I finally made it to Sri Lanka in September after years of wanting to go, and it lived up to and exceeded my expectations!! Highly recommend for a holiday and for a minimum of 2 weeks (possibly just move there forever tbh). Although flights were expensive, it was sooo cheap over there (sad bc their economy is bad) that we didn't spend that much overall and did so many amazing things. Per person for 15 days including 24 hours each way in Delhi, flights, accommodation, visas, activities, food etc. and a couple of nicer hotels, I reckon I spent around £1000-£1100. Not too bad when flights were £700 of that. The people were great, I felt very safe and would love to go back!
Dambulla- 2 nights
Where we stayed: Sun and Green Eco Lodge - Dambulla
This was a great place to stay- we loved the pool, the treehouse style rooms were cool and we had a double bed each. The owners were friendly and helpful and helped us to sort activities. They made us delicious food but it took a lot of explanation for them to fully understand what vegan meant. Accidentally ate some egg but hey ho. We had breakfast and dinner there both nights. It was near a couple of fruit and snack stands- we got so many mangoes and they were so delicious. It was out of town, but just a short bus or tuktuk in.
The highlight of Dambulla was an incredible jeep safari where we saw elephants! We had hoped to visit Minneriya National Park to see the huge groups of elephants, but our accommodation helped us to organise an elephant safari which was so much better and we saw so many elephants up close with hardly anyone around- it was called Gal Oya Eco Park. It was incredible. Also the jeep was arguably too comfy and I kept falling asleep and having to wake up to see the animals lol. They also stopped to buy us roasted corn at the side of the road which was so delicious my mouth is watering several months on x
How we got there: We ended up taking a PickMe (taxi) from the airport all the way to Dambulla.
This wasn't our original plan- we were going to take the bus number 34 from Negombo to Kurunegala, then a local bus going to Kandy and Trincomalee, getting off at Dambulla. I read this route on a blog and it looked straightforward and was very cheap, but our flight was very delayed and we arrived in the evening, so hopped in a PickMe instead.
The drive took a couple of hours, but the driver was great and searched "British music" on YouTube to keep us entertained (lots of Shakira) and stopped for us to use an ATM and to buy some snacks. We paid about £40 in total for this private taxi for several hours across the country, so was definitely worth it for ease.
Best bits: The elephant safari and Pidurangala
Kandy- 2 nights
Where we stayed: Lalanga Homestay - This homestay was out of the city but so nice! It was only a couple of pounds in a taxi from town up a massive hill, the hosts were so sweet!!! We had a big room, fast wifi, and they made us delicious breakfast and dinner every day. The house itself was beautiful, spacious and clean. We used their friend who was a tuktuk driver to get around- I think we paid more than if we'd used PickMe or got a random tuktuk, but it was still very cheap and he was so sweet. In the mornings he would drive us down to the lake and then wait for us while we went for a run and then took us back.
What we did: Kandy itself wasn't my fav and I think one night there would have been fine. The climate was the most tolerable of everywhere we visited, but the city itself was polluted so we were glad to be out of the main part, and there just wasn't a ton to do tbh. We only had a full day there really and that was plenty, but nice to just walk around, chill and have tea. We went for some hilarious massages- turns out Sri Lanka is not known for its massages and we referred to it after as "an oily rub"- they also hilariously put us on beds next to each other and in the same tiny sauna naked- Christie saw far too much of me that day. I reckon it was like £20 each for this bizarre spa experience which was arguably worth it in comedic value alone x It was called Green Chaya Spa if you're keen.
We went to a nice (not very traditional) restaurant right by the station called Indi's Joint after getting caught in torrential rain. We also got delish food in a place called Balaji Dosai- proper cheap and traditional.
Kandy viewpoint was pretty but not life changing.
Best bits: The homestay, food, and morning runs around the lake. The massage if you want a laugh x
Hatton- 2 nights
Where we stayed: Trinish Homestay - this was a more basic homestay but a really cool experience. We had a massive room with 2 double beds, an ensuite and a balcony, which was the upstairs of the family's home. They were so lovely and their teenage daughter's English was amazing. They made us breakfast and either lunch or dinner included in our room price every day, they made me special vegan food and were so sweet! The husband also had a tuktuk so would give us a personalised tour of different things we wanted to see in Hatton for a very reasonable price. He even drove us to Adam's Peak and waited while we climbed, which was so convenient.
What we did: We went here pretty much purely to climb Adam's Peak, but it ended up being one of my favourite places we visited. It was much less touristy than other places and it was cool to just live among the locals a bit more, like when a very sweet girl asked to practice her English with us and told us that it was a dream come true. Cute.
Adam's Peak itself was amazing and 100% worth doing. We didn't go for sunrise as we were warned it had been cloudy at the top the last few days, so instead we went early morning, leaving our accommodation at 5am ish, and arriving at Adam's Peak just after 6am to climb. It was a few hours up and another few back down and we saw hardly anyone else enroute. The views were actually incredible. It was a physically challenging hike but climbing on steps made it easier. I underestimated how much water I needed and would have loved some more and some snacks but we survived. It was free to climb though we did walk through a temple on the way in where you can pay an optional donation. There were a few water and snack places on the way up but they were closed when we visited.
Other than that, we did some laundry (lol crazy) and went on a cool visit to tea fields mainly just to take photos. A couple of unexpected leech encounters led to me screaming while Christie pulled them from my feet (a hero), and we also visited a tea museum, which was a depressing reminder of colonialism. But the views were great.
We explored the town and went to a few cool local restaurants, including one where we accidentally ordered a full meal right before our dinner at the homestay, and it cost about £1 for both of us with drinks. Crazy- this place was called Shri Shanmughaas Hotel.
Best bits: I liked it all!! But 2 nights was probably enough, unless you wanted to just really chill, then I'd say stay forever basically.
Ella- 2 nights
Where we stayed: Bella Ella- urgh the most dreamy homestay I was so excited for. Slight warning that the google maps location was ever so slightly wrong, and we arrived at night in the rain to this unlit road and ended up walking around aimlessly for ages, on the photo to someone who didn't speak English having a small breakdown. When we found our room, a random old german lady and her toy boy had checked in, claiming to be us in some bizarre misunderstanding.
But, overlooking that, it was a great place! We both had a double bed, we had the most amazing balcony with beautiful views, and we had breakfast and dinner at the homestay which were delicious. The dinner was one of my favourite meals of the trip. The staff were lovely and had a dog called Fiona, what's not to love.
It was out of town, and while there were rumours of a cheap bus, we just got a tuktuk for roughly £1 each time that was definitely worth it.
We arranged a little tour day with a friend of the owner of our accommodation who had a tuktuk, and we visited all the major sites (the 9 arches bridge, a waterfall, Little Ella rock).
We booked a cookery class at Ella Spice Garden in advance which was great. So much fun, I have been using the recipes back at home and the food was great. Our homestay did actually offer cooking classes but we didn't realise until we'd already booked, and we didn't have enough evenings to do both. Sad.
We had quite bad weather in Ella (the whole town was genuinely in a cloud when we arrived) so we spent a lot of time hanging out in cafes. On the main strip there were a great selection that were very bali vibes and quite western, but also delicious and aesthetic so sometimes you have to abandon authenticity.
There were so many great places too eat but we loved the classic and super touristy Rainbow Cafe. We also had Ravana Pool Club recommended to us and if we'd had an extra day I'd definitely have been keen.
Best bits: Honestly it was all great. 2 nights here was fine but if I could I'd have done one less day in Kandy and one more here. There was more of a western feel with lots of bars and shops for souvenir shopping.
Mirissa- 2 nights
Where we stayed: The Spice House Mirissa- this was a proper splurge fancy hotel stay and still super cheap. It had multiple infinity pools, delicious fancy breakfast, was right by the beach, and we had a huge room with lounging chairs and a big balcony (watch out for monkeys tho). It was really nice and luxurious, though we didn't actually spend much time in the room itself, if we'd had longer there it would be been a great place to just lounge about. The mosquitoes in the pool were extremely annoying FYI x I booked directly with the hotel in advance as it was cheaper than booking.com and I could pay via bank transfer which was useful
There were a lot of restaurants along a main road which ran parallel to the beach, but we found that a lot of them were closed as we visited in low season. There were always places open so it was fine.
It was cool to visit Coconut Tree Hill which was so pretty but sooo busy at sunset.
Along the beach were loads of beach bars and they nearly all had great happy hour deals, which unfortunately meant that we were forced to have several pina coladas a day. It's really important to support the local economy, so we took one for the team x We always ensured we went to ones which included beach loungers for free in the purchase of the drink, it was truly dreamy.
We went to some good restaurants in Mirissa, my favourite was No.1 Dewmini Roti Shop which was really popular and worth the hype. The avocado roti and a coconut one for dessert were delightful. Simple Restaurant and cafe was also yum, as was The Change restaurant and juice bar- and the man was so sweet.
How we got there: This was the one part of the route we were concerned about, as there wasn't much info online. In reality, Ella-Mirissa is a very common tourist route so we were fine. In Ella at the tourist information point was a bus timetable with details and we checked with the staff, but when we got to the bus stop in the morning, some men from a local minibus/taxi service tried to get us to get their minibus. We managed to negotiate getting it for less than half the price everyone else paid, and since this made the journey more comfortable and quicker it ended up being a great decision. I think the drive was 3 or 4 hours, but honestly it's all a blur. I also reckon we paid about £10 each but could be lying. I think the public bus was only about £2 if you're on a tight budget, and I do personally enjoy a public bus but sometimes you've got to just go for comfort yanno x
Best bits:
Also the ATMs and Hikkaduwa all charge you to withdraw money which is annoying, so bring cash from wherever you went first if you remember.
Hikkaduwa- 2 nights
Where we stayed: Easy Living - we had originally booked to stay at Dreamtime Sri Lanka but due to heavy rains it was flooded. They informed us a few days in advance and gave us free cancellation- so we booked Easy Living. It was very nice, but we did have a few cockroaches in our room. Not their fault and nothing a bit of spray didn't sort.
What we did: Hikkaduwa was all about the turtles x If you walk along to Nikka Cinnamon Hotel and the beach in front of it, the turtles swim up close to the shore. Ethically I was a bit conflicted and still am. I loved seeing them swimming around but the turtles only really swim up to the beach because they're fed by humans. Locals stand in the sea feeding them seaweed which draws them in. I, along with a few of these locals, launched a campaign telling all of the tourists to "look but don't touch". Everyone was trying to grab them but soon stopped after I had shouted x Other than that, Hikkaduwa has some shops and restaurants and bars, but the beach and sea was definitely the main appeal.
There was much more stuff closed here than in Mirissa, and it really felt like low season. We also saw a couple of creepy men, the only time in Sri Lanka- one followed us home from the turtle beach (Though he did stop when Christie shouted at him x)
We went to a nice restaurant called Aroma Restaurant.
How we got there: We took a public bus which was easy and cheap. Our hotel in Mirissa encouraged us to get a private transfer and go to Galle instead but we just got the public bus and went to Hikkaduwa.
Best bits: Seeing turtles up close was amazing and just relaxing on the beach
Colombo- half a day
What we did: We only went to Colombo for half a day after hearing it wasn't great from people we knew who visited Sri Lanka. On reflection I am really glad we did this- it was busy and loud which was fine but with a day in Delhi on both sides we had plenty of city time.
We went to visit the cool massive mosque but we couldn't go in for some reason. It was cool to see from the outside though. We also visited a big central market but didn't find anything to buy.
We got a really nice meal (with a massive dosa) which was a highlight of our trip to Colombo. We also visited a proper cafe kind of thing (pictured below) which are just my fav to get a coke in a glass bottle. Bliss.
We also took a public bus to the airport, which was easy until it dropped us off like a kilometre from the airport and we had a really long walk to get there.
How we got there: We took a bus from Mirissa to Colombo. It was easy but busy, but the conductor refused to let us pay even when I got out money and offered it to him repeatedly. Eventually when we finally got off he followed us off and demanded 10x the ticket price (I can't remember the amounts but if the bus was £2 he asked for £20). I refused to pay what he was asking for and gave him the actual fare which he was not happy about. This was pretty much the only time we got scammed (well attempted scammed).
Best bits: The meal tbh x
Other random tips
Visa: I used this link to book my visa- through the official website. It was easy to do and definitely not worth paying a company extra to sort it for you- very simple and easy.
Taxis: PickMe app is their version of Uber and it was great and convenient. It was so cheap- I got a motorbike taxi for 20p one day. They always had random deals on and seemed to be cheaper than asking local rickshaw drivers most of the time.
Occasionally we couldn't get a PickMe driver to confirm so we'd just get a local rickshaw and they were always fine.
Sim card: Get a Sim card at the airport. There are loads of vendors selling them and they're all really cheap. We paid around £8 for a sim card with unlimited internet, calls and texts (to local numbers) and shared this- hotspotting each other so we could both access internet when we were out. So useful for navigating, ordering PickMes etc.
Trains: I booked our trains in advance online on this website- tickets go on sale one month in advance and sell out quickly for popular routes. We did Kandy-Hatton and Hatton-Ella - we booked third class but second would also have been fine. You can always just walk to third class to lean out of the doors for the classic photos.
For a couple of the routes we wanted, the stations didn't show up on the website, which must have been some weird error. When this happened, I just booked the train from the station before, or to the station after, and it was fine to use them. The tickets are so cheap (a couple of pounds) that it really didn't matter).
Booking accommodation: I booked everything in advance on booking.com, but there were so many accommodation options everywhere you'd be fine sorting stuff over there. I highly recommend at least a couple of homestays- they're not fancy or luxurious but it's so nice to stay with locals, get their recommendations, support their livelihoods and they were always so helpful and also made us delicious food
Laura x
