A backpacker’s guide around Sri Lanka: 2 weeks itinerary

Sri Lanka is a great country that has countless beautiful sights. Two weeks is an ideal length for a Sri Lanka route.

Sri Lanka is a quite small country/ island where the distances between the sights are relatively short, making it an easy country to travel in, although getting from point A to B can be time-consuming due to traffic.

Sri Lanka it’s about nature, cultural sights, kind people, sea!

The island is rich in history and culture, there are many Buddhist temples, relics (Buddha’s tooth in the Temple in Kandy)

Let’s talk about prices. 14 days/per 2 – $ 1700.
Flight – $1000.
Accommodation – $200 (lowest price per night was $10, highest $30).
Snorkeling, whales watching – $ 38-40 per person.
Motorbike, taxi, souvenirs, national parks, cafe etc

Things to pack:

Sun Protection Cream with SPF
Power plug adapter (Sri Lanka uses socket type D)
rain-cover
Mosquito and fly killer device
headphones . Each bus has huge speakers, lights, Buddha / Shiva iconostasis (depending on the religion of the driver). In general, their local pop is not tense, but sometimes instead of pop there is some kind of Indian music that carries the brain.

Some Sri Lanka Facts

Money: Sri Lankan Rupee
Population: 22.9 million inhabitants (2020)
Languages: Sinhala and Tamil
Religion: mainly Buddhists (70%), Hindus (12%), Muslims (9%) Catholics (6%)
The largest city of Sri Lanka is Colombo with about 600,000 inhabitants. Colombo is the main business hub of the country.
Sri Lanka’s highest mountain peak is the Piduruthalagala with 2,524 m
The Kandy to Ella train journey is often named among the most scenic train rides in the world.

Overnight in the following cities (prices are for two in rupees):

Dambula – 2770 Rs

Trincomalee – (1500×3) = 4500 Rs

Kandy – 1725 Rs

Nuwara Ella – 2000 Rs

Tangalle – (2500×2) = 5000 Rs

Tangelle – 1200 Rs

Hikkaduwa – (4000×2) = 8000 Rs

🚌 Transport

Getting around the island is cheap and easy via public transport – trains and buses. They are not always super comfortable and often delayed.

You can go through online agency 12go.com and try to check schedule. Moving by tuk-tuk is possible when you want to travel near cities or for a day trips.

Weather

Sir Lankan weather depends on periodical monsoons, and better to know about them before planning a trip. So, Sri Lanka has two major monsoon seasons:

From May to September – the south-western monsoon brings rain to the south and west + Hill Country
From December to March – dry (high) season for Hill Country + south and west. But keeps the East, North wet.

Food

Yeeeep, Sri Lankan food is spicy 🙂

Rice & curry is available anywhere and it’s easy to find vegetarian curries. The main common ingredients of Sri Lankan cuisine are: rice, coconut and various spices.