Beaches (Sri Lanka)

Negombo

A characteristic fishing town 37km. north of Colombo, it is a mere 6 km. from the International Airport. Set amid lush groves of coconut palms, it breathes the spirit of the sea. Negombo is a gourmet's paradise with sea food in plenty. Old world fishing craft like the outrigger canoe and the catamaran bring seer, skipjack, herring and mullet, pomfret and amber - jack while lobster and prawns are caught in the lagoon. 



Mount Lavinia

Just 12 km. south of Colombo, Mount Lavinia is an immediate city suburb and the beach is one of the better known even in colonial times. It lies alongside a wind swept headland jutting into the waters of the Indian Ocean. The sand is the softest and the waves calm and clear. The Governor's House built in 1805 by Sir Thomas Maitland, now forms part of the famous Mount Lavinia Hotel.




Beruwela




56 km. south of Colombo, Beruwela marks the beginning of a 130 km. stretch of beach where resort development has taken immense strides in the past few years. Good bathing may be had in the bay all year round. 


Bentota

62 km. south of Colombo, the Bentota Resort Complex is a romantic rendezvous of river and sea with several hotels, railway station, post office, shopping arcade, cafeteria and an open air theatre showing folk and mask dancing with clusters of palms overlooking everything.












Ambalangoda

A half hour's drive from Bentota is Ambalangoda, home of devil dancing and mask making. 


Hikkaduwa

98 km. south of Colombo, Hikkaduwa is the place for underwater delight. Site of the famed coral gardens; hire a glass bottomed boat or goggles and flippers and explore the fantasies under your feet. Don't purchase or encourage sale of corals. 






Galle

116 km. south of Colombo, is the most important southern town with an old-world charm. Believed to be the 'Tarshish' of the Bible, its natural harbour was a famous fort in days gone by. Famous for its Dutch fort, lace making, ebony carving and gem polishing. 












Weligama

27 km. from Galle with its picturesque bay, and an off shore islet where a French Count built his dream house, Weligama is where you will see the famous stilt fishermen.

Nuwara Eliya

Nuwara Eliya is a mountain station at 1,868 m (6,128 ft) of altitude, in a splendid landscape. The city pretends to be particularly well-kept and neat, and the always green grass gives to the locality an aspect of “colonial British style".

Nuwara Eliya was built entirely during the 19th century and its architecture mimics that of an English country town, with red-brick walls, country house like hill club and mock-Tudor half-timbering.

Blessed with salubrious climate, breathtaking views of valleys, meadows, mountains and greenery; it's hard to imagine that Nuwara Eliya is only 180 Km from the hot and humid Colombo. 

 Temperatures are 14C-21C (Jan- April) 16C-18C (May-Aug) 15C- 18C (Sept-Dec).
               

Hakgala Botanical Gardens

   The Gardens was firs established in 1861 under the curatorship of three British of the same name - William Nock, JK Nock and JJ Nock. It lies under the Hakgala Peak, between 5000 - 6000 feet in elevation - the highest set Botanic Gardens in the world. It boasts 100 year old Monetary Cypress trees from California, Japanese Cedars, Himalayan Pines and English Oak. 

Horton Plains

Horton Plains is a National Park and the highest plateau in the island consisting of grassland interspersed with patches of forest, with someunusual high altitude vegetation. The Plains are a beautiful, silent, strange world with some excellent walks.

The most stunning place is the World's End, where the southern Horton Plains suddenly ends, and drops off to nearly 700 Metres, which is an awesome sight indeed. This is a favourite place for trekkers, as there are plenty of soft and hard trails.

 Laksapana Falls
      Laksapana Falls rise from the Laksapana estate and plunges into the Maskeliya Oya via Maoussakelle. Viewing this fall is easy if you camp down at Upper Glencairn, Dick oya.

Riverston

Riverston gap was located in the middle of Rattota – Pallegama road and it was the summit of the same. Being located in a windy gap on a range of scenic mountains with frequently changing climate, Riverston was highly popular with local travelers.

 Just an hour away from the city of Matale passing Raththota you will find a chilling beautiful place covered with mists – Riverston. Riverston is a secret   hideaway destination you can find in the in the knuckles mountain range in the central hills. Knuckles spans across Kandy and Matale districts in the central province.

 Riverston belongs to the northern part of knuckles which mostly is in Matale District which is 1400 m above seal level.

Riverston is barely known even among the Sri Lankans, therefore it is unspoilt and offers you the genuine nature. A chilling climate which is similar to Nuwaraeliya and many scenic locations. There are many endemic fauna and flora found in the two and a half kilometer stretch of Riverston. The Pathana, which is filled with lush greenery, rich of endemic plants and animals is a feast for your eyes. This picturesque Pathana ends up on a right edged rock cliff which drops 300 m down opens you an amazing view of faraway places and lush green mountains on a clear day. There are many nature trails in this area which enables you to discover nature’s hidden secrets. There are many natural water streams and rivers in Riverston which offer the tourists a safe river bath. Especially the Thelagamu Oya which runs in the lower part of riverston has a natural swimming pool. There are also many little waterfalls in the area. To reach Riverston you have to arrive in the city of Matale which is north of the Hill Capital, Kandy. From Matale it takes around 60 to 90 minutes to Riverston via Raththota. There are no public transport available to Riverston and you need to take a taxi or your own vehicle. Riverston is ideal for camping overnight, and there are some holiday operators who provide these services with the necessary tents and other facilities.