TESTIMONIALS

I am Anna, Max wife and we just completed our 2 week round trip with Ceylon Escapes and Tissa.

We want to underline that we have had a very great experience and that Tissa was an integral part in making this trip an unforgettable experience for us.

We have had drivers in other countries but have never experienced such a great service. Tissa always make us feel very save. He looked out for us, never left us out of sight and helped us if we wanted to by something at a local market. He also gave us many tips on ways some people want to rip off tourists and what we should avoid. He also raised concerns when he felt our hotel was not save because we had one day with lots of landslides.

Being a foreigner in a country you don’t know, feeling save is a corner stone for a fully experience a country and Tissa achieved that. Moreover he is super knowledgeable and taught us so much about this country’s history, the animals and the plants as well as Buddhism which we were very interested in. He also told us about things during our drives. We learned a lot from him. We had drivers who did not tell us much so we really value this high:) he even has a little book where he has pictures of plants and fruits and with the german name. Really made a lot of fun to learn a lot.

He also always suggested us things to do or see along the way, which were always great tips.

We are very thankful that Tissa was our driver, he made this trip unforgettable for us.

We also really enjoyed the vehicle and the alignment process for our trip beforehand and want to thank you for that:)

Thank you for keeping us save and giving us such great memories’

I just wanted to write to thank you all at Ceylon Escapes for your help in arranging our recent tour of Sri Lanka. In particular thanks to Ajith our driver, who was with us for the entire trip. He was so professional, helpful, polite and knowledgeable and made our tour a fantastic experience for my family and I. He is a credit to your company and hope at some point we get to experience his excellent service again.

I just wanted to let you know we had a wonderful trip with Hasantha and we wanted to thank you for all the help planning and booking our trip. Hasantha was amazing – kind, patient, informative and flexible. He made our trip a wonderful experience. We will leave a review on TripAdvisor and refer our friends to you whenever we can.

We just wanted to send you an email to thank you so much for all the help we received from you, putting together our fantastic Sri Lankan holiday.

We had the most amazing holiday ever!! All the hotels and destinations we visited in the itinary you put together were all unique and stunning in every aspect.

It was the first time we had used a travel company directly in the country we was visiting and was a little apprehensive but we really had no need to be. Yourself and Ceylon Escapes planned everything perfectly and answered all concerns and queries along the way. The whole process was handled in a perfectly professional way but with a beautiful personal touch.

All the accommodation we stayed at which came from recommendations of yourself were all of an exemplary standard. I had initially queried Bourgon Villa with you because of the lack of reviews but the place was simply amazing…as were all the other properties.

My wife, daughter and myself had the holiday of a lifetime and we can’t thank you enough.

A very very special mention must go to our guide/chauffeur Gune… he was simply fantastic!! We felt we was being shown around Sri Lanka by a true friend. His knowledge and generosity that he showed towards my family and myself provided us with an exceptional experience of your beautiful country. We could not recommend him to others highly enough.

We will be writing a full review praising Ceylon Escapes to the highest level over the coming days on TripAdvisor and Google. And will also be recommending you to all our family and friends.

We noticed there is no up to date reviews about Gune on your website.. would we be able to do that as well? We would love to tell people what a wonderful person he is.

Thank you once again for helping us make so many heartwarming memories.

Hi Rebecca & Dirk,

I hope you are both well.

I just wanted to let you know what a fantastic holiday we had in your beautiful country.

Sarath was an incredible driver and host, and we were very sad to say goodbye to him at the end of our trip!

Throughout our trip Sarath was great company, highlighting all the amazing wildlife and local areas with his extensive knowledge.

Sarath helped with our every need, from going to the local bank, taking us to a tea plantation, white water rafting and negotiating a cheaper safari than the one we had previously booked, to name but a few.

We felt very safe in Sarath’s hands, and his driving and coordination of the busy roads was exceptional.

The transport provided was to the highest standard and we enjoyed the whole trip in comfort.

On our last day Sarath took us to his house to meet his family and have lunch. This was one of the highlights of our trip, as it was such an honour to meet his family.

Thank you once again. We will certainly be recommending you to all our friends and family.

I will also write a glowing review on Trip Advisor as well.

Best wishes

Justin

A brilliant holiday to a truly magical country and wonderfully arranged by Ceylon Escapes. This ranged from prompt responses to every email to helpful and honest advice when arranging the trip to a seamless time travelling round all the great sites / locations. Thank you for a great trip, including especially to Amila my guide!

Just came back from 2 weeks trip including a 9 days tour with guide. We have had some excellent days with our guide – very interesting 9 days tour, very informative and reliable guide. One of the best trips we have been on and we can very much recommend Ceylon Escapes as well as our guide Weere (Tilak Weerawardana). Many thanks to all of you at CeylonEscapes.

I wanted to thank the Ceylon Escapes team and in particular Nilantha for taking care of us on our 3 day trip to Girithale and Polonnaruwa. Nothing was too much trouble, including our numerous requests to stop and take photos. He also organised a great elephant safari at Minneriya. Thanks for making our trip to Sri Lanka so special.

Excellent service! From the start, staff was very responsive to my emails, requests, change of dates, itinerary, etc. We received clear and detailed quotes in a timely manner. We had two drivers because of our itinerary, they were both fantastic, cannot fault them. Both very friendly, professional, very knowledgeable about Sri lanka, and excellent drivers. I recommend Ceylon Escapes without hesitation. Keep up the good work, you’re doing a fantastic job!

16 days in Sri Lanka with Shantha I am very happy to recommend Ceylon Escapes as their service has been exceptional from start to finish. Ceylon Escapes will arrange your whole itinerary for you but I enjoy the task of putting together holiday itineraries myself, I don’t really find that travel guide books are a good place to start for some reason so starting from a position of ignorance about my chosen destination I usually read up on TA and look at typical itineraries offered by the top holiday companies. This gives me a starting point but I also know from experience that the itineraries offered by these tour companies are far too hectic, regimented and rarely show the traveller the true country being visited. My next step is to contact some local tour companies with my own brief which, rather than telling them where I want to visit, just says what I like and don’t like doing. The itinerary that Rebecca quickly came back with stood out from the rest as, rather than giving me a standard package, it was clear that she had actually read my brief and came up with a very interesting and varied itinerary. In truth I could easily have just accepted her itinerary and would have had an excellent holiday I’m quite certain, but where would the fun have been in doing that! Over the course of a month I questioned Rebecca on the places she was suggesting, the hotels she had chosen and the route and she always answered quickly and patiently, I put forward my ideas and received honest advice as to whether these were good ideas or not and together we came up with our final itinerary which I can now say was perfect for us. The first test was would our driver/guide actually materialise but sure enough Shantha was at Colombo airport to greet us and help me find the ATM and buy a local SIM for my phone. Shantha was always a mine of information whether it be the modern or ancient history of Sri Lanka, flora and fauna, politics plus food and culture so he was always informative and entertaining. Our tour was splendid, Shantha was very flexible and made suggestions along the way so we had a fascinating and dynamic holiday. Shantha was a perfect companion, he was there when we needed him but we had all the space we needed to enjoy the holiday on our own and most importantly he always looked after our well being. This was particularly pertinent at the end of our trip when the corona virus pandemic effected Sri Lanka, we were scheduled to go on to the Maldives but flights there stopped two days before we were due to go, the national parks, temples etc closed down, hotels and restaurants were closing by the day and public opinion was becoming distrustful of tourists. Shantha kept us informed of the changing situation, not to panic us but just to help us make the right decisions. We changed our flights and left Sri Lanka on one of the last flights out, Shantha made sure we got to the airport and amazingly waited outside until we were safely on the plane in case we needed help to remain in Sri Lanka. He did all of this in the knowledge that he would have to go into self isolation himself when he left us and his wife’s business was also having difficulties because of the Covid 19 situation and because he was a tour guide. We absolutely could not fault Shantha’s commitment and professionalism to us throughout our tour. I am sure you will have gathered by now I would whole heartedly recommend Ceylon Escapes and feel sure that if you put your trust in them you will not be disappointed.

Voyage itinérant exceptionnel avec notre super chauffeur Sarath Nous avons réalisé un circuit inoubliable de 14 jours en nous adressant à Ceylon Escapes, agence sérieuse et efficace. Les échanges de courriel avec Ranmini étaient rapides et ses réponses complètes. Il nous a proposé un excellent chauffeur Sarath pour réaliser notre programme chargé (culture & nature) que nous rêvions de concrétiser au Sri Lanka. Il nous a permis d’obtenir des tickets de train (difficiles à obtenir) pour le fameux trajet de Kandy à Ella. Sarath est une personne de confiance pour vous conduire en mini-van (très appréciable pour bénéficier d’une grande vue panoramique) à travers le pays par bonnes ou mauvaises routes. A bord, bouteilles d’eau et wifi. Prudent, ponctuel, anglophone, sympathique et attentif, Sarath fait son maximum pour répondre à nos désirs de découvertes. Il nous a fait d’intéressantes suggestions. Ainsi, notre programme s’est enrichi de visites auxquelles nous n’avions pas pensés. Il nous a guidé et aidé efficacement lorsque nous avons dû changer d’hôtel. De plus, Sarath a fait preuve de beaucoup de patience (et de courage 😉 pour nous comprendre lors de nos échanges. Nous avons malheureusement une connaissance très rudimentaire de l’anglais. Mais nous finissions toujours par nous comprendre dans la bonne humeur et quelques éclats de rire. Grâce à Sarath de Ceylon Escapes, nous avons vécu un merveilleux voyage de noces ! Nous vous le recommandons sans hésiter.

We travaled through Sri Lanka from 3 till 17th of february. Our host, more then an driver or guide was MR Ervin. What a great experience and what a pleasure to drive with him through this beautifull country. Everything was well arranged by ceylon escapes. An advise from us should be to pick your own hotels. There is plenty of space and then you can decide one day in advance that you will drive further on or stay longer at a place. Mr. Ervin was our help on the whole trip, he did everything to make our holiday an unforgetable one. Many thanks to him!! Sandra & Jos the Netherlands

Weerawardhan or ‘Weere’ was are chauffeur for eight days whilst we toured Nuwera Eliya, Kandy and Hikkaduwa. He picked us up at Negambo and finally dropped us off in Colombo. Weera was an exceptional person and driver, he was safe on the busy and unpredictable roads and traffic in Sri Lanka,. He was always calm, collected, knowledgeable, reliable , punctual, flexible and went out of his way to cater for our needs. Of all the drivers we have had during our previous visits to SL, his English was by far the best. He has a very good command of the language, which made it easy to communicate. He also had a good sense of humour. We felt very safe with him. We were amazed at his knowledge of the history of all sights we visited, which was an added bonus as he was our defacto tour guide. Weere was an ultimate professional and knew when he could interact with us and when it was necessary to keep his distance. We would like to strongly recommend Weere and Ceylonescapes to any one wanting an enriched and enjoyable holiday in Sri Lanka. Thank you Weere for making our trip so special and memorable. Good Luck!

This was our second trip to Sri Lanka, and we used Ceylon Escapes for part of each holiday. Our driver/guide this time was Tissa, and we couldn’t have been happier with his professionalism and expertise. As a driver, he was always calm and careful, despite the mayhem around him. He took pride in keeping the minibus clean, and was always punctual and friendly. As a guide, he taught us a great deal about Buddhism and Sri Lankan history, in answer to our constant questions, and knew a lot about birds, too – another interest of ours.

Mr Thilak who was our chauffeur picked us up from Colombo, right from the day he picked us up to the time he dropped us at the airport 7 days later, he had a charming disposition, never once losing his cool or getting upset about anything. He always kept the vehicle clean and provided us with reading material and water bottles. He pushed us into watching more sights when we felt lazy. He not only booked us the tickets for the the kandy dance but also went ahead and reserved front view seating in advance. When a hotel misplaced one of my bags, he patiently called them almost every day and managed to get my bag before we boarded for India. He would always dress immaculately and kept a respectable distance and was always courteous. He would always look for hygenic stalls whenever we showed an inclination to have coconut water or roadside food. He also would ask the vendor to wash all vessels before providing us the eatables. He also took us to some bargain stores for shopping in Nuwara Elya.Thilak surely is a “thilak” for the agency ….a superb human being and a great chauffeur.

We are just on our way back from a wonderful week of holiday in enchanting Sri Lanka, and the four of us wanted to warmly thank Ajith Perera again for being with us along the way. In the course of our trip Ajith has not only made us feel safe on chaotic roads but he also arranged with kindness for all our wishes to come true whilst providing helpful insights. We would strongly recommend Ajith to whoever wants to discover Sri Lanka with a first class driver! Blandine, Bruno, Arnaud and David

Great company n an awesome driver.. Review of Ceylon Escapes Reviewed 5 days ago via mobile We visited Sri Lanka for 8 days vacation n were fortunate to have Ajith Perera as our driver from Ceylon Escapes. He took absolute care of our food needs, suggested the best available Indian restaurants wherever possible. We were travelling with our 2.8 yr old son n his specific demands were also catered well like arranging for curd in Kandy or robusta bananas in Nuwara Eliya or biscuits in Ella. He became like family to us, a friend to our son. We were apprehensive that the driver shouldn’t be pushy or too friendly but he was not pushy at all, was very mature n knew his job really well. He suggested best of the class options for site seeing. Thanks Ajith for making our trip more enriching n enjoyable. Good Luck!!

We have just come back from an incredible holiday in Sri Lanka. Not least because for the first 5 days we used Ceylon Escapes and had Roy as our driver. We hired Ceylon at very short notice but they quickly put together an itinerary based on out initial plan and added Polonnaruwa which we would have missed otherwise. The driver / guide -Roy – was an incredibly punctual, patient, and safe driver. He gave valuable insights to some of the things we were seeing, and couldn’t go out of his way enough to help if the schedule changed. I would recommend both Ceylon Escapes and Roy most highly.

Based on a recommendation from a friend we selected Ceylon Escapes for a 16-day tour of Sri Lanka. From the moment Sunil picked us up from the busy Colombo airport we felt as if we were in the hands of an old family friend showing us around beautiful Sri Lanka. Sunil was a wonderful driver he was safe on the busy roads of Sri Lanka, knowledgeable, reliable, punctual, flexible and went out of his way to cater for our needs. His knowledge of the tourism industry was a bonus as he bought us tickets to the major tourist attracts, helped bridge any language barriers and would always buy us snacks or drinks when he thought we would like to try Sri Lankan specialties. Sunil was easy to be with over such a long trip, gauging when we were chatty and when we needed quiet time. He had excellent command of the English language, had a good sense of humour and was perfect for our tour of Sri Lanka and as an added bonus he acted as a wonderful tour guide throughout our journey from Dambulla to Ella, Yala, Tangalle, Galle, Weligama and back to Colombo. He pointed out all the major sites, stopped for pictures and made sure to take us to the local restaurants, street venders and unique parts of the country that you would miss without local knowledge. It is those little things like this made this trip the easiest we have ever done. I would strongly recommend both Sunil and Ceylon Escapes for your trip to Sri Lanka.

We spent 2 weeks travelling through beautiful Sri Lanka with Gune as our guide. He picked us up from the airport and told us that we meet as strangers and we would part as family and this was so true. Gune drove us safely from Colombo to Wilpattu, Anaradhapura and Kaudulla National Park to Sigirya, ancient Polonnaruwa, upcountry to Nuwara Eliya and Ella, Tissamaharama, Yala, Tangalle, Galle and finally Colombo. He is a great driver who always kept calm, and found nice lunch places for us to eat at. He stopped for us at street stalls to buy peanuts, rambutan, papayas, mangoes, strawberries, cashew nuts and red bananas, and joined us on our safari adventures. He taught us how to negotiate tuktuk prices and how to bargain at shops. We learned from him about Sri Lankan history, people, nature and wildlife, about the Civil war and the Boxing Day tsunami. We went to a turtle rescue station and saw tiny 1-,2- and 3-day old turtles that were rescued and will be released back into the sea. We encountered a couple of elephants on the road and sped past one on safari as we were racing towards a leopard that had been spotted. We walked the Horton Plains with Gune and experienced the “World’s End” view. He spotted bee eaters, kingfishers, monkeys, hornbill, eagles, sambar deer, crocodiles, monitor lizards, painted storks and wild buffalos for us. He pointed out traditional rice harvests in the paddy fields and the speciality of each village. He found us a spot on the train in tea country and picked us up a few stations later. Gune was very professional and even though always looked out for us he also kept his distance and gave us the chance to relax and do nothing when we needed to. If we could give him 6 stars instead of 5 we would. Thank you Gune for making this such a special trip!

Thank you so much for showing us your beautiful, holy, resplendent island. You have made our holiday a really special experience. We have so enjoyed your company. You have a real gift of communicating, for making your knowledge interesting – whether of history, Buddhism or Sri Lanka’s murky political life. It really felt like we were looking at things from the inside. It has been a privilege to have you as our guide. We will miss your smile and laughter and all feel sad about saying goodbye. Hopefully, life will bring us all together again someday.

George picked my husband and I up in Negumbo and was with us for one week before dropping us in Tangalle. He was absolutely wonderful, incredibly knowledgable about Sri Lanka’s wildlife and history. He was a safe and courteous driver and consistently took us to great places to eat. He had contacts throughout the island and was able to book us last minute train tickets and a safari. We’re so glad we booked with Ceylon Escapes. Thank you for a great experience.

Perfect organisation and Sunil is a top driver. We have 18 days used their services. Our driver was Sunil. Really what we have is such an enjoyable with this man who has done everything to us to. He spoke good English, knew an awful lot of the country, introduced himself modest, retired at the right times back and what we have had fun together. What we really appreciated in him is that he wanted to drive us along all kinds of souvenir shops. He did his work full of passion and that was also to note. Among other things by its stories are we Sri Lanka better go. This driver is highly recommended. Also the contact with Ceylon Escape was through the mail in advance very pleasant. This organization will receive five stars.. … as far as we are concerned, six and Sunil. Are you going to use Ceylon Escapes ask for the driver Sunil. You will not regret it.

Our driver Amitha, has been an excellent driver who has always presented in the most professional attire, despite us trying to get him to wear some shorts on the 35° day yesterday. He always showed up on time and at the right place, and was great at finding us some local gems. Amitha is a safe and respectful driver, who made us feel very secure on the hectic roads of Sri Lanka. I would recommend him to other visitors, he is a valuable asset to your company.

Our trip in Sri Lanka was fantastic. We enjoyed it very much. I want to mention specifically the great service from Sunil our driver. He was not just a driver, he was also a perfect guide. He knew so much about your country and all the places we visited. And was always helpful, made sure we got the best possible service, gave nice suggestions for diners, and was available when needed. We even had fun experiences with him, doing the Flying Ravanna zip line. Sunil also was also very supportive when Ber got an accident in the sea. He even consulted his house doctor and came with very helpful advice for wearing a neck collar. That’s how a good guide shows he really cares about his guests. So again very much thanks to Sunil.

Sanjay and Kumar were faultless! Always there with a smile and 100% professional from the moment we arrived to the moment we left. Everyone in the group had nothing but wonderful things to say about them and they felt very much like part of the team. The bus was always very clean and tidy and Kumar’s driving was steady and expertly negotiated the (sometimes) chaotic roads. We all felt safe and in good hands with both of them. The train We were indebted to Seelan for everything he did to make that train journey so successful. To have the carriage at the back of the train with 180 views of the surrounding countryside was very special and one guest wrote in to say that he will “especially remember the train ride through the tea plantations, which was the best way to see it.” I think Seelan’s idea to break up the journey in Nuwara Eliya was the right one though the group decided they wanted to stay until Haputhale. However, we should probably include this as standard for the next group. Farm Visits The group were presented with a well-rounded selection of farm visits and I think what they saw was enough for them and provided the right amount of variety. Any more would have been too much so it was right that we took some out. The visit to the farm on the coast was interesting but made for a very long day and I would say that this should have been made very clear so that we could have warned the group ahead of time and managed their expectations. However, Seelan spotting the harvest that was taking place as we drove up there was wonderful and became the agricultural highlight for most of the group. Temple Visits Seelan’s knowledge of temples and Sri Lankan history came into its own during visits to temples such as Anuradhapura, Sigiriya and Dambulla. He explained just enough to ensure that the group had the facts they needed as well as allowing them to explore and let the magic sink in. One of my favourite visits was to the temple that houses the oldest tree during prayer time – again, very spontaneous and unexpected and an experience we will always remember. Kandy It worked really well to make most of the daytrips optional so that those who wanted to rest by the pool had the chance to do so. The group that came to Kandy loved the trip and the highlights for all of them were the cemetery and the botanical gardens. Again, it was Seelan who gave them the special access by ensuring that the caretaker of the cemetery personally showed them around and also getting them a private buggy for the botanical tour. His knowledge of botany also made this fantastic and all in all, this was one of the best daytrips on the tour. Galle Fort Everyone loved their stay in Galle at the end of the trip and the walk around the fort was lovely. Seelan and the drivers were also very good at being available to take guests into town for shopping excursions and they all really enjoyed sitting in the market square together for a cup of tea. With more time, it might have been fun to arrange an informal cricket game somewhere! Guiding It was a true pleasure to work with Seelan and I can see why he is so respected in the industry. Some of the guests have personally written to Exceptional Travel to thank him on their behalf and to say what a fantastic guide he was and all of them said this to me during the tour. Nothing was too much trouble and it was acknowledged by everyone that he had put his heart and soul into ensuring that the wants and needs of every guest were either anticipated or met with immediately. Sliced pineapples on the bus after a long walk; hand wipes and spare socks for visits to temples and an endlessly cheerful and positive attitude. Seelan has a natural ability to read a group and make spontaneous and quick decisions in their interest and it was down to his intuition and expertise that the journey was so enjoyable. He is also, of course, very knowledgeable about the history and culture of Sri Lanka as well as his botanical knowledge that made him so perfect for this group. It goes without saying that he will be the first person we request for the next tour as I can’t imagine how he could be bettered!

I made my Sri Lanka tour in cooperation with Ceylon Escapes in February 2019 and everything went very well and smooth. Especially I want to thank to my driver-guide Tissa for his accompaniment and for sharing his immense knowledge about the country’s history and culture, birds and trees etc with me. He answered all my questions with great patience and he was never tired of climbing many many stairs to the mountains and temples with me every day. He is a very correct and reliable person and an asset for the company. He contributed a lot to my flawless tour. I would highly recommend Tissa to anyone who is especially interested in Sri Lanka’s culture and history and buddhism. I really enjoyed my trip with him. Many many thanks…

Ceylon Escapes is a professional company. We contacted them at the beginning of January 2019, flying out to Sri Lanka on the 22nd. Although last minute, they organised the whole tour quickly and efficiently, Dirk and Ranmini keeping in touch and suggesting itinerary and hotels. Any problems you have, be sure that they will sort it out quickly and to great satisfaction. We had a great experience so thank you for such a wonderful tour. Thanks to our drivers – Sanjeewa and Ervin – we went to places we wouldn’t have otherwise and they are knowledgeable and keen to show off this beautiful country. My sister and her husband recommended them to us and we would certainly give our recommendations. Thanks again guys! Rob, Gill and John.

What a trip to Sri Lanka my partner and I just had! Being just the 2 of us and wanting to spend as little as time as possible wasted whilst in Sri Lanka, we were extremely happy with our experience with Ceylon Escapes – especially our driver OTS Sanjeewa! From my first contact, to our final goodbye was sensational! OTS Sanjeewa sense of urgency, professionalism and knowledge about his country Sri Lanka, particularly the wild life, was exceptional! We cannot thank him enough for making our trip so enjoyable 🙂 We look forward to hopefully doing another tour with OTS Sanjeewa and Ceylon Escapes in the not so distant future! Jess & Adam

Our driver was Prem. Prem was thoroughly professional and more than just a driver. He proved invaluable with suggestions on our itinerary, arranging additional activities, finding good restaurants, being a tour guide and anything else we needed. The personalised service was outstanding. Prem clearly enjoys what he does and shows a genuine interest in his guests and we very much enjoyed his company as well. He was always punctual and had this amazing ability to find a parking spot just outside wherever we needed to be irrespective of the traffic! We have developed a great respect for driving in Sri Lanka and more than happy to leave it to professionals like Prem. We would thoroughly recommend Prem as a driver – you get much more than that – he added another dimension to our trip. It was also a pleasure to get to know Prem personally. Travel is not just about the sights, it is also about the people and we were privileged to spend a couple of weeks in Prem’s care. We would 100% recommend Prem as a driver – you won’t be disappointed. Thank you for a memorable trip and thank you to Ceylon Escapes for providing Prem for us. We struck gold – or maybe sapphires since we were in Sri Lanka!

Our group of 4 friends was traveling by Sri Lanka with CeyloneEscape. It was a great journey! Our driver was Amitha, many thanks to him for his attentiveness, careful driving, excellent guiding, and helping us with different things. I’m sure without a local driver/guide it was impossible for us to discover Sri Lanka as we did it.

We completed our trip as per the plan using the service offered by your company. I would like provide my review of the same.Initial Response & Planning: I reached out using the contact form from the Website and provided basic details on what is required. The response was prompt and I received a quick and clear plan and the estimate. Multiple queries from my end were addressed quickly and you provided enough suggestions Entire planning was done professionally and thanks especially to you for making it easy and building up confidence on what I would be getting. Once finalized the invoice with the inclusions/exclusions was also provided. And finally I received the contact details of Sumeda also. Sumeda & the Trip: Sumeda was awaiting at the airport as promised and was easy to spot. He was very welcoming and made us feel at ease right away. The van provided had everything that was mentioned. Enough luggage space, clean and perfect for the 5 of us. The water bottles everyday was a plus. Sumeda helped us plan the daily activities and discussed to provide the start time. He was always ready ahead of the time agreed and was waiting for us with a smile. He ensured our comfort was taken care of. He planned the travel considering the breaks needed to ensure we felt comfortable travelling. Dining was planned as per our cuisine needs and as per our request. Coming to his driving, he was perfect. Followed all the rules, drove at the right speed and made us feel comfortable and safe at all times. He shared sufficient knowledge on the places we visited and guided us. Also he shared details of the local lifestyle, people and other relevant info. Was always ready for a talk to keep us engaged. 100% professional and trustworthy and we really felt happy with the service & help we received. Overall, we got everything that was promised. A personalized trip with a very good professional guide in which we were able to complete everything as per plan and spend some quality time with the family together. Thanks a lot for making the trip memorable.

We have just arrived home from the best holiday we have ever, organised by you, Ceylon Escapes, in beautiful Sri Lanka. We had the best time and in just under two weeks we travelled from Colombo to Tangalle to Galle to Colombo again to Dambulla, to Kandy to Ella to Unawatuna. Our driver Suneda was the key to our holidays success!! He was courteous, considerate, knowledgable and a fantastic driver as well. We always felt safe and in a foreign country to you, this is so important as you do not know the customs, and culture and can feel a little like a ‘fish out of water’. Sumedaa had so much knowledge to impart to us and would always be stopping for example, to show us a native bird or a native fruit and to try a king coconut drink at a stall at the side of a road enroute to a destination. Sumeda was ALWAYS so happy to help us with answering all of our many many questions to securing us front row seats at a fantastic cultural show in KANDY , to making sure we had umbrellas if there were even slight rain periods, to helping me with encouragement to climb Sigiriya Rock when I had gotten half of the way but with bad arthritic knees thought I had better stop, but to my compete astonishment I made it to the top and Sumeda encouraged me and with the ‘slow as you go’ philosophy I made it to the top and was so pleased and proud that I had. The list of compliments that we have for our driver, Sumeda seems never ending as our group of four travellers ALL had a memorable, safe, fun, educational and wonderful holiday that we will all always remember with much fondness. Sri Lanka is truly a blessed island and we were definitely blessed to have booked our holiday with Ceylon Escapes and to have had such a wonderful chauffeur as Sumeda. Sumeda was always considerate of our wishes, our privacy, our questions, and our enquiries and requests – such as we were very hopeful to see especially some elephants on our safari, and we encountered heavy rain early on in the safari and an electrical storm but thanks to Sumeda and our wonderful jeep drivers perserverance we were able to see a mum, dad and baby elephant in quite heavy rain conditions and stay for a long period of time photographing them and taking in this very special sight and then we were able to see jackals and spotted deer and some other animals despite the adverse weather conditions. THANK YOU very very much CEYLON ESCAPES , Rebecca and Ramini deserve our high praise too as they were exemplary in all of their communications with us always. We would like to officially recommend Ceylon Escapes with the highest endorsement we can. Sri Lanka is a beautiful country and thanks to our experience with Ceylon Escapes it now holds a special place in all of our hearts.

I needed a van for a day trip to Pinnawala – we were given a van driven by Amitha. He was an excellent and careful driver. When the kids needed the toilet unexpectedly – he knew where to stop where there was a western style toilet – even at a random service station (gas station) along the way in Colombo. He was very helpful and friendly. We had our lunch with us, but wanted to stop for breakfast and afternoon tea – he knew exactly the type of place we were after – clean, western toilets and fresh, inexpensive food. As we live in Sri Lanka, and have previously been unable to find a driver that suits us to do occasional day-trips, I am so thankful to have found Ceylon Escapes – I am sure we will be using them again!

We had a wonderful Roundtrip in Sri Lanka. Sumeda was perfect – we have elected him „Best Driver Guide in Sri Lanka. Thanks again also to you for perfect organizing. We will definitely recommend Ceylon Escapes and gave a 5* vote in TripAdvisor!

We had a great journey through Sri Lanka. It started with the appreciated assistance of Dirk in optimizing our itinerary. Once in Sri Lanka our fantastic guide Sanjeewa made our tour a real unforgettable experience. Reading other testimonials it seems clear that all guides are selected on their professionalism . We can only speak for Sanjeewa and highly recommend him, especially for those who want expert guiding on birds and animals and culture. Many thanks!

In preparation to our holiday in Sri Lanka we asked « Ceylon Escapes » to book us a guide who would accompany us on our holiday. With SUNIL GAMAGE we not only had a very friendly, helpful drive–guide but we also experienced a very sensible, educated human being who introduced us to the soul of Sri Lanka. He offered us his knowledge of Sinhalese History and Culture. He suggested us daily the best places (+ respected our timetable) and so we explored the most beautiful landscapes of your country. Conditioned car as well as some cold water. He always booked us the best tickets for our trips such as the « Kandy Esala Perehara » or the train from Ella to Nanu-Oya. Every request has been fulfilled by him. He adapted himself to every situation even though they were quite unexpected (for example : strike – blocking road – 27.8.18). On the last day he invited us for dinner in his house with his family and his wife prepared us traditional food from Sri Lanka (home-made). We highly recommend our very helpful.

My family and I had a wonderful, adventurous week in Sri Lanka, with the help and care of our driver/guide, Sarath. We always felt well taken care of, including finding dining options for our youngest son who has specific dietary needs. Up front, good advice was given regarding the proper itinerary, since there is just so much to choose from. The vehicle was large, comfortable and cool. I was able to relax so much knowing that we were in good hands! If we return to visit the other places in Sri Lanka that we couldn’t make it to, we will definitely use this company again.

Just wanted to drop you a line to say thank you for organising such an amazing holiday to Sri Lanka. We are traumatised being back but we have the most wonderful memories – it really was a holiday of a lifetime. We absolutely loved it. We also loved our driver who made the whole experience so easy, informative and interesting. I was mildly concerned beforehand whether the kids would cope or truly embrace it as it was a very different kind of holiday to what they were used to – but they absolutely loved it and think it will be a difficult holiday to beat. He was an excellent and safe driver and had a great knowledge of the country and the both tourist and none touristic areas – even down to knowing where the biggest herd of elephants could be found on the day. He was courteous and always looking out for us – even carrying emergency medicines in the car. I was also a bit worried about the moving around but it really wasn’t a problem – the kids enjoyed exploring the different hotels – all of which were v different but equally great. The food was also consistently incredible and we have some work to do now we are back home shifting the extra pounds. We found Ceylonescapes to be excellent to deal with and would highly recommend them.