We arrived here after a long trip down from Cochin. The staff were friendly and immediately made us feel very welcome. Our room was basic and clean, but we were expecting more for what we paid. We were grateful to be able to drop our bags in a clean room, just a short distance from the glorious Varkala beach. If you like a hard bed you will not be disappointed (for me it was fine), if you want to flop down into a marshmallow mattress this might not be the place for you. Despite instruction from the friendly folk on reception, we never persuaded the shower to produce hot water. Hilltop has a good bar / restaurant area, the staff are extremely friendly and courteous, we returned there several times even when we were no longer residents. We stayed here 3 nights out of our 12 in Varkala, in terms of our actual room, Hilltop was a little overpriced and a little disappointing. However, the attitude and friendliness of the staff drew us back to use their restaurant several times.