived in SL so I could not recommend them. Others have had good results with BSL but I guess it is the luck of the draw. In reality none of us have any real basis for comparison with other agents as few people tend to go to SL more than once. Maybe you could try calling them as once the initial contact is made things may get better..

RJames

I did contact Boutique Sri Lanka, and a few other companies all were slow to respond (except Red Dot, which I write about later) and didn't answer my questions or set up an itinerary which included the sights I was interested in. I felt that some of the tour operators didn't even bother to read the emails I'd sent and replied with a generic reply/package/price quote.

I used Red Dot, I chose Red Dot as they were the only company that did include all the sights that I was interested in and replied promptly. Everything was perfect in the pre trip planning. On the trip I did have some problems, I won't say I had tons of problems with the company but I certainly wouldn't recommend them.

I found Red Dot's hotel prices to be less than Agodas, shop around with tour operators, you may find one that can set up a car, driver and hotel package cheaper than if you used Agoda for accommodation and booked the car and driver separately.

Also, be aware that Agoda's prices don't include taxes, service fees, etc so that this into consideration when pricing accommodation.

annhig

tansmets - I don't remember any particular problems with communications with BSL; I'm sure that you are remembering to factor in the time difference.

in the meantime, have you looked at their website and played around with the ideas and itineraries there? they may respond more quickly if you send them an enquiry about a specific itinerary.

tansmets

Thanks for all the advice. I'm based in Asia so there is a short time difference, so it's not that. I guess I'll just have to be patient! I get very type-A when it comes to booking a vacation so this is not easy for me. Maybe I will reserve some refundable rooms on my own for now. I guess I'll also reach out to Red Dot even though reviews here are mixed. We are basically going from Hill Country to Uda Walawe to Galle / Beaches so it's not too complicated.

Kathie

I'd call them. Then they will know you are serious. Last time I had contact with them, they were overwhelmed with inquiries, but of course, not everyone who contacts them will actually go to Sri Lanka.

annhig

if you have fixed on your itinerary, you can certainly look at booking it yourself, though you'll need to find a driver and vehicle, as BSL don't supply just drivers.

if you decide to stay in Galle itself, I can thoroughly recommend the Fort Printers which has a sister hotel out on the beach a few miles east where you can swim and laze about in the sun. It cost us about £2 each way in a tuk tuk.

tansmets

I did get a response from them and now that I have booked flights sent the details. I've booked the Tea Factory and Apa Villa Illuketia in advance (can cancel). I hope BSL can beat the rates - right now I get an extra 7% off Agoda bookings due to a credit card promotion. I'm not sure if we want to stay at Apa Villa anyway; might split our time in the south between a beach hotel and Galle city.

Aside from BSL can someone recommend a tour operator that will just supply a driver / car?

Kathie

Any of the local travel agents can supply a car and driver.

tansmets

Hi all - what were your experiences with drivers pushing shopping on you so they can earn commissions? I am asking because Sri Lanka in Style claims that they are more expensive because they don't count on commissions as a source of income, and that other drivers will push us to shop and this lack of shopping trips raises their quote (along with a few other extras they provide - wifi in the car, etc). We are NOT shoppers. In India our driver started out being quite pleasant, but then once he took us to a marble factory in Agra, but when I tried to bargain hard (as if I was in China) and bought nothing, his attitude changed. Definitely was a bit awkward once he realized we weren't shoppers and I requested stops at (non commission paying) Anoki and Fab India. We actually tipped early on in the trip to try to change his disposition.

Anyway, should I expect the same in Sri Lanka? It is a concern of mine. Boutique Sri Lanka so far hasn't made any claims that their drivers don't push shopping.

Kathie

No, not the same in Sri Lanka. There was no push to shop at all. Our driver asked if we wanted to see some sort of workshop, we did not, and that was the end of it. We did ask to stop to pick up a specific type of batik, and he accommodated us. I've heard plenty of horror stories about Driver/guides in India pushing shopping, that was not the case in Sri Lanka.

BSL did give us a list of "recommended" places to buy particular things. But there was no pressure to even visit any of these places, let alone buy from them. I asked our driver about one of the recommended places. he said he thought the prices were high, but we could go there if we wanted to. We weren't interested in buying, just checking to see what he would say.

tansmets

Great - that makes me feel a bit better even though your trip was a few years back. I hate being harassed to buy things!! Years ago I bought tourist items; today I have little interest. My husband did pick up some custom shirts in Jaipur, they are not good quality but for $20 USD I can't complain. I am going to go ahead booking with BSL. Thanks Kathie for all the advice and recommendation.

Kathie

My pleasure. Have a wonderful trip!

annhig

tansmets - we had more or less the same experience as Kathie with shops and shopping.

there are a few places which appear to be on a tourist circuit, like the Spice gardens north of Kandy and some of the Tea Plantations, but your driver will ask you if you want to go there, and if you say no, that should be fine.

by the same token, if there's something that interests you, they should try to accommodate that too.

I'm sure you'll have a great time. Sri Lanka is terrific.

Mohammed

I would earnestly suggest anyone when planning a customized Sri Lanka itinerary that you use a Sri Lankan tour company to plan and book your travel. I feel the local Companies have a much better understanding of the situation on the ground such as seasons, changes to regulations, local culture, food, etc. There are several good local travel and tour companies. Sadly I cannot speak too well of some of the foreign companies that operate tours here. I have met so many tourists who have come here on tours organized by foreign companies and find that they are misled and not getting what they really were looking for. It seems they offer some standardized "one size fits all" type of packages with a few basic tweaks here and there and sell it as a customized itinerary. Also I know for a fact that these companies block of rooms in the bigger more famous hotels in bulk way in advance and then they are under pressure to sell these. That's also the reason why when you go direct to the hotel they can't offer you a room but when you go to the foreign tour company they can. Just the other day I met a young English couple whom I got talking to and it was so sad to see their deal. They were completely exited by the prospect of Yala and seeing leopard and also spending some quality time on the beach and snorkelling etc. They had been booked in Yala while it was well known in advance that Yala was to be closed during the time of their visit. Also they were very keen on the beach and had been booked at Hikkaduwa for four full nights when Hikkaduwa is completely off season with the Southwest monsoon lashing the southern coastline. Such a visitor should really have been guided correctly and could easily have visited the East Coast instead where the beach is in full season and really gorgeous. Also for wildlife and especially leopard they could have been easily taken to Wilpattu which fits in well with a visit to the East Coast. What irked me most was that when I met this couple they were three days into their Sri Lankan holiday and they were still blissfully unaware of the Yala closure and only when they called the Red Dot office in Colombo and checked were they told that they would not be actually to Yala instead they would be diverted to Uda Walawe!
On another note, Sri Lanka has string of smaller lodges, guest houses etc sprouting up of varying degrees of quality. Many of these are tucked away in little places and offer a very nice experience with comfort, personalized flexible service, authentic food etc and at a much cheaper price than typical stereotyped hotels. It will be really nice if someone could put together a catalog of these lodgings with suitable comments and grading. When in visited South Africa we used a catalogue called the "Portfolio Collection", we need something like that here in Sri Lanka. I have stayed at a few such places and will try to put in a few mini trip reports in due course.