One Month Backpacking in Sri Lanka: My Route & Recommendations

I left Sri Lanka yesterday with a heavy heart. Throughout my travels, backpackers are having the same conversations over and over about how friendly and how hospitable locals are. How beautiful everywhere is. How yummy the food is. Of course you’ll get the odd uneasy situation, as with anywhere, but generally my experience of SL was extremely positive. My highlights include completing the most challenging (and rewarding) hike of my life, visiting a safari for the first time, learning to surf, and experiencing my first ever yoga retreat.




My route was probably slightly different to ones you may find on other blogs, and that’s because a friend joined me for the first two weeks of my trip to SL, so we wanted to fit in as much as possible while he was there! Everyone is doing slightly different routes though, according to their time restrictions.




I visited the country 7th January- 6th February, and the weather was hot and sunny most of the time, it only rained when I was in Kandy, but it was never cold. 



Days 1- 2: Negombo




Negombo is a common way to avoid Colombo when you get into the country or just before you leave, it’s a lot more chilled than the capital. It’s around 750lkr (£3.30) for a tuktuk to or from Negombo. Has a nice beach too. We stayed at Negombo Backpackers Hostel, which is clean, comfortable and the owner is super friendly. 




Days 2- 3: Hatton/ Adam’s Peak 


Leaving Negombo, we headed to Hatton on the bus, to get there you have to go via Colombo so it took a while. We stayed in the Railway Lodge Hostel which is an old colonial building, feels quite like you’re stepping back in time. We only went to Hatton to get to Adam’s Peak. Woke that morning at 1am to head there (to be at the top for sunrise). Took a tuktuk there which was around 1 hour, it’s cheaper to get a bus though (not sure of exact prices). Completed Adam’s Peak around 9am, and headed back to Hatton, half broken. It may have been easier to stay in one of the hostels next to the mountain. Adam’s Peak was extremely challenging (for me anyway), I had done 24,000 steps by 8am HA, but it was absolutely beautiful and worth it, I would highly recommend it if you’re up for the challenge, but if not there are many other, more accessible hikes in SL.



Days 2- 5: Hatton to Ella 




From Hatton, we got the train to Ella. It’s part of the famous route from Kandy- Ella but shorter, and it was beautiful. Train was around 4 hours. Stayed in Escapade Nomadic Ella Hostel, which was nice but we found it difficult to get to in the night, so recommend going in the day, just because we had to walk along the railway track to get there (which isn’t the only way, but where the tuktuk dropped us). Friendly vibe, beautiful view. Food is average. It’s a bit out of the way, and you need to get a shuttle to Ella town but that’s quite nice. Stayed there 2 nights, and spent one more night in Ella town, in City Reach Hostel which is nice: friendly staff and clean rooms. In terms of things to do, there’s Ella’s Rock and Little Adam’s Peak which are accessible hikes, people usually do Ella’s Rock at sunrise. There is also the Nine Arches bridge which is cool to see if you’re into architecture or want the insta pic, which most people are there for! There’s also an amazing cooking class at Matey’s Hut, which is also a restaurant that apparently does amazing food (we didn’t go because we were too hungry to queue, so maybe leave some time for that one), to book the cooking class, go a day in advance. Another place to eat is Cafe C Ella, which does an AMAZING curry & rice. 




Days 5- 6: Ella to Udawalawe National Park 




From Ella, we buddied up with someone and got a private taxi to Udawalawe, which cost 7000lkr between us (£10 each). I know this is extra, but the travel situation in SL can be slightly long. It’s extremely cheap to get public transport, but expect it to take hours, and that’s totally fine if you have the time, but obviously we were slightly restricted so did choose to get some taxis to save time. In Udawalawe, we stayed at Eagle Safari Hostel, which was super homely and we had 3 double beds in the same room which was luxury! No bunks! It’s run by a sweet family, who cook wonderful food for you, too. We went on the Safari the next day at 10am, to save queuing (many people go at 5am) but 10am was fine, and we saw loads of animals. The Safari is 5000lkr (£20).




Days 6- 9: Udawalawe to Mirissa




We also got a taxi to Mirissa (oops). Between the three of us, it was 7000lkr again, to get public transport it’s three buses. In Mirissa we stayed at JJ’s Hostel which had super comfy beds but lacked atmosphere. We went Blue Whale watching here which was incredible! Highly recommend going with Raja and the Whales to do this, family-run business that are super eco-conscious and you can see they really care about marine life, they also provide an amazing breakfast on the boat! Other activities in Mirissa include secret beach and turtle bay. In terms of food, Shady Lane is yummy if you’re wanting a Western breakfast or lunch, and Curry Pot is amazing for dinner, all-you-can-eat buffet style Sri Lankan food, for 400lkr (£1.75). 




Days 9- 22: Mirissa to Weligama 




Can you tell I loved Weligama? This place is suuuuuuuper chilled and just fab. Surfing, yoga, good food. It’s only 20 min tuktuk from Mirissa, but much better in my opinion. We spent some of the time at Beatroot Hostel, which was okay, yummy breakfast included in the room rate. But The Spindrift Hostel is where you want to be, it’s probably the best hostel I’ve ever been to. It books up, so would book it maybe a week in advance if you can. It’s run by a lovely British couple, and they just know exactly what they’re doing! It’s set up for backpackers, super chilled and friendly. Would recommend the AC rooms because the non-AC ones get stuffy. Learned to surf in Weligama, with the company Lucky’s, which are great. It’s 2000lkr (£9) for a 1.5 hour lesson. Definitely worth taking a lesson, even if it’s just a refresher. 




Yoga is great at Hangtime, 1000lkr (£4.30) for a lesson or 5 lessons for the price of 4. The afternoon Yin yoga is so relaxing. In terms of food: Hangtime so yummy food as well, High Tide is good for pizza, Jonee’s is yum for local food, as is Meewitha. For fish, I hear that Fisherman’s Point is good. For amazing Western-style food, go to Nomad’s, which is probably the best Western food I had in SL, the Poké bowls are insane. Froggy is good if you’re feeling a fat bowl of pasta, bit of home comfort. Aloha is also food for pasta. For a night out and yummy food, people go to Doctor’s House, which is actually in Mirissa but there isn’t much to do in terms of nightlife in Weligama. 




There are lots of day excursions out of Weligama, mostly beaches to visit. I enjoyed Jungle beach the most, it’s serene, and you can see an incredible view of the sunset there. Also nice to have some shade, a lot of the beaches don’t have cover. Hirikiteya beach is lovely also, good to surf (probably not for beginners though). Midigama beach is cute too. We also got a bus to Galle for a day to visit the fort, which is definitely worth doing. 




Days 22- 27: Weligama- Kalutara (The Plantation Villa yoga retreat)




I caught a train from Matara to Kalutara for my yoga retreat, which was a lil treat to myself! Gorgeous experience, and significantly cheaper than other yoga retreats around SL. It is £371 for a standard room for 4 nights, including 2x yoga classes per day, meditation, all (Ayurvedic) meals, three spa treatments, and daily activities such as cookery demonstrations and yoga talks. The retreat is on a rubber farm, and has all sorts of wildlife, it’s majestic. There are rabbits, goats, monkeys, all kinds of exotic birds, snakes (yep), squirrels, etc, just roaming! There’s also a swimming pool there. Would highly recommend if you want to feel zen! 




Days 27- 29: Kalutara- Kandy 




I got a tuktuk to Kandy from Kalutara, which no sane human would ever do. It was an 8-hour ride. I had the intention of doing a 3-day tuktuk tour to end my trip, but couldn’t actually look at a tuktuk after this trip. Stayed in Hiranya Mountain View Hostel, which I highly recommend, run by a lovely family and brand new, they really make an effort to accommodate you. The next day I went on a day trip with some people in the Hostel, visiting Sri Muthumaria Temple, Aluvihare Rock, and Sigiriya (but walked up Pidurangala because it’s 500lkr compared to the $30 to walk up Lion’s Rock, and you get a good view of Lion’s Rock from there). We also went to Dambulla Golden Temple which is interesting. 




Day 29




Back to Negombo, to fly out of Colombo the next day! Goodbye SL, you will forever hold a place in my heart 💜