ASIA / 16

Sri Lanka

Plan a loop through Colombo, the hill country, the ancient cities and the southern coast.

Colombo and the west coast The Cultural Triangle The hill country The south coast

The Sigiriya rock and the garden paths at its foot · Sigiriya, Sri Lanka

Destination guides

Each guide helps you decide whether a place fits your trip, how long to stay, where to sleep, what to eat and how to get there.

Colombo and the west coast

The capital and its coast: where most flights land and where many trips begin and end.

Western Province · 1 night at the start of the loop, or 2 nights for a full day and a half day

Colombo

How long Colombo needs, the airport and train legs, the National Museum's foreign tickets, Gangaramaya, Pettah, Galle Face Green and where to eat.

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The Cultural Triangle

Ancient capitals, rock fortresses and cave temples in the dry north-centre.

Sigiriya rock rising above the ruined gardens and a sand path

Central Province · 2 nights in the Sigiriya area

Sigiriya and Dambulla

How many nights Sigiriya and Dambulla need, what the rock and the cave temple cost and show, how Pidurangala fits in, and where to sleep.

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North Central Province · 1 full day; 1 night in Polonnaruwa town if you want to be at the gate at opening; a second afternoon for the elephants

Polonnaruwa

How to see Polonnaruwa's medieval capital in a day: the ticket price, the Quadrangle, Gal Vihara and the palace, the museum, and whether to sleep in town.

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The brick dome of the Jetavanaramaya stupa under a blue sky, with its entrance porch at the base

North Central Province · 1 night in Anuradhapura

Anuradhapura

How long Anuradhapura needs, what the ancient capital's stupas, sacred tree and ponds are, what the ticket costs, what to wear and how to arrive.

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The hill country

Tea estates, cool towns and the railway that climbs through them.

Central Province · 2 nights in Kandy

Kandy

How many nights Kandy needs, what the Temple of the Tooth ticket covers, the Peradeniya gardens, a Kandyan dance show and the train to Ella.

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Uva · 2 nights in Ella, arriving by the Kandy train on day 1 and leaving on day 3

Ella

How many nights Ella needs, how to book the Kandy to Ella train, Nine Arch Bridge, Little Adam's Peak, Ella Rock, Ravana Falls, tea walks and the hill-country weather.

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Central Province · 2 nights

Nuwara Eliya

How many nights Nuwara Eliya needs, Gregory Lake, Hakgala Botanic Gardens, Victoria Park, a tea factory visit, Horton Plains and World's End, and the train to Nanu Oya.

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The south coast

Fort-town streets, surf beaches and the wildlife parks of the south-east.

Southern Province · 2 nights (1 if you arrive by early afternoon)

Galle

How long Galle needs, the Fort ramparts at sunset, its Dutch heritage and museums, the train from Colombo, where to eat and where to sleep.

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A sandy beach at Unawatuna under a partly cloudy sky, with palms and a low headland at the far end

Southern Province · 3 nights: 2 in Mirissa, 1 in Unawatuna

Mirissa, Weligama and Unawatuna

How to split a few nights between Mirissa, Weligama and Unawatuna: the whale boats and their season, a surf lesson, what they cost and the coast train.

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Plan a Sri Lanka trip

Prepare with guides to the electronic travel authorisation, trains and drivers, the two monsoons, and where to stay.

Tea bushes on a hillside of the Dambatenne estate near Haputale, Sri Lanka, under a blue sky

Sri Lanka · 10 days, 9 nights: 1 in Colombo, 2 in the Sigiriya area, 2 in Kandy, 2 in Ella, 2 in Galle

First trip to Sri Lanka

Nine nights through the ancient cities, Kandy, Ella and Galle: rooms and tickets for two a day, the ETA, trains, monsoons, dengue, the sea and the roads.

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An aircraft at a jet bridge on the apron of Bandaranaike International Airport under a blue sky

Sri Lanka · The tourist ETA allows 30 days from first arrival; the first night is at Negombo or in Colombo

Sri Lanka entry requirements

Who needs the Sri Lanka ETA, which nationalities pay nothing, what it costs, the 30-day stay, passport rules, arriving at Colombo airport and customs.

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Waves breaking on rocks and a sandy cove under a blue sky at Mirissa, Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka · 10 days, 9 nights: 1 in Colombo, 2 in the Sigiriya area, 2 in Kandy, 2 in Ella, 2 in Galle

Best time to visit Sri Lanka

Choose Sri Lanka dates from the two monsoons, the beach and hill seasons, the Cultural Triangle, the Esala Perahera and Poya days, with the loop set for January.

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The station building at Nanu Oya among green hills

Sri Lanka · 10 days, 9 nights, as in the first-trip loop: two train legs, the rest by road

Transport in Sri Lanka

Book the Kandy to Ella train first, compare expressway buses, hire a car with a driver, and plan the airport transfer.

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The white colonial front of the Galle Face Hotel beside a palm-lined roundabout in Colombo under a blue sky

Sri Lanka · 9 nights on the ten-day loop: 1 in Colombo, 2 each at Sigiriya, Kandy, Ella and Galle; departure on day 10

Where to stay in Sri Lanka

Choose a base for each stop of the Sri Lanka loop, with a named hotel and its dated nightly rate, plus Mirissa, Nuwara Eliya and the safari lodges.

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Sri Lanka itineraries

Routes of seven, ten and fourteen days that link the cities, the hills and the coast without rushing.

A red passenger train on a curved iron bridge above green hillsides near Demodara station

Sri Lanka · 10 days / 9 nights

Sri Lanka in 10 days

Nine nights across Colombo, the Sigiriya area, Kandy, Ella and Galle, with the two train legs, dated ticket prices and a budget for two people.

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The straight path through the water gardens at the foot of Sigiriya

Sri Lanka · 7 days / 6 nights

Sri Lanka in 7 days

Six nights across the Sigiriya area, Kandy, Ella and Colombo: the hill-line train, the transfers and a budget for two with its prices dated.

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The white Kiri Vehera stupa at Polonnaruwa under a blue sky

Sri Lanka · 14 days / 13 nights

Sri Lanka in 14 days

Thirteen nights from Colombo to Galle via Polonnaruwa, Kandy, Ella, Udawalawe and Mirissa, with the hill-line trains, one hotel per stop and a dated budget for two.

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