01 Sri Lanka Is Beautiful
Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon) is in the Indian Ocean located southeast of India. Sometimes known as the pear-shaped Island boasts of fantastic landscape with rising mountains, luscious green forest, scenic oceans, waterfalls, wildlife and world heritage sites, which makes it an ideal destination for holidaymakers who are looking for beauty and adventure. There is a well developed tourism industry that ensures visitors can get to tourist resorts with ease and take in what the Island has to offer. Its inhabitants are two ethnic groups, Sinhalese and Tamils, (official languages and Tamil) and English as a third language being a former colony of the British Empire.
02. Beaches
The Island is famed for its royal palm trees and dreamy beaches with sea sports such as surfing, scuba diving, snorkelling and whale watching. If you prefer, just sunbathing and being a visual admirer of the stunning oceans and golden sandy beaches you can soak, refresh and enjoy a piece of paradise. Some of the popular places to visit are the Mirissa, Unawatuna and Tangalle beaches.
03. Wildlife
Sri Lanka is also known for being one of the best for it national parks and forest reserves. For adventure, visitors can go on a safari and watch wildlife. The Udawalawe Park is known for its large elephants with magnificent tusks. Other animals include leopards, sloth bears, peacocks and many other species.
04. World Heritage Sites
The Island has a rich national heritage with eight sites marked as a UNESCO. One such monumental site is the Sigiriya considered to be the Eighth Wonder of the world. It is the ruins of an ancient palace and a rock fortress nearly 200 metres (660ft) high. It has vast gardens, canals and fountains. It is a huge tourist attraction and probably one of the most visited destinations in Sri Lanka because of it archaeological significance, giving fascinating insights into its existence.
05. Adventure In Ella
The Island has a rich national heritage with eight sites marked as a UNESCO. One such monumental site is the Sigiriya considered to be the Eighth Wonder of the world.
It is the ruins of an ancient palace and a rock fortress nearly 200 metres (660ft) high. It has vast gardens, canals and fountains. It is a huge tourist attraction and probably one of the most visited destinations in Sri Lanka because of it archaeological significance, giving fascinating insights into its existence.
06. Getting Around Sri Lanka
This is a small Island with current population of 21 million; with developing infrastructure travelling around to places can be challenging and time-consuming. Despite this, Sri Lanka has a number of options when considering, which form of transport to take. Below are some of the most convenient ways of getting around;
Trains – visitors can travel by train from the capital city, Colombo, which connects to all the major tourist attraction sites. There are very few first class tickets and with advance bookings, they go very quickly. The more realistic tickets to get a hold of are second and third class tickets, which are fine for most people. But you have to be prepared to mingle with the local people who are very friendly. The journey itself is quiet scenic with beautiful remote villages. It is normal for passengers to stand because of congestion.
Buses – you can get buses, which go to hard to reach areas, especially, if you are not travelling from Colombo. Some are not air conditioned and conditions are often crowded with lots of people, slow traffic, hot temperatures and busy roads can make the journey unpleasant.
Tuk tuks – these are acceptable form of transport for most people and drivers charge a reasonable amount but prices have to be agreed beforehand. This is ideal for short distance journeys but probably not recommended for longer journeys.Toured and private drivers - most enjoyable and convenient way of getting around if you can afford it. Drivers speak good English so you can interact easily, sit back and take some photographs. These can be arranged via hotels or travel agents.
07. Exotic Cuisine
Sri Lankans enjoy an assortment of food based on rice, curries, seafood, vegetables and fruit dishes. Their enriched cuisine uses flavours such as cinnamon, pepper, cloves and cardamoms. There are plenty of foods on offer for the vegetarian and non vegetarian with fresh ingredients. Many visitors enjoy local snacks known as the ‘hoppers’ (similar to pancakes) with any type of curry and ‘pittu’ (a mixture of rice and coconut). Typically, hoppers are eaten for breakfast and dinner time.
08. The People
Sri Lankans are multicultural because of their history, they were under Portuguese Dutch and British colony so there is a wide foreign influence on their food and culture. Tourists are greeted with lovely smiling faces, which make it a warm and a friendly place to visit
09. Choice Of Hotels
Sri Lanka maybe a small Island but there are no shortage of hotels in this place. There are plenty of hotels in Colombo with five star ratings and the coastal areas have resort hotels, which comes with tourist package deals. Most of these hotels have been built near major attraction sites to make it easier for tourists so whatever your budget, you should find a suitable accommodation.
Best Time To Visit Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka enjoys constant hot temperatures all year round with an average of 25-30 degrees Celsius. But it has two monsoon seasons, which brings heavy rain to parts of the Island; December to April is the best time to visit the west and south coastal areas and the hills. And April to September is the best time to see the whole Island. There is a sudden burst of rain on a different part of the Island during October and November.
Conclusion
Sri Lanka is a place to visit for the avid traveller because of its natural beauty, rich heritage and themed adventure parks far beyond the scope of this article. The most discerning of travellers have been going to the Island to enjoy it. However, in the last six years, its stability in peace means that it has come to the forefront as a contender and one of the favourite places for holidaymakers. If you are considering going away and want a different experience, why not consider making Sri Lanka your next destination?