East Coast of Sri Lanka

The Eastern Province's long coastline on the Bay of Bengal, with Trincomalee, Nilaveli and Arugam Bay, offers beaches in the summer dry season as an alternative to the southwest coast.

This region is Sri Lanka's Eastern Province, including the Trincomalee, Batticaloa and Ampara districts, stretching along the Bay of Bengal. Tourism began later here after the war, and the beaches are quieter than those on the southwest coast.

Highlights: in Trincomalee, the natural deep-water harbor and the Koneswaram Temple on Swami Rock; the long beaches of Nilaveli and Uppuveli, and snorkeling with sharks and corals at Pigeon Island National Park; blue whales and sperm whales offshore from Trincomalee in March–April; in Batticaloa, the lagoon, the Dutch fort and the legend of the "singing fish"; and Arugam Bay, an internationally known surf spot, close to Kumana and Yala East, where you can see elephants and birds.

Classic itinerary: on a summer island tour, head east from the Cultural Triangle to Trincomalee for 2–3 days; or go south via Ella to Arugam Bay for 3–5 days of surfing; the coastal road between the two takes about 6 hours.

Getting there: Trincomalee and Batticaloa have rail connections to Colombo; the nearest town to Arugam Bay is Pottuvil, about 3 hours by chartered car from Ella; domestic flights serve Trincomalee and Batticaloa.

Notes: during the northeast monsoon (roughly November–January) most beach guesthouses close; some areas are still home to Tamil and Muslim communities, so respect local customs.

Destinations

Itineraries