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Colombo itinerary

Every place in “10 Best Things to Do in Colombo”. Save places in the guide to make this list yours.

  1. 1

    Galle Face Green - The Seafront Promenade at the Heart of Colombo

    Galle Face Green is a 500-metre strip of lawn between Galle Road and the Indian Ocean, laid out in 1859 by Governor Henry Ward as a racecourse and golf links. It now works as the largest open space in the city. Families…

    Address
    Galle Face Green, Galle Road, Colombo 03
    Nearest transit
    Kollupitiya Railway Station on the coastal line, 8-minute walk north; bus routes 100 and 101 run along Galle Road; 10 minutes by tuk-tuk from Fort via the PickMe app
  2. 2

    Gangaramaya Temple - A Working Buddhist Temple and Museum on Beira Lake

    Gangaramaya Temple has operated as a temple and monastic school on the eastern shore of Beira Lake since the late 19th century. The compound holds a stupa, a bodhi tree, a library and a museum crammed with donated…

    Address
    61 Sri Jinarathana Road, Colombo 02
    Nearest transit
    Slave Island Railway Station, 10-minute walk; bus route 154 stops at Hyde Park Corner; 8 minutes by tuk-tuk from Fort via the PickMe app
  3. 3

    Pettah Market and the Red Mosque (Jami Ul-Alfar) - Colombo's Wholesale Trading District

    Pettah is the wholesale district immediately east of Fort, and it is organised street by street. Gabo's Lane sells ayurvedic herbs, Sea Street handles gold, Fifth Cross Street covers electronics, and Main Street runs to…

    Address
    Jami Ul-Alfar Mosque, 228 Second Cross Street, Pettah, Colombo 11
    Nearest transit
    Colombo Fort Railway Station, 6-minute walk; the Pettah central bus stand serves most city and intercity routes; 5 minutes by tuk-tuk from Fort via the PickMe app
  4. 4

    Colombo National Museum - Sri Lanka's Largest Collection of Antiquities

    The Colombo National Museum opened in 1877 in an Italianate building commissioned by Governor William Henry Gregory. It holds the country's largest antiquities collection, including the throne and crown of Sri Vikrama…

    Address
    854 Sir Marcus Fernando Mawatha, Colombo 07
    Nearest transit
    No railway station within walking distance; bus routes 138 and 155 stop on Ananda Coomaraswamy Mawatha, 5-minute walk; 12 minutes by tuk-tuk from Fort via the PickMe app
  5. 5

    Independence Memorial Hall - The Monument to 1948

    Independence Memorial Hall went up in 1953 at Torrington Square to mark the end of British rule in 1948. The open-sided pavilion copies the Royal Audience Hall of the Kandyan kings, raised on a platform ringed by 60…

    Address
    Independence Square, Torrington Avenue, Colombo 07
    Nearest transit
    No railway station within walking distance; bus route 171 stops on Bauddhaloka Mawatha, 7-minute walk; 15 minutes by tuk-tuk from Fort via the PickMe app
  6. 6

    The Old Dutch Hospital in Fort - Colombo's Oldest Surviving Building

    The Old Dutch Hospital is the oldest building still standing in Colombo Fort, dating to the Dutch East India Company period of the early 1600s when it treated company staff arriving by sea. Its two colonnaded courtyards…

    Address
    Old Dutch Hospital Shopping Precinct, Bank of Ceylon Mawatha, Colombo 01
    Nearest transit
    Colombo Fort Railway Station, 10-minute walk; bus routes 100 and 138 terminate at Fort; 3 minutes by tuk-tuk from Colombo Fort Railway Station via the PickMe app
  7. 7

    Viharamahadevi Park - The Oldest Public Park in Colombo

    Viharamahadevi Park spreads across 55 hectares opposite Colombo Town Hall and dates to 1865, when the British laid it out as Victoria Park. It was renamed in the 1950s after the mother of King Dutugemunu. Flame trees…

    Address
    Viharamahadevi Park, Ananda Coomaraswamy Mawatha, Colombo 07
    Nearest transit
    No railway station within walking distance; bus routes 138 and 155 stop at Town Hall, 4-minute walk; 12 minutes by tuk-tuk from Fort via the PickMe app
  8. 8

    Seema Malaka on Beira Lake - The Meditation Pavilion Built Over the Water

    Seema Malaka is a set of three timber platforms with copper roofs, built out over Beira Lake and reached by a pontoon walkway. Geoffrey Bawa designed the current structure in 1976 after the original sank, and it now…

    Address
    Seema Malaka, Sir James Peiris Mawatha, Colombo 02
    Nearest transit
    Slave Island Railway Station, 8-minute walk; bus route 154 stops at Hyde Park Corner; 8 minutes by tuk-tuk from Fort via the PickMe app
  9. 9

    Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara - The Temple of the Solias Mendis Murals

    Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara stands on the bank of the Kelani River, 10 km northeast of the city. Buddhist tradition holds that the Buddha visited this spot on his third journey to Sri Lanka, which makes it one of the…

    Address
    Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara, Temple Road, Kelaniya 11600, Colombo District
    Nearest transit
    Kelaniya Railway Station on the Main Line, 15-minute walk; bus routes 224 and 235 from the Pettah central bus stand; 25 minutes by tuk-tuk from Fort via the PickMe app
  10. 10

    Mount Lavinia Beach - The Swimmable Coast in Colombo's Southern Suburbs

    Mount Lavinia Beach is the closest usable stretch of sand to central Colombo, 12 km south along the coastal railway line. The beach runs about 1.5 km and is widest at the northern end, below the headland where the…

    Address
    Mount Lavinia Beach, De Saram Road, Mount Lavinia, Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia 10370
    Nearest transit
    Mount Lavinia Railway Station on the coastal line, 5-minute walk; bus route 100 runs the length of Galle Road; 30 minutes by tuk-tuk from Fort via the PickMe app

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