Sri Lanka
An island of tea hills, rock fortresses, old forts and southern surf.
Sri Lanka is a compact island with an unusual range: ancient cities and a rock citadel in the dry north, tea plantations and a mountain railway in the centre, colonial forts and beaches along the south coast, and leopards and elephants in the parks between. Colombo, on the west coast, is the arrival point and the commercial capital.
Why go
Because a fortnight can hold all of it — a climb up Sigiriya at dawn, the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy, a train through the tea to Ella, a safari at Yala, the ramparts of Galle at sunset and a few days on the sand — with distances short enough that each move is a morning.
And for the food and the welcome: rice and curry, hoppers, kottu, king coconut on the roadside, and guesthouses run by families who have been doing it for generations.
Highlights
What people go for, in no particular order.
01Sigiriya
The fifth-century palace on top of a rock rising from the plain, with frescoes on the way up, the lion's paws at the last stair and water gardens laid out below.
02Kandy and the Temple of the Tooth
The last royal capital in the hills, around a lake, with the temple that holds the Buddha's tooth relic and drummers at the evening ceremony.
03The hill country train to Ella
The slow line from Kandy through the tea estates to Ella, and on past it over the Nine Arches Bridge, with the doors open and the mist coming through the carriages.
04Galle Fort
The Dutch-built walled town on the south coast, its ramparts walked at sunset, its lanes full of cafés, jewellers and villas behind old doors.
05The wildlife
Leopards at Yala and Wilpattu, elephant gatherings at Minneriya in the dry months, whales off Mirissa in the winter and turtles along the south coast.
06The south coast beaches
Unawatuna, Mirissa, Tangalle and the surf at Weligama and Hiriketiya: palm-backed bays a short drive apart along the coast road from Galle.
07Colombo
The capital's Galle Face green at dusk, the Pettah markets, the Gangaramaya temple and a growing set of restaurants and galleries. A day at the start or end.
Areas
Where to base yourself, and what each area is like.
Colombo
The arrival city, with hotels along the seafront and in the Cinnamon Gardens district. A night at either end of the trip.
The Cultural Triangle
Sigiriya, Dambulla and the ancient cities of Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa, with lodges among the paddies and lakes.
Kandy and the hill country
Kandy, Nuwara Eliya and Ella: tea, cool air, waterfalls and the railway.
The south coast
Galle and the beaches east of it, with villas, boutique hotels and surf camps along the shore.
When to go: Sri Lanka
- Dry seasonDecember – April
- Dry and bright on the west and south coasts and in the hills: the main season for Galle, the beaches and the Cultural Triangle.
- Shoulder monthsMay – September
- The south-west monsoon wets the west and south, while the east coast — Trincomalee and Arugam Bay — has its dry season and its surf.
- Wet seasonOctober and November
- The inter-monsoon brings rain to most of the island, with green landscapes, full waterfalls and few visitors.
Getting there
Airports
One airport in our search serves Sri Lanka. Distances are measured in a straight line.
- CMBBandaranaike International · Colombo
Distance from
- BOMMumbai1,550 km
- SINSingapore2,750 km
- DXBDubai3,300 km
- JNBJohannesburg6,670 km
- CDGParis8,500 km
- LHRLondon8,740 km
- SYDSydney8,750 km
- JFKNew York14,080 km
Getting around: Sri Lanka
A car with a driver is the usual way to travel the island, with distances between regions a few hours each. The hill country train from Kandy to Ella is worth booking as a journey in itself.
Tuk-tuks cover towns and beaches; the expressway links the airport, Colombo and Galle in a couple of hours. Within the parks, jeeps and drivers are arranged at the gate or through the lodge.
Practical facts
The country, its currency and languages, the time zone and the time there now.
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Currency
- LKR · Sri Lankan Rupee
- Languages
- Sinhala and Tamil
- Time zone
- UTC+05:30
- Local time now
- Calling code
- +94
The atlas
Sri Lanka in figures
The figures under this guide: the climate on modelled 2001–2020 averages, how far it is from the UAE, and the places around it.
Climate
The weather in Sri Lanka, month by month
- Jan29°
- Feb30°
- Mar31°
- Apr30°
- May29°
- Jun28°
- Jul28°
- Aug28°
- Sept28°
- Oct28°
- Nov28°
- Dec28°
- Mild to warm and dry
- Mild to warm, humid or showery
- Hot
- Cool
- Wet
- Cold
Good for going, on these averages: January to March and June to August.
Mean highs run from 28°C in July to 31°C in March, with about 2,001 mm of rain in a year.
These are modelled averages for 2001–2020; the seasons described above are our own reading of a typical year.
Month-by-month climate for Sri LankaModelled averages for an area about 50 km across, not a weather station's record: NASA POWER climatology, 2001–2020.
The figures are modelled at Colombo, the atlas city this page's place is measured from.
Airports
How far it is from the UAE
From DXBSri Lanka
3,300 km
4 hrs 40 mins · Estimate
From AUHSri Lanka
3,320 km
4 hrs 40 mins · Estimate
The great-circle distance, and a rough flying time: the distance at an average 850 km/h plus 45 minutes for take-off and landing. Real flights follow airways, meet headwinds and wait for traffic, so schedules differ.
On the map
Places near Sri Lanka
From the journal
Related reading
Plan this trip: Sri Lanka
Open the trip builder with Sri Lanka already filled in. Flights, stays and everything else are priced together in one quote, prepared by a person on our team.
