Located on a one acre property with private villas and an onsite restaurant, the Spice Trail is a pleasant spot for the discerning traveler. If you want to stay in Arugam Bay with all the right amenities, then we aim to the be that place.
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
HOTEL STYLE
Modern
Family
Languages Spoken
English, Sinhala, Tamil
Location
69th Mile Post, Panama Road, Arugam Bay 00001 Sri Lanka
The Spice Trail
338 reviews
Getting there
Great for walkers
Places to stay are graded on a 0-100 scale. The higher the grade, the easier it is for travelers to find restaurants and things to do within walking distance.
Amazing cottages. Private, massive rooms, private garden space within each cottage, well appointed, all amenities, super helpful staff, including the boking dude, who let 4 of us stay in one cottage and gave a superb discount. Waiters, pool staff all fab.
Food was ok, not great. They have a high-profile moody expat chef, but if you avoid him and work with the local kitchen staff, you are in for a treat.
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Date of stay: November 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The hotel is very charming and peaceful with a very relaxing pool area, which will serve you drinks and food if you wish, or else the restaurant is next to the pool. The rooms were large and well decorated with very efficient air conditioning and a generator that kept us supplied with power. The bed was a huge 4 poster with a mosquito net and a very spacious clean bathroom. I could not fault the room.
The restaurant serves good food, a bit more expensive than outside- but great quality. They are a bit slow so be prepared to wait, or put your order in and sit by the pool until called . I would stay here again as it is a very nice place in a prime location - with a good coffee shop out the front called Kaffee. The bar has a very good happy hour from 5-7.00pm and in addition there are lots of good cheap places to eat and drink nearby and we had some great cheap seafood in the local places. A local Indian restaurant (recommended by the hotel)was also great and very cheap. We had a great time at Spice Trail and would stay again.
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Date of stay: June 2022
Rooms
Location
Service
Room Tip:I would ask for one of rooms nearer the pool
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Room was pretty spacious and so was the wash room. Clean & well attended. No TV &/Or telephone and I appreciated that. Drinking water bottles were replenished regularly along with tea & coffee. Mini bar with 12 items did not interest me. Well managed property with 12 rooms had a pool which could be used by all. The team lead by RM Dinal took care of all guests with a smile & a personal touch. The two dogs in the premises came handy to chase the monkeys away. Though it was not a norm for me,many appreciated their presence.
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Date of stay: October 2020
Location
Service
Sleep Quality
Room Tip:All rooms were in one level and some interconnected with a small open area.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
A well situated property this hotel fell below expectations due to the slow and lax service in the breakfast and bar area. Check-in was tortuously slow when we all had a long journey and needed to get into our rooms booked well in advance. Breakfast was mediocre and I would rather go out than eat the hotel breakfast. The lunch menu was good but for breakfast, they weren’t even trying. Evening cocktails in the front bar area is lively and good value but Aragum Bay is full of good bars and places to eat nearby. The room was too dark with mood lighting but it makes it difficult to see in an otherwise attractive and large room with a large roomy bathroom. The courtyard is barren and could use planting up.
The pool is on the small side but attractive with sun lounges umbrellas and towels.
Room at the back face the shed and car park and need better lighting on the path. Or use your phone torch. With so few tourists around and we booked months in advance I don’t know why we were given the worst situated rooms .
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Date of stay: June 2022Trip type: Traveled with family
Room Tip:Need a torch once it’s dark to navigate back to your room.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
A little haven in the midst of the bustling strip of arugam bay, the spice trail offers spacious, comfortable and practically designed rooms and an on-site restaurant with a limited but very well executed menu. The rooms are extremely comfortable and there’s plenty of space for a family with kids. The pool is a definite plus. We loved the practicality of having access to the washroom from the courtyard as well so you don’t bring the sand in to the bedroom. The property does not have direct beach access but is situated right on the main strip with easy access to some of the best restaurants, cafes and the beach across the road. The food at the spice trail is also very good if you prefer to eat in (all meals including breakfast on ala carte basis). If you don’t have a vehicle or don’t want to drive in to town this is a perfect place to be based at while in arugam bay.
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Date of stay: May 2023Trip type: Traveled with family
Room Tip:Limited parking on site.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The stay was wonderful. We went with a crew of almost 20 people and everybody is equally and fully satisfied with the place and the service. The villas/rooms are huge and well maintained. The staff is really helpful too. Whenever we needed any arrangements, they took care of them without any hesitation. The price also was no different than what we initially discussed nevertheless the support/service they provided us with. The pool is moderate-sized and the beach is about 50m away but not recommended to swim there. Despite this, the staff helped us find a safe location. Food is great and has a good variety for the breakfast. All in all, it is a great deal and worth the stay.
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Date of stay: February 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We decided to treat ourselves to a little luxury in Arugam Bay and the Spice Trail fitted the bill. We loved the swimming pool and the location which was handy to everything, including the surf break.
The rooms themselves are huge and very clean. We really liked the small things like a broom in the room to sweep out any sand that found its way inside.
The bed and pillows were very comfortable, with a very clean mosquito net. The bathroom is also huge with great shower pressure and plenty of storage. We found the little garden useful for drying clothes on the rack, but due to the heat we didn’t sit out there a lot.
We had breakfast included in the price and enjoyed fresh fruit and juice every morning, along with a choice of Japanese inspired egg dishes. The coffee from Kaffe out front is amazing. Try their cakes too.
Last but not least - the staff were amazing. Ready to help with anything and so friendly! We’d definitely stay here again if we return to Arugam Bay.
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Date of stay: September 2024Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We stayed at the spice Trail for 2 weeks! It was just so perfect that there was no point in looking for other places to stay. We were two families with three kids each. The pool is amazing- always super clean and refreshing, the rooms are spacious and comfortable with everything you could need. And the food at the restaurant was great, and very reasonably priced compared to other places, so we ate most our meals there. The kids could be independent and just walk into the restaurant and order what they wanted on the room, and here comes one of the highlights - the staff, they were so friendly and so accommodating to all of us, they looked after us as if we were family. Overall an amazing experience! Highly recommended!
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Date of stay: July 2022Trip type: Traveled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
A stunning property with great-sized rooms and huge bathroom, beautiful gardens and leafy areas, a stunning pool, fun bar area and cool cafe at the front door. Everything has been thought of in this boutique resort. Catered to our large group, offering everyone exactly what they needed. A great hideaway when you want to kick back and escape from the sun, surf and safari adventures.
Easy walking to main surf spots, central location to access all the vibrant cafes, restaurants and shops in the main street.
The staff looked after our every need. Arranging anything we needed, suggesting great activities and adventures and always making sure we were having a brilliant experience.
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Date of stay: May 2022
Rooms
Service
Sleep Quality
Room Tip:Love the walk to all the rooms
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
This was the second most expensive hotel we stayed in out of 7 in Sri Lanka and in our opinion this was not value for money and the only one we would not recommend to friends or return to.
The selling point of the hotel is the location with it being right on the main strip.
The rooms are very large and the air conditioning is good but other than that they're very basic and really dark! The bed was comfy but the sheets were old and felt and looked a bit dirty. The bathroom was functional but dated. We had ants crawling all over the bedside table and this hotel was the only place I got bitten while I slept despite the mosquito net. The pool area is nice but having to dodge the bird poo while sat on the sun lounger or in the pool was not enjoyable and something we haven't experienced anywhere else ever.
The lunch menu was basic, took a long time to be made and was very small. We went for the chicken and chips as we were in a rush before a safari and it was Happy Meal size. Luckily we didn't bother with the breakfast included option and just paid for breakfast one morning which was really poor. There were much better options just outside of the hotel that are much much cheaper.
Each evening when we came back from dinner out there was a frog in our room and all over the front door which was very annoying.
We also found the hotel staff the most unfriendly and unhelpful compared with everywhere else we stayed. Be aware the hotel is all sand and the staff don't help with bags.
Not necessarily a problem but we were in room 1 and were woken up by the call to prayers at 5am ish as it was just so loud and took us by surprise.
Overall we were really disappointed with this hotel. Should have stayed at the hostel we originally booked which was less than half the price!
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Date of stay: September 2024
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Traveled as a couple
Room Tip:Watch out for the bird poo round the pool!
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I guess No, all resorts in the area allows only their guests to use the pool, may be you could just have a chat with the management there, if lucky you might be allowed
There are more places to choose from in the Arugam Bay area.
PRICE RANGE
$58 - $132 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
LOCATION
Sri LankaEastern ProvinceArugam Bay
NUMBER OF ROOMS
12
Prices are the average nightly price provided by our partners and may not include all taxes and fees. Taxes and fees that are shown are estimates only. Please see our partners for more details.
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