Complete Guide to Backpacking Sri Lanka
- margauxgathy6
- Jan 12
- 23 min read
Sri Lanka is a little off the beaten backpacker and tourist route, but this makes it so much more authentic, and it’s absolutely stunning. It’s got a little bit of everything: beaches, mountains, culture, and wildlife. It’s a little more difficult to get around, but I’ll give you the best options below. I got a 30 day visa before I got to Sri Lanka, and spent all of it there, but this itinerary is doable in a shorter time! This guide includes things to do in each place, the best places to stay, food recommendations, and general information to help you be as prepared as possible for your trip to Sri Lanka.
Contents
Getting Around
Sri Lanka’s public transport infrastructure isn’t as developed as that of other Southeast Asian countries. It has a few good train routes and a couple of tourist buses, but the vast majority is the public bus system. If you don’t want to or have the budget for taxis between places, and don’t want to rent a tuk tuk and drive yourself (the roads are scary!), then unfortunately the public buses are your only option. Google Maps tells you the best ones to take, and you can also ask people in the bus stations. They are probably the cheapest buses you’ll ever take, even with the ‘tourist tax’, but they are chaotic, hot, busy, and squished, so be prepared. I’ve written a full guide on navigating the public bus system in Sri Lanka here.
If you are booking taxis, the PickMe app is the best to use. It saves you the hassle of bargaining, and is generally safer. For longer journeys, try booking a taxi through your hostel or accommodation - they can normally help get you a good rate. For context, a 4 hour drive will be about US$30. The buses will be about US$1.
Train routes and timetables are all available on the Sri Lankan Railways website. The easiest option is to buy a ticket at the train station, but you can also use 12Go Asia to book trains in advance, and I recommend this if it’s a long distance train journey and you want a first class seat. For more about the famous Ella to Kandy train, have a look at my guide here.
Logistics: Planning and Making Bookings
Most things in Sri Lanka can be booked a couple of days in advance, or even on the day for a lot of activities. I booked hostels between one and four days in advance (you’ll have to book some popular ones like Roy’s Villa, Sigiriya, a week or so before, but more on that below). All the buses you can just get on when you’re at the stop or station, and if you get a taxi, that can normally be booked on the day too. For longer distance trains (like Trincomalee-Colombo), book around 5-7 days in advance if you want a reserved seat.
Negombo
If you’re flying into Sri Lanka, you’ll be landing in Negombo. There’s not a huge amount to do in this city, and the beaches aren’t great at all, so I recommend staying one night if you arrive late, or just heading straight to your first destination.
Where to Stay
I highly recommend Tuk Tuk Hostel in Negombo. It’s by far the nicest one I stayed in in Sri Lanka (and probably will raise your expectations too high!), but it’s a comfortable and very clean place with such lovely staff. It’s also close to the airport and in a safe part of the city, has an on-site restaurant and a sister hotel whose pool you can use for free. There’s also plenty of places to eat nearby.
Where to Eat (vegan friendly places)
You won’t struggle to find vegan and vegetarian-friendly food in Sri Lanka, but here are some places I found near the hostel that were good:
Tuk Tuk Wine and Dine: the on-site restaurant and a little more expensive but worth it if you’re arriving late
Calorie Counter: I really don’t like the name of this place, but it had good western-style food and healthy options
The Tusk: a quiet restaurant part of a hotel down the road from the hostel
Unawatuna
I took the train from Colombo to Unawatuna, and bought a ticket at the station right before boarding. It was a two hour, very hot and crowded journey, but cost 500 LKR (approx. £1.40). Unawatuna is quite an expensive and very westernised town on Sri Lanka’s south coast, and honestly I wouldn’t recommend staying there. However, it does provide a good base to explore some other towns, so I’ll give you my best recommendations anyway! You won’t need more than 2 nights.
Things to Do
Half day trip to Galle Fort
You can take a bus or a tuk tuk to Galle Fort to explore the old town there. It’s a small town with picturesque buildings, streets, and walls to walk along. The lighthouse is very pretty as well and you get great views of the ocean, maybe even some turtles if you’re lucky. The food around here is a little more expensive, but I do recommend the Royal Dutch Café for something more affordable.
Beaches
There are plenty of beaches around Unawatuna. The main beach off the main road is the busiest - it’s lined with hotels and restaurants so it’s probably not the best. However, Jungle Beach and Dutch Watering Hole beach are a lot quieter. You have to walk a bit to get to both of these, but it’s very worth it - they are beautiful and the waves much quieter. There is also a little restaurant on the Dutch Watering Hole beach.
Where to Stay
I stayed at Habibi Hostel, but although it looked nice, it didn’t have air conditioning and was not very social, so it wasn’t worth the price. I recommend looking around for something else.
Where to Eat (vegan friendly places)
Here are some good places that I recommend for food in Unawatuna:
Funky Cafe: for reasonably priced (for Unawatuna) Sri Lankan food
Taco King Place
Grandgers: Sri Lankan food and more
Weligama
Only a short train ride (30-45 minutes) from Unawatuna is Weligama. This is a bigger city with much cheaper places to stay and eat, and more to do. I’d recommend 2 or 3 nights here, if you include a day trip to Mirissa.
Things to Do
Surfing
Weligama is great for surfing, especially for beginners. Surf shops line the main beach so it’s very easy to get a lesson or rent a board for an hour. I tried two different surf shops: Ride a Wave and Ama Surf School. Both were 4000 LKR (approx. £11) for an hour lesson. There wasn’t that much difference between the two, but I preferred my instructor at Ama! We then rented a surfboard afterwards for 500 LKR/hour (approx. £1.40). The best time to surf is definitely in the morning, and then you have the benefit of being able to use the sunbeds outside all day. This is a huge benefit as there’s not much space on the beach to sit apart from on those beds!
Day Trip to Mirissa
It’s very easy to get the bus to Mirissa from Weligama as they’re so close together. It takes 15-20 minutes and costs around 100 LKR (approx. 28p). In my opinion, it’s not worth staying in both Weligama and Mirissa, so a day trip works perfectly.
Here is my mini guide to Mirissa:
Mirissa Beach: this is probably the biggest beach in Mirissa: there’s plenty of places to sit and the swimming is much better than other beaches in the town. There are also plenty of food places along this beach too.
Secret Beach: in my opinion, this is not worth visiting. It is very overhyped on social media: there is not much space to sit on the sand (you have to buy a drink to get a sun lounger), it's a difficult walk to get to, and the ocean is so rough that you can’t swim without being thrown against the rocks. Because the sandy area is so small, you do need the loungers to stop the waves getting you every time. Save yourself and just go to Mirissa Beach!
Turtle Beach: this is another place that is overhyped. It’s only good first thing in the morning, right after sunrise. After that, the ocean gets so rough that all the turtles leave and you couldn’t see them anyway. The beach itself doesn’t have that much space to sit on the sand either. If you do go in the morning though, please do not get close to, touch, or feed the turtles. They are wild animals and this is very unethical.
Parrot Rock: this is a rock located between Mirissa Beach and Turtle Beach. At low tide you can walk over and up it, but otherwise it makes for a nice view!
Coconut Tree Hill: this is not overrated. It’s a beautiful spot with great views and is the best place to watch the sunset. You won’t be alone as it does get busy at this time, but it’s still very peaceful and nice to visit. Don’t skip this!
Where to Eat: I had lunch at Tasty Mirissa which was delicious. It was just off Mirissa Beach and run by a family in their home. The food was great, I highly recommend it.
Where to Stay
I stayed at the Spindrift Hostel in Weligama. It was pretty nice and had good air conditioning, and was really close to the beach, the bus station, the train station, and lots of food places. It was also pretty social.
Where to Eat (vegan friendly places)
Weligama had a lot of great and cheap food options. Here are some of my favourites:
The Ant Restaurant: an adorable place run by a mother and her daughter, with all food made to order
Meyola: this was great food - it took a little longer but was worth so it
Crazy Burger: this place had some of the best curry and rice I had in Sri Lanka. You get loads of food for very cheap, and it’s right near all the surf shops
Genero: this was a place for cheaper food but decent quality
Perrera & Sons bakery (P&S): a chain of bakeries in Sri Lanka, but it has cheap food which is great for breakfast or a fast lunch
Udawalawe National Park
Udawalawe National Park is one of the most accessible in Sri Lanka. I chose to go to this one because it had cheaper safaris and I really just wanted to see elephants and get the general safari experience. Yala is very popular because there is a chance of seeing leopards, but I didn’t want to make the journey for a very small chance. It is also much busier, which ruins the peace and quiet a bit. Getting from Weligama to Udawalawe National Park by bus was no easy journey - it involved 3 different buses. Luckily, all the drivers were very helpful and it was relatively smooth. You only need one night in Udawalawe - leave after your morning safari as there isn’t anything to do in the town and there are very few places to eat.
Things to Do and Where to Stay
I’m combining these sections because they go hand in hand. All hotels and guest houses offer a safari when you book to stay there. Often, you have to book onto the safari with the hotel to even get a room. They typically will send you a whatsapp message when you’ve booked. The private hotel room I got was £2.50 for the night, but the safari was then £45, which included 4 hours in a jeep and the entrance ticket to the national park (US$20).
HOWEVER, please beware when booking a hotel on Booking.com, because most of the cheapest places have fake reviews which do not talk about the hotel itself. They will then cancel your booking when you arrive so that you can’t leave a review, and the name of the hotel on Booking.com changes all the time to avoid scrutiny. Please check the Google Reviews (through Maps if you need) for the place you’re staying! The hotel I stayed at did all this - it was fine, but definitely not what the reviews made it out to be, so this rubbed us the wrong way.
The safari itself was great - we went for sunrise which made for a beautiful drive. There were countless elephants, water buffalo, crocodiles, peacocks, mongoose, and monkeys. I definitely recommend the safari here.
Ella
I then took the bus to Ella - it was 2 buses and one of the most crowded I’d been in, but it was worth it. Ella was hands down the best place in Sri Lanka. I loved it. I stayed 5 nights which is more than most people do, but honestly the vibes were so good I could have stayed 2 weeks and not been bored. It’s perfect if you like hiking, the outdoors, and good food. As it’s in the mountains, it’s also much cooler throughout the year, which is such an welcome respite from the rest of the country.
Things to Do
Diyaluma Falls
This waterfall was absolutely stunning and gave some incredible views. It’s about 2 hrs in a tuk tuk from Ella town, which cost 10,000 LKR (approx. £27.60) for 3 people for the return trip (about £9.20 per person). You can also ask your driver to stop at Ravana Falls on the way for a photo stop - this one is also stunning.
You’ll get driven about half way up and then hike about 25-30 mins to the top waterfall. It’s not too strenuous, and there are a few people selling snacks and drinks along the way. You’ll come across a ticket counter at some point, where you can buy a ticket to see the waterfall. It costs 350 LKR (approx. 97p) to enter.
At the top, there is a small waterfall with a swimming area and a small jump which is a lot of fun. Then you can start heading down to see the rest of the falls. The next level has a little swimming hole overlooking a smaller waterfall and a very high jump if you’re feeling extra brave. This was my favourite swim spot.
The level below that is another stunning waterfall that you can walk up to and swim in, and then you can walk along the flat path to the top of the biggest fall. I wouldn’t recommend swimming here because it is a 220m drop if you go over the edge! But the views over the hills are insane.
You can then walk about 20 minutes back down to the parking spot to meet your tuk tuk driver. He gave us 3 hours, which was plenty of time, but negotiate beforehand if you know you want to stay longer, and don’t pay until you’re back in Ella!
Nine Arches Bridge
The classic photos of Sri Lanka will show you Nine Arches Bridge, but nothing will prepare you for how pretty it is in real life. You can walk to the bridge from the town in about 30-40 minutes. You’ll see plenty of signs and pathways down to the bridge which can be confusing, but they all get you down there eventually.
The train times change frequently, you can ask anyone working at your hostel for an update, but don’t worry too much about missing one if you can wait for a little while. I ended up seeing two trains within an hour, which was great.
I highly recommend walking back to town along the railroad tracks. It’s around 2.5km but is very peaceful and has great views. There are plenty of people who do it, and there’s enough space on the side to get out of the way if a train comes! You end up at the Ella railway station and from there you’re a short walk from the centre of town. You can keep going down these tracks and it’s equally as gorgeous. There are plenty of restaurants and cafes along the way too - I highly recommend Bees Honey restaurant if you want to stop. It has such great views, the best kottu I had in Sri Lanka, and the kindest people running it.
Hike Little Adam’s Peak
This is one of the easiest hikes in Ella, and is perfect for sunrise or sunset. It takes about 40 minutes to walk to the trailhead from the centre of town along the road, and then another 15 minutes uphill to the top. It’s mostly steps on this part. It’s completely free to hike it, and I recommend getting there 20-30 minutes before sunrise for the best colours! It gives you great views of the surrounding mountains and Ella Rock.
Hike Ella Rock
Ella Rock is the perfect hike for sunrise (you won’t get a view of the sunset). It’s a little more challenging than Little Adam’s Peak, but because it’s higher, it has better views. Take a tuk tuk from town to the trailhead - you’ll want to book this in advance through your hostel, but there are a few waiting around on the streets just in case. It takes around 20 minutes to drive there and costs around 2000 LKR (approx. £5.50) total. We took it at 4:30am.
When you get dropped, follow the AllTrails map - this is the most accurate we found. A lot of people didn’t follow it and got a bit lost in the dark - they all ended up at the top but it added a lot of time to their hike. It’s about 20-30 minutes and is steep uphill on an uneven path in the forest (no steps this time).
At the top, there is a little hut where you have to buy a ticket to get to the sunrise viewpoint. It costs 930 LKR (approx. £2.60). From there, you get the best view of the sunrise, and then there’s a second viewpoint which is only a short walk from the first one, which gives you another view.
After heading down to the trailhead, you’ll find yourself on the train tracks - walk back along these for the best route into town. It will take you around 30 minutes.
Secret Waterfall
Secret Waterfall is another of Ella’s many waterfalls, this one is a bit closer to town. You can drive there in about 20 minutes, or take any bus going south and tell the driver/ ticketmaster that you want to get off there. They will stop for you. On the way back, make sure to wave down the bus so it stops to pick you up. The tuk tuk costs about 5000 LKR (approx. £13.80), and arrange for the driver to wait for you until you’re ready to go back. The waterfall is free to enter.
The waterfall is a 5-10 minute walk down from the road. It isn’t huge but is pretty and has a little swim spot too. It’s generally not too busy and has a few rocks to sit on to read a book. There’s a lower level too but it’s quite a scramble to get to.
Palewella Waterfall
Similar to Secret Waterfall, Palewella Waterfall is about a 20 minute tuk tuk ride from town (5000 LKR/ £13.80) or a bus ride. Again, any bus going south will work, just mention where you want to get off to the bus driver/ ticketmaster, and wave the bus down on your way back to town. The entrance to the waterfall is 100 LKR (approx. 28p).
There are several levels of this waterfall, and the biggest is at the bottom, so you’ll have to hike down to get there. It involves a bit of scrambling but you’ll be fine in sandals. There is a good swimming hole there and plenty of places to sit. It’s not overly busy so is a peaceful place to relax.
Where to Stay
I stayed at Hive hostel in Ella and absolutely loved it. It was so social, had free cooking classes every other day, and the owner was so kind. He organised tuk tuks to waterfalls for us, and hostel dinners out. I cannot recommend it enough.
Where to Eat (vegan friendly places)
Ella has endless food options, and all are amazing. Here were some of my favourites:
Rotti Hut
Chuck Wagon
Bees Honey Cookery and Restaurant: this is along the railway tracks
Saranke Best Sri Lankan food
Bread Time Cafe: great for breakfast or a quick lunch
True Foods
Nuwara Eliya
I took the famous blue train from Ella to Nuwara Eliya (Nanu Oya is the station). It exceeded all of my expectations, and my full guide on how to do this train is here. Nuwara Eliya is a really cute town with a lot of English influence. I stayed 2 nights because I wanted to get the train to Kandy in the morning and wanted a full day there. One is probably enough if you take the bus to Kandy from there. If you want to go to Horton Plains National Park and do the End of the World hike, you’ll need to stay 3 nights.
Things to Do
Damro Tea Plantation/ Labookellie Tea Factory
The Labookellie Tea Factory is one of the largest in the town, and is great to visit. Another popular one is Pedro, but all the manufacturing is done at night, so if you want to see the processes in action, this probably isn’t the right choice. You can get to Labookellie by tuk tuk from the centre of town, which costs 1000-1500 LKR (approx. £2.75 - £4.15) one way, or by bus. Any bus to Kandy works, just tell the driver/ ticketmaster you want to get off at the factory, and they will stop for you. It costs about 150 LKR (approx. 41p) for that journey.
The factory offers free tours every half an hour or so where they show you the manufacturing process for tea. It includes a free tea tasting as well. There is a shop and the opportunity to buy tea and cake as well. It’s a great setting and such a fun experience.
Victoria Park
Victoria Park is the main park in the town and is a nice green space to walk around. It costs 500 LKR (approx. £1.38) to enter, but keep your ticket as you can use it more than once if you decide to go back!
Lake Gregory
Lake Gregory is the main lake in town and you can walk right around it which is very peaceful and pretty. If you want to, you can also get on jet boats or water skis! It costs 600 LKR (approx. £1.66) to enter. Keep your ticket handy because you’ll go in and out of the ‘official’ trail many times and countless people will ask you to show it!
Hike Single Tree Hill
Single Tree Hill provides the best views of Nuwara Eliya and Lake Gregory. You can walk to the bottom of the hill from town, and it takes about 30 minutes to get to the top from the trailhead. It’s fairly easy as you walk up a road or gravel path for the whole time. You’ll wind through the Pedro tea plantation and get a great view of the town. The very top of the hill is covered in trees and bushes so you don’t really see much after you reach the pylons.
Post Office
The post office in Nuwara Eliya is the oldest one in Sri Lanka. It’s a really nice little building and is worth stopping by and having a look if you have time.
Where to Stay
I stayed at a little hostel called Vibeway. It was a short walk from the town centre and was generally pretty clean. Nuwara Eliya is a quiet place so it wasn’t the most social, but this hostel did the job.
Where to Eat (vegan friendly places)
There aren’t a huge number of places to choose from in Nuwara Eliya, but here are some places I tried and liked:
Ambaal’s Pure Vegetarian: great Indian and Sri Lankan food
Ceylon Kitchen
Remarko Bakery: this is a chain that has good things for breakfast and also does food for lunch
Kandy
I took the train from Nuwara Eliya to Kandy (see my guide for that here), and then a tuk tuk to my hostel. A lot of people told me to skip Kandy, but I actually loved it. It’s a big city but there’s plenty to see and do. I stayed 2 nights.
Things to Do
Walk Around the Lake
The lake in the middle of Kandy is beautiful and there is lots of wildlife to see, including turtles, monkeys, water monitors, ducks, geese, and more. There is also a temple on the lake which is nice to visit.
Take a Tuk Tuk tour
I normally think these tuk tuk tours are a waste of money, but my time in Kandy proved this wrong. We were approached by a tuk tuk driver on the street and he offered us an incredible tour for only 500 LKR (approx. £1.38) per person. He was so much fun and took us to so many different places including:
Thilona craft workshop and showroom: this was an incredible place where a family hand carves and paints local pieces all from natural materials. They show you how they do it and then all of their products are available to buy. It was honestly incredible
Pilimathalawa Tea Factory: we got a free tour of the tea factory and free tasting of lots of different teas. They had a gorgeous tea room upstairs and the tour was great, we learned so much
Gunatilake Batiks: this is a batik shop where they show you how to make batiks. The process was incredible to watch, and then looking at all the finished goods was a lot of fun
Gamini Gems and Jewellers: at this jeweler, we were shown a documentary about how gems are mined in Sri Lanka, and then got a tour of different gemstones from the country. It was very interesting. You also have the opportunity to buy jewellery at pretty affordable prices
Kandy view point: for a great view of the city
White Buddha: this was a temple that was beautiful to visit and also provided great views. There was a 300 LKR (approx. 83p) entry fee for this
Herb garden tour: this was probably the most incredibly interesting place we visited. The people there told us all about natural medicines and remedies, and gave us some to try as well
We stopped at a few other viewpoints along the way, and then our driver took us to a local restaurant for lunch, which was some of the best Sri Lankan food I had on my trip. Needless to say, please give your guide a tip if you take a tour, ours was so deserving of one - he gave us one of the best days in Sri Lanka!
Where to Stay
I stayed at Funk Bunks by the Lake and loved it. There is a free breakfast and free dinner every night, so it’s very social and great to meet people. The place was also very clean and the beds were very comfortable. The owner was also the kindest person and helped with so much.
Where to Eat (vegan friendly places)
I ate most of my meals at the hostel, but you need to know where our guide took us for lunch! It was called Lighthouse Family Restaurant. The food was unlimited rice and curry, and it was the cheapest meal I had in Sri Lanka. It was so good!
Sigiriya
The bus from Kandy to Sigiriya is about 2-3 hours, and from where it drops you, you’ll have to take a tuk tuk to your accommodation. I stayed 3 nights in Sigiriya, but 2 is probably enough to see it all.
Things to Do
Hike Pidurangala Rock for sunrise
Pidurangala Rock is the rock from which all the best pictures of Lion’s Rock are taken. It’s about a 20 minute drive from town and costs 1000 LKR (approx. £2.75) to climb. Take note that the start of the hike is at a temple, so you have to make sure your knees and shoulders are covered to enter. It’s an uphill walk with a bit of scrambling at the end, and takes about 20-30 minutes to get to the top, depending on how busy it is and how fast you are.
The views of Lion’s Rock and the surroundings are incredible. It’s also a lot cheaper than visiting Lion’s Rock, which costs US$30 to climb, and then you don’t even get a view of it because you’re on it! Hiking Pidurangala was an incredible morning.
Sunset at Ederagala Wana Temple
You can visit Ederagala Wana Temple at any time, but going for sunset gives you some great views. It’s free to enter but your shoulders and knees need to be covered. From the temple you can climb over onto the rock behind to sit and watch the sunset.
Dambulla Cave Temple
The Dambulla Cave Temple is a set of 5 caves filled with Buddha statues and paintings. It’s quite a climb up the stairs to get to it, but it’s a cool experience. It costs 2000 LKR (approx. £5.50) to enter, and you have to have your knees and shoulders covered. They have clothing to borrow if you aren’t dressed appropriately. You’ll have to leave your shoes outside too, and beware they will try and move them to a rack and charge you 100 LKR for storage, but you can refuse this!
If you head down from the top via the other staircase (not the one you came up) there is also a giant golden Buddha statue which is very impressive.
Roy’s Villa
Roy’s Villa is probably one of the most iconic hostels in Sri Lanka, if not in the whole of Asia. Even if you aren’t staying there, you can join in on the activities offered. I did cooking classes, fed street dogs, and there is an option for an elephant safari and much more. They also have fun family dinners every night for $7 which is a great way to meet people and find out what’s happening the next day.
Pool Day at Hotel Sigiriya
Hotel Sigiriya has a pool that you can use for 1200 LKR (approx. £3.30) per day, and it has a view of Lion’s Rock which is pretty cool. A great way to escape the heat of Sigiriya!
Where to Stay
If you have the budget for it, I highly recommend staying at Roy’s Villa. However, if you don’t, the second best option is to stay at Dinna’s. It’s right over the wall from Roy’s, and is a very cute little place with a small restaurant and a few clean and spacious rooms. The people running it were also incredibly kind and generous. Then you can head over to Roy’s for all meals and activities, which is what I and my roommates did. It was the best of both worlds.
Where to Eat (vegan friendly places)
I ate most of my meals at Dinna’s and Roy’s, but Soul Kitchen and Rastaraunt (not a typo!) were also highly recommended.
Trincomalee
Last but definitely not least - Trincomalee. Great beaches, scuba diving, and a very laid back vibe. I loved this town and stayed a week in total, but you don’t need that long. I was doing my Advanced Open Water scuba certification and then wanted a few beach days to relax and explore the surrounding areas. There is plenty to do, though. The bus from Sigiriya to Trincomalee is 3 hours, and I took a direct train from Trincomalee back to Colombo which took 7 hours, but in first class with air conditioning (£12), it was a great ride. I booked this on 12Go Asia.
Things to Do
Snorkelling at Pigeon Island
Pigeon Island was some of the best snorkeling to see wildlife I've ever done. You have to go on a tour, as the island is located a boat ride away from Trincomalee and is a marine reserve. I booked through my hostel, but you can go down to the beach and choose an operator there. We went through Aqua Dreams and it cost 18,000 LKR (approx. £48) for a half day trip. It was so worth it, you will not regret it!
We took a 25-30 minute boat ride over there and then had 3 hours of snorkelling, which was just incredible. We saw at least five sea turtles, two reef sharks, incredible coral, and so many other fish. However, please please please do not step on the corals, and do not touch any wildlife. Unfortunately I saw too much of this and it was so sad. Watch out for the sun as well, it’s very strong and you’ll probably get burned after so much time in the water.
Scuba Diving
Trincomalee is one of Sri Lanka’s hotspots for scuba diving, with a few shipwrecks and coral gardens. I did my Advanced Open Water certification with Epic Ocean Adventures, and then joined them for a few fun dives afterwards too. Two dives cost €80. I highly recommend going with them.
Dolphin Watching
Early morning dolphin watching is another incredible thing to do in Trincomalee. It started at 6am, just after sunrise (don’t miss this from the beach!), and we set off in a boat for about 2-3 hours. Aqua dreams charge 10,000 LKR (approx. £27.60) for the trip. I have never seen so many dolphins in my life - it was truly incredible.
Fort Frederick
Fort Frederick is home to Thirukoneswaram Kovil temple, which is situated on a cliff overlooking the ocean. The temple itself is beautiful, and the views are incredible as well. There are deer there walking around, and you can sometimes see turtles below in the ocean. The entry to the temple is free, but you need to have your shoulders and knees covered to enter - you can borrow these at the entrance if needed.
There is a juice bar right outside the temple too, which is a great place to watch the sunset.
Where to Stay
There aren’t many hostels in Trincomalee, but the ones there are all very social and a lot of fun. I made some of my best friends in Sri Lanka at my hostel. I stayed at the Wanderers which was fine, but I heard very good things about Laughing Leopard as well. Book an AC dorm if you stay at Wanderers! All of the dorms at Laughing Leopard have AC. Regardless of which one you stay at, make sure you’re on this side of town, as that's where the best beaches and all the activities leave from.
Where to Eat (vegan friendly places)
Here are some of my favourite places to eat in Trincomalee:
Nina Restaurant: this place does vegan pancakes! And has a great buffet for dinner too
Rice N Curry: the best Sri Lankan curry buffet I had
Green Park Beach hotel: this is on the other side of town, perfect if you're scuba diving
KK Kitchen: this place is very local but so cheap
New Tonic restaurant: this is a restaurant attached to the Golden Beach Hotel. The restaurant is on the beach so perfect for beach days
Budget
My daily average in Sri Lanka was £28, which included accommodation, food, activities, transport, my visa, and my eSIM, but not flights. Sri Lanka was very cheap, and I could have done it for much cheaper if I wanted to! The hostels, if you pay for air conditioned rooms (which I did) vary from £5-£12 per night. They were all a lot more expensive along the south coast. Food was anywhere between £1-£4 per meal, and I had some for less than that! Sri Lanka is almost exclusively cash only, so make sure you always have enough on you.
Sri Lanka was an incredible destination to visit. Be prepared for hot temperatures but some amazing scenery and plenty of things to do. However, please remember that much of Sri Lanka’s beauty is in its nature. Help keep it that way by not disturbing wildlife, picking up your litter, and taking everything home with you. As always, leave only your footprints behind :)
Comentarios