Things to do in Sri Lanka - Travel Blog

Sri Lanka, a beautiful and mesmerising Island which is known for its scenic beauty, heritage and pristine beaches. A small Island located in the Indian Ocean is listed as one of the number one countries to travel by the Lonely Planet.

A beautiful country with amazing people, food, beauty, and culture. The people of Sri Lanka were the most hospitable people. We came across some of the nicest people who guided us to have an experience of a lifetime. If you love the sun, sand and beaches then you should definitely visit this beautiful country!

We covered a couple of places in 9 days time. We had a little bit of help from lovely friends who helped us in planning our itinerary. One of the best modes of transport for travelling from one city to another is definitely hiring a cab. We started our trip from Negombo, a two-night stay in Galle Fort, a two-night stay in Welligama, a quick stop at Hikkaduwa and then 3 night - stay in Colombo. We travelled by road to all these places and is definitely the best way to experience the surroundings.

In this blog, I will also mention the hotels that we stayed in that might help you to plan your own trip. The day we arrived, we stayed the night at Hotel J in Negombo. A beautiful budget-friendly hotel with an amazing view.

The next day we hired a cab and travelled to Galle Fort. It takes about 3 hours to reach Galle Fort. We booked our stay at Peddlar's Inn hostel which is a quaint vintage hostel right at the centre of Galle Fort. We booked a family room and it was just perfect. Galle Fort is all about the cobbled street, quaint cafes and every corner of this has a Dutch and Portuguese touch to it. This city was founded by the Dutch and has a lot of Dutch elements to this city. As the name suggests, it is surrounded by the Fort from all sides. You can cover the entire Galle Fort on foot. It is a peaceful cute little city that takes you back to the medieval European era.

On the second day, we took a Tuk Tuk ride to Unawatuna beach and just chilled around a bit. Unawatuna beach is one of the most popular beaches in Sri Lanka and you will see a lot of tourists spending their time on the beach. On our way back, we visited the beautiful Japanese Peace Pagoda. The Pagoda is massive and it is definitely worth visiting. The view from the top is breathtaking.

Make sure to visit the Peddlars cafe, Summer Green cafe in Galle, and Dutch Hospital Shopping Precinct for some delicious food and cold beer during your stay in Galle Fort. Do try the local Lion Beer, you will definitely love it.

We then headed to Welligama and on our way, did a quick stop at Sea Turtle Conservation Project Koggala to see some beautiful turtles.

In Welligama, we stayed at 22 Weligambay which is a beautiful property right on the beach. It is the perfect place for you to just chill and relax by the pool and enjoy some delicious authentic Sri Lankan food.

While we were in Weligama, we decided to go for whale watching at Mirissa which is about 15 minutes drive from Welligama. You have to leave early in the morning at 6 am and the hotel staff will help you with the bookings. The whale watching was not a memorable boat trip. Statutory Warning: My husband and I had a terrible experience. You will feel nauseous and the boat ride is about 6 to 7 hours in the sea. We were not feeling great and we were seasick. Most of the people on the boat ended up being sick. We managed to see one or two dolphins during the entire trip before we passed out in the boat.

The only thing to recover from this bad experience was to have some delicious crab curry and some good sleep in this beautiful resort. We just stayed in the hotel, had a relaxing time by the pool and had a lazy two days. Weligama is a perfect place for a laid back relaxing holiday.

We then headed towards Colombo and on our way, we did a quick stop at Hikkaduwa beach. This beach is known for its water sport activities and snorkelling. We did a quick boat ride to just see the different flora and fauna, and the different types of fishes. It was simply beautiful.

We stayed at the Cinnamon Red Hotel in Colombo and the view from our room was just perfect.

We had a blast on the New Year's Eve. We went to the Dutch bar street and had the time of our lives. Make sure to visit the Bally's Casino if you are in Colombo. We definitely had fun and made some extra cash ????

The best way to explore Colombo is to book a tuk-tuk safari ride. We got a proper personalised guided tour with one of the best tour guides. They will make sure we have the best time of our lives. Right from welcoming us to dropping us back to the hotel, they will make sure that we have the best experience. Our guide (Big Papa) took us to most of the famous locations in Colombo and told us all about the history of the locations.

We loved Colombo. The city is so well planned, clean and is very vibrant during the night. The streets were lit up for Christmas and New Year. Uber is your best option to go around the city.

The best part of our trip was the Sri Lankan food! It was simply delicious. The seafood, the curries, the spice everything was just amazing. You will feel so welcomed in this country by the amazing people and I bet you will have a time of your life. The people of Sri Lanka are extremely kind, acceptable and polite. There wasn't a slight sense of hatred amongst each other. It was all about love, acceptance and respect for each other.