Ice Bear Sri Lanka

Customer Rating
  • General
    75
    75%
  • Food
    72
    72%
  • Service
    70
    70%
  • Room
    75
    75%
  • Location
    75
    75%
Average Score - 23 Reviews
73.4
73.4%
Ratings based on real traveller reviews in past 2 years
Media Reviews
"A gorgeous traditional villa with lots of colour and flair (or `Swissness’, as the sign says). The beautiful gardens face the beach and there are regular tastings of produce from the coconut tree. The decor is delightfully funky, and the more expensive rooms have fridge and air-con. Muesli in the morning is home-made; elaborate seafood dinners feature at night."
Lonely Planet Sri Lanka, 2006
January 1900 More »
Ice Bear, Negombo
Price From:  US $ 47.53 (Double Room - Garden Cottage, RO Basis, Twin)
Bicycle hire   Beach access   Cable TV   Internet   Ayurveda   Yoga   Restaurant   Licensed bar   Room service   Laundry service   Child friendly  
Location
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Negombo, one hour north of Colombo, is one of the most youthful beach resorts in Sri Lanka. Throughout much of the 1990s it had a tatty and sometimes inglorious reputation. A new millennium has brought with it new investment and real expectations of better times ahead. Throughout bad times and good, the Ice Bear has laid claim to be the best guesthouse in town: welcoming, artistic, ever so eccentric and with a prized beachfront location. The journey from the International Airport is just 30 minutes, making it an ideal first or last stop on a holiday in Sri Lanka. Negombo is enroute to the Cultural Triangle, the hill country and the south coast.
Introduction
Time Magazine, no less, suggested that Ice Bear was "a hotel where time stands still" and called it "a Merchant Ivory confection of tea and linen." Well, "hotel" might be stretching the point, because stock hotel facilities are irrelevant when considering the success of this charming guest house, where relaxation comes easily. The imaginative budget traveller will love Ice Bear’s simple sense of difference, its little antique flourishes, and its legendary breakfasts on the patio – influenced by Gerry, its Swiss owner – which should guard against any outbreak of lunchtime peckishness. A recent addition to Ice Bear is the Century Café, housed in a refurbished colonial bungalow in the heart of Negombo town. The two bedroom apartment on the upper floor of the café offers an added accommodation option for guests at Ice Bear.
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Accommodation
There are eight bedrooms located in the Bungalow, Villa and Garden Cottage. In-room facilities include overhead ceiling fans (some bedrooms have a/c); single or double beds fitted with mosquito netting and attached bathrooms with h/w showers.

Bungalow: located close to the sea, the bungalow has two double Deluxe Rooms of which one is more spacious and is designed studio style. This room has a separate dressing room and a kitchenette and can also be made into a triple room.

Villa: The villa has four bedrooms of which two doubles rooms share a bathroom; one ensuite double room that can also be made into a triple; and a single room.

Garden Cottage: There is one double and one single room in the Garden Cottage. Both rooms do not have a/c.

Nangi Apartment: Next door is the Ice Bear Nangi which means `sister’ in Sinhalese. This is a holiday apartments for longer stays. There are three bedrooms here that are given out for a minimum of three nights stay or longer.

Century Apartment: Situated on Main Street located just five minutes away, this self-catering apartment is housed in a refurbished, century-old colonial bungalow and occupies the top floor of Ice Bear’s new Century Café. The apartment has a spacious living and dining area, fully equipped kitchen, and two bedrooms (double and a twin) that share a bathroom. The interiors are comfortably furnished with antiques. For those wishing to order food from the café downstairs, can have food delivered at the press of a button. Bikes and trishaw are available here.

The apartments have a fully equipped kitchen, terrace, separate garage and is rented on a `self-service’ basis. Other service include a weekly cleaning, free butler service, TV, CD player, wifi internet, laundry service, Guests at the Nangi and Century Apartments are welcome to use all facilities at Ice Bear.
Facilities
Simple open-air restaurant serve huge breakfasts (with arguably the finest "health muesli" on the coast), snacks, afternoon tea with "mood music" in peak season, and the daily Captain’s Dinner, which the Ice Bear claims is a "cult." All this in a confined tropical garden with direct access to a broad, sandy beach and which also houses a rudimentary yoga and Ayurvedic massage centre as well as its endless sculptures and carvings. Ice Bear's little extras include CD player and hair dryers, minibar, TV and a small library stocked with magazines and "the Sunday papers" – Sri Lankan Sunday papers, sadly. Guests even get complimentary cycle hire. Expect to see the Ice Bear duck -- raised by a hen, incidentally -- waddling by occasionally.

The new Ice Bear Century Café is a welcome addition to Negombo town. The colonial architecture of this century old bungalow has been brought back to life with vibrant colours, sumptuous home made soups, sandwiches and desserts, and Ice Bear’s signature personality.
Excursions
Ride on a catamaran as it sets sail in to the sunset or take boat ride along the centuries old Dutch canals that winds through Negombo’s quaint town. Experience Negomob’s Colonial heritage including Catholic churches and the ruins of the Dutch Fort. Visit the harbour early morning to see the catamarans come ashore, filled with the night’s catch of numerous varieties of fish, prawns, crab and lobster. For those interested in nature and the wilderness, take a boat ride into the Muthurajawela marshes and the Negombo Lagoon - home to numerous species of birds and fish, dragon flies and monitor lizards.
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Important note on prices : Red Dot prices include all government taxes and service charges. Some properties and websites exclude these charges from their direct quotes, which adds 24-26 per cent to your bill, so please check carefully before booking. Red Dot also guarantees to beat any lower published prices from other agents. Some property owners also request that we do not display our prices online. Please ask us for a quote - and tell us if we do not offer the best value.
 
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