Stayed my last night in Sri Lanka here just to be close to the airport. For the very little I paid I was pleasantly surprised to get a large, comfortable, clean room with working aircon, fan, TV, sea view. Wouldnt really have wanted to stay any longer as the place was sadly a ghost town.

sunflower hotel was my worst experience in my sri lanka trip. the hotel is a bit old and there's a certain fishy smell in the lobby. we got a deluxe room, and it is nothing remarkable at all. room is simple, just the basics and was smelling of cigarette smoke. the AC wasn't cooling at all so we accordingly advised front desk to get it fixed while we went out to grab dinner. they assured us to send somebody to fix it, but was disappointed upon our return to learn that nobody ever did come and AC was still not working. i had to raise my voice to get a new room.

i did get a new room but it seems all their rooms don't have working ACs. we called front desk again to complain and they sent someone who apparently didn't know what to do. we finally gave up and just resigned ourselves to the fact that we will sleep without AC.

rooms are weirdly designed. the lone available outlet is located behind the headboard so if you need to charge your phone or laptop, you have to move the heavy bed away from the wall! it was really crazy! it supposedly had a balcony but the huge door to the balcony is made of wood, located at the center so it practically blocks the view of the beach! i don't understand why they still had to have a balcony!

bathroom is not totally clean, hinges falling off from the foot cabinet, they just stuck a piece of paper to keep it in place.

i don't receommend sunflower hotel at all. from the outside, it looks like it would be one of the better hotels in that street, but don't be deceived. staff needs training as well, you can see the attempt, but it jst doesn't meet up to expectations.

Excellent place to start and or end your stay in Sri Lanka

We stayed two nights at the start of a three week holiday and we wished we had arranged to stay there at the end instead of further away from the airport in a less Sri Lankan hotel.

The staff were very friendly and helpful and didn't make any fuss when I lost my key in the sea.

The hotel grounds open out onto the beach and we had great fun playing in the surf. We are not strong swimmers so wouldn't have strayed too far out.

The food was excellent with a real Sri Lankan choices but also dishes for a western palate just arrived from UK

Lots of local places to eat shops and excursions

The hotel could do with a lick of paint but the beds and rooms were clean and the water was plentiful and hot

Definitely not a boutique hotel, the Sunflower is however the ideal place to stay at the beginning of your trip and at the end. It is only 20 minutes from the airport, it is located right on the beach - ideal for chilling next to the pool after a long-haul flight. The road outside the hotel is full of shops and restaurants and of course tuk-tuks to take you wherever you want. I called this review "adorably tacky" - the place has a weird 70's vibe, for example, the architecture could be East Berlin 1978, it could do with a coat of paint, a few tiles are missing from the floor of the pool - all this however seems to make it even more adorable. The rooms are large, looking out over the palm trees onto the Indian ocean, sparsely but adequately furnished and kept clean. The poolside restaurant has great food and the staff are friendly and helpful. I think we must have arrived there right in the middle of the wedding season! Huge affairs, with sumptuous buffets, Sri Lankans in beautiful saris in all the colours of the rainbow, flamingo flowers in ornate arrangements and the perfidious sound of live bands singing the shmoltziest romantic hits. There is however a limit to the number of times one can bear Whitney Houston's "I will always love you" or Elton John's "Can you feel the love tonight". Definitely a cultural experience! Excellent value for money.