Things to do in Sri Lanka · Pilgrimage and Sacred Sites
43 guides
Adam's BridgeThe chain of sandbanks between Mannar Island and India: a marine national park on the maritime…
AluviharaA cave temple among boulders north of Matale, where tradition says monks first wrote down the…
AmbuluwawaA hilltop near Gampola with a white spiral tower and Buddhist, Hindu, Christian and Muslim shrines;…Foreign visitors LKR 2,750…
ArankeleRuins of an ancient forest monastery near Kurunegala, with stone meditation walkways through the trees; monks…
Avukana BuddhaA standing Buddha carved from a granite rock face beside the Kala Wewa reservoir near Kekirawa,…
BuduruwagalaSeven figures carved in relief on one rock face near Wellawaya, dated to the 9th–10th century:…Full ticket USD 3…
Dambulla Cave TempleFive painted cave shrines above Dambulla, a UNESCO World Heritage Site with 157 statues and about…
Dedigama Kota VeheraThe flat-topped brick stupa built by Parakramabahu I on his birthplace, with a free archaeology museum,…Museum: no entrance ticket…
DeegavapiOne of Sri Lanka's sixteen great Buddhist shrines, east of Ampara: a vast brick stupa linked…
Dematamal ViharaA small, still-active temple at Okkampitiya near Buttala, built round an ancient brick stupa linked by…
Dimbulagala MonasteryA forest hermitage built into a rock 16 km south-east of Polonnaruwa, with Brahmi-inscribed caves and…
Dowa Rock TempleA cave temple near Bandarawela with Kandyan-era murals and a huge standing Buddha carved into the…
Embekke DevalayaA Kataragama shrine in Udunuwara, west of Kandy, known for its carved wooden hall: 514 designs…
EthagalaClimb Kurunegala's Elephant Rock by steps or road to a giant white Buddha, wide views over…
Gadaladeniya TempleA 14th-century stone temple near Pilimatalawa, west of Kandy, built in South Indian style in the…
Gangaramaya TempleOne of Colombo's oldest and most important Buddhist temples, with an eclectic museum and Geoffrey Bawa's…
IsurumuniyaA rock temple by Tissa Wewa in Anuradhapura, known for its carvings: bathing elephants, a man…
Kalutara BodhiyaA sacred bo tree and a hollow white stupa you can walk inside, on the Galle…
Kande ViharaHilltop temple near Aluthgama, founded in 1734, with a 48.8-metre (160 ft) seated Buddha completed in…
Kelaniya TempleA riverside temple north-east of Colombo, linked to the Buddha's third visit, with a paddy-heap stupa,…
Kirinda TempleA rock-top dagoba above the sea at Kirinda, linked to the legend of Vihara Maha Devi,…
KoneswaramA Hindu temple to Shiva on Swami Rock in Trincomalee, reached through Fort Frederick; destroyed by…1 hour – 2 hours
Lankatilaka TempleA 14th-century Gampola-period temple on a rock in Udunuwara, west of Kandy, with a tall image…
Madhu ShrineSri Lanka's holiest Catholic shrine, in the forests of Mannar district: quiet most of the year,…
Maha Saman DevalayaRatnapura's great shrine to Saman, god of Sri Pada: a gem-vow origin, a Portuguese victory stone…
MahiyanganaThe stupa where tradition places the Buddha's first visit to Sri Lanka, near the Mahaweli River…
Maligawila BuddhaA colossal 7th–8th century limestone Buddha in the Monaragala forest, with the giant Dambegoda bodhisattva at…
MihintaleThe hill near Anuradhapura where, by tradition, Buddhism came to Sri Lanka: stupas, caves, monastery ruins…
MulkirigalaA Buddhist cave temple on terraces up a 205-metre rock inland from Tangalle, with a large…
MunneswaramAn ancient Shiva temple near Chilaw whose Kali shrine draws Buddhists as well as Hindus: the…
Muthiyangana templeBadulla's old temple and one of the 16 sacred places: the pearl-and-hair legend, the gateway, Bo…
Nagadeepa ViharayaBuddhist temple on Nainativu island, one of Sri Lanka's sixteen sacred sites, where tradition says the…
Nagapooshani Amman TempleNainativu's Hindu temple to the goddess Nagapooshani: a tall painted tower by the jetty, a June–July…
Nallur festivalGoing to Jaffna's 25-day Nallur festival: the days worth planning around, what you'll see, how to…
Nallur TempleJaffna's Murugan temple, rebuilt in 1734: men enter bare-chested, pujas start on time, and a 25-day…
Pidurangala RockA rock with an ancient temple at its foot, just north of Sigiriya; a short, steep…
PolonnaruwaSri Lanka's medieval capital and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with the Gal Vihara rock-cut Buddhas,…Full ticket USD 30…
Sacred City of AnuradhapuraSri Lanka's ancient capital and UNESCO site: the Sri Maha Bodhi, the great stupas, CCF tickets,…Central Cultural Fund ticket…
SeruwilaAn ancient stupa south of Trincomalee, built by King Kavantissa and revered for the Buddha's forehead…
Sri PadaSacred mountain climbed at night in the December–May pilgrimage season: routes, plastic and alcohol rules, off-season…
Temple of the ToothSri Dalada Maligawa in Kandy, home of the Buddha's tooth relic: opening hours, daily rituals, tickets,…Foreign visitors LKR 3,000;…
Tissamaharama stupaThe great white stupa of Tissamaharama, one of Sri Lanka's 16 sacred places: who built it,…
WewurukannalaA south-coast temple near Dikwella with a giant seated Buddha, an 18th-century image house and a…1 hour