The Best Hotels for First Time Visitors in Nuwara Eliya

Where to Stay if You've Never Been to Nuwara Eliya

If it's your first trip to Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka for the activities and sightseeing, then you're in for a treat. But the biggest question is often where to stay for a first time visitor to Nuwara Eliya. With so many amazing hotels to choose from, it can be tough to make a decision to make the most of your first trip here. That's where we come in! In this comprehensive guide, we'll help you find the best hotels for first-timers in Nuwara Eliya. After analyzing all of the hotels based on price, location, amenities, ratings, and more, we have come up with our list of the best hotels in Nuwara Eliya for first time visitors. We'll cover everything you need to know about these hotels, including the amenities, location, prices and ratings. So, whether you're traveling solo, with family, or as a couple on a romantic getaway, you'll find the perfect hotel if you've never visited Nuwara Eliya beofre. So check out these terrific hotels, many of which have sparkling swimming pools, delicious restaurants, and top-notch amenities, along with the perfect balance of comfort, location, and affordability. So, let's get to it and discover the best hotels in Nuwara Eliya for your first trip!

(Prices are listed in U.S. Dollars.)

Galway Forest Lodge

4-star Hotel with prices starting at $56 (before taxes) - See All Prices
Perfect Hotel to Make the Most of Your First Visit
  • Great Value: the price is lower than average for 4-star hotels.
  • High Quality: guest ratings are higher than average.

Located at 89 Upper Lake Road Havelock Drive, Galway Forest Lodge has great rooms from $56 (before taxes). It offers room service, a restaurant, a fitness center, a bar, and a kid-friendly buffet. It has a terrific 8.60 rating out of 10 from previous guests who have stayed here. Only 0.6 km from the city center, first time visitors will especially love hiking, mountain views, golf, cooking classes, and a spa and wellness center at this relaxing hotel. The service at the restaurant is terrific, and so is the food. The price of this hotel is less than average for first time trip hotels, which makes it a great value.

First Time Trip Hotel Amenities
  • Room service
  • Horse riding
More Great Amenities
  • Restaurant
  • Fitness center
  • Bar/Lounge
  • Kid-friendly buffet
  • Hiking
  • Game room
  • Free parking
  • Bicycle rental
  • Family rooms
  • Coffee shop
  • Refrigerator
  • Breakfast in the room
  • Kids' club


The Grand Hotel Nuwara Eliya

4-star Hotel with prices starting at $104 (before taxes) - See All Prices
Great Hotel for First Time Visitors
  • High Quality: guest ratings are higher than average.
  • Family-Friendly
  • Heated pool

A great place to stay is The Grand Hotel Nuwara Eliya which has nice rooms starting at $104. Offering an outdoor pool, a pool bar, room service, a restaurant, and a fitness center, it also has a great guest rating of 8.60 out of 10 from many previous guests. It's located at NUWARA ELIYA S/N and Hill Country. This convenient hotel is also nice because it offers a bar, a kid-friendly buffet, hiking, mountain views, and child care which visitors will enjoy. Also, it's just 2 km from the city center. Being able to relax at the pool bar is a great way to spend your time here.

First Time Trip Hotel Amenities
  • Outdoor pool
  • Room service
  • Spa
  • Indoor pool
  • Horse riding
  • Family-Friendly
More Great Amenities
  • Pool bar
  • Restaurant
  • Fitness center
  • Bar/Lounge
  • Kid-friendly buffet
  • Hiking
  • Babysitting / Child Care
  • Laundry service
  • Game room
  • Free parking
  • Fishing
  • Family rooms
  • Heated pool
  • Coffee shop
  • Refrigerator
  • Playground
  • Breakfast in the room
  • Kids' club
  • Luxury


Amaya Langdale

4-star Hotel with prices starting at $188 (before taxes) - See All Prices
Perfect for Your First Visit to Nuwara Eliya
  • Family-Friendly
  • Heated pool

We found Amaya Langdale to be a great place to stay, and the price starts at $188. We loved that is has an outdoor pool, room service, a restaurant, a bar, and outdoor tennis, and it also has a terrific guest rating of 8.50 out of 10 from previous guests. It's located at Radella, Nanu Oya. You'll also find hiking, mountain views, child care, laundry services, and golf which travelers will love. And this fun hotel is just 6.8 km from the center of town. That hot tub is terrific after a long day of sightseeing.

First Time Trip Hotel Amenities
  • Outdoor pool
  • Room service
  • Spa
  • Child pool
  • Family-Friendly
More Great Amenities
  • Restaurant
  • Bar/Lounge
  • Hiking
  • Babysitting / Child Care
  • Laundry service
  • Hot tub
  • Free parking
  • Family rooms
  • Heated pool
  • Coffee shop
  • Breakfast in the room


Jetwing St Andrew's Hotel

4-star Hotel with prices starting at $112 (before taxes) - See All Prices
A Good Stay for Your First Trip
  • Family-Friendly

With terrific rooms from $112, Jetwing St Andrew's Hotel, at No 10 St Andrew’s Drive provides room service, a restaurant, a bar, a kid-friendly buffet, and mountain views. Its terrific guest rating is 8.00 out of 10 from previous guests staying here. New visitors will really like this amazing hotel which also offers child care, laundry services, golf, a winery, and city views. It's located just 0.5 km from the city center, too. The room service is especially nice after a long day.

First Time Trip Hotel Amenities
  • Room service
  • Horse riding
  • Family-Friendly
More Great Amenities
  • Restaurant
  • Bar/Lounge
  • Kid-friendly buffet
  • Babysitting / Child Care
  • Laundry service
  • Hot tub
  • Free parking
  • Family rooms
  • Refrigerator
  • Breakfast in the room


Heritance Tea Factory

5-star Hotel with prices starting at $144 (before taxes) - See All Prices
Perfect for Your First Time in Nuwara Eliya
  • High Quality: guest ratings are higher than average.
  • Family-Friendly

Heritance Tea Factory has a great guest rating of 8.70 out of 10, and offers room service, a restaurant, a fitness center, a bar, and a kid-friendly buffet. The great rooms here start at $144 before taxes and depending on the season. It can be found at Kandapola. Furthermore, it also offers hiking, mountain views, child care, laundry services, and golf, which is nice for first time visitors. Just 6.1 km from the city center, this fantastic hotel is a terrific choice.

First Time Trip Hotel Amenities
  • Room service
  • Spa
  • Family-Friendly
More Great Amenities
  • Restaurant
  • Fitness center
  • Bar/Lounge
  • Kid-friendly buffet
  • Hiking
  • Babysitting / Child Care
  • Laundry service
  • Free parking
  • Bicycle rental
  • Coffee shop
  • Playground
  • Breakfast in the room


The Hill Club

3-star Hotel with prices starting at $83 (before taxes) - See All Prices
Perfect for First-Timers
  • High Quality: guest ratings are higher than average.
  • Family-Friendly

The great guest rating of The Hill Club is 8.70 out of 10. This place has room service, a restaurant, a fitness center, a bar, and breakfast. Prices for the terrific rooms are from $83, and it's located at 29 Grand Hotel Road. We also love the outdoor tennis, hiking, mountain views, laundry services, and golf which are great for visitors. And since it's just 2.2 km from the center of the town, the location is great, too.

First Time Trip Hotel Amenities
  • Room service
  • Breakfast included
  • Free breakfast
  • Horse riding
  • Airport shuttle
  • Family-Friendly
More Great Amenities
  • Restaurant
  • Fitness center
  • Bar/Lounge
  • Hiking
  • Laundry service
  • Game room
  • Free parking
  • Table tennis
  • Bicycle rental
  • Family rooms
  • Coffee shop
  • Playground
  • Breakfast in the room
  • Luxury


OYO 248 Vishmi's Rest

3-star Hotel with prices starting at $14 (before taxes) - See All Prices
Among the Best Places to Stay for a First Visit to Nuwara Eliya
  • Great Value: the price is lower than average for 3-star hotels.
  • High Quality: guest ratings are higher than average.

A cool place is OYO 248 Vishmi's Rest because it has great rooms that start at $14. It has room service, a restaurant, a kid-friendly buffet, mountain views, and laundry services, it also earned a great guest rating of 8.80 out of 10 from people who have stayed here before. It's found at No.3, Bakers Farm Road, Magastota. Only 2.9 km from the city center, travelers will especially love city views, free parking, kids meals, car rentals, and laundry facilities at this convenient hotel. It's also less than the average price for first time trip hotels, so it's a great value.

First Time Trip Hotel Amenities
  • Room service
More Great Amenities
  • Restaurant
  • Kid-friendly buffet
  • Laundry service
  • Free parking
  • Family rooms
  • Breakfast in the room


Ashley Resorts

3-star Hotel with prices starting at $30 (before taxes) - See All Prices
Perfect Hotel to Make the Most of Your First Visit
  • Great Value: the price is lower than average for 3-star hotels.

Ashley Resorts offers room service, a restaurant, a kid-friendly buffet, breakfast, and hiking which we really like. The terrific rooms here start at $30 (before taxes). It's located at No 88/2, 88/3, Unique View Road and has earned a guest rating of 8.00/10. This fun hotel is also nice because it offers mountain views, laundry services, golf, a free breakfast, and city views which new visitors will enjoy. Also, it's just 2.2 km from the city center. It's a great value, too, because it's less than the average price for first time trip hotels.

First Time Trip Hotel Amenities
  • Room service
  • Breakfast included
  • Free breakfast
More Great Amenities
  • Restaurant
  • Kid-friendly buffet
  • Hiking
  • Laundry service
  • Free parking
  • Bicycle rental
  • Family rooms
  • Breakfast in the room


The Firs

4-star Hotel with prices starting at $45 (before taxes) - See All Prices
Great Hotel for First Time Visitors
  • Great Value: the price is lower than average for 4-star hotels.

Located at 85/2, Upper Lake Road,, The Firs has great rooms from $45 (before taxes). It offers room service, a restaurant, a bar, hiking, and laundry services. It has a terrific 8.50 rating out of 10 from previous guests who have stayed here. You'll also find golf, a hot tub, a game room, a spa, and free parking which first time visitors will love. And this amazing hotel is just 0.8 km from the center of town. It's a great value, as the price is less than the average for first time trip hotels.

First Time Trip Hotel Amenities
  • Room service
  • Spa
  • Horse riding
More Great Amenities
  • Restaurant
  • Bar/Lounge
  • Hiking
  • Laundry service
  • Hot tub
  • Game room
  • Free parking
  • Bicycle rental
  • Breakfast in the room


Queenswood Cottage

3-star Hotel with prices starting at $43 (before taxes) - See All Prices
Perfect for Your First Visit to Nuwara Eliya
  • Great Value: the price is lower than average for 3-star hotels.
  • Family-Friendly

A great place to stay is Queenswood Cottage which has nice rooms starting at $43. Offering room service, a restaurant, hiking, mountain views, and child care, it also has a great guest rating of 8.20 out of 10 from many previous guests. It's located at 124/1 Badulla road nuwara eliya. Visitors will really like this fantastic hotel which also offers laundry services, golf, free parking, a pool table, and kids meals. It's located just 1.9 km from the city center, too. We found the price of this hotel to be a great value because the price is less than average for first time trip hotels.

First Time Trip Hotel Amenities
  • Room service
  • Horse riding
  • Family-Friendly
More Great Amenities
  • Restaurant
  • Hiking
  • Babysitting / Child Care
  • Laundry service
  • Free parking
  • Bicycle rental
  • Family rooms
  • Refrigerator
  • Breakfast in the room


Also, take a look at the First Time Trip hotels in nearby destinations: Kandy, Bentota, Tissamaharama, and Ella.

For more terrific hotel ideas in Nuwara Eliya, make sure you also see Best Family-Friendly Hotels in Nuwara Eliya, Best Luxury Hotels in Nuwara Eliya, Best Hotels for a Weekend Getaway in Nuwara Eliya, Best Hotels for One Week in Nuwara Eliya, Best Hotels for One Night in Nuwara Eliya, Best Romantic Hotels for Couples in Nuwara Eliya, or Best Business Hotels in Nuwara Eliya.


How much do hotels for first-time visitors cost in Nuwara Eliya?

Nuwara Eliya Average First Time Trip Hotel Price
$65

After analyzing 17 first time trip hotels in Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka, we found the average first time trip hotel price to be a remarkably economical $65. Naturally, this destination has many fantastic first time trip accommodation options with a variety of prices. The price will vary by the hotel's amenities, available dates, and the general location. If you're interested in more information about hotels here, see our guide to hotel prices in Nuwara Eliya.

The average prices of our suggested first time trip hotels by star rating:

  • 5-star hotels: $144
  • 4-star hotels: $101
  • 3-star hotels: $47
  • 2-star hotels: $19


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