Palm Villa is one of the nicest hotels in Mirissa with a good swimmable beach (and climbable island) right in front. This season (Jan-May) they do beachview double rooms for around Rs. 7,500 and garden-view rooms for around Rs. 6,200 (without A/C). They also do family rooms for four or five people.
Palm Villa in Mirissa is usually booked far in advance, but if you can get a room it’s one of the better places to stay. There’s a good beach in front and a solid buth kade nearby and it’s close enough to the main Mirissa strip without being right in the middle of everything.
The Rooms
Palm Villa Double RoomYou can see the official room rates on their website. They have 2014 prices posted up till May, after which we assume they go up. The cheapest room is 30 Euros (roughly Rs. 5,400) for a double, without A/C. Air-conditioning adds about 10 Euros (roughly Rs. 1,800). For the area this is pretty good, and you get nice rooms in a great location.
The bathrooms are also solid (very important) and the whole place is painted and decorated creatively. The beachview rooms also have balconies with, as you might guess, nice beach views.
The Hotel
The hotel’s main common area is the verandah overlooking the beach. This beach is usually as swimmable as a pool, protected as it is by a big, climbable rock that juts into the ocean. As a guest you can lounge on day beds, order beers, etc. We haven’t tried the restaurant but it has a good reputation, and there’s a buth kade nearby.
The hotel started, we hear, as a family home and it’s expanded without getting hideous. There’s a lot of nature and art around and it’s a pleasing locale.
The hotel also offer a lot of activities, including yoga and nearby whale watching and surfing tours. On the chalkboard we saw that they were offering whale watching for Rs. 8,000 per couple, which is not bad. Those prices would vary. High season for whales is December to March.
Location
The Palm Villa is not on the main Mirissa beachside road, which is kinda a good thing. That strip is a nice place to visit but not necessarily to stay. Palm Villa has its own beach which has less crashy waves and is relatively less packed.
It’s on the main Matara road as well, so easy bus access up and down.
Service
The service we had was great and we have friends who stay there often and recommend the people (and the owner highly).
Conclusion
Palm Villa is one of the best places to stay in Mirissa, if you can get it. Reasonable room rates, interesting rooms, swimmable beach and a reasonable distance from the main strip.
