Target Travels blog

One of the best news to come out of Asia in the recent past was the end of the long-running civil war in Sri Lanka in 2009. Sri Lanka is one of the loveliest islands in the region, it was known to Arab traders as ‘Serendip’, then fell under Portuguese and later Dutch and British rule, before attaining independence in 1948. In the current peace-driven renaissance the tourism sector is evolving from parochial to professional; though the journey has come way to go, levels of service are improving at an agreeable pace.

In the past, visitors to Sri Lanka have tended to keep to the south, mainly due to the aforementioned problems but also because many of the island’s finest attractions are concentrated there. The chief delight of Sri Lanka is its variety, from the beaches along the coast to the rolling Hill Country around Kandy, whose main temple is home to a sacred tooth venerated by Buddhists (who make up 70% of the country’s inhabitants) and the focus of a spectacular procession of drummers, dancers and elephants every July. Galle, built around a beautifully preserved 17^th century Dutch Fort, resonates with history; and it’s along the coast from Bentota through Hikkaduwa on the west and Unawatuna, Koggala (with its serene lagoon) and the newest hot beach destination, Tangalle in the South that is still oozing in popularity.

Albatross Golfing Resort Digana

Unique accommodation options have sprung out to meet the ever increasing need for more and more hotel beds. In the South you will find most of Sri Lanka’s private villas. Some almost rival the fort in antiquity; others are of more recent – but no less intriguing – construction, ranging from beachside cottages to highly superior residences.

Up country there are fewer but a growing number of private villas to cater to the tourists to the region; many are beautifully restored tea planters’ bungalows, remnants of the colonial era: Nuwara Eliya is popular hill station for being known as ‘Little England’; for the great outdoors and eco treks there is Bandarawela; Ratnapura forms the heart of the country’s gem industry; Arugam Bay on the East Coast enjoys a top ranking among the world’s surfing community and Kataragama hosts annual fire-walking ceremony which is vibrant Hindu festival. Wild elephants roam around Uda Walawe and the rainforest is practically untouched in the Sinharaja Reserve are more splendours Sri Lanka has to offer to visitors.

Further north, culture vultures can hop between the millennia-old ruins of

Sri Lanka Festivals

Polonnaruwa and Anuradhapura and climb the famed rock fortress at Sigiriya. The ceasefire has seen other parts of Sri Lanka reawakening again, in particular beyond Trincomalee on the northeast coast. Jaffna another contrastingly different landscape was the worst hit by the conflict. It is today attracting a vast number of travelers but the infrastructure and accommodation options may still be limited. Remarkably just 3 years after the end of the war, the Jaffna peninsula contributes to 10% of the national GDP with the people of the region showing great resilience and drive towards economical prosperity.

The special joy of traveling throughout Sri Lanka is that its relatively small size allows visitors to take the best of its attractions within a couple of weeks, perhaps starting in the capital, Colombo, venturing into the interior to explore the tea country and the historical sites, and then ending with a couple of days kicking back at a beach resort.

Colombo

Sri Lanka is at its most climatically hospitable between December and March, which is when it sees the majority of visitors, especially Europeans on packages, escaping the northern winter. Incidentally, every full moon in Sri Lanka is marked by a public holiday (poya), when alcohol is not supposed to be sold in hotels, restaurants or shops.

Both the island’s geography and its multi-ethnic community are reflected in the national cuisine. Spices, in particular cinnamon, initially drew traders from overseas, and they feature strongly in curries, which tend to be rather hotter than their Indian counterparts. ‘Hoppers’, a delicious crispy pancake , make a welcome appearance at breakfast buffets and an abundance of locally grown fruit – papaya, pineapple, mango among them – make refreshing juices or can be eaten at any time of day. Culinary diversity is best in Colombo: there tends to be less experience and confident with western dishes as you get further from the capital. Again though, this is beginning to change, and whatever the food, it is always serviced with Sri Lanka’s renowned charming and friendly hospitality.

Marco Polo waxed lyrical about Ceylon, as Sri Lanka was then known, describing the island as the finest in the world. Its even more ancient – Serendip – has come to imply making fortunate discoveries by accident, and now that Sri Lanka is once more fully open for business – and even more importantly, for pleasure – its fortunate discovery as an ideal holiday destination needs no longer be an accident.

Benotota Beach

About a 2 hour drive south of Colombo along the famous Galle Road, is arguably Sri Lanka’s most popular beach resort of Bentota which offer superb swathe of golden sand and a string of luxury resort hotels.  Development here has been more muted than its neighboring Beruwala, with hotels laid out at discrete intervals along the beach and a far more relaxed and hassle-free atmosphere. The southern end of the beach is also home to some of the most appealing top-end accommodation options along the west coast, with a number of delightful boutique hotels and villas hidden amongst the palm trees.

Bentota is also renowned as the watersports capital of the island. Backing the

Beach at Sunset

beach, the calm waters of the Bentota lagoon and river offer the ideal setting for myriad activities ranging from canoeing to jet-skiing, wind-surfing, and more. It’s also possible to arrange eco-friendly boat rides up the river, exploring the Bentota Ganga’s tangled water­ways, mangroves swamps and marine life.

Between the beach and the river, Bentota village offers an interesting slice of local life – although it’s impossible to explore for long before being seized by a local tout. There are a couple of interesting local Buddhist temples here: the kitsch Wanawasa Raja Maha Vihara, and the most atmospheric Galapata Vihara, dating back to the 12th century, which legend claims was built by a min­ister of Parakramabahu the Great (1153-86), the famous ruler of Polonnaruwa. The temple is said to have been linked by a maze of subterranean tunnels to other temples in the area.

Sri Lanka Sea Turtles

At the southern end of Bentota beach, the pioneering Sea Turtles Conser­vation Project (open daily from 6am to 6pm) is one of the most important of the many turtle hatcheries that have been set up along the west coast. Sri Lanka is an important turtle-nesting site, though turtle populations have been severely threatened by the poaching of eggs and disturbance of nesting sites. The project buys eggs from locals, buries them in the sand, then releases the newly hatched turtles into the sea by night, a few days after they have hatched. It’s possible to see the new hatchlings in holding tanks before they arc released, and they also keep a few specimens of each of the five species for a few years for study and exhibition before releasing them back into the ocean. The project was badly affected by the tsunami, which destroyed most of its equipment and washed away most of its stock of turtles, and so is greatly in need of support.

On the far side of the headland from the Sea Turtles Project, the village of Induruwa is home to another fine stretch of beach, even quieter (and notably cleaner) than that at Bentota. Though it is now slowly being colonized by a further crop of hotels and guesthouses, it remains one of the nicest and most soporific destinations along the west coast.

Approximate 3 hour drive South of Colombo, lies the busy beach town of Hikkaduwa, Sri Lanka 100 km (62 miles) from Colombo. Sri Lanka’s longest-established budget beach hangout, Hikkaduwa offers a lively down-market alternative to the more sedate and expensive resorts at Bentota, Beruwala and Kalutara, and attracts a stream of surfers, divers and party-loving sun-worshipers. Uncontrolled development has taken a massive toll here, however, with a long string of unregulated and trashy development which has eaten into the beach and polluted the environment, while the proximity of the noisy Galle Road, which ploughs through the heart of the town, adds a further layer of noise and pollution. This is still a very popular Sri Lanka Tour destination.

Hikkaduwa remains modestly popular, mainly thanks to its diving and surfing possibilities, to its cheap accommodation, and to its lively youthful atmosphere which offers a refreshing alternative to the more staid resorts further north.

Hikkaduwa’s principal attraction is its Coral Sanctuary, immediately off the

Hikkaduwa Beach

beach in the middle of Hikkaduwa town. Unfortunately, the magnificent coral gardens here have now been more or less killed off, though the gardens are still home to a colorful variety of tropical fish, as well as the occasional visiting turtles. The safest way to see the marine life and few patches of surviving coral is to take a ride in one of the many glass-bottomed boats which whizz around the sanctuary. Many Sri Lanka Holiday Packages offer this as an excursion, and is best to opt for it if your Sri Lankan Travel agent is offering it. Alternatively, rent a snorkel and flippers and take to the waters yourself, though the numbers of boats darting around the sanctuary can make this an unnerving experience.

Sri Lanka Scuba Diving Tours

Hikkaduwa is also one of Sri Lanka’s main diving centres, with a number of well-established schools offering dives for experienced scuba divers and PADI licensed courses for the uninitiated. Dives includes a number of interesting wrecks and underwater rock complexes.

South of Hikkaduwa the town of Dodanduwa is home to a florid Buddhist temple, the Kumarakanda Vihara, whose grand flight of stairs – more reminiscent of a Portuguese baroque church than a Buddhist temple – offer a welcome touch of distinction to the drab Galle Road. A couple of kilometers inland, the placid Ratgama lagoon boasts rich birdlife and is a popular Bird Watching destination. What’s more it offers and island with a serene Buddhist hermitage; boat trips can be arranged through local touts, either at the lagoon or on the waterfront at Dodanduwa. Once again it’s best to ask your Sri Lanka Travel Agent to book this in advance to avoid paying unrealistic rates.