Popham's Arboretum

I stayed for two nights at the Fern. The Fern has a small restaurant in the lobby. To be honest, I don’t remember the items on the menu, but they didn’t seem attractive at prices It was empty of people. The first thing I noticed as I walked in was the odor of stale food. It permeated all the way up to the third floor. It left an underlying odor that was unpleasant. The room did not smell bad. The mattress was soft, I woke up with a back ache. The bathroom was well maintained. There no safe in the room, a huge problem for me, no place to lock up my passport and identity document including my birth certificate, credit cards, laptop, and other probated documents I needed for official purposes. The kicker to this all was that there were rodents in the ceiling running around, fighting, and squealing at each other. They would run up and down in the ceiling of my room. At times, it seemed that they’d jump through the recess that contained some of the lights. I couldn’t call the front desk because the phone jack was broken. The animals stopped running around at about 4:00AM. I suppose I should mention that the kitchen entrance was off the corridor to the elevator. I peered in. The kitchen didn’t seem to be more than a galley. The health department would have had a fit. I complained to the staff on checking out. They apologized in what was to me, perfunctorily. Never again will I stay at the Fern in my many trips to Colombo, I go about twice a month.

I very rarely leave reviews but Ishq was exceptional. If you are looking for an alternative to big, chain hotels this small, intimate property is perfect. Beautiful rooms and spaces with personal service. Food exceptional. Thanks Darshana.

Staff were friendly and we had shops and restaurants closer to the hotel