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Sri Lanka Getaway
Imagine waking up to crystal-clear waters, exploring ancient temples, and immersing yourself in a vibrant culture. Our Sri Lanka tour is the ultimate adventure for anyone looking to experience the beauty of this tropical island nation. With its rich history, stunning landscapes, and warm hospitality, Sri Lanka's got something for every kind of traveler. Whether you're into history, nature, or just chillin' on the beach, our tour will take you on a journey of discovery and create memories that'll last a lifetime.
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Sri Lanka: A Mixed Bag - What I Wish I'd Known Before
summarizeEditor's Summary
My month-long stay in Sri Lanka was a wild ride, full of ups and downs. I'm talking laid-back vibes in Weligama, but also navigating humid streets and dealing with pushy locals. It was a challenge, but also an adventure. With its rich history, stunning beaches, and vibrant culture, Sri Lanka's got something for everyone. But be warned: it's not all sunshine and rainbows. From the grueling 11-hour flight to the 3.5-hour transfer, getting to Weligama was an ordeal in itself. But was it worth it? Here's my honest take on what I wish I'd known before visiting Sri Lanka.
settingsSpecifications
KararKötü
Ulaşım6/10
HavaKalitesi4/10
SabitKanallar8/10
YemekKalitesi3/10
MutfakMalzemeleri5/10
YiyecekFiyatları2/10
I'm not going to sugarcoat it - my month-long stay in Sri Lanka was a mixed bag. I deliberately avoided reading reviews to keep my experience as unbiased as possible. But if you're considering visiting, here's what I learned from my time in Weligama.
It took me 10 days to get used to life in Weligama. The city has a laid-back vibe, but it's not without its challenges. One thing that caught me off guard was the humidity. It's incredibly humid, with some people lying on the floor and others meditating at the airport.
When you arrive, you'll probably need to make a connection. The flight took around 11 hours, and we had a layover that added another 5 hours to our journey. But if you're used to flights, it's tolerable. Then, it took us another 3.5 hours to get to our city. We arranged for a transfer, but the driver stuck to the speed limit of 60-70 km/h and didn't accelerate beyond 75 km/h. If we could have sped up to at least 90 km/h on the straight road, we would have arrived faster.
As soon as you step out of the airport in Colombo, you're hit with a weird smell - it's probably a mix of humidity and moisture, or maybe trash and waste. You can immediately buy a SIM card for 1000-1200 rubles per month, depending on how many GB of internet you need.
Food in Sri Lanka is a whole different story. Prices are steep, and don't expect to pay peanuts for a meal at a cafe. The fast food is pricey, and the quality is subpar. There are cafes and restaurants, of course, but their prices aren't exactly cheap either. A typical meal for one person, including a drink, will set you back around 1,500 rubles. A decent chicken dish at a good cafe costs around 800 rubles, while shawarma is around 700 rubles. Fresh juices are 300 rubles each. But be aware that the cuisine here has its quirks. The chicken we ordered came with feathers that hadn't been plucked.
Chicken with feathersThere are plenty of 'mistakes' like that. You'll find that sticking to seafood and not overdoing it on the meat and European-style dishes like carbonara and Caesar salads is a good idea. They're not done well here.
You can cook for yourself and buy ingredients, which is cheaper, but you'll need to get used to the local stores. The product selection is different from what you'd find back home. There are plenty of unknown products, and it's not always clear what they're for. The cheap fruits and veggies are not always of good quality. If you buy a pack of mangoes, be prepared for 1-2-3 of them to be rotten inside.
Freezer items are pricey, too - a box of nuggets costs around 600 rubles, which is steep.
On the plus side, there are plenty of fresh prawns and delicious fruit juices.
I'd recommend bringing all sorts of antidotes from home, starting with activated charcoal and ending with loperamide. The sanitation situation here is pretty dire, and I have no idea what's going on in the kitchens where they're cooking your food.
During my month-long stay, I experienced the full range of emotions. January was sweltering and humid, but then, out of nowhere, almost two weeks of rain hit. It was a real wake-up call, and it made me realize just how different life is here.
Living in poverty is a harsh reality for many locals. They're incredibly kind and laid-back, but it's a world away from what I'm used to in Moscow. If you're from a city where people are career-driven, money-hungry, and fame-obsessed, you'll find it eye-opening. The locals are happy with just having sunshine, fruits, and a place to sleep.
But be careful with your money - there are scammers everywhere. Vendors will try to sell you beach towels and walking sticks, and tour guides will hound you nonstop. The locals have this idea that white people are rich, so you have to be careful not to get taken advantage of.
We had a nightmare of a villa experience. The photos made it look okay, but that was just on the surface. When I got there, I realized why it was so cheap. The whole place was filthy, dusty, and had dirty ceilings, a thick layer of dust on the fan, ants on the kitchen counter, no closet, nowhere to put our stuff, awful bathroom fixtures... I like living in comfort where I can take a shower without worrying about cockroaches or other creepy crawlies popping out, at least have some clean closet space, not grimy dishes in the kitchen, and a relatively clean kitchen in general. Everywhere had gaps, holes in the ceiling, and on the kitchen, two doors leading outside that were infested with flying cockroaches.
I've got to say, the villa we stayed in really put a damper on my vacation experience - about 50% of it, to be honest. So, I'd highly recommend only booking places that are super clean and well-reviewed. Everyone told me that Sri Lanka is notorious for having bugs and creepy-crawlies everywhere, but I'm a bit of a skeptic. If you're staying in a place with a decent height (like 3-4 floors), you're less likely to encounter them. And if the place is well-maintained, with no gaps or holes in the walls or floor, that's even better.
Bugs are a major pet peeve of mine. There are so many of them, and they're everywhere. Different kinds, too.
We had a bunch of ants living in our villa's kitchen - they'd scurry out whenever you cleaned fish or fruit... lovely ☺️
Of course, there are the harmless little ants, and the geckos and tiny lizards. Those are tolerable, I guess.
But it's a whole different story when you're standing in the kitchen and a massive flying cockroach emerges from under the table - 10 cm long, easy. Or a frin (those huge spiders with enormous legs) drops down from the ceiling. Or you're in the shower, and you see a centipede perched on the wall, staring at you 🙂
After a week of this, I was having full-blown panic attacks, and I couldn't even sleep under the stars. It got to the point where I started seeing bugs everywhere.
I guess you just have to learn to live with it.
Rent a board for 300 rubles, or take a lesson from a coach for 1500 rubles. Surfing is a popular activity, and you'll find plenty of people out on the water.
I'm not exactly a surfer, and I'm not exactly built for it, to be honest. But my friends would get up at 7 or 8 in the morning and head to the beach to catch some waves. And lots of people do that. You've got to get there early to avoid getting burned, because the sun is super active between 11 and 12. I'd just lounge on the beach while they surfed.
Now, I know some of you might be thinking, 'Can I swim?' That was definitely on my mind, especially after reading some of the comments about the ocean being pretty rough and not suitable for swimming. And yeah, it was true. The waves were huge and it wasn't exactly safe to swim far from shore.
I'm not exactly a strong swimmer, so I stuck to swimming close to the shore. But it was still a lot of fun. And if you're looking for a cleaner beach with fewer people, there are definitely some options.
Can you work remotely?I found it tough, but doable. Our villa's Wi-Fi was a nightmare, so I ended up working from a coworking space, which had its own set of Wi-Fi issues. Video calls were a struggle, and the internet was slow as molasses. I was relieved to have only two days of work out of 26, with the rest of the time being a well-deserved break.
However, if you've got a flexible schedule, you might be able to make it work.
The traffic in Sri Lanka is insane and not what we're used to in Russia. The streets are narrow, and pedestrian paths are virtually non-existent. Buses are crazy, and big rigs are passing on the left, even when there's someone coming the other way. There aren't many traffic lights, so be prepared to lose your cool behind the wheel.
I'd recommend renting a small moped to get around. Half of the Russians I met didn't have a Category A license, but the police presence is also pretty minimal.
Walking to cafes and beaches? Forget about it. There are mini buses called 'tuk-tuks' that are like a cross between a taxi and a bus, but we didn't use them, so I'll hold off on writing about that.
We tried to find a car for our trip to Sigiriya, and ended up renting a six-seater microbus.
And then things got interesting. The car couldn't go above 60 km/h. If you went faster, the engine would overheat, and a warning light would come on. You'd have to pull over and wait for it to cool down. So, our five-hour trip to Sigiriya took eight hours instead.
Sigiriya is the eighth wonder of the world, or so I've heard. Our trip from Wilpattu to Sigiriya took around 5 hours according to the GPS, but with all the stops we made, it ended up taking us 8 hours.
The ticket cost us $35.
We arrived at Sigiriya on a Saturday at 11 am, and the queue for the hike was massive - over 100 people were waiting ahead of us. Luckily, someone told us that if we weren't locals, we could just squeeze in without waiting in line, as the locals get a significantly cheaper ticket.
The hike itself and the descent via the staircase were pretty unpleasant. The locals would push and shove, creating two lines in the narrow passage. The girl standing next to me had lice in her hair, and everyone was rubbing against you - and vice versa, since you're packed in tightly.
Under ideal circumstances and with fewer people, the hike would've taken around 15-20 minutes. The staircase was easy to climb.
The views were stunning, but honestly, it wasn't worth the 8-hour round-trip journey, the queues, and the rain. I wasn't impressed, but if you're a fan of heights and mountains, it's definitely worth checking out Sigiriya.
During our trip, we had to visit the hospital. Before our vacation, I bought a Tinkoff insurance policy for 6,000 rubles, and I'm not sure how they manage it, but they accepted me within an hour, provided free antibiotics, and offered amazing service! The doctors were great, and the hospital was clean.
When I finally opened my suitcase after returning home from Sri Lanka, a big red cockroach scurried out, making me even more miserable about my month-long stay there.
Then I started to acclimate, and I spent almost a week with a fever of 38 degrees Celsius. My legs were covered in itchy, blister-like bites that took a while to heal.
I never experienced the wild thrill that people often rave about when visiting the island. The scenery is stunning, the nature is vibrant, the ocean is breathtaking, and the waves are perfect for surfing. It's great to cruise along the beach on a motorbike, and relaxing on the beach with a fresh fruit smoothie is amazing.
However, traveling to Sri Lanka on your own, renting a villa, and living there for a month is not something I'd recommend to anyone. I can't imagine who would enjoy living in subpar conditions with a swarm of insects, paying exorbitant prices for food, and lacking any real service.
But if you're looking for a more comfortable experience, arriving at a decent hotel that serves meals for two weeks might be worth it. Just be prepared for the cost to add up.
live_helpFeatured FAQ
What's the best way to get around Sri Lanka?
Hiring a driver or taking a taxi is your best bet, as the traffic can be crazy and the roads are often narrow and winding. You can also use ride-hailing apps or public transportation, but be prepared for crowded buses and aggressive drivers.
What's the food like in Sri Lanka?
The food in Sri Lanka is incredible, with a mix of spices and flavors that'll tantalize your taste buds. Be sure to try some of the local specialties, such as hoppers, string hoppers, and pittu, as well as some of the fresh seafood and fruits.
What's the best time to visit Sri Lanka?
The dry season, from December to April, is the best time to visit Sri Lanka, when the weather is cool and dry. Avoid visiting during the rainy season, from May to November, when the roads can be flooded and the mosquitoes are at their worst.
What's the cost of living in Sri Lanka?
The cost of living in Sri Lanka is relatively low, especially when it comes to accommodations and food. However, prices can be steep in tourist areas, so be sure to budget accordingly and try to avoid eating at touristy restaurants.
What's the culture like in Sri Lanka?
The culture in Sri Lanka is rich and vibrant, with a mix of Buddhist, Hindu, and Muslim influences. Be sure to respect local customs and traditions, especially when visiting temples or attending cultural events.
What's the best way to stay safe in Sri Lanka?
Be aware of your surroundings and take necessary precautions, such as avoiding crowded areas and using reputable transportation services. You should also be mindful of your belongings and keep valuables secure.
What's the best way to communicate with locals in Sri Lanka?
Learning some basic Sinhala and Tamil phrases, such as 'hello' and 'thank you,' is a good start. You can also use a translation app or ask for help from a local guide or tour operator.
What's the best way to navigate the streets in Sri Lanka?
Using a GPS or a map app is your best bet, as the roads can be narrow and winding. You should also be prepared for chaotic traffic and aggressive drivers, and consider hiring a driver or taking a taxi to get around.
check_circlePros
- •The beaches in Weligama are straight out of a postcard, with crystal-clear waters and powdery white sand.
- •The food in Sri Lanka is incredible, with a mix of spices and flavors that'll tantalize your taste buds.
- •The locals are friendly and welcoming, eager to share their culture and traditions with visitors.
- •The history and architecture in Sri Lanka are fascinating, with ancient temples and ruins that'll transport you back in time.
- •The natural beauty of Sri Lanka is breathtaking, with lush green forests, rolling hills, and scenic waterfalls.
- •The people in Sri Lanka are resilient and resourceful, having overcome centuries of colonial rule and conflict to build a thriving economy and culture.
cancelCons
- •The humidity in Sri Lanka is oppressive, making it tough to navigate the streets and enjoy outdoor activities.
- •The traffic in Sri Lanka is chaotic, with honking horns and aggressive drivers making it a challenge to get around.
- •The prices in Sri Lanka are steep, especially when it comes to food and accommodations.
- •The service in Sri Lanka can be slow and unfriendly, especially in tourist areas.
- •The mosquitoes in Sri Lanka are relentless, making it hard to enjoy outdoor activities without getting bitten.
- •The locals in Sri Lanka can be pushy and aggressive, especially when it comes to selling their wares or services.
