The manager and all the staff is really kind !!! Place is nice and simple just in front of the beach, perfect to have breakfast looking to the ocean. The time we spent there our nights were quite (no music coming from Arugam's parties) Good food, nice people. Thank you !

Arne’s was exactly what it claims to be. A fantastic friendly, family run beachside retreat. Good sized villas and a cabana on the beach if preferred. The grounds are kept neat and tidy and have wonderful shady day beds and hammocks. Great value and close to everything. Rooms have fans so if you need aircon it’s probably not for you but the fans were perfect for us. It’s like staying in a family community rather than a soul-less hotel and every effort was made to make sure we had and knew everything. Great brekkie available on site. It’s also a great story and not hard to see why Arne formed the friendship he did. There is also a strong sense of giving back and the family work with charities to support their community. We were honoured to join a beach clean up program one morning that they are heavily involved in.

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Arne’s Place in Arugam Bay is a fantastic spot for a beach getaway. The property is well-maintained with plenty of communal spaces to relax and enjoy the surroundings. We stayed in a villa and loved it. The room was spacious, well-equipped with all the necessary amenities, and had air conditioning, which was great in the tropical climate. Being right on the beach, we enjoyed waking up and taking walks along the beautiful shore each morning. The on-site restaurant is convenient and offers a variety of tasty dishes, making it easy to dine without having to leave the property. What truly stands out about Arne’s Place is the staff. The family-run nature of the place adds a personal touch to the service. Haleem, the property manager, was particularly helpful and friendly, making sure all our needs were met. They do only accept cash payments, but they’re flexible, allowing you to pay at the end of your stay. They’re also very accommodating with any special requests, which made our stay even more enjoyable. Overall, Arne’s Place is a wonderful place to stay in Arugam Bay, combining comfort, convenience, and a welcoming atmosphere right on the beach. Highly recommended!

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Arne's Place is your typical Sri Lankan hotel: nice and comfortable rooms. Mostly, it's only 10 seconds away from the inviting blue sea, which you can gaze at from the garden's day beds. Except this hotel is like no other, as it truly tells the story of the four Princes of Arugam Bay: four brothers who will welcome you into their land and make you feel at home. At Arne's, you'll be hosted by Haleem, the manager. Haleem is the kindest man we have met during our whole trip. He was consistently there to give us the best advice, take us to the greatest spots, happy to share his culture with us, and became our true friend. While you're hanging out at the hotel, you'll most likely meet Muba, the entrepreneur, always eager to joke around with his Aussie accent and share with you the story of Arne's and his many other great projects in "ABay". By the time you read this, he might even have some exquisite handcrafted Sri Lankan treasures to show you ! Dive even deeper into the Sri Lankan roots and nature with Hanas, the youngest and yet so wise. Hanas can take you on a safari trip to Kumana. We got to see so many wild animals, elephants, a bear, and even two leopards! Make sure to bring Haleem and his sharp eyes for leopards along the way! 🐆 And last but not least, if you're going to Arugam Bay, chances are, you'll be surfing! Once again, Arne's got you covered with yet another brother: Mahir, the free spirit. Mahir will give you the best surf lessons, providing you with transportation, boards, and suits if needed. From beginners to more experienced, truly, the only thing left for you to do is to: "PADDLE NOW"! 🌊 In any case, let's just say that if you're planning to stay a couple of days - or weeks - at ABay, go for more than a hotel, go meet the Princes for yourselves 🤴🏿🙌 P.S: If you pay close attention, you'll even see their King watering its plants.

Location - perfect, super close to the beach and city centre, with shops and restaurants in the neighborhood, but quiet. Comfort - interior is quite rough, but it helps keeping the house clean. AC working just fine, a lot of space, with a place to sit outside. Everything you should need is there. Clean. Price - reasonable for what you get. You can order food there and have surfing lessons. Staff - nice and helpful, sometimes a bit slow. We would strongly recommend this place, we really enjoyed our stay.

Great place, super staff. Great walking distance to the surf and restaurants. Haleem was super friendly and helpful.

The cabanas are directly in front of the beach with beach loungers in the outside area from which you could relax and enjoy the lovely view of the ocean. The rooms are simple but clean and they have a small terrace, where we enjoyed sitting in the evening. In front of them there was also a small basin for cleaning your sandy feet from the beach, which was great. The food was great! When we saw the prices we thought it was a bit expensive, but the amount is enormous! We really recommend the fruit bowl with curd for breakfast as well as the Sri Lankan breakfast, which would have been enough for two people! The hosts were really welcoming and organised a really great surfing lesson and a safari in the Kumala national park (at the north east of the famous Yala national park), where we saw Leopards, Elephants, Crocodiles, Buffalos, Peacocks and hundreds of birds. And all this without hundreds of jeeps hunting animals!

We - 2 female travelers- booked 2 cabanas next to each other and stayed for 3 nights. The style is simple and beautiful. 30 seconds walk to the beach with a place where you can safely swim - that’s great. The Sri Lankan family (mostly brothers) who’s managing the place, is super sweet. We had 3 amazing breakfasts and fish BBQ dinner twice - highly recommended, even though the price level is a bit higher. We loved the hammocks and day beds - it’s such a nice place to chill out in he light breeze between the palm trees.

This is nothing, the family could have an influence on, but you should be aware that the area is ruled by Muslims. We’ve been harassed on a regular basis as soon as we’ve left the place.

Amazing! The location was incredible, close to the beach to watch the sunrise, good restaurants nearby. But the best part was the staff, they were so kind, friendly and helpful. It's a family run business and makes the stay more worthwhile and homely. Haleem was great at communicating with us, and took us on a lagoon safari which he was very knowledgeable about. Breakfast options were great, and all tasted amazing. Definitely recommend!

It was very hot in Arugam Bay over the days we were staying and it meant the room was very hot at night.

Azeez the host was super friendly & super helpful. Place was clean. Mattress was comfortable.

When I booked I didn't realise there was no hot water & no air con. The pedestal fan in the room had a loose part onit & made a racket so couldn't leave it on overnight. The overhead fan was sufficient at night to keep cool. But I'm an oldy & I need both hot water & air con. Azeez did tell me that they have plans to install a/con in the future. One really minor thing, I'm only 6ft tall but my feet hung over end of bed. Had to sleep diagonally which wasn't a problem, but only because I was travelling solo.