How To travel around Sri Lanka?

 Sri Lanka is a tiny island nation where distances between various destinations are relatively short. However, even to cover these short distances, you’d need to plan beforehand unless you’d like to get sucked into its super-frustrating traffic jam. The roads can be damaged, slippery, or located in extremely windy locations. However, opting for the most effective manner of travel would let you conquer all these unfavourable conditions and love this country for the beautiful paradise that it is.

Hop to your next destination from the airport

The main airport in Sri Lanka is called the Bandaranaike International Airport, which is located approximately 32.4 kilometres north of Colombo, the commercial capital of the country. This is the only major airport where international flights arrive. You can either opt for the public transportation network or if you’re thinking “convenience,” a taxi or a car to get to your next destination from the airport.

It would be best if you pre-book a driver to avoid the pushy taxi-drivers who are keeping their eyes peeled for new customers. You can also use the Airport Taxi Service upon arrival, and you can find the exact prices to a particular destination from the official website of the airport. If you take the public bus to the central bus stand in Colombo, you can expect a travel time around 30-45 minutes to reach the destination as the buses travel via the expressway E03. These buses leave from the airport every 15 minutes, thus finding one shouldn’t be a problem.

Hiring cars and drivers

Although the usual roads still carry their usual high-traffic during peak times, the fast-developing expressways in Sri Lanka have made travelling to the major districts of the country much easier. The most efficient way of travelling long distances in Sri Lanka is to hire a private car and driver. However, you might want to decide upon your preferred method of paying for your transport before agreeing to a service. Some drivers have fixed prices for a particular distance while others are more flexible by charging only for the hours you require their service, while in their spare time they would drive other people around. One of the perks of sharing so much travel time with your driver is getting to associate each other on a friendly basis. Depending on your interests, the friendly driver cum guide would even customize your itinerary for you. Plus you wouldn’t have to waste time finding a driver every time you need to go somewhere or run the risk of agreeing to total rip-offs. If you’re planning on crisscrossing through the island and taking in the sights, having a personal driver is the best. However, if you’re planning on spending days at a stretch in the same location, paying for transportation whenever you need is probably the way to go.

Taking the train

                                                      Img via pikist


Train rides are an excellent way of witnessing the beautiful scenery of Sri Lanka; especially if you’re travelling from Kandy to Ella, you can look forward to one of the most scenic train journeys in the world. Although trains can be a bit delayed, it is less tiring and more enjoyable than other long-distance methods. Sri Lanka Railways controls the three major rail lines in the country, out of which the Southern and east lines offer the most spectacular views. If you’re planning to stay at one of the properties in Kalkudah such as Uga Escapes, you can opt for the North rail line and board a train from Colombo-Fort and reach Batticaloa in approximately nine hours. Another line that connects the metropolitan of Colombo with its suburbs and runs towards the north is the Puttalam line, along which you’d have access to many luxury properties in the country.

Hail your own taxi or tuk-tuk

Almost all the towns and cities in Sri Lanka have three-wheelers or tuk-tuks. Some of these are charged using a metre while services can be acquired from others at pre-agreed rates. Many luxury hotels in Sri Lanka would also arrange a trusted taxi or tuk-tuk service upon request. You can also download apps like PickMe and Uber that prove to be rather convenient as you can see the price you’ll have to pay. You can either pay with cash or pay using your credit or debit card through the app itself. If you’re passing through highways, the tolls must be paid in cash at the exit, which would be less than $3.

 


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