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Sri Lanka - Anyone been?

Thinking of going in March, any recommendations on where to stay or what to  see?
Was thinking two weeks, one all inclusive and one not. Thanks in advance.

Comments

  • Beautiful place with so much culture. Visit the sigiriya area for a few days (we stayed 3 nights here). You can take in a safari and climb the rock. We stayed at Jetwing Vil Uyana which is expensive but pure luxury. We actually climbed pidurangula rock instead and had the most incredible views ever. Much cheaper and quieter than sigiriya rock that you get a view of anyway from pidurangula.

    Colombo was well worth a day or two. A little dirty and busy but we love the hustle bustle, the local street food was amazing and so cheap. Drinking a can of beer hidden in a paper bag due to licensing laws while eating all sorts of delicacies and watching the sunset on Galle Face Green was an experience. 

    Anywhere on the coast would be good for your all inclusive stint. 

    And make sure you get a driver. You hire them the whole holiday, they stay at your hotels and it’s ridiculously cheap. They give good advice and take you anywhere 
  • Believe there is some cricket on...
  • The Elephant orphanage in Dumbella is worth a visit and heart wrenching.

    Sigiyira rock is worth climbing, gives a great view of Sri Lanka for miles. 

    Good beaches south of Colombo.
  • If you are going for a fortnight, you can often get four or five days in the Maldives from Colombo. Did that years ago and it was great. Had ten days in Sri Lanka first, Colombo (city), Galle (beach), Candy (hills, colonial) for Sigyria (history, cultural).
  • The general two week "tour" goes something like this.  Fly in and stay overnight near the airport (Negombo). Drive up toward Dambulla via Pinnewalla elephant orphanage. Visit the cultural sights at Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, and the caves at Dambulla itself.  Drive to Sigiriya and take a early morning hike up the rock (much quieter if you go just before dawn!) for great views. Drive to Kandy for the Temple of the Tooth, jewellery shopping, a float on the lake, drinks! Either catch the train (which is cool!) or drive to Nuwara Eliya for a visit to a tea plantation (stay at The Grand Hotel if you like "faded" colonial oppulance!).  Maybe take in a round of golf at the excellent golf club up there?  Take an early morning drive to Horton Plains NP and hike to "the end of the world"! Drive onwards to one of the seaside towns either side of Galle (Hikkaduwa, Unawatuna, Koggala, etc). Then spend a week on the beach there.  Galle itself is lovely, but better to stay close by, and get the bus in (don't be scared!). You can if your budget allows also go on safari at Yala NP for a couple of nights.  Personally, I didn't think staying in Colombo added anything to the trip. Lovely place, lovely people, and if the cricket is on, we better win or they will take the piss all day!  Enjoy!


  • Beautiful Island, lovely people and has settled down after the nearly disastrous civil war. Lots to see and eat and do. Like most Asian countries 'poverty' lives cheek by jowl with wealth, though 'poverty' in the S L context is not too gruesome .. enjoy 
  • We were there last year and Pedro has pretty much nailed it above so I won't repeat it all. To do the holiday justice you need to tour the island staying in different places and hotels. We had a 7 seater people carrier to ourselves with the same driver every day.

    We crashed out in The Maldives for a week at the end to get our fix of the beach and relax 
  • Have you considered Whitstable  ;)
  • Never been but got my bank card cloned in maidstone and cash was being siphoned into a account in Sri Lanka daily for about 2 weeks before it was noticed by my bank!!
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  • Hospitalised for a couple of days with a nasty dose of Asian flu last time I flew back from there! Probably picked it up either on a bus or third class train.

    Definitely do a day at a Test Match if you get the chance. It will mean the hotels near Galle will rise in price during the game but I preferred staying in Unawatuna anyway (very nice beach).

    Pedro45 has done more than me but his itinerary sounds good. I wouldn't worry about all-inclusive as you will want to samle local restaurants and booze is quite cheap anyway.

    And despite what I said, use the trains and buses for getting around.


  • Hospitalised for a couple of days with a nasty dose of Asian flu last time I flew back from there! Probably picked it up either on a bus or third class train.

    Definitely do a day at a Test Match if you get the chance. It will mean the hotels near Galle will rise in price during the game but I preferred staying in Unawatuna anyway (very nice beach).

    Pedro45 has done more than me but his itinerary sounds good. I wouldn't worry about all-inclusive as you will want to samle local restaurants and booze is quite cheap anyway.

    And despite what I said, use the trains and buses for getting around.


    Just been looking, after reading this thread.

    I can get a return flight from Riyadh, for only £277. It's only a 5 hour flight from here.

    Better to watch the cricket in Galle or Colombo would be my only question? If Galle's the answer, is it straightforward to get to from Colombo airport? 
  • 3 hours on the train, and a lovely journey too.
  • Galle is a great place to watch cricket, easy commute on the train down the coast from Columbo as well from memory, I spent some time there during the war (based in the northern city of Jaffna) but during R&R saw Australia play a test at Gaul, we stayed in the Lighthouse Hotel, it was excellent but I suspect prices have gone up in peacetime. 

    Newara Eylia was a great place as well, the near by Tea Factory another great place to stay. The people were fantastic, mainly Tamil's where we were operating, I went to see their 'Bullock Cart Racing' not for the feint hearted, very bloody, appeared quite cruel and more like a chariot race than 6 furlong flat. Couple of memorable accidents when they careered into the crowd and knocked over an old Austin Ambassador that acted as the press box, I met a  local lad who had lived in Sidcup and was wearing an old Admiral Addicks shirt, happy days. 

    I would love to go back now there is peace there, amazing country, amazing people and well worth a visit     
  • I'm doing the Colombo test.
  • Hospitalised for a couple of days with a nasty dose of Asian flu last time I flew back from there! Probably picked it up either on a bus or third class train.

    Definitely do a day at a Test Match if you get the chance. It will mean the hotels near Galle will rise in price during the game but I preferred staying in Unawatuna anyway (very nice beach).

    Pedro45 has done more than me but his itinerary sounds good. I wouldn't worry about all-inclusive as you will want to samle local restaurants and booze is quite cheap anyway.

    And despite what I said, use the trains and buses for getting around.


    Just been looking, after reading this thread.

    I can get a return flight from Riyadh, for only £277. It's only a 5 hour flight from here.

    Better to watch the cricket in Galle or Colombo would be my only question? If Galle's the answer, is it straightforward to get to from Colombo airport? 
    Galle test will be much more laid back.  It's about a three - four hour drive from the airport (which is a good hour north of Colombo...) to Galle (depending on time of day).  The road is much improved from when I first drove along it in 1993!  The train line is also fairly new down that part of the country, but I've not used it. Both the Galle and Colombo tests could be sold out (visiting Brits more than locals) on some days.  In Galle, that's not a problem as you can watch the game for free from the Fort, although good eyesight/binoculars are helpful.
  • Pedro45 said:
    The general two week "tour" goes something like this.  Fly in and stay overnight near the airport (Negombo). Drive up toward Dambulla via Pinnewalla elephant orphanage. Visit the cultural sights at Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, and the caves at Dambulla itself.  Drive to Sigiriya and take a early morning hike up the rock (much quieter if you go just before dawn!) for great views. Drive to Kandy for the Temple of the Tooth, jewellery shopping, a float on the lake, drinks! Either catch the train (which is cool!) or drive to Nuwara Eliya for a visit to a tea plantation (stay at The Grand Hotel if you like "faded" colonial oppulance!).  Maybe take in a round of golf at the excellent golf club up there?  Take an early morning drive to Horton Plains NP and hike to "the end of the world"! Drive onwards to one of the seaside towns either side of Galle (Hikkaduwa, Unawatuna, Koggala, etc). Then spend a week on the beach there.  Galle itself is lovely, but better to stay close by, and get the bus in (don't be scared!). You can if your budget allows also go on safari at Yala NP for a couple of nights.  Personally, I didn't think staying in Colombo added anything to the trip. Lovely place, lovely people, and if the cricket is on, we better win or they will take the piss all day!  Enjoy!


    Pretty much this. If cricket on, that's a huge bonus, unless that's why you are going in the first place!
  • Each new full moon the country goes dry for the day. 
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