How To Use This E-Book

Getting Around the e-Book

This Pocket Guide e-book is designed to give you inspiration and planning advice for your visit to Sri Lanka, and is also the perfect on-the-ground companion for your trip.

The guide begins with our selection of Top 10 Attractions, plus a Perfect Itinerary feature to help you plan unmissable experiences. The Introduction and History chapters paint a vivid cultural portrait of Sri Lanka, and the Where to Go chapter gives a complete guide to all the sights worth visiting. You will find ideas for activities in the What to Do section, while the Eating Out chapter describes the local cuisine and gives listings of the best restaurants. The Travel Tips offer practical information to help you plan your trip. Finally, there are carefully selected hotel listings.

In the Table of Contents and throughout this e-book you will see hyperlinked references. Just tap a hyperlink once to skip to the section you would like to read. Practical information and listings are also hyperlinked, so as long as you have an external connection to the internet, you can tap a link to go directly to the website for more information.

Maps

All key attractions and sights in Sri Lanka are numbered and cross-referenced to high-quality maps. Wherever you see the reference [map], tap once to go straight to the related map. You can also double-tap any map for a zoom view.

Images

You’ll find lots of beautiful high-resolution images that capture the essence of Sri Lanka. Simply double-tap an image to see it in full-screen.

About Berlitz Pocket Guides

The Berlitz story began in 1877 when Maximilian Berlitz devised his revolutionary method of language learning. More than 130 years later, Berlitz is a household name, famed not only for language schools but also as a provider of best-selling language and travel guides.

Our wide-ranging travel products – printed travel guides and phrase books, as well as apps and ebooks – offer all the information you need for a perfect trip, and are regularly updated by our team of expert local authors. Their practical emphasis means they are perfect for use on the ground. Wherever you’re going – whether it’s on a short break, the trip of a lifetime, a cruise or a business trip – we offer the ideal guide for your needs.

Our Berlitz Pocket Guides are the perfect choice if you need reliable, concise information in a handy format. We provide amazing value for money – these guides may be small, but they are packed with information. No wonder they have sold more than 45 million copies worldwide.

© 2019 Apa Digital (CH) AG and Apa Publications (UK) Ltd

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Table of Contents

Sri Lanka’s Top 10 Attractions

Top Attraction #1

Top Attraction #2

Top Attraction #3

Top Attraction #4

Top Attraction #5

Top Attraction #6

Top Attraction #7

Top Attraction #8

Top Attraction #9

Top Attraction #10

A Perfect Tour of Sri Lanka

Introduction

The modern nation

Landscapes

One island, many people

Buddhas and beaches

A Brief History

Prehistory

The Anuradhapura period

Polonnaruwa period

Sinhalese decline and the rise of Jaffna

The Portuguese

The Kandyan Kingdom and the Dutch

The British

Towards independence

Independence

Civil war

Peace at last?

Historical landmarks

Where To Go

Colombo

Fort and the Pettah

Galle Face Green and Slave Island

Southern Colombo

The west coast

Negombo and around

Kalutara

Beruwala, Bentota and around

Ambalangoda

Hikkaduwa

The south

Galle

Unawatuna to Mirissa

Matara

Tangalla and around

Bundala National Park

Tissamaharama and Yala

Kataragama

Kandy

The Lake and around

Temple of the Tooth

Royal Palace Complex

The Devales

Peradeniya Botanical Gardens

Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage

The Hill Country

Nuwara Eliya and around

Horton Plains and World’s End

Haputale

Ella and around

Adam’s Peak

Ratnapura and around

Udawalaweand Sinharaja

The Cultural Triangle

North from Kandy to Dambulla

Dambulla

Sigiriya

Polonnaruwa

The Citadel

The Quadrangle

The Alahana Pirivena and beyond

The southern remains

Minneriya and Kaudulla

Yapahuwa to Ritigala

Anuradhapura

The Mahavihara

The Jetavana Monastery and the Citadel

The Abhayagiri Monastery

Outlying remains

Mihintale

The east

Trincomalee

Uppuveli and Nilaveli

Arugam Bay and around

The north

Jaffna

The Jaffna Peninsula and islands

What To Do

Shopping

Handicrafts and souvenirs

Gems and jewellery

Entertainment

Sports and relaxation

Cricket

Golf

Swimming

Diving

Snorkelling

Surfing

Other watersports

Trekking and cycling

Wildlife

Whale-watching and turtle-watches

Yoga and meditation

Ayurveda

Children’s Sri Lanka

Festivals

Festivals calendar

Eating Out

Where to eat

What to eat

Rice and curry

Seafood

International cuisines

Desserts

Fruits

What to drink

Reading the Menu

Menu reader

Desserts

Drinks

Restaurants

Colombo

The west coast

The south coast

Kandy

The Hill Country

The east

A–Z Travel Tips

A

Accommodation (see also Camping and Recommended hotels)

Airports

B

Bicycle and motorbike hire

Budgeting for your trip

C

Camping

Car hire (see also Driving)

Climate

Clothing

Crime and safety

D

Driving (see also Car hire)

E

Electricity

Embassies, consulates and high commissions

Emergencies

G

Getting there

Guides and tours

H

Health and medical care

L

Language

LGBTQ travellers

M

Maps

Media

Money

O

Opening times

P

Police

Post offices

Public holidays

R

Religion

T

Telephones

Time zones

Tipping and taxes

Toilets

Tourist information

Transport

V

Visas and entry requirements

W

Websites and internal access

Recommended Hotels

Colombo

The west coast

Bentota

Balapitiya and Hikkaduwa

Negombo

The south

Galle

Unawatuna

Koggala

Tangalla

Kandy

The Hill Country

Ella, Bandarawela and Haputale

Nuwara Eliya

The Cultural Triangle

Anuradhapura

Dambulla

Sigiriya

Polonnaruwa

The east coast

Trincomalee

Arugam Bay

Dictionary

English–Malay

Malay–English