Crossing Sri Lanka. From the western capital Colombo to the small eastern surfer village Arugambay and all the way back again. That was our travel plan. Sri Lanka is still an authentic island, bumpy earth roads that they call motorways here are not yet completely overrun by hordes of tourists with selfie cameras in their hands. That was the reason why we chose this holiday destination, in search of what it really has to offer.
18 days, four breathtaking hotels. On the basis of the four hotels where we crawled between velvety soft sheets every night, I sketch a picture of our journey through Sri Lanka. A journey that combined a bustling capital, uninhabited island-like beaches, overwhelming nature, local authenticity and hippy culture. The best of everything. And all that with five-star comfort that lets you experience the rather primitive island in all its glory. Overnight stays in places that are a true Sri Lankan experience in themselves.
Colombo is the capital of Sri Lanka, and probably also the city where you land by plane. At least, that was the case with us. It was exactly how I had imagined it to be. When I think of Asian capitals, I think: pressure. (Read: typical Asian roads full of mopeds and tuktuks that have never heard of any traffic rules). And Colombo certainly was that. It is not exceptionally admirable or special, but of course you don’t have to fill every minute of your first day with activities. After a long flight, it is also just nice to maintain your wonjetlag and take an afternoon nap on a nice soft bed.
So we chose to spend our first afternoon nap (and the following night) at Lake Lodge. A hotel in the bustling centre of the city. But you hardly notice that. The dark earth tones in which the whole hotel is wrapped give it a very chic, modern and urban atmosphere. From the terrace, you have a view over the few skyscrapers that Colombo has to offer. In some parts of the hotel, you really have the feeling of being in the middle of the city, while in others, you seem to be spending the night somewhere in the nature. The complex has a spacious courtyard, where some rooms give out. You even have your own little terrace. Comfort at its best.
Visit Tip: During our short stay in the capital, we visited our first Sri Lankan temple of many: the Gangaramaya Temple. It is a funny sight, on a wide, extremely busy street right in the centre of the city, the small Buddhist temple is hidden between two modern, large buildings. But once you are inside, after you have put away your shoes between dozens of other shoes of locals with shoe size 34 of course, it is quite a big complex. Definitely a must!
2. Kalpitiya – Bar Reef Resort: a hidden paradise
As I mentioned in passing in the intro, the highways in Sri Lanka go disguised as dusty, bumpy dirt roads. Since we were going to spend three weeks in a car quite a lot, we opted to hire a private driver. Our extremely polite driver, after bending his head in greeting, set the GPS (read: his very primitive TomTom) that first day to Bar Reef Resort in Kalpitiya. A village in the northwest of the island, in the Puttalam district. It is a narrow piece of land, situated between the Indian Ocean and the Puttalam Lagoon. And it is still relatively unknown to tourists. Kalpitiya is “perfect for nature lovers and adventure sport enthusiasts” as the owners of Bar Reef Resort Kalpitiya describe on their website. You can take a boat tour of the lagoon, sailing between the 14 small, bushy islands and watching the schools of dolphins swimming around. You can also do several water sports there, windsurfing, kite surfing, snorkelling, scuba diving… But, let’s be honest, we were mainly there on our lazy butts enjoying the paradisiacal resort.
A huge swimming pool that seems to run over into the Indian Ocean, rows of palm trees, idyllic huts. One word: wow. It is the kind of place you dream about every day at home (at least, I do). The kind of place you think cannot possibly be as beautiful as your imagination. But it does exist, ladies and gentlemen, the real dream location. When we stayed here, there were almost no other guests. We had the whole complex virtually to ourselves. There was also no cat on the beach. And I can tell you, the Indian Ocean has the temperature of a jacuzzi compared to the North Sea.
3. Dambulla – Heritance Kandalama: hotel on stilts, in the middle of the jungle
A few days later we jumped back into our private taxi, all ready for our next adventure; the jungle area of Dambulla, the heart of Sri Lanka. And I think the hotel we chose here is my favourite hotel of the whole list. What is so special about this hotel, I hear you think? You don’t see it.
Yes, I literally mean that you don’t see the hotel. It’s a gigantic complex built into a rock, meant to blend perfectly with its surrounding nature. And it certainly has. Would you like to take a real nature walk on the roof of the hotel? No problem at all! In your room, the hanging plants on the outer walls even give you the impression of sleeping in a tree. In addition, the building is on stilts, so that water and jungle animals can roam undisturbed under the hotel. If all this is not special enough for you, the hotel also has the infinity pool of infinity pools: one that flows perfectly into the Kandalama Lake. But apart from all these remarkable features, Heritance Kandalama is also simply a place of luxury. You can, for example, have a massage while watching the monkeys run around. Like being a millionaire on safari.
For me personally, it is the most unique place I have ever slept. Or maybe even been. You won’t find this anywhere else.
Small extra tip; keep your eyes open when having breakfast on the terrace at your room. Monkeys like a croissant too.
Visit Tip: In this area, the single most important sight is undoubtedly the Lion’s Rock Sigiriya. It is a must-see. This World Heritage site is a 1600 year old complex that once served as the king’s palace and citadel. The ruins, which sit atop Sigirya, are a tough hike to reach, but oh so impressive.
4. Arugambay – Hideaway Resort, where hip long-haired surfers are at home
Hop to something more modest: Arugambay. The surf town of Sri Lanka and the place for hip, long-haired Australian surfers. Our hotel, Hideaway Resort, was packed with them. This place clearly attracts a very different public. The authentic Sri Lankan street scene is disturbed by bare feet, surfboards, sunburnt dreadlocks and relaxed smiles. You almost feel guilty if you wear shoes. It’s a real community of people who share the secret of fabulous Arugambay.
Hideaway Resort consists of a few cottages, hidden in a kind of dense forest. You might lose your way there once or twice that first day. But once you get the hang of orientation, you soon find the common area where everyone sits around the table and experienced travellers share fantastic stories about their adventures.
The life motto you seem to be obliged to possess when visiting Arugambay is obviously“go with the flow”. But for us, that was no problem at all. Most important tip for staying in this village: ask for Jaya at the hotel reception. Jaya is a true local who took us under his wing for a few days. And Jaya was a real spirit animal. The smile that his two remaining lower teeth displayed could not be wiped off his face and his helpfulness was unseen. He also had his own tuktuk, with which he proudly showed us around his village. And so, every day, we threw our rented surfboards on top of the tuktuk and set off for the beach. Jaya had, besides being a fisherman, turned himself into a surf instructor. He himself could stand up elegantly on a surfboard, but his surfing lessons were not going to turn us into professional surfers. In short, he just did something. But it was sympathetic. One advantage: his knowledge of the area meant he knew the most beautiful deserted beaches to give his new pupils a not-so-professional surf lesson.
Through Jaya, we were given the opportunity to really “go with the flow” of our days in Arugambay. He personally made sure, perhaps unconsciously, that we got to see all the beauty that the place has to offer. For instance, during one of our rides in the tuktuk, he suddenly slammed his foot down on the brake and pointed to the side of the road, smiling. Apparently, it’s normal to see Indian elephants grazing along the streets.
Though Sri Lanka may not yet be fully adapted to common tourist needs and desires, theisland has fantastic and unique experiences to offer. On top of that, you can live like a king while in Italy, for example, you can stay in a mediocre hotel in a mediocre place for the same money. Sri Lanka can be proud of its two greatest assets: its unspoilt nature and its extremely friendly people. I mean, you only have to look at our good friend Jaya to understand what I mean. The pride with which he shows the swimming local cows is contagious, isn’t it?
Info about the hotels & accommodations can be found here:
Hotel Bar Reef Resort: https://www.barreefresort.com
Hotel Heritance Kandalama: https://www.heritancehotels. com/kandalama/
Hotel Hideaway Arugambay: https://www.hideawayarugambay.com
Lake Lodge: https://www.taruvillas.com/lake-lodge/
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