Recommended Experiences

Although volleyball might be Sri Lanka's official sport, cricket is a form of worship that unites all ages and classes. The great stars of the game are treated as modern-day gods and the international test arenas at Colombo, Kandy and Galle are the sport's sacred temples. If you can get a ticket you'll get to enjoy a fun-packed, festival atmosphere, but if not, just pull up to any village or beach and you're likely to find the locals playing a game with equal enjoyment.

Rice and curry is served up everywhere in Sri Lanka, and is often eaten three times a day by the locals. Made from fish, meat or vegetables, the sauces are rich with coconut milk and flavoured with a heady blend of spices. For an extra kick of heat add a spoonful of spicy chilli sambol. To cool down your palate follow your curry with some locally grown exotic fruit such as pineapple, mangosteen or papaya.

Not far from Kandy are the Peradeniya Botanical Gardens – an oasis of peace and quiet. Covering 150 acres they are the largest and most impressive gardens in all Sri Lanka and are packed with beautiful flowers, plants and trees. There is an orchid house, lake and spice garden as well as a huge Javan fig tree that provides welcome shade from the midday sun. A stroll around the gardens is a wonderfully relaxing way to spend a few hours.