10 Day Trip to Sri Lanka in $600
Hi Folks,
I will be talking about my 10 day trip to the island country of Sri Lanka in South Asia in this post.
This was a couple trip from Delhi (India) to Colombo and back. The itinerary we followed is below:
Day 1: Start from Delhi, and reach Colmbo. Transfer to Dambulla
Day 2: Day trip to Sigiriya & Pidurangula (20Kms from Dambulla)
Day 3: Day trip to Trincomalee
Day 4: Day trip to Anuradhapura
Day 5: Transfer to Kandy
Day 6: Transfer to Nuwara Eliya
Day 7: Transfer to Ella
Day 8: Transfer to Galle
Day 9: Galle local sight seeing
Day 10: Transfer to Colombo and return journey
Places we missed, but are worth visiting: Jaffna in northern Lanka, Polonuruwa which is a part of the cultural triangle, Mirissa, Bentota, and the capital city - Colombo!
Few pointers to keep in mind: Sri Lankan currency is Lankan Rupee (LKR). It is a closed currency, which means you will mostly need to exchange currency after you land in Lanka. The best way to enjoy a good exchange rate is to draw cash from ATM/Debit cards, and use cash everywhere(which is the most welcome form of financial transactions). Check with your bank for the transaction charges applicable, before landing in Lanka.
The exchange rates when we visited were : 1 Indian rupee = 2.32 LKR, and 1 USD ~73 Indian Rupee
Travel Options: You can hire a cab from airport to airport for the entire trip duration. A self-driven car will cost anywhere between 25K-50K LKR, depending on the type of car, the car rental agency, etc. All foreign tourists will need an International Driving Permit (IDP) to drive in Lanka. People who opt for self-driven cabs usually book it with a rental agency before arriving in Colombo. This is the most comfortable way to explore Sri Lanka, and with favorable exchange rates, these are very competitive prices.
We were not able to get our IDP on time, and hence opted out of self-driven cabs. The next alternative is either a Tuk-Tuk(Indian equivalent of Auto-rickshaws), or the good old buses!
We moved around the country both on tuk-tuks and buses, wherever applicable.
Locals speak Sinhalese mostly, few Tamil speakers, and very few English speaking locals. Most hotel owners do speak English however.( When everything fails, sign language - the universal language for humans, works very well!)
Stay Options:
Booking.com is the most prevalent and recognized website used by tourists to book hotels. Most tourist places have large inventory of rooms/home-stays/Bunk beds/Hostels/Dorms. Other sites like Yoho/Oyo etc were also available although, less prevalent.
We did not book a single room before landing. All the bookings were made, after we landed in that town, and there were good amount of last minute deals that we cashed in on.
Local food options: Check out my post on Sri Lankan cuisine and dishes one must try, when in Ceylon, here
Budget:
The entire trip costed us (Me and my husband), 43,000 Indian rupees. This includes flight tickets, which we had booked 6 months in advance and got them for 20,000 Indian rupees (round trip, 2pax). All other trip expenses were in Lankan rupees, which gave us the exchange benefit. Have shared the hotel expenses, food expenses, monument ticket details, in relevant sections below.
Trip in Detail:
We started from Delhi(India) at 6AM, and landed in Chennai (India) at 9AM. The transit flight to Colombo was at 12 noon, and we landed in Colombo at 1PM. Post customs clearance, we withdrew cash from the ATM in the airport and took a tuk-tuk to Negombo bus stand. From Negombo, there are AC buses to Kurunegala(an intermediate station for changing buses), followed by a normal bus from Kurunegala to Dambulla. We reached Dambulla at around 7PM.
We had some snacks in the local food joints, and booked a homestay through booking.com (here). The owner of this homestay was amazing! He was very very helpful, with the local directions, food options and took very good care of us during the stay. (We had interesting conversations on Indian and Lankan Cricket players over dinner with him!)
We started from our hotel at around 7.15AM after having this nutritious breakfast, and reached Dambulla bus stand near the clock tower. The bus to Sigiriya started at around 8AM, and we reached Sigirya rock fortress at around 8.30AM.
Sigiriya rock fortress is the crown-jewel of Sri Lanka. It is a heritage site, which was King Kasyapa's palace (atop the 200m high rock). The fresco paintings and the lion's paws are worth seeing on the way up. We took around 3 hrs to reach the top, (walking at a leisurely pace). It was crowded since the day we went was a Sunday.
The monument opens from 7AM to 7PM. The sooner you reach there, the less crowded it will be. There is a 50% discount in the entry fee for Indian/SAARC tourists, once you show your passport.
Very close to Sigirya is the Pidurangula rock. It has a sleeping Buddha temple both at the start of the trek, and midway up to the top.We trekked till Mid-way, and returned back . (It was extremely hot that day, and we had finished our water supplies). There is no food/water up there for both Sigirya and Pidurangula, and hence do carry enough water supplies. A hat/umbrella is also very much useful here!
We returned back at around 4PM on a bus from Sigiriya to Dambulla. It took us an hour. We were very tired with the hike and the heat and called in early that evening.
Next day was our trip to Trincomalee. This is a coastal town on the eastern border of Lanka. This town is around 3hrs from Dambulla. We took a bus from Dambulla at around 9AM, and reached Trincomalee at around 12Noon. There are two kinds of tourists here - Indian and local tourists who visit this town to check Out Konesvaram Kovil or the famous Shakti Peeth Shiva temple. The second kind are Non-Asian tourists, who explore the lovely beaches and sea food options this town has. We tried to balance the two!
We went to the Konesvaran Kovil and took blessings from the local deity. Post our temple visit, we checked out the lovely beaches, and had a sumptous Sri Lankan lunch. (More about Lankan delicacies in my post here). There are many bikes for rent available in Trincomalee. We did not stay for the night here, and returned back to Dambulla by bus.
The next stop on our itinerary was cultural town of Anuradhapura. Check out my detailed post here for a day in Anuradhapura.
We next headed to Kandy from Anuradhapura. Check out this detailed post on my day visit to Kandy here
From Kandy we headed to the beautiful Nuwara Eliya. This is a very nice hill station in Sri Lanka. Check out my post on places to visit in Nuwara Eliya here.
From Nuwara Eliya we headed to Ella, which is also another hill station. Check out my post here on places to visit in Ella.
The final destination in our trip was Galle. True to it's name, the last destination was probably the most beautiful one!! Check out my post here on our sojourn to Galle.
We took a transfer bus from Galle -> Kadwathe -> Negombo -> Airport Shuttle.
Sri Lanka is a very beautiful Asian country that every international tourist must visit once for sure. We made lovely memories, tried very tasty dishes here and loved the helpful spirit of the locals. Don't forget to buy some lovely souvenirs all along!
I will be talking about my 10 day trip to the island country of Sri Lanka in South Asia in this post.
This was a couple trip from Delhi (India) to Colombo and back. The itinerary we followed is below:
Day 1: Start from Delhi, and reach Colmbo. Transfer to Dambulla
Day 2: Day trip to Sigiriya & Pidurangula (20Kms from Dambulla)
Day 3: Day trip to Trincomalee
Day 4: Day trip to Anuradhapura
Day 5: Transfer to Kandy
Day 6: Transfer to Nuwara Eliya
Day 7: Transfer to Ella
Day 8: Transfer to Galle
Day 9: Galle local sight seeing
Day 10: Transfer to Colombo and return journey
Places we missed, but are worth visiting: Jaffna in northern Lanka, Polonuruwa which is a part of the cultural triangle, Mirissa, Bentota, and the capital city - Colombo!
Few pointers to keep in mind: Sri Lankan currency is Lankan Rupee (LKR). It is a closed currency, which means you will mostly need to exchange currency after you land in Lanka. The best way to enjoy a good exchange rate is to draw cash from ATM/Debit cards, and use cash everywhere(which is the most welcome form of financial transactions). Check with your bank for the transaction charges applicable, before landing in Lanka.
The exchange rates when we visited were : 1 Indian rupee = 2.32 LKR, and 1 USD ~73 Indian Rupee
Travel Options: You can hire a cab from airport to airport for the entire trip duration. A self-driven car will cost anywhere between 25K-50K LKR, depending on the type of car, the car rental agency, etc. All foreign tourists will need an International Driving Permit (IDP) to drive in Lanka. People who opt for self-driven cabs usually book it with a rental agency before arriving in Colombo. This is the most comfortable way to explore Sri Lanka, and with favorable exchange rates, these are very competitive prices.
We were not able to get our IDP on time, and hence opted out of self-driven cabs. The next alternative is either a Tuk-Tuk(Indian equivalent of Auto-rickshaws), or the good old buses!
We moved around the country both on tuk-tuks and buses, wherever applicable.
Locals speak Sinhalese mostly, few Tamil speakers, and very few English speaking locals. Most hotel owners do speak English however.( When everything fails, sign language - the universal language for humans, works very well!)
Stay Options:
Booking.com is the most prevalent and recognized website used by tourists to book hotels. Most tourist places have large inventory of rooms/home-stays/Bunk beds/Hostels/Dorms. Other sites like Yoho/Oyo etc were also available although, less prevalent.
We did not book a single room before landing. All the bookings were made, after we landed in that town, and there were good amount of last minute deals that we cashed in on.
Local food options: Check out my post on Sri Lankan cuisine and dishes one must try, when in Ceylon, here
Budget:
The entire trip costed us (Me and my husband), 43,000 Indian rupees. This includes flight tickets, which we had booked 6 months in advance and got them for 20,000 Indian rupees (round trip, 2pax). All other trip expenses were in Lankan rupees, which gave us the exchange benefit. Have shared the hotel expenses, food expenses, monument ticket details, in relevant sections below.
Trip in Detail:
We started from Delhi(India) at 6AM, and landed in Chennai (India) at 9AM. The transit flight to Colombo was at 12 noon, and we landed in Colombo at 1PM. Post customs clearance, we withdrew cash from the ATM in the airport and took a tuk-tuk to Negombo bus stand. From Negombo, there are AC buses to Kurunegala(an intermediate station for changing buses), followed by a normal bus from Kurunegala to Dambulla. We reached Dambulla at around 7PM.
We had some snacks in the local food joints, and booked a homestay through booking.com (here). The owner of this homestay was amazing! He was very very helpful, with the local directions, food options and took very good care of us during the stay. (We had interesting conversations on Indian and Lankan Cricket players over dinner with him!)
 |
| The nutritious breakfast spread in our home-stay. 10 Varieties of fruits - Banana, Mango, Papaya, Water Melon, Star Fruit, Dragon Fruit, Avocado, Guava, Passion Fruit & Pinepapple! |
We started from our hotel at around 7.15AM after having this nutritious breakfast, and reached Dambulla bus stand near the clock tower. The bus to Sigiriya started at around 8AM, and we reached Sigirya rock fortress at around 8.30AM.
Sigiriya rock fortress is the crown-jewel of Sri Lanka. It is a heritage site, which was King Kasyapa's palace (atop the 200m high rock). The fresco paintings and the lion's paws are worth seeing on the way up. We took around 3 hrs to reach the top, (walking at a leisurely pace). It was crowded since the day we went was a Sunday.
 |
| First look of the magnificent Sigiriya Rock |
 |
| Yours Truly on the way up! |
 |
| Lion's Paw. The final climb up to the top of the fortress |
The monument opens from 7AM to 7PM. The sooner you reach there, the less crowded it will be. There is a 50% discount in the entry fee for Indian/SAARC tourists, once you show your passport.
Very close to Sigirya is the Pidurangula rock. It has a sleeping Buddha temple both at the start of the trek, and midway up to the top.We trekked till Mid-way, and returned back . (It was extremely hot that day, and we had finished our water supplies). There is no food/water up there for both Sigirya and Pidurangula, and hence do carry enough water supplies. A hat/umbrella is also very much useful here!
 |
| Pidurangula rock shot from top of the Sigiriya Fortress |
Next day was our trip to Trincomalee. This is a coastal town on the eastern border of Lanka. This town is around 3hrs from Dambulla. We took a bus from Dambulla at around 9AM, and reached Trincomalee at around 12Noon. There are two kinds of tourists here - Indian and local tourists who visit this town to check Out Konesvaram Kovil or the famous Shakti Peeth Shiva temple. The second kind are Non-Asian tourists, who explore the lovely beaches and sea food options this town has. We tried to balance the two!
We went to the Konesvaran Kovil and took blessings from the local deity. Post our temple visit, we checked out the lovely beaches, and had a sumptous Sri Lankan lunch. (More about Lankan delicacies in my post here). There are many bikes for rent available in Trincomalee. We did not stay for the night here, and returned back to Dambulla by bus.
 |
| In front of Konesvaran Kovil |
 |
| The lovely beach along Trincomalee Coast |
The next stop on our itinerary was cultural town of Anuradhapura. Check out my detailed post here for a day in Anuradhapura.
We next headed to Kandy from Anuradhapura. Check out this detailed post on my day visit to Kandy here
From Kandy we headed to the beautiful Nuwara Eliya. This is a very nice hill station in Sri Lanka. Check out my post on places to visit in Nuwara Eliya here.
From Nuwara Eliya we headed to Ella, which is also another hill station. Check out my post here on places to visit in Ella.
The final destination in our trip was Galle. True to it's name, the last destination was probably the most beautiful one!! Check out my post here on our sojourn to Galle.
We took a transfer bus from Galle -> Kadwathe -> Negombo -> Airport Shuttle.
Sri Lanka is a very beautiful Asian country that every international tourist must visit once for sure. We made lovely memories, tried very tasty dishes here and loved the helpful spirit of the locals. Don't forget to buy some lovely souvenirs all along!
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