SRI LANKA FM SRILANKA TRAVEL SRI LANKAN TRAVEL WEBSITES
TOURIST ATTRACTIONS TO SEE IN SRI LANKA WHERE
TO STAY SRI LANKAN HOTEL REVIEWS
The tropical Indian Ocean island of Sri Lanka has some
of the finest beaches in Asia. With resorts like
Hikkaduwa
it became known as a cheap long haul tropical beach
holiday destination. Many
foreign couples married
at hotels (See Sri
Lanka Weddings Co Uk) on the beaches of Sri Lanka. The 5
star
Eden Resort Spa on
Beruwela Beach and
Bentota Beach Hotel
remain popular for South Coast
beach weddings. Recently, Sri Lanka has moved up-market with new lap of luxury suite boutique hotels
amongst the most luxurious in Asia, some with private plunge pools. Older historic hotels like Amangalla in
the Galle Dutch Fort;
the finest preserved colonial fort in Asia, have been
refurbished. The
Sri Lanka Hotels Guide
Com offers independent reviews of 38 luxury Sri
Lanka hotels, both private and owned by Sri Lankan hotel groups like Connaissance de
Ceylan
Beaches aside, the unique attractions of the
island of Sri Lanka, however, are located in the interior.
Within the Cultural Triangle of Sri Lanka are the 2000 year
historic ancient cities of Anuradhapura, the famous Sigiriya rock fortress with the rock frescos, the rock
temple at Dambulla, Polonnaruwa and other world heritage
archaeological sites. Here you
discover a living ancient Buddhist culture. Less well known but
equally fascinating uncrowded sites like Ritigala are shown in
Undiscovered Sri
Lanka. Also in the interior is Kandy
the hill capital with the tea country tea estates as the nucleus of Sri Lanka
Tea Tourism.
Use this site to plan your visit to Sri Lanka to both beaches, (including the re-opened East Coast at
Trincomalee ) and
the island interior. For a decade Sri Lanka has been a second
home to our UK directors, who annually for 4 months escape the British winter to this sun drenched
paradise tropical island. Our recommendations are based on
personal experience.
In our 24 Sri Lankan travel sites, listed
below left, our policy is to feature only destinations and
hotels which have been personally visited
and stayed at overnight by our London resident
directors. Our hotel reviews are fiercely independent All our
recommendations are based on personal experience.
Except for aerial photos, all the images used on the site have been taken during these travels and
are as another tourist would have taken them.
We show you the Sri Lanka of beaches, of the ancient wonders
of the Cultural Triangle in the interior as well as
Kandy and the tea
growing estates of the hill country as we have seen it. We offer
European visitors a UK based Travel web publishing business with intimate knowledge of the country
which is our second home. So from the lap of luxury Ocean Villa Suites of
the luxury South Coast
Hotels to the 2000 year old ancient kingdoms of the
Cultural
Triangle we, a British travel business, ask you to come and share our Sri Lanka with us. .
Here fashioned in the style of a fortress, rising next to the
seaside, is a luxury beach hotel on a long expanse of deserted golden sand beach.
The resort walls enclose
exquisitely appointed rooms, lofts and residences. With verdant
gardens , treatment spa, a freeflow swimming pool, wine cellar
and
more
VIL UYANA - SIGIRIYA
Just 3 miles from Sigiriya Rock Fortress;
UNESCO world heritage
site VIL UYANA; a
luxurious boutique hotel
lies
in an unusual siting
across a paddy field. Absolute luxury in the forest dwellings with
private swimming pools.
More
ADITYA GALLE
Whilst Aditiya is small and intimate with only 12 suites, these
with a private plunge
pool are amongst the largest and most lavishly appointed on the
island. Here is unrestrained luxury in an environment of total
privacy.
More
LODGE - HABARANA
The ancient cities inspired the unique architectural concept of
the Lodge in Habarana about 4 hours drive from Colombo. Located in the heart of the
Cultural Triangle,
it is ideally sited for
visits to the world heritage sites of Sigiriya, Dambulla, Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa
and not least the 2000 year old Undiscovered Sri Lanka Ritigala Monastry
are all under 2 hours driving distance Accommodation is in dispersed chalets. More Information
The 5 star Eden Resort & Spa on the magnificent Beruwela
beach in Sri Lanka offers deluxe accommodation in its
Penthouse Suites and Paradise Deluxe Rooms. See our dedicated
website on Eden Resort
Spa. Pamper yourself with barbeques under the stars on warm tropical
nights, All for sheer luxury by the golden sands of Beruwela
Beach. More
Information...
HUNAS FALLS - KANDY
Hunas Falls Hotel, in the highland interior close to Kandy; the hill capital. enjoys one of the most scenic hotel
settings in Sri Lanka, high in the hills near Elkaduwa,
The breathtakingly beautiful Hunas Falls and the artificial lake
created around it forms the backdrop to the hotel. Accommodation
is in 2 theme suites, a Royal Suite and
Deluxe Rooms. More
Information
Lighthouse Hotel
A member of the small luxury hotels of the
world, Lighthouse Hotel on the outskirts of the Galle Dutch fort
and inspired by the same has been visited by us 7 times in the
last decade, the last being December 2008. See our dedicated site
on Lighthouse
Hotel
Elephant Corridor Hotel
Stunning
views of the Sigiriya Rock in the background, Elephant Corridor
offers 22 suites all with private plunge pools including The
Romantic Suite with pool in room
CORAL
GARDENS HOTEL
We focus
mainly on the new generation of lap of luxury hotels but have not
forgotten Coral Gardens in Hikkaduwa with
the coral reef
Royal and
sacred cities of the
Cultural
Triangle, colonial forts like
Galle, temple caves and
virgin forests – with no fewer than seven World Heritage
Sites declared and listed by UNESCO, Sri Lanka is one of
Asia’s richest treasure troves of both natural and
man-made wonders.
Six of these marvels span some 2,500 years of history –
from the sacred city of Anuradhapura and the cave
temples of Dambulla, to the magnificent temples and
palaces of the royal city of
Kandy.
Sri Lanka lies
just 27 kms off the southern tip of India. The only
international airport is in Katunayake, 38 kms from Colombo
(red) which is the commercial capital. The main
tourist areas are The South Coast
(light blue) with some of the finest beaches in Asia.
The fascinating attractions are in the island interior, The
Cultural Triangle of world heritage sites of the ancient
kingdoms;
(yellow) Sigiriya,
Dambulla, Polonaruwa and Anuradhapura as well as The Hill
Country
(green) where Kandy is
the Hill Capital. There are the national parks such as Yala
on the South East Coast. You can also now visit the East Coast
at
Trincomalee.
We list a range of tours and travel options in
Sri Lanka to enable you to combine visits to various areas
of interest in the island, rather than just the beaches
alone. Air tours of Sri Lanka using sea planes of
the Sri Lanka Air Taxi service and Deccan Aviation,
whilst expensive, offer the ultimate in luxury travel and
open up
undiscovered Sri Lanka .
Enjoy the beauty of Ceylon or Ceylan from the air without the
inconvenience of air traffic.
A feature of Sri Lanka has been the growth of lap of luxury
five star and boutique hotels, many of which our London office
directors have visited in 2007 - 2009. These compare in luxury to the finest
hotel resorts in Asia.
Sri Lanka
attracts European couples who can marry here on some of the
finest beaches in Asia, with all year round summer, or in the
jungle interior in the background of the ancient cities and
Royal Kingdoms, staying at luxurious hotels for a fraction of
the comparable cost in the UK. See Sri Lanka Weddings
Co UK
In Sri
Lanka over 70% of the population are Buddhist and the country
abounds with Buddhist temples and the monuments of ancient
kingdoms. This is a deeply religious Buddhist country. Numerous
minority religions, including Hinduism, Islam and Christianity
also flourish here.
All our
recommendations are based on personal experience and visits. We
offer the UK visitor the best of both worlds; a UK Head Office,
which is fully ATOL bonded and a local ground handling operation
with intimate knowledge of the country. Whilst we concentrate on
the luxury top end of the market, with our purchasing power in
Sri Lanka we offer some of the best value rates at luxury
hotels. So from the Ocean Villa Suites of the South Coast to the
2000 year old ancient kingdoms of the Cultural Triangle come and
share our Sri Lanka with us.
SIGIRIYA - ROCK FORTRESS -
CULTURAL
TRIANGLE Considered the "Eighth Wonder of the Ancient
World", the massif of the Sigiriya Rock soars upwards from
the surrounding plains. Sigiriya was an impregnable rock fortress with a man
made lake with a 8 mile dam and a series of moats. Water control and retaining systems display one of the
ancient world's most sophisticated hydraulic technologies. See
the best preserved city center in Asia from the first
millennium on the rock top.
ANURADHAPURA Sri Lanka's first capital,
founded in the 5th century B.C. is situated 206 km. from
Colombo. Attractions to see are:- The Sacred Bo Tree, Abhayagiri Dagaba, Jetavanaramaya, Brazen Palace, Thuparama
Dagaba, Samadhi Buddha, Kuttam Pokuna and Mirisawati Dagaba. Do
not miss
Mihintale 10 kms from Anuradhapura
POLONNARUWA
Polonnaruwa is second in importance as royal city only to
Anuradhapura. In the 11th Century the capital was moved here from
Anuradhapura, as it was hoped that such an inaccessible area would be better protected
from the raids from South India. As a
result Polonnaruwa became a splendid kingdom and capital. More
recently, HM Queen Elizabeth in her visit to Ceylon stayed at
the Polonnaruwa Rest House in the Queen's Suite.
TEMPLE OF TOOTH - KANDY
The Sri Dalada Maligawa or The
Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic is a temple in the city of
Kandy in Sri Lanka. It was built within the royal palace complex
which houses the only surviving relic of Buddha a tooth, it is
venerated by Buddhists. The relic has played an important role
in the local politics since ancient times, it's believed that
whoever holds the relic holds the governance of the country,
which caused the ancient kings to protect it with great effort.
DAMBULLA It is the largest and best
preserved cave temple complex in Sri Lanka. The rock towers 160
m over the surrounding plains. Although there are more than 80 documented
caves in the surrounding area, major attractions are spread over 5
caves, which contain statues and paintings related to Lord Buddha and his life.
Stay at Amaya Lake
ADAMS PEAK
Sri Pada is the term, derived from Sanskrit, used by the Sinhalese people in a religious context. This name is also understood in Pāli, and may be translated roughly as "the sacred foot". It refers to the footprint-shaped mark at the summit, which is believed by Buddhists to be that of the Buddha. Other traditions assert that it is the footprint of Adam, left by his first entrance into the world.
GALLE DUTCH FORT
Galle Fort is the finest and most intact fortified city build
by the former European colonial powers in Asia.
The narrow streets of Galle Fort are lined with Dutch merchant
villas, pillared verandas, carved doors and windows. British and
Dutch period offices are still in use. This is a living world
heritage city with residents walking the 300 year old ramparts
at sunset. Strolling along the high rampart walls you will
see the Old Dutch and English churches, the Governor's house,
the massive VOC warehouses, the Square of Courts, the elegant
pillared facade of the old Dutch hospital, the Portuguese Black
Fort, the lighthouse, the Clock Tower and much more.
SOUTH COAST BEACHES The most beautiful, wide and
sandy beaches like Beruwela can be found in South Coast
of Sri Lanka with many hotels. The South Coast has
pockets of wide beaches Nov - April and lagoons for safe all
year round swimming but generally the South coast suffers with
the seasons and many beaches narrow off April - October.
However, it does boast the best snorkelling reefs in Hikkaduwa
and Unawatuna.
Recently, Sri Lanka has moved up-market
with a new
generation of lap of luxury suite boutique beach
hotels of character, some with private plunge
pools.
See our totally independent
reviews
of 38 hotels in the Sri Lanka Hotels
Guide. These
reviews are fiercely independent and objective.
Every hotel reviewed has been personally
visited. including the most
expensive hotel in Sri Lanka - Amanwella, with
Ocean Suites with private pool.
Sri Lanka has hundreds of
rivers and small streams that originate from the
hills and offer excellent water sports facilities.
Some of the rivers such as Kelani River in Kitulgala,
southwest of Kandy , are very popular among tourists
for rafting purposes as well as boasting Hollywood
stardom as the backdrop to the film Bridge over the
River Kwai. Popular sites for canoeing are the Kalu
Ganga ( Black River ) and the Kelani Ganga.
When visiting Sri Lanka, even on a beach holiday, take
island tours to discover the Buddhist culture behind the
2000 year old ancient cities in the interior.
Popular for its tropical beaches, the unique attractions of
the island are located in the interior. Within the
Cultural
Triangle
of Sri Lanka are the historic ancient cities and world. Also
see
Undiscovered
Sri Lanka for many less well known but equally fascinating
sites like Ritigale
Marry overseas in Sri Lanka; an exotic tropical wedding destination with the romantic Indian Ocean
Beruwela beach setting you have in your dreams
Choose between a traditional Buddhist religious poruwa or civil ceremony, drummers and dancers
from the wide choice of luxury hotel inclusive
wedding packages at the Eden
Resort Spa or
Bentota Beach
Hotel.
In Accordance with our Company
Policy of "Inspect before Recommending", Most of the Sri
Lanka hotels featured on this website and The
Sri Lanka
Hotels Guide have been
personally visited and stayed at by the UK Directors Shailesh Adalja The images used on
this site have mostly been taken by ourselves during
our Sri Lankan hotel reviews visits.
