Top 10 Places to Visit in Sri Lanka for the First Time

An island nation in the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka is one of the world's biodiversity hotspots with its picturesque landscapes, diverse ecology and rich wildlife species. Take a Sri Lanka tour, you can explore not only its beautiful scenery but also its historic culture, it is an exact religious destination. The scenic beauty and numerous places of interest attract a large number of tourists and devotees from all over the world to visit and worship every year.

Sigiriya

Sigiriya is a well-famous historical city all over the world that dates back to ancient times, 7,000 years ago. Sigiriya is famous for its exquisite frescoes, painted in the 5th century AD, only 21 of which have been preserved today because they are painted on the inside of the rock walls. Because of the competence with which they were painted and the characters are so finely drawn, these frescoes are a valuable historical and cultural treasure. In addition, the city is home to the famed Lion Rock, an aerial palace erected on a massive orange-red rock that is a rare work of art owing to its magnificent craftsmanship.

Lion Rock, Sigiriya

Colombo

Colombo is located on the southwest coast of the island of Sri Lanka, near the Indian Ocean, it is an important maritime city in Sri Lanka. Because of its crucial geographical location, it is known as the "Crossroads of the East". Colombo is the largest seaside city in Sri Lanka, with amazing sea scenery, which attracts many tourists. In terms of city culture, Colombo has four museums, including the Colombo Museum, which is one of the city's landmarks. Religious culture is prevalent in Colombo, with temples and churches of Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam. There is a strong artistic atmosphere in the city, and the Kalapuyan Art Bazaar is located next to the Colombo National Museum. You can buy their favorite artworks at an affordable price, whether for your own collection or as a tourist gift.

Kandy

Kandy is located in the central part of Sri Lanka, and its ancient city is a world-famous Buddhist shrine. The Buddhist historical building in Kandy, the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple, all called Dālada Maligawa, has a very delicate structure, and the wooden pillars and beams used in its construction are carved with exquisite patterns and mythological stories, fully demonstrating the splendid architectural art of Sri Lanka's ancient civilization, profoundly famous in the world. the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple houses the teeth of Buddha Śākyamuni, and the annual Buddha's Teeth Festival attracts many devotees and people to pay homage. Peradeniya Royal Botanical Garden is also a must-see in Kandy when you visit, with its beautiful landscape and thousands of tropical and subtropical plants from all over the world, including many rare ones.

Royal Botanical Garden

Negombo

Negombo is a port city in the western section of Sri Lanka. Negombo's fishing market is famous for its high-quality crab and tuna, thus there are many seafood export industries in the town, which also contribute a lot of income to the area and allows tourists to enjoy seafood. Negombo Beach is very famous for its stunning scenery that stretches from the north side of the city along the coastline into a palm tree forest, especially in the evening when the sunset and evening sunset views of Negombo Beach are well worth enjoying. The largest Catholic church in Negombo, St. Mary's Church, is located in the center of Negombo and was built in 1842. The entire architecture gives a solemn and holy feeling, and the frescoes used in the interior of the church are praised for their exquisite paintings, which are rare masterpieces of art. Furthermore, Negombo has a mangrove forest, and tourists may enjoy the unique beauty of the mangrove forest, learn about mangrove ecology, and directly experience capturing shrimp and fish, which is likely to be quite exciting.

Galle

Galle is located in the south of Sri Lanka, which is surrounded by sea on three sides, a small island with beautiful scenery. There are many ancient forts built on Galle Island, and many ancient forts are preserved to defend against foreign enemies, and there are tall walls along the coast. When the sun sets, many local people and tourists sit by the castle to watch the sunset over the sea, which is a spectacular sight. Galle is a great city for a vacation, with a slow pace of life, a pleasant climate, a beautiful sea view and a historic old castle. If you want to have a trip with family or just with a lover for a sweet experience, Galle is absolutely a great choice.

The Fisherman in Galle

Nuwara Eliya

Nuwara Eliya is located in the central part of Sri Lanka, and the city is surrounded by mountains. The successive mountains and forests make Nuwara Eliya a famous summer resort in Sri Lanka, with temperatures ranging from 4-16°C all year round. Nuwara Eliya is also an important tea-producing area in Sri Lanka, if you come here, the local tea plantations must be worth visiting, where tea leaves are planted on the rolling hills, and the air is filled with the unique smell of tea leaves, and the breeze brings the fragrance of tea leaves, bringing a refreshing and soothing travel experience for you. Interested visitors can also experience the fun of picking tea and making tea, and tasting the most authentic tea. Whenever you stroll in the tea garden, the breeze brings the fragrance of tea leaves, which will bring you an incomparable fresh and refreshing travel experience. For those who love hiking, you can visit Mount Adam in Nuwara Eliya. The peak of Mount Adam is a sacred place of worship with a history of over 1,000 years, and the whole mountain is about 2,000 meters above sea level, attracting many hikers and pilgrims every year.

Yala

Yala is located in the southeastern part of Sri Lanka, and the city is world-famous for its Yala National Park. Yala National Park is a primitive wild jungle park and covers an area of 1250 square kilometers, which is the second largest national park in Sri Lanka, and Kenya National Park is the only two remaining wild jungle parks in the world. Here you can interact with wild animals up close, there are crocodiles, buffalo, elephants, wild boars and other kinds of wild animals in the park, as well as many rare birds of prey, and if you are lucky, you can also experience the rare Ceylon leopard. The park area is relatively large, and tourists can take thrilling jeeps to track wild animals in the park. In addition to interesting wildlife, Yala National Park has a diverse ecological environment with grasslands, rivers, lakes and swamps in addition to forests, so visitors who want to get close to nature should not miss it.

Yala National Park

Anuradhapura

Located in the north of Sri Lanka, Anuradhapura is an ancient city with a long history and many places of interest for you to visit. The Sacred City of Anuradhapura is the ancient capital of Sri Lanka and a Buddhist shrine with a glorious history of more than 1,300 years. The Buddha's treasure Bodhi tree, the city's greatest Bodhi tree, is more than 2,600 years old, and there are numerous historic pagodas, royal residences, and playgrounds. The old city has been renovated multiple times and is now a Buddhist pilgrimage center as well as a world-renowned tourist destination, attracting thousands of worshipers and visitors each year. Anuradhapura was included as a cultural heritage site on the World Heritage List in 1982.

Polonnaruwa

Located in the middle of Sri Lanka, Polonnaruwa is a medieval city that has experienced different dynasties and was once the residence of the ancient Ceylonese kings. The long history of the city has left many ancient ruins for this ancient city, such as Buddhist temples, stupas, royal palaces and so on. There is also a large artificial lake in the city, which was built in the 12th century for the ancient emperor. Next to the artificial lake is the ruins of the royal palace of Parakramabahu, which was built with baths used by royalty, a great hall with exquisitely carved stone pillars, and many reliefs of animals and flowers carved on the walls. In this palace, there are also many ancient monuments and temples around the palace for tourists to visit, It's well worth a look and not to be missed for you.

Hikkaduwa

Hikkaduwa is located in the southern part of Sri Lanka and it is a peaceful tropical beach town. Hikkaduwa is rich in marine resources, with a wide variety of tropical wild fish and beautiful corals. Visitors who are interested in diving can try diving here, where there are vast coral reefs and gorgeous underwater landscapes that will undoubtedly leave you with wonderful memories. Don't worry if you don't know how to dive but want to enjoy the enjoyment of diving; there is a diving school nearby that specializes in teaching how to dive. Sea fishing is another popular tourist activity in this area. Sea fishing is also one of the popular tourist activities here. We will book the boats and crew for visitors in advance, and visitors who are prone to seasickness are advised to prepare seasickness medicine in advance.

Sri Lanka has been described as a tear in the Indian Ocean. It is bordered on all sides by water. Marco Polo once described it as the most beautiful island in the sea. But it is much more than that. As a world-famous tourist destination, the blue Indian Ocean, endless beaches, historical ruins, the famous black tea and so on are the reasons for its attractiveness. If you are interested in a trip to Sri Lanka but don't know how to start, please don't hesitate to contact us, just simply tell us your interests and needs, and one of our travel experts will create a tailor-made itinerary for you within 24hrs.