We spent 3 nights at this carbon-neutral eco camp and loved it. We did 3 safaris, including one all-day. The wildlife was spectacular - our naturalist, Sameera, accompanied us on all the safaris, was hugely knowledgeable and kept a record of our ‘sightings’. He emailed the checklist to us later. The evenings in the camp were great - cocktails around a large fire followed by a four course meal, beautifully prepared and served. Highly recommended.
Dear Milkman176,
Thank you so much for your wonderful comments on your stay with us.
It is great to see that you have had a memorable safari and our naturalist has been helpful to you in making it a great experience.
Dinner at the campfire is indeed a highlight of the whole experience and glad to see you enjoyed it. Hope to see you on your future travels as well.
We stayed here as part of an Explore holiday from the UK. Tents roomy but beds narrow. Single. You also have to be organised with the zips on the tents to stop creatures and bugs coming in. We did a full day tour and were rewarded with a sloth bear and a gang of Male elephants meeting up before heading to the village paddy fields. Our guide was one of the loveliest people I have ever met.
Dear julia78902017,
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your thoughts on the stay.
It is great to see that you have had a rewarding safari and our guide was able to meet your expectations.
Do visit us again on your future travels.
My husband and I stayed here for two nights as part of a Sri Lankan tour and had a great time. He likes his comforts but there was nothing to complain about here as the tent was beautifully decked out with all the amenities of a modern hotel. It's a little dark in the tent but the lighting is deliberately low to avoid attracting insects. They provide a torch but we regretted not taking our head lamps. You'll also need insect repellant but not so much in the tent - it's more useful when you're outside.
You are camping so you'll here the sounds of wildlife, but we found that very soothing. We ate dinner under the stars which was pleasant and the staff were all wonderful.
We had a fabulous tour in the national park where we saw lots of wildlife - it really is a magical place.
Dear anne239,
Thank you so much for your great comment.
It is so nice to see that you and your husband enjoyed your stay with us. We always try our best to give the best service possible and glad to see it's being paid off. Dinner under the night sky is indeed one of our highlights.
We hope to see you on your future travels as well.
Wilkpattu is such a wonderful park that it must be visited. However the Mahoora camp has positives and negatives. Let me go with the positives first.
1) Darshana the naturalist was very very good and extremely knowledgeable. We are experienced birders (including my 13 year old) but he was not put off by that like some forest guides are. He was patient, enthusiastic and helpful.
2) We were travelling with an 85 year old lady who had trouble walking. The staff at the Camp - especially Darshana - were attentive and very helpful. The staff on the whole are very nice people. Full marks on that. I think its the basic Sri Lankan culture thats on display and it does the camp and the country a lot of credit.
Now the negatives
1) The tent is cramped - especially the toilet. One is not asking for super luxury but if you are paying an international price then one expects a decent shower at the end of a safari. There is no small table on which to write or use a laptop. These things are a must have.
2) We are vegetarian. We had to make do. The lunches were not bad but the dinners were not good at all. I am surprised by this. Increasingly international travellers are vegetarian, and Sri Lanka has a great vegetarian tradition among the Tamils and the Buddhists.
Other than that - highly recommended
Dear RaviRajagopalan,
Thank you very much for your detailed review of your stay with us. We are glad that you have enjoyed your stay with us.
Our naturalists are very knowledgeable about the Sri Lankan wildlife and it’s great to see that your safari was a memorable one.
Also, we are an island famous for our hospitality and we always take all the efforts to make your stay with us comfortable irrespective of the condition. We are happy that you felt it.
Looking at the concerns you have raised, we do have a quite spacious bathroom/toilet with hot and cold water. ( in terms of mobile camping perspective ) However, we are sorry that we could not meet your expectations in this area.
And there is always a coffee table available in the living area, which doubles up as a desk, but however, if you had requested for a desk, our staff would have provided you with an additional one.
We are deeply sorry that your special dietary requirements haven’t been up to the standard you expected.
Thank you.
Nice tented camp. If you’ve been to a luxury tented camp in Africa, don’t set your expectations too high.
The room - is a double tent. Lots of space. beds are hard and not very comfortable. There is no desk to to set your laptop and work on your photos. Plenty of space for a desk. There is no body lotion and the soap is in jars that are not very practical. The lid gets stuck in the jar.
WiFi - it is protected by a password. the Sri Lankan elephants being the smartest animals in the world, carry iPhones and have figured out how to steal WiFi in the middle of the jungle to send WhatsApp messages. Too bad the leopards don’t have this skill.
Food - don’t even bother, eat at the local shop. In a country with such a fantastic reputation for food, this place is a disgrace. Lunch was a super dry thumb size piece of fried chicken served cold. No need to even talk about the dinner... more cold dry chicken.
Drink - our rate included libations. But who wants to drink Kings Whisky at a luxury camp or $5 a bottle wine. Bring your own booze.
Service - we called an hr before we arrived at the lodge, they rushed us to the table and then they wasted 30 min time bringing the food and eventually delayed our safari departure by 45 min. Important safari time given it takes an hr to get into the park and an hr to get out.
Finer touchers - the thoughtful details that sets apart a luxury camp are missing. Too many minor issues to detail. For example; the cold towels are cheap paper towels, not the real thing. There are no napkins at the coffee table in the welcome tent etc., just a poorly executed run of the mill joint.
Leopard trails down the road sets the standard. Skip this joint.
Dear sangster,
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your thoughts on Mahoora Camps - Wilpaththu
First and foremost, We believe that the "Luxuries" provided in the tent need to be perceived as having the understanding that it's a mobile tent opposed to a permanent structure of a Tented Lodge or Hotel. We are providing an authentic traditional mobile tented safari camp experience.
Room decors and furniture of the tent are designed taking into account the various types of clients that stay with us. From young children to adults and senior citizens. There is always a coffee table available in the living area, which doubles up as a desk, but however, if you had requested for a desk, our staff would have provided you with a one.
It is highly unlikely that the body lotion and the other required items were not up to the day’s required quantity. There is always a final check that goes on before handing a tent over to a client. However, since you mentioned that they were not filled and the bottles being impractical for use, we would certainly look at how we could improve this aspect.
Wifi Password is always mentioned in the back of the router. However, if you were unable to locate it, our staff would have given it to you, if you have requested.
We are extremely sorry for not being able to meet your expectations with our food. However, at Mahoora, one of our strengths is the quality of the food we serve. We have received excellent ratings and comments regarding the food from the client who has stayed on the same day with you at the site.
Regarding the drinks, we provide local beverages and imported wine, according to product definitions we have provided on our websites. We are sorry that your expectations had been different on this matter also.
From Campsite to Park entrance takes only 5 minutes. The usual safari time starts at 2.30 Pm in the evening and there hadn't been any delay to start the safari. However at lunch, part of your group has not been on time causing a 15 minutes delay in serving.
Thank you.
