Sri Lanka-what should I do?

[dmitri]

HI all, I have a mates wedding in Sri Lanka in December, I don't know the exact location as yet but it will be on the coast somewhere. Can anyone advise on the travel musts and must nots? Any help would be appreciated. Sri Lanka airlines are joing the one world group in a few months so that should come in handy.

cheers,

 

[tharaka]

This would depend on for how long you're planning on staying there and what you're into.

If you won't have time to get out of the southern coast, must do places around there are, Galle (Dutch Fort, Architecture, Stunning Boutique hotels), Hikkaduwa (Party Town - careful here - but tourists are usually fine), Unawatuna (Awesome beach), Mirissa (Whale watching), further down you get Tangalle (still somewhat untouched compared to other parts of the southern coast. Comes with caution - again tourist incidents are rare).

Certainly spend a couple of days in Colombo. You can see how this colonial city is transforming in to a modern city..

If you have more than a week, it's highly recommended you go to the High country, Kandy and Nuwara Eliya. Lovely mountains, lakes (somewhat like NZ in the summer) with preserved British architecture.

If there's more time, make a visit to the ancient capital cities Anuradhapura, Sigiriya, Dambulla. And of course the eastern coast; Trincomalee, Pasikudha, Arugam Bay (one of the best surfing spots).

Happy to help if you need more details. PM me.

Cheers..

 

[RB]

We were there in Feb 2012. This is a link to a trip report I posted on here http://www.australianfrequentflyer....l-indian-ocean-37549.html?highlight=sri+lanka.
We hired a car & driver-by far the best option if you decide to do some of the inland. If you just do the south west-coast I would just hire a cab between towns. The forum section of Trip Advisor for Sri Lanka is very active so there is a lot of current info there

 

[MEL_Traveller]

the 'essential' is probably the tourist train (observation car) from Colombo up to kandy. it's a great ride.

 

[im.daniel]

I'd hire a car and driver if possible (easiest way to get around Sri Lanka - and this is coming from someone who wanted to hire a car and drive ourselves!); we got one for 300USD for 7 days, including fuel (sans tip).

If you can, try and make your way up to Jaffna and the surrounding area, it's quite amazing (esp. post war) and there are hardly any tourists around. Although Trinco, Galle etc. probably have nicer beaches etc, it was was nice to mix it up a bit - and we really enjoyed our time in Jaffna.

 

[puppysparkes]

I found this while researching for our trip. We are looking at the grand tour but they have 2 other options for consideration. [url]http://www.roughguides.com/destinations/asia/sri-lanka/itineraries/#ixzz2urnYnrKp[/URL]

Tour guide
Apparently the best way to get around is to hire a tri-lingual driver/tour guide which costs roughly $1000 (16 days). Checking if they are credentialed by the tourism board is also recommended. Briefing the guide not to take you to gem and souvenir stores is also advised.

Getting there - Flights

My suggestions is to book Qantas fares on the brazil expedia website. Approximate cost for 2 people return should be $1050 SIN-BNE. SIN-CMB is $470 return with Sri Lanka Air. Total cost $1520. Obviously cheaper from your home port in SYD.