Toes curling into fine sand.

The aquamarine blue waves of the Indian Ocean gently unfolding on the golden shore.

A fresh coconut sipped in the shade of wind-whispering palms.

A (not-too-long) bask in the morning or late afternoon sun.

A cool-off in the vast expanse of sun-glittering sea.

Some of the delights of a Sri Lankan beach.

Where beaches are concerned you will be spoilt for choice in Sri Lanka. Beaches totaling 1,340Km fringe the island, from the long-established tourist destinations of the southern coast, to the vast beaches of the deep south, and the less-visited expanses of the north and east. No matter what time of the year, you can find a beach that is in season and just waiting to welcome you to its warm sands.

The southern coast
Most visitors to Sri Lanka head to the beach destinations of the southern coast mostly situated south of Colombo. Each destination has developed its own distinctive character and highlights, and all are within easy reach of the capital. Let’s start with Negombo (37km from Colombo), situated only 6km from the Bandaranaike International Airport and therefore an excellent option for those on a short trip to the island or restricted to Colombo.

The town has a long history of tourism and a wide beach, but also tempts the visitor with Dutch canal boat tours, a colourful fish market, and lively bars after dark. Equally convenient for those visiting the capital is Mount Lavinia beach – a mere 12km south of the city centre. The beach is a great place to stroll in the evenings and on holidays, and enjoy dining at one of the many and varied restaurants. Recently it has become a night-time destination for some of the most high profile parties in Colombo.

Moving down the coast, the visitor leaves the urban sprawl and begins to scene the more relaxed nature of the south-west coast. Wadduwa (35km from Colombo) is a favourite weekend destination for many Colombo dwellers and features one of the most beautiful hotels on the coast.

Kalutara (42km from Colombo) hosts a number of star-class hotels, another typically stunning beach, and also a majestic three-storey Buddhist temple, which has the world’s only hollow stupa. The road finally joins the coastline after crossing the railway tracks at Payagala and from this point onwards you are treated to a stunning drive overlooking cove after cove of pristine beach.

Bentota (62km from Colombo) remains one of the most delightful beach resorts of this coast with large star-class hotels, exclusive boutiques, and even the delightful gardens of Bevis Bawa – brother of Sri Lanka’s most famous architect. On top of all this, Bentota boasts wide, picturesque beaches, and the Bentota Ganga (river) on which tourists can take a cruise inland or take part in water-sports.

From Bentota onwards, beaches stretch before the visitor consistently Induruwa until finally we reach Hikkaduwa (98km from Colombo) – one of the most famous beach resorts in the island. Hikkaduwa is renowned for its diving and coral reef, as well as its surfing and nightlife.

Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka, is a surprise among the cities of Asia. Unlike sprawling Mumbai or Manila, it is compact and less chaotic, but still rich in the number of experiences on offer. It may not have the showy nightlife of Bangkok or the sprawling shopping malls of Kuala Lumpur, but it is not lacking in entertainment and activities.

Visitors to Sri Lanka rarely spend much time in Colombo – after all, who can blame them, when the island has such a wealth of amazing destinations to discover? But for those who have the curiosity to explore one of the oldest port cities in the region, a fascinating history will be revealed, containing layers of cultural influence.

Story
Colombo occupies a coastal strip on the western side of the island. Because of its strategic position on the East-West trade routes, it was known to Roman, Arab and Chinese traders over 2,000 years ago. Some believe “Colombo” was coined by the Portuguese from their interpretation of Kolonthola, or “Port on the River Kelani”, others that it derives from Kolambathota or “Harbour with leafy mango trees”.

The Portuguese arrived in 1505 and signed a treaty with the King of Kotte (an adjacent area now the Administrative Capital) that enabled them to trade in the cinnamon growing along the coast (an exclusive neighbourhood in Colombo is named Cinnamon Gardens). Following the fall of Kotte in 1593, the Portuguese were able to establish control over the coast and established Colombo as their capital.

In 1638, the ruler of the Kandyan Kingdom signed a treaty with the Dutch to dislodge the Portuguese. After an epic siege in 1656, the Dutch succeeded in capturing Colombo – and gained control of the cinnamon trade against the wishes of the Kandyans. Britain, fearing the island would fall to the French (who controlled the Netherlands), seized the coastal areas in 1796 with little or no resistance (and later were the first to capture the Kandyan Kingdom) and so the second colonial power was overcome by a rival. The British were the first to regard Colombo as something more than a military outpost, constructing houses and other buildings that formed the core of what is now the City of Colombo.

When Sri Lanka gained independence in 1948 a new era of cultural transformation began – but the influence of the British, Dutch and Portuguese remains deep in the city’s DNA. It’s there in the European names of some of the city’s inhabitants; in the Dutch cuisine; in the colonnaded buildings that still serve as administrative offices; and in the lingua franca, English, spoken with varying degrees of fluency by most people in the city. Today, with a population of 650,000, Colombo has a multifaceted community represented by all of Sri Lanka’s major cultures – Sinhalese, Tamil, Muslim and Burgher.