INDIAN OCEAN SRI LANKA DESTINATIONS “I
t’s not India ‘lite’, you know,” a Sri Lankan friend
told me. “And we have egg hoppers.” As country overviews go, it was succinct, if random. You can’t deny certain cultural similarities between this island nation – known as Ceylon until independence in 1948 – and its neighbour across the water; deliciously spiced curries, cricket culture, tea obsession, Ayurvedic spas, tuk-tuks and temples, mixed with colonial-era architecture from the presence of the Portuguese, Dutch and British. Both multicultural and multi-ethnic, here the majority Sinhalese are predominantly Buddhist, celebrating Poya full- moon days, with Hindu Tamils, Muslims from Sri Lanka’s trading hub days and indigenous hunter- gatherer Veddahs adding to the melting pot. Sri Lanka hasn’t had it easy. A brutal civil war between
1983 and 2009 pitted the Tamil Tigers against the national army, and 2004’s tsunami proved catastrophic. Post-war and post-tsunami efforts have gone a long way to restoring Sri Lanka’s fortunes and although British Airways terminated flights in 2015, Sri Lankan Airlines invested in their stock, and domestic carriers Cinnamon Air and Helitours are growing.
w COLOMBO: A CAPITAL IDEA Sri Lanka packs it in – tea plantations, national parks, ancient ruins and colonial towns sit in an area about the size of Ireland. Two separate monsoon zones ensure year-round beach stints – summer on the east coast, winter on the west – along its 1,000-mile coastline, and many are a comfortable one-to-three- hour drive from the international airport and capital of Colombo,
Sri Lanka packs it in – tea plantations, national parks, ancient ruins and colonial towns
an intriguing city with its Pettah bazaar, fort and excellent cotton and jewellery stores. North of Colombo and six
miles from the airport, Negombo beach has a handy location, but farther up the coast is the more impressive Kalpitiya peninsula, which offers excellent dolphin spotting, kitesurfing and Wilpattu National Forest. Top picks include boutique property Bethany 101 and beachfront Dutch Bay Resorts.
South of Colombo, the big hitter
is Bentota, where post-tsunami renovations have transformed the once-tired Taj into Vivanta by Taj, and boutique hotels such as Saman Villas are thriving. The top pick is Avani Bentota, designed by Sri Lankan architect Geoffrey Bawa in his signature ‘tropical modernism’ style, while the original hippy town Hikkaduwa counts luxurious boutique Aditya among its options.
w SOUTH WEST: HERITAGE TRAILS This coastline is gloriously interrupted by the Unesco World Heritage Site and 400-year- old Dutch fort of Galle, where atmospheric streets are lined with cafes and boutique shops. Galle’s leading hotel is Aman Resorts’ Amangalla, a heritage property once popular with passengers on P&O steamers, and still retaining original antiques and serving
25 February 2016
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