V-Flyer

Hey all
We just won a project in Sri Lanka - and need to head out there in less than 2 weeks!
Any tips on who to fly with and where to stay when in Colombo?
I tried getting a price from VS but it was somewhere in the region of £5,000 to connect through Dubai with them - which when you can fly with Emirates for £2100, seems a little steep.
Sadly I don't think there are any partner airlines that allow you to collect VS miles to Colombo (Gulf don't fly there), but I wondered if any of you knowledgeable bunch had any opinions on other carriers that fly that way.
In particular, Qatar would seem to operate mainly A321s between Doha and CMB, and I'm worried that the business class product may not even exist on board those flights. Which - as they're overnight - would be a shame - I don't want to arrive looking like a panda.
I think we've ruled out Sri Lankan, as they would seem to be lagging quite severely in terms of having an ageing and shabby fleet, and their flight times are not much better than a connecting service.
Anyone have any tips or advice on other ways to get there?
And then - anyone stayed in any hotels there that blew them away? (Oops. Not literally, what with all the terrorist bombings and so on)
Cheers!

Etihad? I'd look at Royal Jordanian VIA AMM too. Otherwise, Emirates and Sri Lankan have the market pretty sewn up.

Might not be specific enough for you... but when we visited Sri Lanka we stayed in a beach resort called Negombo which is about 20 mins north of the airport. The hotel was called 'The Beach' (a Jetwing hotel) and can recommend it. Personally I am happy with both EK and QR product.

Not sure if all the bother out there has finally settled down, I think it has. When we were there the Tamil's bombed the airport using a 'homemade' plane, lobbing grenades from it - the day before we travelled! :0

I asked a Sri Lankan friend and she says

i always use quatar or emirates to fly to srilanka there are good deals going on in srilankan airline too, mount lavinia hotel in colombo is a very nice hotel to stay.......

emirates best option IMO

do not like negombo

mount lavinia hotel ok

hilton colombo has a (small) exec' lounge which is always handy:)

if you have time and want luxury 'amangalla' in galle is amazing and galle is always worth a visit

when in colombo always worth a visit to odels which is a department store that sells clothing produced at the various garment manufacturers based in SL - some serious bargains to be had and all products are the real thing

Ahh - cheers for all the tips, people! Muchly appreciated!
I think we're going to go with Emirates. I want to fly on an A380
(And the 2 free nights in Dubai for Biz pax is not to be sniffed at either)
I'm getting really excited about going now - can't wait to get there. Sri Lanka sounds like an excellent place