About

About ULTIMATE Sri Lanka Guide

ULTIMATE Sri Lanka Guide is an independent guide for visitors to Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka. We publish 11 curated lists: restaurants & cafés, bars & rooftops, hotels, sights, shopping, golf, spas & wellness, luxury cars, health, property and getting around. Together they cover Colombo, Galle Fort and the south coast, Bentota and the west coast, Negombo, Kandy, Nuwara Eliya and the tea country, Ella, the Cultural Triangle and the national parks.

How we choose

Our lists draw on local knowledge, official sources and recent reviews, and every place is checked against maps and its own website or recent reports. We look for quality, character and a genuine sense of Sri Lanka.

Before you go

Opening hours, prices and seasonal schedules change often, and the best beach season differs by coast. Please check directly with each place before you visit. Our price guides run from $ (budget) to $$$$ (top end); prices in Sri Lanka are charged in rupees.

For venues

Run a venue in Sri Lanka and spotted something to update? We review our lists regularly and welcome corrections.

Photo credits

• Ella from Little Adam’s Peak, by Alexey Komarov, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The Ruwanwelisaya stupa, Anuradhapura, by Z thomas, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The beach at Arugam Bay, by Dennis Sylvester Hurd, licensed CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The Seema Malaka on Beira Lake, Colombo, by Alexey Komarov, licensed CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Colombo by night, by Thilina Alagiyawanna, licensed CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Beira Lake, Colombo, by Daibo Taku, licensed CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Bentota beach, by Pavan Lulla, licensed CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Colombo by night, by Thilina Alagiyawanna, licensed CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Colombo by night, by Thilina Alagiyawanna, licensed CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The cave temple at Dambulla, by Dudva, licensed CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Elephants in Minneriya National Park, by Walter Gehr, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The Nine Arch Bridge, Ella, by Knthabrew, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Houses inside Galle Fort, by Rudolph.A.furtado, licensed CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Galle Face Green, Colombo, by Daibo Taku, licensed CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The ramparts of Galle Fort, by Daibo Taku, licensed CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The Seema Malaka on Beira Lake, Colombo, by Alexey Komarov, licensed CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Tea country in the hills of Sri Lanka, by Manisha abey, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Mountains around Hatton, by Sobasiri, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Colombo by night, by Thilina Alagiyawanna, licensed CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The beach at Hikkaduwa, by Dinusha Chathuranga, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The Colombo skyline, by T Chamika, licensed CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Grassland and cloud forest on Horton Plains, by Jakub Hałun, licensed CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Galle Face Green, Colombo, by Daibo Taku, licensed CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Independence Memorial Hall, Colombo, by Ljuba brank, licensed CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The Temple of the Tooth, Kandy, by Alexey Komarov, licensed CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Kandy Lake, by Alexey Komarov, licensed CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Koneswaram Temple on Swami Rock, Trincomalee, by Dr.S.Rajivraja, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Kottu roti on a hot plate, by Dankesie, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Colombo seen from the Lotus Tower, by Thilina Alagiyawanna, licensed CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Secret Beach, Mirissa, by Alexey Komarov, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The sea at Mount Lavinia, by Pol van den Scheetek…, licensed CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The Negombo lagoon, by Steffen Schmitz (more photos), licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The Acropolis of Athens by day, seen from Philopappos Hill, by A.Savin, licensed CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The old town of Belgrade above the Sava, with the spire of the Cathedral Church of St Michael, by Tatil Dükkanı, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The Romanian Athenaeum in its garden, by Jorge Franganillo, licensed CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The Hungarian Parliament lit up at night on the Danube, by Tom Ek, licensed CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Oia’s white houses and blue domes on the rim of the Santorini caldera, by Norbert Nagel, licensed CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The Blue Mosque at night, by Nan Palmero from San Antonio, TX, USA, licensed CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The Triple Bridge over the Ljubljanica, by Fred Romero from Paris, France, licensed CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Yachts in Puerto Banús, by kallerna, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Sunset at the Naples Pier, by pmarkham, licensed CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The Millennium Bridge over the Morača, by Desemeus, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The Sebilj fountain and the square of Baščaršija, by Yukof, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The Stone Bridge over the Vardar, by kallerna, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• St Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, by Julian Lupyan, licensed CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The ramparts of Galle Fort, by Daibo Taku, licensed CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Skanderbeg Square with the Et’hem Bey Mosque, by Andrew Milligan sumo, licensed CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The spires of Zagreb Cathedral above the rooftops, by Alex Sirac, licensed CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Lake Gregory, Nuwara Eliya, by Omar AV, licensed CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The Esala Perahera in Kandy, by Omar AV, licensed CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• A busy market street in Pettah, Colombo, by Dan arndt, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Pidurangala rock seen from the top of Sigiriya, by Ji-Elle, licensed CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Ruins at Polonnaruwa, by Dan Lundberg, licensed CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Colombo by night, by Thilina Alagiyawanna, licensed CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The red-and-white Jami Ul-Alfar Mosque in Pettah, by Pol van den Scheetek…, licensed CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The ramparts of Galle Fort, by Daibo Taku, licensed CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Galle Face Green, Colombo, by Daibo Taku, licensed CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Colombo by night, by Thilina Alagiyawanna, licensed CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Sigiriya seen from Pidurangala Rock, by C.J.Hatton, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Houses inside Galle Fort, by Rudolph.A.furtado, licensed CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Stilt fishermen on the south coast, by Jakub Hałun, licensed CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The beach at Tangalle, by Anjitha Senarath, licensed CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Tea country in the hills of Sri Lanka, by Manisha abey, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The hill-country railway between Kandy and Ella, by Adam Jones from Kelowna, BC, Canada, licensed CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The hill-country railway between Kandy and Ella, by Adam Jones from Kelowna, BC, Canada, licensed CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• A beach near Trincomalee on the east coast, by Adam Jones, licensed CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• A tuk-tuk in Sri Lanka, by Bernard Spragg. NZ from Christchurch, New Zealand, licensed CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Elephants at Udawalawe, by Sanduweragoda, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• The beach at Unawatuna, by Leesha.S, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• Viharamahadevi Park in Colombo, by Kondephy, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
• A leopard in Yala National Park, by TDBANDARA, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.