SriLankan Airlines

Customer Reviews

3 star Skytrax Rating
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Seat Comfort 12345
Staff Service 12345
Value for Money 12345
Customer rating from 674 reviews
6/10
3 star Skytrax Rating
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1/10

“One of the worst airlines”

(Sri Lanka)

Trip Verified | One of the worst airlines I have ever encountered. The unprofessional staff do not know how to speak in a respectful manner and have no manners at all. They suddenly changed my reserved seat to give it to someone else without even asking in a professional manner (they had done the same on a few previous occasions as well). Also, some passengers (not all) who travel are third-class and do not know how to act in a decent manner toward other people. If you want a good, calm travel experience, never use this airline.
Type Of TravellerSolo Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteBangkok to Colombo
Date FlownFebruary 2025
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

"I had a terrible experience"

(Sri Lanka)

Not Verified | I had a terrible experience traveling with my 9-month-old baby. After checking in and dropping off my luggage, I waited at the airport for over 2.5 hours. Just 10 minutes before the flight’s departure, I was informed that I couldn’t board due to a border control issue. This should have been communicated much earlier, rather than at the last minute. When I contacted border control myself, they resolved the issue in just 2 minutes. However, due to the airline’s inefficiency, we missed the flight. To make matters worse, we weren’t offered a free ticket change and had to pay additional fees to rebook. Thankfully, we live near the airport, but I can’t imagine the inconvenience this would cause for someone traveling from far away or a foreigner unfamiliar with the area. I will never use their services again.
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteColombo to Sydney
Date FlownJanuary 2025
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
2/10

"utterly shocked and disgusted"

(Australia)

Trip Verified | Booked tickets via a travel agent. Bom to Mel and took a stopover in Srilanka. Travelling with my family (husband and daughter) Our flight from Bom to CmB was okay with less than average service, but when we tried to check-in at the very chaotic counter at the colombo airport to go home, we were told by a very uninterested check-in lady that our ticket has been cancelled. She spoke to a few people on the phone and said the same thing and to contact the agent. I told her it's midnight in Australia and she seemed least interested. Basically said that contact the travel agent tomorrow. Totally shocked we had no idea what happened and where to go as nobody was helping and everyone absolutely didn't care. No help, no customer service, no support, just left us on our own to sort out stuff, not even slight bit of help I finally got hold of the travel agent number. I think their srilanka office picked up. We had to switch on international roaming and the travel agent asked to speak to the duty officer. Spoke to him in Tamil for an hour and asked us to wait while he reissued the tickets. We waited and waited and the flight left without us and the nightmare began. No accommodation, no help, we were calling the agent all night and were asked to wait 30 min, 1 hr, 2 hrs etc. The duty officer was polite but couldn't help. The airline knew that it was a human error by the agent while putting in the seat preference, but didn't bother helping. The agent finally reissued new tickets at 11pm today after our nightmarish experience. We are still waiting at the airport exhausted and tired. Have checked in for tonight's flight, but utterly shocked and disgusted by the treatment. This is not how airlines work. It's a disgrace and the worst, most nightmarish and terrible flying experience of our life.
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteColombo to Melbourne
Date FlownJanuary 2025
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

"left the airport disappointed"

(Sri Lanka)

Trip Verified | When I reached CMB I was informed my baggage was left back in Dubai. No sleep in the flight due to discomfort, meals were over, the flight I booked is not what I flew it was a smaller flight packed with passengers. And then I had to spend around 4 hours standing trying to make the complaint on my missing luggage. I left the airport disappointed. And still have not received the baggage after 36 hours. I would never fly with SriLankan airlines again and will never recommend this airlines to my worst enemy.
Type Of TravellerSolo Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteDubai to Colombo
Date FlownNovember 2024
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
8/10

"I would highly recommend them"

(United Kingdom)

Trip Verified | I was pleasantly surprised by my flight with Sri Lankan airlines from Delhi to Sydney via Colombo. All the flights were within 15 minutes of on time and the staff I dealt with were very helpful and courteous. The lounges in Delhi and Columbo were very good, with a range of food and comfortable seating. The lounge staff in Colombo were particularly friendly. Boarding was done in an orderly fashion with business class and elites boarding first. On arrival at Colombo, a remote stand was used and business class was taken in a separate bus from economy passengers0. There is no additional security at Colombo, so you walk into the terminal, and transfers can be very quick. The seat on the A320 was a recliner seat, which was surprisingly confortable with a pillow and blanket and I fell asleep for an hour or so of the 3.5 hour flight. The staff on this flight were exceptional, quickly dealing with refilling glasses and removing completed food courses. The food was excellent and the servings were quite large. The A330 seats are fairly standard business class with a small cubby hole for your feet. They are not that new but they are confortable enough. There is no mattress topper or pyjamas provided but the pillow is quite comfortable and the blanket is very warm. Usual amenities are provided, toothpaste and brush, eye mask, socks, moisturisers and lip balm. In flight entertainment has a large range of TV and movies to watch. Obviously many South Asian content but also lots of Western content. The hard product does need an update but it still works quite well. Staff vary flight to flight, but from this flight I would highly recommend them. I have also travelled from Melbourne to Delhi with Sri Lankan and the service was just as good on that occassion.
AircraftA320 / A330
Type Of TravellerSolo Leisure
Seat TypeBusiness Class
RouteDelhi to Sydney via Colombo
Date FlownOctober 2024
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
yes
8/10

“I was pleasantly surprised”

(Australia)

Trip Verified | I recently flew UL with family from MEL-CMB-MEL return. Given the many negative reviews seen here, I was expecting a very poor product. But to be honest I was pleasantly surprised. Of course there is certainly room for improvement - the seats could be more comfortable, upholstery needs to be changed, arms loose or broken, needs an overall clean. At times, the quality of annoucements were not the best. Boarding in CMB was a bit disorganised considering the flights were very full on both sectors. But, the IFE system for me and everyone around me was working in both sectors (many reviewers here are complaining about it not working). A decent selection of movies, TV and music. Good head sets. Food was average airline food, can't complain. Cabin service was very professional, helpful, efficient and attentive. Bagage was delivered to belt on time. Check-in at both ends was OK. Will definitely consider again. I got what I paid for. For those complaining - please pay more and choose another airline.
AircraftA330
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteColombo to Melbourne
Date FlownSeptember 2024
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
yes
10/10

"service was professional"

(Canada)

Trip Verified |   I've seen many negative reviews about Sri Lankan airlines. However, my trip was so good. Even though it was a 1-hour flight, they provided drinks and a snack which doesn't happen in North America. The service was professional too. I hope they will grow!
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteColombo to Male
Date FlownAugust 2024
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
yes
7/10

"direct flight was canceled

(Germany)

Not Verified |   We booked our return flight as a direct flight, which was canceled and then simply staying in Paris. We started more than 3 hours later, missed our connecting train, were poorly provided with drinks, unfortunately not a great experience. Our direct flight to Colombo from Frankfurt was great: very nice staff, super on time!
Type Of TravellerCouple Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteColombo to Frankfurt via Paris
Date FlownAugust 2024
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
yes
1/10

"I was late by 5 mins to check-i"

(Sri Lanka)

Trip Verified | The worst ground staff there is in any airline or airport in the world. I was late by 5 mins to check-in my bag to go to Bangalore and they refused to take my bag even when I was pleading with them. What's sad to see was the ones who checked in there bags 5 mins before me they were the casually walking towards the gates and if they had allowed me to go through I would have reached the gate before the ones who checked in. Further more they lie to you as well ones they denied me they told me to go outside and go to a counter where I will be able to refund a part of the payment I made for the flight which was a lie they just did that to get rid of me from there counters. I was so lost and helpless at that point, there were no direct flight for me to catch nor any transit flights to Bangalore that day. Somehow I managed to fly to Chennai that same night and then to Bangalore on two flight. My seat had leftover food from the previous flight and the flight delay almost made my lay over impossible to do, but thanks to the staff at the Chennai air pot who gave me a cabby to go from checkout to check-in and helped me through out the process of the airport I was able to get to Bangalore and make my trip work.
Type Of TravellerSolo Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteColombo to Bangalore
Date FlownJuly 2024
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

“customer service was extremely poor”

(United Kingdom)

Not Verified | Our flight UL166 from Kochi, scheduled to depart at 10:20 AM, was delayed until 12 PM. Consequently, we missed our connecting flight from Colombo to London. The staff later mentioned that the flight did not wait for us as other passengers on the flight would miss their connections. Does that mean our time and money are of no value? Are we traveling for free? The customer service at Colombo airport was extremely poor. We were not informed that we had missed our flight. A staff member just asked us to follow him, and we thought he was trying to expedite our transfer to the London flight. He told us we missed the flight only when I specifically asked him. The staff then nonchalantly suggested we wait until the next day's afternoon flight, offering free accommodation and travel as if this was a satisfactory solution. Don’t assume everyone will be happy to accept anything given for free. Our trip was not a leisure visit to Sri Lanka, and this unexpected delay caused us to lose over 12 hours. I was scheduled to return to work on Monday, the 15th, after a three-week holiday due to a family emergency. This disruption made it very difficult at work, as I had to negotiate additional leave. Furthermore, I was traveling with my four-year-old daughter and my elderly parents with health issues, which made the situation even more challenging. After an hour of conversation with the staff, they suggested a flight from Colombo to London via Riyadh. We had to agree to this as it was the only option available. Another solution suggested by the staff was that I could take a night flight if I had to return to work, while the rest of my family stayed until the next day due to insufficient seats. This was an unreasonable and impractical suggestion. The entire journey was made hectic due to this delay. Additionally, the food served on the Colombo to Riyadh flight was substandard, and the flight from Kochi was untidy. This was my first and last travel experience with your airline.
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteCochin to London via Colombo
Date FlownJuly 2024
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
no