Accommodation in this Country

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Areas

• South West Sri Lanka

Country Fact List

Capital: Sri Jayawardenapura

Currency: Sri Lankan Rupee (LKR)

Languages: Sinhala, Tamil

Time Zone: GMT + 5:30

Country Description

Sri Lanka is the pearl of the Indian Ocean; it lies like a teardrop, falling from the tip of India's South Coast. Famous for its white-sandy beaches and turquoise glistening sea, its abundance of rare wild-life and rich foliage, its precious gem mines, its rolling hills carpeted with some of the best tea in the world, luxury beachfront villas and its rich history and cultural heritage, Sri Lanka is a breath-taking get-away for all discerning travellers.

There is so much on offer for all ages, enjoy the seductive beaches with a range of water sports, magnificent landscapes featuring lazy lagoons, fertile wetlands, ecologically-wondrous types of forest with an abundance of wildlife, breathtaking mountains, bounteous rivers and waterfalls, rich heritage sites with grand ruins of ancient kingdoms, or feed orphaned baby elephants. The people of Sri Lanka are very welcoming, charming and hospitable people making a stay in a luxury villa is a truly memorable one.

Sri Lanka is not only famous for its stunning sandy beaches but also the production and export of the finest tea, coffee, coconuts, rubber and cinnamon. The cuisine of Sri Lanka draws influence from the colonists and foreign traders. Rice, which is usually consumed daily, can be found at any special occasion, while spicy curries are favorite dishes for dinner and lunch. A very popular alcoholic drink is toddy, made from palm tree sap. Arrack is the de-facto distilled national drink. Rice and curry refers to a range of Sri Lankan dishes. Sri Lanka's cuisine mainly consists of boiled or steamed rice served with curry. Another well-known rice dish is Kiribath, meaning "milk rice." Curries in Sri Lanka are not just limited to meat- or fish-based dishes, there are also vegetable and even fruit curries. A typical Sri Lankan meal consists of a "main curry" (fish, chicken, beef, pork or mutton), as well as several other curries made with vegetable and lentils. Side-dishes include pickles, chutneys and "sambols" which can sometimes be fiery hot. The most famous of these is the coconut sambol, made of ground coconut mixed with chillies, dried Maldive fish and lime juice. This is ground to a paste and eaten with rice, as it gives zest to the meal and is believed to increase appetite.

Sri Jayawardenapura or Kotte, is the administrative capital of Sri Lanka. It is located beyond the eastern suburbs of the commercial capital Colombo and is often called New Capital territory. The Parliament of Sri Lanka has been based there since the formal inauguration of its new building on 29 April 1982.

Climate

Sri Lanka has a tropical climate with distinct dry and wet seasons, in fact, Sri Lanka actually has two monsoon seasons. These monsoons being from May to August, the Yala monsoon brings rain to the island’s southwestern half, the Maha monsoon blows from October to January, bringing rain to the North and East. The North and East are comparatively dry, with around 1000mm of rain annually. On top of this there is also an inter-monsoonal period in October and November when rain can occur in many parts of the island.

The average yearly temperature for the country as a whole ranges from 28 to 30oC, the coldest being the central highlands and warmest northeast coast; the sea stays at around 27°C all year. The driest and most popular time to travel to Sri Lanka are from December to March for the west coast, the south coast and the Hill Country, and from April to September for the ancient cities region and the east coast.

July and August is the time of the Kandy Esala Perahera, the famous 10-day festival honoring the sacred tooth relic of the Buddha, and also the time for the Kataragama festival in the South. During and immediately after these festivals accommodation of all levels are in high demand so rates usually double or treble!

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