Pilgrimage and Sacred Sites in Sri Lanka
Start with the best-known places: Gangaramaya Temple, Ratnapura, Temple of the Tooth and Ambuluwawa.
69 guides3 itineraries pass throughChecked 10 Oct 2026
Where to find pilgrimage and sacred sites
- Central Province 14 guides
- North Central Province 11 guides
- Uva Province 10 guides
- Northern Province 9 guides
- Western Province 7 guides
- Southern Province 7 guides
- Sabaragamuwa Province 4 guides
- Eastern Province 4 guides
- North Western Province 3 guides
Top places for pilgrimage and sacred sites
1. Gangaramaya TempleOne of Colombo's oldest and most important Buddhist temples, with an eclectic museum and…Read guide
2. Temple of the ToothSri Dalada Maligawa in Kandy, home of the Buddha's tooth relic: opening hours, daily…Foreign visitors LKR 3,000;…Read guide
3. AmbuluwawaA hilltop near Gampola with a white spiral tower and Buddhist, Hindu, Christian and…Foreign visitors LKR 2,750…Read guide
4. Dambulla Cave TempleFive painted cave shrines above Dambulla, a UNESCO World Heritage Site with 157 statues…Read guide
5. Nallur TempleJaffna's Murugan temple, rebuilt in 1734: men enter bare-chested, pujas start on time, and…Read guide
6. Sacred City of AnuradhapuraSri Lanka's ancient capital and UNESCO site: the Sri Maha Bodhi, the great stupas,…Central Cultural Fund ticket…Read guide
7. Sri PadaSacred mountain climbed at night in the December–May pilgrimage season: routes, plastic and alcohol…Read guide
8. Avukana BuddhaA standing Buddha carved from a granite rock face beside the Kala Wewa reservoir…Read guide
9. Lankatilaka TempleA 14th-century Gampola-period temple on a rock in Udunuwara, west of Kandy, with a…Read guide
10. MihintaleThe hill near Anuradhapura where, by tradition, Buddhism came to Sri Lanka: stupas, caves,…Read guide
11. Pidurangala RockA rock with an ancient temple at its foot, just north of Sigiriya; a…Read guide
12. PolonnaruwaSri Lanka's medieval capital and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with the Gal Vihara…Full ticket USD 30…Read guide
13. AluviharaA cave temple among boulders north of Matale, where tradition says monks first wrote…Read guide
14. ArankeleRuins of an ancient forest monastery near Kurunegala, with stone meditation walkways through the…Read guide
15. MulkirigalaA Buddhist cave temple on terraces up a 205-metre rock inland from Tangalle, with…Read guide
16. Adam's BridgeThe chain of sandbanks between Mannar Island and India: a marine national park on…Read guide
17. Embekke DevalayaA Kataragama shrine in Udunuwara, west of Kandy, known for its carved wooden hall:…Read guide
18. KoneswaramA Hindu temple to Shiva on Swami Rock in Trincomalee, reached through Fort Frederick;…1 hour – 2 hoursRead guide
19. Madhu ShrineSri Lanka's holiest Catholic shrine, in the forests of Mannar district: quiet most of…Read guide
20. Maligawila BuddhaA colossal 7th–8th century limestone Buddha in the Monaragala forest, with the giant Dambegoda…Read guide
21. BuduruwagalaSeven figures carved in relief on one rock face near Wellawaya, dated to the…Full ticket USD 3…Read guide
22. Gadaladeniya TempleA 14th-century stone temple near Pilimatalawa, west of Kandy, built in South Indian style…Read guide
23. IsurumuniyaA rock temple by Tissa Wewa in Anuradhapura, known for its carvings: bathing elephants,…Read guide
24. Kelaniya TempleA riverside temple north-east of Colombo, linked to the Buddha's third visit, with a…Read guide
25. Nagadeepa ViharayaBuddhist temple on Nainativu island, one of Sri Lanka's sixteen sacred sites, where tradition…Read guide
26. Nagapooshani Amman TempleNainativu's Hindu temple to the goddess Nagapooshani: a tall painted tower by the jetty,…Read guide
27. RuwanwelisayaThe great white stupa of Anuradhapura, begun by King Dutugemunu in the 2nd century…Read guide
28. WewurukannalaA south-coast temple near Dikwella with a giant seated Buddha, an 18th-century image house…1 hourRead guide
29. DeegavapiOne of Sri Lanka's sixteen great Buddhist shrines, east of Ampara: a vast brick…Read guide
30. Dimbulagala MonasteryA forest hermitage built into a rock 16 km south-east of Polonnaruwa, with Brahmi-inscribed…Read guide
31. Dowa Rock TempleA cave temple near Bandarawela with Kandyan-era murals and a huge standing Buddha carved…Read guide
32. Kalutara BodhiyaA sacred bo tree and a hollow white stupa you can walk inside, on…Read guide
33. Kande ViharaHilltop temple near Aluthgama, founded in 1734, with a 48.8-metre (160 ft) seated Buddha…Read guide
34. Kiri VeheraA large white stupa in Kataragama, one of the 16 most sacred Buddhist sites…Read guide
35. Kirinda TempleA rock-top dagoba above the sea at Kirinda, linked to the legend of Vihara…Read guide
36. MahiyanganaThe stupa where tradition places the Buddha's first visit to Sri Lanka, near the…Read guide
37. MunneswaramAn ancient Shiva temple near Chilaw whose Kali shrine draws Buddhists as well as…Read guide
38. SeruwilaAn ancient stupa south of Trincomalee, built by King Kavantissa and revered for the…Read guide
39. Bahirawakanda BuddhaA white seated Buddha, about 88 feet tall, on a hill above Kandy, part…Read guide
40. Dedigama Kota VeheraThe flat-topped brick stupa built by Parakramabahu I on his birthplace, with a free…Museum: no entrance ticket…Read guide
41. Dematamal ViharaA small, still-active temple at Okkampitiya near Buttala, built round an ancient brick stupa…Read guide
42. EthagalaClimb Kurunegala's Elephant Rock by steps or road to a giant white Buddha, wide…Read guide
43. Gal ViharaFour giant Buddha images carved into one granite rock face at Polonnaruwa in the…Read guide
44. Kataragama DevalayaThe main shrine of Kataragama, open to Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and Christians: puja times,…Read guide
45. Keerimalai SpringsA sacred spring and bathing place at the sea on the northern tip of…Read guide
46. Maha Saman DevalayaRatnapura's great shrine to Saman, god of Sri Pada: a gem-vow origin, a Portuguese…Read guide
47. Muthiyangana templeBadulla's old temple and one of the 16 sacred places: the pearl-and-hair legend, the…Read guide
48. Red MosqueThe red-and-white striped Red Mosque on Second Cross Street in Pettah, Colombo, built in…Read guide
49. Seema MalakaA lakeside meditation hall on Beira Lake in Colombo, part of Gangaramaya Temple and…Read guide
50. Seetha Amman TempleA Hindu temple at Seetha Eliya near Nuwara Eliya, linked by devotees to Sita's…Read guide
51. SithulpawwaAn ancient Buddhist rock monastery in Yala's forest, with a stupa on top of…Read guide
52. Sri Maha BodhiThe sacred fig tree at Anuradhapura, grown from a cutting of the Bodh Gaya…Read guide
53. Tissamaharama stupaThe great white stupa of Tissamaharama, one of Sri Lanka's 16 sacred places: who…Read guide
Map of Pilgrimage and Sacred Sites
The 15 places with coordinates in their guides; numbers match the top places.
- 1Gangaramaya Temple
- 2Temple of the Tooth
- 3Ambuluwawa
- 4Dambulla Cave Temple
- 5Nallur Temple
- 6Sacred City of Anuradhapura
- 7Sri Pada
- 8Avukana Buddha
- 9Lankatilaka Temple
Around Ratnapura, by distance
Road distance from Ratnapura to each guide's map point. Places without a road route show the straight-line distance.
Kelaniya TempleAttraction · Gampaha District85 km by road
Gangaramaya TempleAttraction · Colombo District90 km by road
MulkirigalaAttraction · Hambantota District105 km by road
HattonDestination · Nuwara Eliya District120 km by road
AmbuluwawaAttraction · Kandy District120 km by road
Gadaladeniya TempleAttraction · Kandy District120 km by road
Sri PadaAttraction · Ratnapura District120 km by road · road ends about 2.2 km from it
Lankatilaka TempleAttraction · Kandy District125 km by road
© openrouteservice.org by HeiGIT | Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
Pilgrimage and Sacred Sites in pictures
Photos from the guides, credited on each page.
Temple in pilgrimage and sacred sites
- Gangaramaya TempleOne of Colombo's oldest and most important Buddhist temples, with an eclectic museum and…Read guide
- Temple of the ToothSri Dalada Maligawa in Kandy, home of the Buddha's tooth relic: opening hours, daily…Read guide
- Dambulla Cave TempleFive painted cave shrines above Dambulla, a UNESCO World Heritage Site with 157 statues…Read guide
- Nallur TempleJaffna's Murugan temple, rebuilt in 1734: men enter bare-chested, pujas start on time, and…Read guide
- Avukana BuddhaA standing Buddha carved from a granite rock face beside the Kala Wewa reservoir…Read guide
- Lankatilaka TempleA 14th-century Gampola-period temple on a rock in Udunuwara, west of Kandy, with a…Read guide
- MihintaleThe hill near Anuradhapura where, by tradition, Buddhism came to Sri Lanka: stupas, caves,…Read guide
- Pidurangala RockA rock with an ancient temple at its foot, just north of Sigiriya; a…Read guide
Archaeological site in pilgrimage and sacred sites
- Sacred City of AnuradhapuraSri Lanka's ancient capital and UNESCO site: the Sri Maha Bodhi, the great stupas,…Read guide
- Avukana BuddhaA standing Buddha carved from a granite rock face beside the Kala Wewa reservoir…Read guide
- MihintaleThe hill near Anuradhapura where, by tradition, Buddhism came to Sri Lanka: stupas, caves,…Read guide
- PolonnaruwaSri Lanka's medieval capital and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with the Gal Vihara…Read guide
- ArankeleRuins of an ancient forest monastery near Kurunegala, with stone meditation walkways through the…Read guide
- Maligawila BuddhaA colossal 7th–8th century limestone Buddha in the Monaragala forest, with the giant Dambegoda…Read guide
- BuduruwagalaSeven figures carved in relief on one rock face near Wellawaya, dated to the…Read guide
- Dedigama Kota VeheraThe flat-topped brick stupa built by Parakramabahu I on his birthplace, with a free…Read guide
Viewpoint in pilgrimage and sacred sites
Where to go for pilgrimage and sacred sites
RatnapuraSri Lanka's gem town and capital of Sabaragamuwa: the gem trade, the Maha Saman…Read guide
KandyThe last royal capital and UNESCO Sacred City around its lake: the Temple of…Read guide
TrincomaleeA north-east coast port city with a natural harbour, Fort Frederick and the Koneswaram…Read guide
JaffnaCapital of the Northern Province: Jaffna Fort, Nallur temple, the rebuilt public library, ferries…Read guide
TissamaharamaThe usual base for Yala safaris, with an ancient stupa that is one of…Read guide
HiriketiyaHiriketiya's small horseshoe surf bay and the giant seated Buddha of Wewurukannala Vihara, at…Read guide
HattonA hill-country tea town and the usual base for Sri Pada via Nallathanniya, with…Read guide
KataragamaPilgrimage town shared by Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and the Vedda people: the Maha Devalaya,…Read guide
BadullaUva's capital and the end of the hill-country railway, with the sacred Muthiyangana temple…Read guide
AnuradhapuraThe ancient capital and its Sacred City, plus how long to stay, where to…Read guide
KalutaraA river-mouth town 43 km south of Colombo, known for the hollow white stupa…Read guide
Experiences: pilgrimage and sacred sites
Itineraries for pilgrimage and sacred sites
- 5 days in the Cultural TriangleFive days in Sri Lanka's Cultural Triangle: Sigiriya at opening time, Pidurangala at sunset,…Read guide
- Northern Sri Lanka in 7 daysA week in the north: four nights in Jaffna for Nallur, the fort, the…Read guide
5 days in Sri LankaA five-day first trip with one hotel change: two nights in Kandy, two in…Read guide
Planning guides for pilgrimage and sacred sites
Header photo: Nilanka Kariyawasam / Unsplash.