The Fortress Resort & Spa Galle

The people who run the place their hospitality kindness and welcoming attitude is second to none.

I could not use the adjacent beach as it was rocky and the currents were too strong.

Amazing location right on the water

There is a crow problem. Food needs to cleared by the pool quicker, more visible signs for guests not to feed them and the silver lids mandatory whilst guests eat there.Service could be better

Staff were friendly. Pool amazing and beautiful beach.

This hotel is very tired. It needs renovating. The rooms are big and could be beautiful but need updating, shower, toilet areas in rooms are dirty. Spa is old, tired and dirty, sauna needs updating, rubbish in spa area that isn't tidied up the whole time we were there. Gym is functional but equipment is old and could also do with a renovation. Common areas are lovely, pool is amazing and on a beautiful beach. Restaurant is good but staff appalling. They are friendly but completely untrained, we never received what we ordered and they took a long time to bring food out. The new year dinner gala was amazing though, it was a beautiful buffet and we had a good waiter for the eve. This is a very expensive hotel and I don't think it is worth the money. We paid £800 per night (included breakfast) per room, I would have expected the service to be much much better and rooms to be spotless, gym and spa should have been amazing for this price. Be careful if you are making a booking here. You can get much better deals on the island, we stayed at Anantara in Tangalle and it was much cheaper and infinitely better.

Great facilities and location.

Given the premium rates, a corresponding level of exclusivity and service is to be expected. We had visited the resort the previous year and enjoyed an excellent experience, which unfortunately was not repeated on this occasion. This is a high-end resort intended to offer families and other guests a refined and relaxed environment. During our stay, however, the hotel appeared to prioritise revenue generation through multiple parallel events. In particular, a private dinner function with loud live entertainment was scheduled in the only restaurant, making conversation at our table virtually impossible, an experience more reminiscent of a busy roadside venue than of an otherwise beautiful and tranquil resort. The second evening was similarly affected, as staff were setting up and testing audio-visual equipment for a Christmas event planned two weeks later.Service was also noticeably slower than expected, seemingly due to the bar and restaurant facilities being overstretched by the additional guests brought onto the premises.

The pool is beautiful, clean and fantastic to swim in. The lounge chairs are really comfortable.Breakfast was lovely, tasty and fresh.Housekeeping staff were really kind and efficient.We were gifted a tasting box of nuts on our arrival which was a nice touch and felt like we were off to a nice start.Room is very clean, and the bed is comfortable.

The service throughout the hotel was consistently slow. At the restaurant, we waited around 15 minutes just to order drinks, then another 30 minutes to receive them. When my second drink finally arrived, it did not taste as good as the first.At the pool, it also took a very long time before anyone approached us to ask if we wanted drinks. We were not given a menu, and once again the lime sodas took a long time to arrive and did not taste like they were made with real lime juice.Room service was atrocious. The telephones don't work at all, and it was really hard to be understood by the staff. It was like speaking on a military intercom in the 60s. They of course got the order wrong, but this is not their fault , but the hotel's for not updating equipment and phones. We were approached three separate times by staff promoting a yoga class. However, yoga was not even offered every day during our stay. Advertising an activity that is not available is misleading, and the repeated interruptions disrupted our relaxation.One of the same staff members interrupted us during a gym session to question whether we were members and told us to go to reception, despite the fact that we were clearly hotel guests. Since access to the gym is only possible through the hotel, this interaction felt unnecessary and accusatory. The gym equipment is really old and nothing seemed really clean.There were pigeons everywhere along the room access bannisters, which gave a poor impression of cleanliness.The bathtub water was not running properly, although the shower worked fine.While the room was very large, the decor felt lacking in taste and character.I normally do not leave negative reviews, but no one asked for feedback during checkout, so I am sharing it here. We stayed in several five-star hotels during our trip to Sri Lanka, and this was by far the weakest experience. It was not worth the price when compared to what other hotels offered.

Incredibly beautiful location with excellent facilities for a comfortable stay

Breakfast took a long time to prepare, i think it was due to staff shortage. Can see the staff were under pressure.

Very nice property well maintained. views, beach, pool are clean. Room service and housekeeping are excellent. They attend to every need. Excellent staff.

The location is not the best, outside the hotel is only Banks, nearest market is 1 kilometer away. Restaurant is over priced, Food is nice but not consistent, don’t expect the same taste two days in a row. However compared to other restaurants its by far the best. But compared to the value it can be improved.

Very beautiful resort and great food served at the restaurant. Staffs were very friendly and helpful. Great location and we enjoyed so much the beach view.

The rooms decorations are made of wood and that would add a smell in the rooms specially with the humidity. Insects flies in if we opened the balcony. Thus it was closed all the time.

The setting was absolutely beautiful. Everywhere you went in the hotel was stunning. The pool and restaurant area were very lovely and relaxing. The breakfast was ELITE. The bedrooms were absolutely breathtaking, honestly this was a highlight. The staff were so friendly and always on hand to help, resolving issues whenever we had them. It wasn't really near much else but we didn't feel the need to leave the hotel. We would definitely return.

Some areas looked like they needed a little TLC, some rusty doors and locks in the restaurant toilets, maybe hadn't been touched for a while. Had a bad experience in the spa where they didn't have enough staff and were 15 minutes late starting my facial but this was swiftly rectified by the staff. My partner got food poisoning from one of the nights but the staff were very accommodating and looked after him and removed that meal from the bill (of course). Lots of crows scouring the pool and restaurant area which can be extremely off-putting when you're trying to relax and/or eat your lunch! The restaurant is very expensive. Despite all this, we would definitely return!!

There was a big tree outside our roomSo blocked the sun and view to seaNot what you want really when you have booked a sea/ beach view room

There was a smell in the toilet they couldn’t get rid of The tree outside our roomThe fact I paid in advance 50% because that is the policy on booking .com at time of booking but then had to pay balance on arrival before seeing the roomLeft a bad feeling esp as room had this tree blocking the view Also if I’d waited till last minute to book I could have got the room for half the price But that’s a risk you take

Very relaxing, quiet, very attentive staff , good food fabulous breakfast.

NA

top room from size, bed very large and good mattress, bathroom also largegreat breakfast with local food like hoppers, string hoppers, fresh fruitsdinner also great especially the seafood nightsroom cleaners amazing , creative with towel animals large pool, not crowded at all, pool staff are very attentive good location nearby Galle City and Ahangama, Weligama etc.SPA was also very good

Rooms are humid , need dehumanizer

Amazing. Location and pool is a dream and the staff can’t do enough for you. Very central.

It was outstanding ,room . Dinning area ,gym., pool and location . Truly 5 star

Beach side location, well appointed room with spa bath and big walk-in shower.

somewhere e.g. table to put the suitcase. the shelf in the wardrobe too small. bar and restaurant prices too high.

Fabulous service. Very attentive & helpful. Cheerful & pleasant staff. Rooms are very spacious. Ocean view rooms are wonderful. Beach is a long stretch of perfect sand. Spa treatments very good.

Fortress rooms do not have a view so we asked for a transfer.

Absolutely stunning - old charm maintained with all the modern comforts you’ll need

Location, staff, design, and ambiance

View location food staff.

Need to change the pillows too thin.

Great staff, stunning pool and location at the edge of the ocean.

The Fortress did not disappoint. The service level is exceptional and the staff friendly and attentive. The restaurants breakfast and tea time were both delicious, and we had a wonderful dinner in one of the other restaurants onsite. Beautiful well maintained pool and grounds too. Close to Lake Koggala, and surfers go out in the oceanfront waves every morning.