Kalutara presides over the mouth of the Kalu Ganga River, less than an hour’s drive from the capital, Colombo. It was once a thriving spice port, ruled by the Portuguese, Dutch and British, but is now better known as the source of Sri Lanka…

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This little, laid-back resort on the south coast is among our favourite on the island thanks to its low-key feel and picturesque shoreline. Spread over three separate bays bounded by rocky headlands, the village nestles under a canopy of co…

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In complete contrast to the more arid country to its east, the 34-sq-mile (88-sq-km) Sinharaja Forest Reserve is the country’s last viable area of primary tropical rainforest. The hilly area has long featured in local legends and lore. Its…

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Midway between Colombo city and Galle on the southwest coast of Sri Lanka, Bentota is a byword for ‘watersports’, with some of the best facilities on the island. The area also holds an exceptional array of beaches, most of them surprisingly…

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Dotted along the prettiest stretch of the south coast, Tangalle consists of a series of gorgeous little coves enfolded by screens of gently inclining coconut palms and piles of black granite boulders. Tourism in the area is low key, and the…

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Dominated by extensive plains interspersed with occasional hills and rocky outcrops, Udawalawe National Park is among the most popular in Sri Lanka. Created in the early 1970s as a sanctuary for animals displaced by a new reservoir on the W…

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Half an hour’s drive east of Galle, Weligama Bay forms a conspicuous bite out of the Sri Lanka’s heavenly south coast, and one that has attracted surprisingly few visitors given the spectacular, golden sand beach that lines most of it. Spre…

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When it comes to spotting Sri Lanka’s leopards, the dry woodlands and scrub of 377-sq-mile (978-sq-km) Yala National Park are unsurpassed. It is the country’s oldest and most popular reserve with lovely varied landscapes encompassing forest…

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Bundala, in the far south of Sri Lanka, is one of Asia’s birding hot spots. September til March is the best time to visit, when scores of migratory birds flock in to breed on the park’s chain of brackish coastal lagoons, or ‘lewaya’. The la…

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