Dear ,
Greetings from Baghdad!!
Trust this email finds you well. I arrived in Baghdad yesterday late PM. The Airport departure run at the CBIA was very smooth and thankfully there were no drama’s with QA ground staff there and they were well informed and very efficient compared to those of the LHR QA ground staff.
Jetwing Travels:
Firstly, I want extend my heartfelt thanks and gratitude to you for your wonderful work and absolutely highly professional and top-notch service. You were highly efficient, always very quick to respond to emails, incredibly helpful throughout, highly knowledgeable in what you do, very patient. highly professional, very friendly and attentive and did a perfect job!! 😊 It was a joy to have you as my PoC from Jetwing Travels and thanks your kind and excellent efforts I had the best holiday ever in Sri Lanka – despite it being a ‘ quarantine holiday’!! – that itself is testament to your fantastic efforts. Additionally, you went above and beyond your call of duty to help me get the PCR test report on time ( which in fact was my sole responsibility) and if not for your help I don’t think I would have got the report on time. I am every so grateful. Professionals like yourself is what makes Jetwing Travels one of the best Travel Companies in Sri Lanka and also more globally!!
The Jetwing chauffeurs who drove me from CBIA – Negombo – Ahungalle- Tangalle- Kandy- Negombo and finally to CBIA were also highly professional, very helpful and friendly and were perfect. I am indeed very grateful and extend my sincere thanks to Jetwing Travel’s brilliant chauffeur team Nandana, Niroshan, Upul and the gentleman who drove me from CBIA to Jet Wing Lagoon.
Overall, as a returning customer thanks to you and rest of your team, Jetwing Travels did a fantastic job and I had one of the best holidays ever. I will be returning again for my next holiday in Sri Lanka and highly recommend Jetwing Travels to anyone who wants a Tailore made perfect holiday.
Perhaps you should also add departure/ outbound PCR test into the services that Jetwing Travels offers to its customers for an additional fee. That would be fantastic.
Hotels:
Overall, all four hotels I stayed during my stay in Sri Lanka very fantastic and the hotel staff in all 4 hotels were the key highlight – they were the true Ambassadors of Sri Lankan Hospitality. Highly professional, always with a smile, very friendly, attentive and did a perfect job to make you feel at ease and at home. Jetwing Blue colleagues were incredibly helpful in helping with getting my PCR test report too. I am so grateful.
Jetwing Lagoon and Anantara Peace Heaven: I was trying to think out of the two hotels which one would I rate as my top most favourite. I finally concluded that I cannot and they are my top two!! Jetwing Lagoon exerts this old charm, Jeffery Bawa Architecture, serene beautiful lagoon views, fantastic team (hotel staff) with an excellent Ayrveda Spa and a lovely swimming pool. The Sri Lankan food menu and cocktails were also simply delicious. The room 125 was absolutely perfect, very spacious and it maximises the lagoon view at every angle. Anantara Peace Heaven I found slightly more up market with the more contemporary charm with beautiful sea views of the Indian Ocean, absolutely serene spa, a pool with a view, delicious Sri Lankan food and cocktails and another perfect team of fantastic hotel staff. The room 432 was perfect, spacious, very contemporary design with breath taking views of the Indian Ocean. I will return to both hotels on my next holiday (and would very much hope I could get the same rooms, if possible, at all!!). I have stayed in so many hotels in so many places around the world and I have concluded that in my opinion Jetwing Lagoon and Anantara Peace Heaven take the top spot.
Heritance Ahungalle: The staff were absolutely fantastic once again. its other key attraction is the private beach – it provides the perfect running track in the evenings towards sunset. ( fantastic) They were very friendly, attentive, highly professional and did an excellent job. The room was good, comfortable and spacious enough but the terrace has very little privacy in the way the hotel is built with all terraces facing each other in different angles. It also had sea views which was nice. The Spa looked rather neglected and did not have much of an appeal at all. Sri Lankan food was good but there is a lot of room for improvement. ( particularly to avoid overcooking seafood dishes and desserts). Overall, the hotel exterior and interior seem to be in need of a good TLC and a round of refurbishment / upgrade as the exterior interior looked tired and rather dated. ( i.e. walking into the main dining hall where the meals were served felt like walking into an 80’s era hotel with Decore). The hotel is situated in such a beautiful place with excellent facilities hence a good TLC could really bring it up to the level of Jetwing Lagoon or Anantara. Thus, the overall place needs some attention. Would I return. and recommend – yes I would but with some reservations due the reasons mentioned above.
( I also noted that both Anantara and Heritance have Tennis Courts. Hopefully once all these COVID restrictions are over and life returns to some normalcy in Sri Lanka – perhaps they may also have services for hotel guests to hire a tennis coach for some sessions)
Jetwing Blue: I have already shared my review hence will not go into detail. But I must say the staff at Jetwing Blue were absolutely fantastic and so helpful including in getting my PCR test report on 20/05. Also the room was fantastic and very spacious although it looked ‘tired’ and in need of a good round of refurbishment / a good round of TLC. Sea views from the room’s terrace were not that great because the wooden balcony railings obstrauct the views – unless you are some who is very short or extremely tall!! I was talking to the hotel manager and she did mention the hotel will undergo an upgrade/refurbishment and improvements to the overall services etc. shortly and plans were delayed due to the COVID pandemic. I also learned from her that it was the first Jetwing Hotel in Sri Lanka – hence I guess it’s even more important to bring it up to the level of excellence of the other Jetwing hotels in the same area such as Jetwing Lagoon and preserve its history and importance!! Sri Lankan supper menu and the Margaritas were delicious and excellent. However, the breakfast was rather ‘tired looking’ and there were few issues related to presentation and hygiene as well in the way it was laid out in the buffet and the stray dogs who seem to be hanging around inside restaurant premises at their free will. The beach in front although not a private beach is a fantastic running track in the evenings with beautiful views of the sunset. Would I return and recommend – will do once it completes its plans for refurbishment and services etc.
I hope the above review will be of some use.
Once again many thanks to you for everything Dileshi and I am very grateful.
Very best to you.
Warmest regards
Chamila
