Things to Do in Colombo: Honest Tips & Highlights

Getting from the Airport to Colombo

Bandaranaike International Airport isn’t actually in Colombo — it’s in Katunayake, a suburb of Negombo, about 35 kilometers north of the city.

There are three ways to make the journey: private driver or taxi, public bus, or your own tuk-tuk.

By Taxi from the Airport to Colombo

Our accommodation in Colombo offered to pick us up from the airport for $30 (approx. 4,000 LKR).

That felt steep to us, so we politely declined. Unfortunately, the taxis at the airport aren’t much cheaper either. Depending on how well you negotiate, you’ll pay around 3,000 LKR (approx. 20 euros).

If you’d rather sort everything out before you arrive, you can book the airport transfer via GetYourGuide.

You choose your destination (Colombo or elsewhere in Sri Lanka) and your preferred vehicle type. Prices start at around 20 euros depending on where you’re headed.

By Bus from the Airport to Colombo

The good news: there’s a public bus. The slightly annoying news: you have to find it first, because there are basically no signs pointing the way. We bought a SIM card right at the airport and asked the vendor exactly where the bus stop was — highly recommend doing the same.

Head out through the terminal exit — there’s only one, thankfully — and keep walking left.

Along the way, plenty of people will approach you offering rides into the city. A friendly “No” and purposeful walking will do the trick.

Tucked behind a chain-link fence, we found two battered buses, and someone came up to us right away.

Turns out it was the ticket seller — we were in exactly the right place. The ride takes about 45 minutes and costs just 100 LKR (approx. 0.60 euros).

The bus terminal in Colombo sits right next to the train station, where plenty of tuk-tuks will be waiting to take you to your hotel.

As a newcomer, you’ll need to negotiate firmly. A rough guideline is 50 LKR per kilometer — though getting that price isn’t always easy.

By Your Own Tuk-Tuk from the Airport to Colombo

If you want to explore Sri Lanka as independently as possible, your best move is to rent a tuk-tuk in Sri Lanka in advance. In Katunayake — just about ten minutes by taxi from the airport — you’ll find the main office of the tuk-tuk rental company Tuktuk Rental.

We had a great experience with them and can wholeheartedly recommend it.

Once you’ve picked up your tuk-tuk, you’re on your own road to Colombo. Keep in mind that tuk-tuks are limited to a maximum of 40 km/h, so budget at least one and a half hours for the trip.

Things to Do in Colombo

So what does Colombo actually have to offer? Honestly: if you don’t need to renew your visa there or have another solid reason to stick around on your road trip through Sri Lanka — you can skip it.

The city is loud and not particularly enjoyable. Truly impressive sights are hard to come by.

If you only have two or three weeks in Sri Lanka, your time is almost certainly better spent elsewhere. There are far more rewarding highlights across Sri Lanka waiting for you.

We know that sounds a bit harsh. Still, there are a few interesting corners worth knowing about.

Pettah: The Bazaar District

The Pettah bazaar district was our favorite part of Colombo — and honestly, it’s an experience in its own right. Located north of Colombo Fort station, the streets are packed with market stalls and there’s something different around every corner. As a tourist, expect plenty of curious glances.

Pettah is also home to the Jami Ul-Alfar Mosque, better known as the Red Mosque. Its striking striped façade makes it unmissable from a distance.

Parks and Temples in Colombo

Beyond the bazaar district, Colombo has several temples worth a visit. The Gangaramaya Temple and the Kelaniya Temple — slightly outside the city — are both worth seeing.

For a breath of fresh air, head to Viharamahadevi Park, a green oasis right in front of the National Museum. The museum itself is worth a look for its colonial architecture alone.

City Tours of Colombo

We love exploring cities on foot, and normally no distance is too far for us. But walking around Colombo isn’t much fun — pedestrians have a rough time pretty much everywhere in Sri Lanka.

If you want to tick off the main colombo attractions efficiently, a city tour is the way to go. Two options:

1. Find a tuk-tuk driver and tell him where you want to go. The price depends heavily on your negotiating skills — the drivers in Colombo are no pushovers.

2. Book a city tour of Colombo on GetYourGuide. It’s very highly rated, takes you comfortably to all the key spots, and includes hotel pickup and drop-off. Much lower stress — and it might give you a better impression of the city than we had.

Mount Lavinia: The Better Side of Colombo

We’d had our fill of Colombo pretty quickly and would have happily left the very next day.

But we’d decided to fly from Colombo with Helitours to Trincomalee on the east coast, so we had to stay in the area for two more days until seats became available.

Helitours, by the way, is a genuine under-the-radar tip for getting to the east or north of the country quickly and cheaply.

The airline is operated by the air force but is open to civilian passengers too.

Tickets cost around 30 euros per person, and on a Chinese propeller plane you’ll reach the other end of the country in under an hour.

Tickets can be booked on the Helitours website up to two days before the flight; last-minute bookings have to be made in person at the office in Colombo on Sir Chithampalam Gardiner Mawatha.

Flights depart from Ratmalana Airport in the southern part of the city, near Mount Lavinia — which is why the Helitours website lists Ratmalana as the departure point rather than Colombo.

Not wanting to spend two more days in the city center, we moved south to the suburb of Mount Lavinia.

There’s a lovely little city beach here and a handful of restaurants right on the water. If we ever had to deal with visa renewals in Colombo again, we’d stay in Mount Lavinia from the start.

Public buses run every few minutes directly into Colombo. Catch almost any bus on the road running parallel to Galle Road — R A De Mel Mawatha — heading toward the city.

The ride costs just a few cents and takes about 20 minutes. Taking the bus in Sri Lanka is an experience in itself, so why not start right here?

Where to Stay in Colombo

Hotel prices in Colombo run higher than in the rest of the country. We stayed at the Lucky Plaza Homestay (currently only bookable through Agoda) on a side street off Galle Road.

The view from the balcony was great; otherwise, it wasn’t exactly our finest accommodation. You stay directly with a very welcoming family who rent out two guest rooms with private bathrooms in their apartment.

Compared to our other places to stay in Sri Lanka, the value for money wasn’t great — but for a single night, it’s perfectly fine.

See all budget hotels in Colombo.

In Mount Lavinia, the selection is considerably larger. Several hotels sit right on the beach, though they charge a pretty hefty premium for that location.

The best value is at places tucked between Galle Road and the beach — the rooms are quiet and you’re just five minutes from the water. We stayed at the Aurora Holiday House, which was very basic but genuinely good for the price and, importantly, clean.

See budget hotels in Mount Lavinia

Eating Out in Colombo

We didn’t stumble across any truly charming restaurants in the city. It tends to be either very expensive and upscale, or very simple and cheap. That said, some of our best meals in Sri Lanka happened at the budget spots in Colombo — so don’t hesitate.

The best kottu of our entire trip was at Hotel de Plaza on Galle Road between St. Anthony’s Mahawata and Deal Place.

A quick note: simple restaurants in Sri Lanka are very often called “hotel,” even though you can’t actually sleep there. We never quite figured out why — if you know, drop it in the comments!

We had breakfast and dinner at Hotel de Plaza twice each, and every single time it was seriously delicious.

Our first rice & curry experience was at a tiny restaurant next to the Sammangodu Sri Kathiravelayutha Swami Temple in the Pettah bazaar district.

We were served an enormous plate piled high with rice and a huge variety of curries and sauces. Every time we finished something, the waiter would appear and — just like that — we had a fresh round on our plate.

Locals eat rice and curry with their hands, by the way. If you want to try it, use your right hand.

Most restaurants will happily provide cutlery for tourists, but apparently not many foreigners make it to this particular spot.

So we dug in with our hands and made a gloriously messy job of it.

It was so much fun and absolutely delicious. The bill for the whole spread plus two drinks came to a very modest 250 LKR — less than 2 euros.

How Comfortable Is Colombo?

You’ve probably already picked up that Colombo didn’t win us over. Apart from the food, the city just didn’t impress us.

Part of that came down to the atmosphere on the streets. Jenny was pretty much constantly stared at in Colombo, even though she always wore long pants and a sleeved t-shirt. If you’re a woman traveling solo, we’d honestly suggest giving Colombo a miss.

Elsewhere in the country, people were much warmer and genuinely friendly. Colombo, unfortunately, gave us a pretty poor first impression of Sri Lanka.