"A GREAT TIME; VALUE FOR MONEY; WONDERFUL
MEMORIES! IF YOU WANT TESTIMONIALS FROM US, WE WILL BE DELIGHTED.
Overall, there can be no complaint,
no criticism and no regrets. Quite simply it was a wonderful experience in every way.
We find it hard to think of anything to take issue with concerning your organisation
and Pathi's guidance! Journeys were well planned, of reasonable length and generally
enjoyable. Well balanced itinerary yet flexible. Car was comfortable and
air-conditioning was excellent.
Pathi gave us appropriate information
without lecturing or constantly going into details. He allowed us time and space to
enjoy things as we wished. Great conversations with Pathi. Pleasure to meet his family.
We were stunned by the birdlife. It turned out like an unintended bird watching holiday!
We were totally fascinated by the ancient cities, temples and all matters concerning
Buddhism in Sri Lanka.
The beach at Tangalle [Palm Paradise Cabanas] was perfection in itself. We wish we could
have had a week there. The overwhelming beauty of Horton Plains was literally a high spot.
So often we were amongst very few tourists so we were able to feel part of what we were
experiencing and not being obtrusive. The politeness of the Sri Lankan people puts UK to shame!
The food was of a high standard, especially at [Heritance] Kandalama [Dambulla].
Could have spent a week at Kandalama; what an experience!"
Christopher & Christine, England,
December 2005/January 2006
|
"Thank you very much for organising and coordinating
an excellent trip for us to India and Sri Lanka. Both the Indian and Sri Lankan
sections went like clockwork.
Ceylan (our guide) in Sri Lanka was excellent, also. He quickly got the measure of how much
or how little support we wanted along the way and in his low key and courteous way
ensured everything ran very smoothly. Adam's Peak was easily conquered, and was a
real highlight and so many pilgrims also making the climb. We loved the camping at
Yala, and the pool at [Heritance] Kandalama [Dambulla] was perfect after some pretty
full days sightseeing.
Many thanks again and we shall certainly recommend your services to friends, and
look forward to our next visit to Sri Lanka in due course."
Robin & Liz, England,
December 2005
|
"The first thing to say was that
we really enjoyed our visit to Sri Lanka. The balance of the holiday between
visits to places of interest and our relaxing stay at Apa Villas [Unawatuna] was just right
for us.
I think if we were planning our trip now we would have decided to spend one less
day/night in Kandy. We were pleased to have visited Kandy, and enjoyed our visit
to the Temple of the Tooth, the Kandyan dancing and drumming and the visit to the
botanic gardens made for a relaxing first morning after our long flight. One less
day in Kandy might have provided an opportunity of an additional day in the hill
country; we very much enjoyed our time in Nuwara Eliya and Ella.
Thanks again for arranging our holiday, and thanks to Pathi for his information
and assistance - and for driving us safely around Sri Lanka. "
John & Harriet, Scotland,
November 2005
|
"First of all I would like to thank you for the
great organisation of our holiday, we had an unforgettable time. I specially want
to thank Ceylan, our tour guide, who took such good care of us and showed us his
magnificent country, the way I wanted to see it. A man with his heart in the
right place. Nothing was too much for him, and he was always in a good mood.
Every day he had a nice and clean car.
The campsite in Yala was a great experience, sleeping with the crocs!!! I recommend
you put something in your ears, it's very noisy during the night!!(insects)
Travelling true Sri Lanka style IS an experience in itself!!
Five days in the Maldives is the minimum. After 10 days in Sri Lanka, it was PARADISE,
especially our stay at the Banyan Tree Maldives Vabbinfaru.
Once again, the holiday was perfect!!"
Bart & friends, France,
November 2005
Also, see the
ResponsibleTravel.com
holiday review.
|
"Pathi was an excellent guide/driver,
making sure I saw everything and fitted in extras. Particularly appreciated
a visit to his family. He was very helpful and courteous and good company
as I travelled alone."
Janet, England,
November 2005
|
"Thank you! It was a lovely holiday.
A great experience."
Simon & Alina, Belgium,
August/September 2005
|
"Firstly we had a wonderful time.
We managed to see everything we wanted, including a leopard, and many things besides.
We found the whole trip great fun, educational, interesting, emotional, uplifting,
busy and relaxing. Pathi was superb organising everything with great efficiency,
understanding and friendliness. I have already recommended the country and Tikalanka
to a colleague at work and provided I do not bore her too much with the photos she
may decide to book a trip! I did a lot of research into this trip before I booked
and I found Tikalanka the most helpful, honest and affordable company, and have not
been disappointed."
Hartman family, England,
August/September 2005
|
"Thanks for sorting out our Helga's Folly [Kandy]
fiasco. Really enjoyed the suite at Club Villa [Bentota] - a great end to a
great honeymoon."
Dave & Joanna, England,
August 2005
|
"Thanks for such an interesting,
well organised, fabulous holiday - we've really enjoyed ourselves. Good luck
with the Forgotten Village Project - we'd love to be kept informed and given
the chance to support a child. Thanks again."
Carol & Andrew, England,
July/August 2005
|
"Hello Pathi! Miss Cathryn here!
Paul and I just wanted to send this email to thank you for all
your help during our stay in Sri Lanka. You were a fantastic help
and I don't think we would have seen so much if it hadn't been
for you. I thoroughly enjoyed my trip to Sri Lanka and this is
partly due to your informative tours, advice and excellent driving!
Mount Lavinia Hotel [Colombo] was lovely, just what we needed, thank you for
organising this for us. Best wishes with Tikalanka and thanks again
for all your help."
Cathryn & Paul, England,
July/August 2005
|
"We cannot fault the tour
itself and all of the sights we visited was everything we hoped for.
In addition, both our guide, Sena, and your local manager, Pathi, have
been fantastic, not only in their knowledge and helpfulness, but also
in their friendly approach. They have been most accommodating in
dealing with any issues that have arisen over the course of the tour.
The holiday has been superb and we would have no hesitation in
recommending Tikalanka to anyone."
Alasdair & Clare, Scotland,
July 2005
|
"We really enjoyed learning about
Sri Lanka through our guides, Pathi and Sena, and were particularly
honoured to be invited to eat at Pathi's home in Kandy. However, we
did not always enjoy the pressure to buy from the sales people and some extra
guidelines on tipping would also be helpful - I never knew if I was being
too mean or too generous. All this said, thank you very much for the
wonderful organisation: we had a really great time and were very
pleased to have accepted your suggestion to stay 2 nights
at Club Villa [Bentota] - a truly wonderful hotel!"
Shackleton family, Belgium,
July 2005
|
"I just wanted
to thank you for allowing me to use your camera and for arranging
Pathi. He was a great guide, very sweet and informative. I appreciate
you letting us make up our own mind about Pinnewala Elephant Orphanage,
you were right it was outrageous and upset me tremendously, but I am
glad I know.
I will as promised write to the tourist board and inform fellow travellers not
to support them. I will try my best to help improve the situation as
it broke my heart. The hotels you booked were perfect, so we thank you.
Again, thank you and thanks to Pathi for an informative trip"
Karen & Trevor, England,
July 2005
|
"I have come to Sri Lanka many times and you [Pathi] are
definitely the best guide I have had here. You gave us some very helpful advice,
answered any questions we had very thoroughly and always had a smile on your face.
We enjoyed very much having you with us for our trip and would recommend you to anyone.
Best wishes for the future, and we must keep in touch!
Thank you so much for making our trip through Sri Lanka such a wonderful experience.
I cannot imagine having a better guide, companion and friend in this beautiful country.
I hope that we stay in contact and look forward to seeing you next time I come
to the island."
Roshani & Alex, England,
June/July 2005
|
"Thank you for a lovely few days touring the
wonderful sights of Sri Lanka, in and around Kandy. You [Pathi] have been great company
giving information and advice and listening to my comments and requests.
And a few laughs along the way too! I wish you all the best with the business,
your home, your friends, and of course, your family. Take care and keep in touch."
Warren, England,
May 2005
|
"My driver [Lal] was helpful and eventually realised that
I didn't want too much of the organised Sri Lanka with the 'go with this man' bit!
He had a huge knowledge about his island and knew about the bird life, animals and
the fauna as well as the culture and history. He was a Buddhist and lived by that
philosophy and was a really honest guy. He looked after me extremely well and I
would recommend him highly, we went to some special places and the peacefulness
of those places will stay with me for a long while. It was an adventure,
a feast for all the senses, wonderful people both Sri Lankan and other fellow
travellers and all the people I met were really great. Palm Paradise Cabanas [Tangalle]
was everything I wanted it to be, the seclusion of the cabanas mixed with the beauty
and friendship and work that is going on, just perfect and I was so sorry to leave."
Ali, England, March/April 2005
|
"We were only here for a week,
but had an amazing trip. Pathi is a wonderful guide, full of stories, advice and history
- ask him anything. We always had good food, nice rooms and good talks over a beer.
I would recommend him to everyone wanting a great trip with an honest and cheerful guide.
He even came to 'World's End' [Horton Plains] with us, where we saw other guides wait in their cars.
I had a wonderful trip - thank you Pathi!
Thank you so much. The tour was amazing. Everywhere we went was special. I shall hold
each moment to my heart."
Jem & Maurice, England,
February/March 2005
|
