People: I quite liked Sri Lankan people. They speak really good English, which makes it easy to communicate, and are mostly very helpful. Of course, you will get the annoying tuk tuk driver here and there, but even they helped me and showed me the way to the bus once it was clear I was not going with their tuk tuk. And I was happy guys didn’t stare at me like in India! The travellers I met were a colourful mix: Many only on a 2-3 week vacation from work, some on a visa-run from India, some yoga and meditation freaks etc.

Food: Spicyyyy! I liked the food in Sri Lanka, but there was not a lot of variety. Rice & curry was always more or less the same, and then there was Kottu Roti. Fried noodles and rice was not as good as in other Asian countries, so I sticked to these 2 menu options mostly. Cost was rather low – for about 1-2€ you would get a VERY big plate of food!

Weather: I am very happy to report that I have not had a single day of bad weather while in Sri Lanka!! 🙂 I was sooo happy about the permanent sunshine, after my weather struggle in Vietnam.

Costs: Everyone told me that Sri Lanka is more expensive than other countries in SEA. I guess they have been to a different Sri Lanka! 😉 My average daily spend was 26,40€ and that includes all the expensive tours and entrance fees like whale watching, the safari in Yala NP, Sigiriya etc.! I certainly could have lived much cheaper if I had not done so many tours and sightseeing. Also, beers are quite expensive. I didn’t drink much, but if you don’t at all, that’s another way to save money.

Accommodation: Dorm beds were about 3-8€/night and sometimes I shared a double/triple room for the same cost. Twice I stayed in my own room for 8€/11€ per night. The quality was mixed, often I would rather say „ok“ than exceptional. I guess I was spoiled from Vietnam!

Infrastructure: I ended up travelling mostly by bus, which reminded me a lot of Guatemala. Super old, rickety busses drive you through the whole country and it’s easy enough to just hop on and off again. Only often they were very full and I was cursing every minute of my ride when I did not get a seat and had to stand for hours! Trains were much better, but it only made sense for me twice to take them. Tuk tuks also often offer to take you longer distances, but I don’t really see the point since they are so loud and you breathe in all the fumes. Then rather bus, and pay only 1/10 or so! 😉 Oh, I forgot: busses were suuuuuper cheap, probably the cheapest I have ever experienced.

Illnesses: I spent the first few days still recovering a bit from my cold from Vietnam, and felt a bit sick again towards the end…but overall all was good!

Safety: No problems, and did not feel unsafe anywhere.

Itinerary: I travelled along the typical backpacker route, although in the contrary direction of pretty much everyone else. Most people wanna finish off with some beach time which is understandable. I did see an advantage of travelling counter-clockwise though: The train from Ella to Kandy was not very full and it was easy to get good seats. In the other direction, wagons were full and many people had to stand… I have one main travel regret when it comes to Sri Lanka, and that is staying in Mirissa instead of Tangalle area. Otherwise, everything worked out pretty well. I guess I could have squeezed in Polonnaruwa somehow, but it was also ok for me not to see it anymore. I would have been interested to see Trincomalee, Jaffna and some more places in the North, but it was not the best season to go there. So maybe, if I ever come back,…

Highlight: Ella and surroundings.

Lowlight: Mirissa and Kandy.

Click here to see all my pictures of Sri Lanka.