Is The Sanctuary at Tissawewa pet-friendly?

No, pets are not allowed at this property.

How much is parking at The Sanctuary at Tissawewa?

Self parking is free at this property.

What time is check-in at The Sanctuary at Tissawewa?

Check-in start time: 2 PM; Check-in end time: midnight. Late check-in is available during limited hours.

Does The Sanctuary at Tissawewa provide a shuttle to the airport?

Yes, there's an airport shuttle that runs on request. A fee of USD 110 per vehicle applies.

Where is The Sanctuary at Tissawewa located?

Situated in the historical district, this hotel is within a 15-minute walk of Mirisawetiya Stupa, Anuradhapura Archaeological Museum, and Sri Maha Bodhi. Brazen Palace and Ruwanwelisaya are also within 1 mi (2 km).

Reviews, Deals & Photos 2025

10/10 Excellent

Tony

2016/3/7

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

Superb location

Great hotel as a base for sightseeing. Superb location. Wifi doesn't work in the rooms. Make sure you get a room on the first floor.

8/10 Good

Paul

2020/2/19

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort

Nice heritage hotel

Very quiet when we stayed so lacking atmosphere, particularly in the the restaurant. The service in the restaurant was excellent but reception was less helpful, except the lady who seemed to be the manager. Room was nice but could easily be updated to a much higher standard. Lots of monkeys, and they get up close, we quite enjoyed watching on our veranda but others might be put off by.

Stayed 3 nights in Feb 2020

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

2020/2/19

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities

Beautiful, well maintained colonial mansion in large, tree-filled grounds, close to archaeological museum and sacred sites. No traffic noise, plenty of birdsong. Furnishings appropriate to period. Plain and simple but quite luxurious in an old-fashioned way. Very helpful staff. Good but limited menu. No alcohol. Nearest shops in new town a couple of kilometres away. If you like old-fashioned, you will love it.

Stayed 3 nights in Feb 2020

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

2020/2/16

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities

Beautiful, well maintained colonial building set in large grounds on the edge of the sacred sites. No traffic noise, lots of birdsong in the morning. Plain and simple but luxurious in an old-fashioned way. Good bathrooms, wi-if OK. Good food, set meal times. Complimentary bicycle loan. Downsides: no alcohol, service rather slow, monkeys in grounds may decide to storm unlocked bedrooms. We loved this place.

Stayed 1 night in Feb 2020

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

2020/1/5

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities

I chose this hotel for may last 3 days travelling in Sri Lanka. It is not cheap but the old colonial charm of a repurposed goverrners mansion in a large private park was irrisistsble. On top of that, it is about the only hotel that is actually inside the ancient Buddhist city of Anuradhapura which makes visiting the sites much easier. The rooms are of the epoch so don't expect all the facilities of a modern chain hotel. Rooms are fairly small but with pretty much all you need and of course clean. Beds are with mosquito nets. There are, for me essential, a chair and writing desk and on the wide veranda there are chairs and tables for books from which to appreciate the park with its families of monkeys, peacocks, parrots an a resident eagle. Take binoculars. WIFI is free and available seemingly everywhere even if only advertised in the WIFI Zone in the veranda lounge by the front desk. The staff are helpful and will organise trips to the sites, though I had not required that. There is of course a restaurant with good food served for breakfast, lunch and dinner. One niggle I had with the service was waiters pouring my tea. Milk is always poured first , then the tea. They couldn't get the hang of that and not pouring didn't appear to be an option. The front desk were happy to change the large denomination notes served by ATMs into the lower values needed for tipping, riding the tuc-tucs, eating in restaurants, visiting sites etc. An altogether plesent stay.

Stayed 3 nights in Dec 2019

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

2019/8/8

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

Very atmospheric

Stayed 2 nights in Jul 2019

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

2019/8/2

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities

In the middle of a nice park with animals everywhere ! The staff is great and very helpful.

Stayed 2 nights in Jul 2019

8/10 Good

Joyce

2019/4/21

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

Lovely, relaxing place to stay

We stayed 3 nights mid April. The grounds are very impressive. The hotel is set back on a hugh front lawn with mature trees and wandering peacocks. Checkin was quick. We had a deluxe king room on the upper floor. There are only 5 rooms on the upper floor. Our room was spacious, had good AC and a decent bathroom with shower. Shower had good pressure and hot water. Towels were okay but not luxury. Bed was comfortable. Furniture dark wood style. Room lighting very good. Breakfast good but coffee was so-so. Sri Lanka is better known for its tea which we had out on the main floor verandah in the afternoon after coming back by tuk tuk from seeing the ancient ruins - just lovely. I would recommend this hotel. The staff are nice. The hotel is in a good location near to the sites. The front desk will arrange a driver or guide if you would like. They arranged for us to do a morning safari to Wilpattu N.P. We would go back.

Stayed 3 nights in Apr 2019

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

2019/4/3

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities

Proximity to places of interest.excellent service from the staff. The old world charm maintained with a lot of effort

Stayed 2 nights in Mar 2019

8/10 Good

philip

2019/3/26

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

Authentic British era rest house

We really enjoyed our stay in this old government resthouse. The building felt very authentic and had a nice atmosphere. We stayed in the deluxe rooms on the first floor that were very comfortable. For those wanting luxury and alcohol this isn’t the place to come. It is a bit spartan but in a way this makes it feel more authentic. The grounds are really nice in front of the hotel. In the evening there is often a cricket game. The hotel is well situated next to the sacred city and about 4km from the new city.. overall a memorable experience

Stayed 2 nights in Mar 2019

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

2019/3/26

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities

Colonial administrators dwelling now an atmospheric hotel.

Stayed 2 nights in Mar 2019

10/10 Excellent

SusanMcCalmont, Barrington, RI

2019/2/10

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities

This is a well maintained, beautifully restored historic hotel.

Stayed 3 nights in Feb 2019

8/10 Good

Michel

2019/1/28

Liked: Staff & service, room comfort

L'hôtel est situé dans un grand parc près des principaux sites. Accueil chaleureux. La chambre était propre, mais la salle de bain un peu vieillote. Peu de choix pour le dinner, mais correct. Petit déjeuner copieux.

Stayed 2 nights in Jan 2019

8/10 Good

Paul

2019/1/18

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

This place is the Guv'nor

This old governor's house is a gem. Long verandas to chills out on and set in gorgeous gardens (with monkeys and peacocks). Food is very good and excellent warm service. Rooms and communal areas full of character and atmosphere. probably due for a refurbishment soon however. Free bike hire great for exploring the historic sites.

Stayed 2 nights in Jan 2019

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

2019/1/13

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

The hotel was quite nice as it was an converted old colonial building.

Stayed 1 night in Jan 2019

6/10 Okay

ishara

2019/1/7

Disliked: Cleanliness

Every thing was ok but just realised that I was charged twice. I was charged on my card but at checkout the reception said there was no payment. Paid cash after receiving my cred card bill noticed I was charged!! I wrote to hotels.com but no response! Very disappointed!!

Stayed 1 night in Dec 2018

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

2019/1/5

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

歴史があり落ち着いた雰囲気。リゾート感覚を味わえます。

Stayed 1 night in Dec 2018

6/10 Okay

Verified traveler

2018/12/11

Liked: Staff & service

A property which has great potential. Location is great. Minor upgrades needed. Toilet door could not be locked and needs to be upgraded. Very friendly and accommodating staff. Comfortable bed.

Stayed 1 night in Dec 2018

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

2018/10/28

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

고대도시 숲속의 조용한 호텔

고대도시 숲속에 있어 특별한 느낌을 주는 호텔입니다. 아침에 호텔주변을 산책하는 중 키가 작은 원숭이 무리, 공작새 등 여러 종류의 새를 볼 수 있었습니다. 직원들이 굉장히 친절하고 세심하게 배려해 주었고, 식당도 고급 레스토랑 수준의 맛과 서비스를 제공하면서도 적당한 가격이었습니다. 주변에 유적지들이 가까이 있어 둘러보기 좋습니다.

Stayed 2 nights in Oct 2018

8/10 Good

Vicente J.

2018/10/20

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

6/10 Okay

Verified traveler

2018/8/24

Liked: Staff & service, room comfort

Stay 2 nights. First night everything was great. Second night, noise neighbor, no hot water, safe box doesnt work, and bath floor mat was dirty. First night 4.5 out or 5. Second night 3 out of 5.

Stayed 1 night in Aug 2018

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

2018/8/12

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

Atmospheric and pleasant

Lovely atmospheric rooms - we were on the first floor which has just a few rooms. This was the British Governor's house. The hotel is perhaps the only one located in the old city in the middle of the ruins and many sites are just a walk/cycle ride away. The hotel offers old but complimentary bicycles to ride around Anuradhapura. It's a pity there's no swimming pool. The restaurant has a limited selection which is nice for a couple of meals but gets tiring thereafter.

Stayed 1 night in Aug 2018

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

2018/7/14

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

It really is a sanctuary

Lovely, calm setting and a delight to return after a day in the sun touring around the historical sights. Beautiful grounds. Helpful staff. Great food. Wifi doesn't work in Annex rooms, but no hardship to sit on the gracious balcony drinking mocktails and checking emails.

Stayed 3 nights in Jul 2018

10/10 Excellent

Corinna, Perth

2018/6/18

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

Staff very interested and informative. Free bike hire. Close to ancient temples etc. Close to the lake. Good dinner and very good breakfast. A lot of wildlife. Spacious grounds

Stayed 1 night in Jun 2018

6/10 Okay

Gareth

2018/6/6

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

Lovely hotel in a great location but no alcohol.

This is a lovely hotel in a great location for exploring the Sacred City and ruins. Staff are attentive and very helpful. The only reason for the lower rating is the hotel’s inability to serve alcohol. The reasons are understandable but this is not mentioned anywhere on this site or the hotel’s website. The guest should have the information in order to make an informed decision. Nothing like a cold beer after a day of cycling!

Stayed 2 nights in May 2018

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The Sanctuary at Tissawewa Reviews

Reviews

Very Good

8.0/10

8.4/10

8.6/10

7.8/10

Reviews

10/10 Excellent

Tony

Superb location

Tony

8/10 Good

Paul

Nice heritage hotel

Paul

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Verified traveler

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Verified traveler

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Verified traveler

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Verified traveler

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Verified traveler

8/10 Good

Joyce

Lovely, relaxing place to stay

Joyce