Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka is a gorgeous country in the Indian Ocean, with a wide variety of activities to explore.

General information

Sri Lanka is an island in the Indian Ocean with about 22 million people. The currency is the Sri Lankan Rupee (LKR) and the most spoken languagesin Sri Lanka are Sinhala and Tamil. The capital city is Colombo. Famous for its tea plantations, wildlife safaris, historical sights, and surfing.

Safety tips

Emergency number: 118 / 119

Sri Lanka is generally considered to be medium safe for travelers, depending on the area and travel style. It is important to take necessary precautions and to prevent traveling to less safe areas. Always check your home countries’ travel advisory before heading off. In addition, it can be good to also read other countries’ advice, just to get a better idea (see for example US, Canada, Australia & UK’s advice for Sri Lanka).

Budget

Sri Lanka is relatively a cheap country to visit.

Low budget travelers: 20-40 EUR /day
Mid budget travelers: 40-70 EUR /day
High budget travelers: 70+ EUR /day

Itinerary

Some common tourist destinations in Sri Lanka are Galle, Jaffna, Ella, Kandy, Sigiriya, Mirissa, Nuwara Eliya, and Weligama.

Galle is known for its old fort and colonial architecture across town. It is easy to reach by train from Colombo.

Sigiriya is surrounded beautiful nature and provides the unique experience of climbing the Sigiriya Lion Rock. You can climb up this rock (200 m, absolutely worth it!), where you will find 5th century ruins which are registered as a UNESCO-site.

Ella is excellent if you want to do some day-hikes

If you want to spot wildlife you can go to Udawalawe (predominantly elephants) or Yala National Park (for spotting leopards).

Travel tips

Flights to Sri Lanka can be pricey but if you book in advance there is cheaper options, especially if you fly from India. Almost all flights go into Colombo, but usually people don’t stay there much and move onward. As Sri Lanka isn’t huge, it is relatively easy to get around by train, bus, or taxi.

Don’t forget to check the visa rules well in advance, as most travelers will need to apply for a visa before being able to travel to Sri Lanka.

As is true everywhere: also make sure you have an adequate travel insurance that will cover you throughout your stay. Medical help can be less accessible in Sri Lanka, so make sure your travel insurance covers medical expenses and any required travel to that end.

Accomodation

Booking a stay while traveling in Sri Lanka? I usually compare prices on Booking.com, Hostelworld and Agoda. Searching on Google Hotels can also help to make an easy price comparison.

NB. This post contains affiliate links