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Sylvester Villa Hostel Negombo sets out to guarantee the lowest price you will find in Negombo any day of the year. Therefore, it is always packed, despite the fact that the facilities are really basic and the location is far from ideal.
The Location
While most hostels and hotels in Negombo try to be as close to the beach as possible, this is not the case with Sylvester Villa. It is in a quiet residential area about twenty-five minutes away from the coast. Apart from a Catholic church, there is really not that much around, and even to buy some food, you will have to walk a fair distance. You might find some pop-up street-food stalls around in the evenings though. The only advantage of its location is that it is very tranquil here and you will get to experience the non-touristy part of the town.
Rooms and Bathrooms
Although its name says "villa," this hostel is basically a very ordinary residential building that uses every space it has to fill it with beds. As you step inside the hostel, the most basic dorm is right in what might have originally been a living room. This arrangement is far from being comfortable, as everybody will keep walking through your space, making it lack privacy altogether. All the beds in the hostel are individual ones, there are no bunks here at all. The beds are protected by a mosquito net and there are fans for ventilation. Lockers are available in the dorm that everybody has access to. Bathrooms are very few and really rundown. There is one mini dorm that is en suite and guests from other rooms are encouraged to use this for toilets, so if you are staying here, again, you will have people entering all the time.
Common Spaces
The hostel has a big yard around it, but very little space to sit down and actually enjoy the outdoor areas. There is a pagoda where breakfast is served, which is bread and jam, pastry, and tea or coffee. However, this is not really used the rest of the day. Therefore, most people just chill on the tiny concrete patio that is at the entrance of the hostel.
The Wi-Fi is the source of a lot of tension. It is in theory included in the price, but if the owner sees anybody "abusing" the service, meaning doing a voice call or watching videos on YouTube, he will switch it off, leaving all the guests without internet. Moreover, it is never on during the night.
Summary
While Sylvester Villa could be an ok base for your stay (despite having to walk the extra mile to the beach and the facilities being extremely simple), what really spoils it is that you are under constant supervision by the owner, who has strict rules regarding everything -- which makes it rather hard to relax.
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