Five Reasons to Visit Sri Lanka

To be honest its quite easy to come up with 10 reasons to visit Sri Lanka. But for the sake of clarity I will stick to the top five reasons.

Called the pearl of the Indian ocean Sri Lanka has always been a country with exotic beauty and a great place enjoy a holiday without spending a fortune. The beauty of the country is beyond doubt, but what kept the country from being a tourists hot spot is the civil war that dragged for almost thirty years. With the war over and peace in the country, the tourists industry is booming. Most countries, including Britain, removed travel warnings, an indication that it is safe to travel to this beautiful country. For a small island the number of things you could do is almost limitless.

Below are top five reasons you should visit Sri Lanka. If you are still having doubts about visiting and enjoying its beauty, consider that Sri Lanka is chosen as one of the top 31 places to visit by New York Times, and chosen second as a top travel destination by National Geographic channel. Check the National Geographic video below.

Sri Lanka chosen as the second best travel destination by National Geographic and experts give there opinion on why it is a must visit place for tourists

The golden beaches of Sri Lanka are without doubt one of the top tourist attractions in Sri Lanka. With sunshine all throughout the year we Sri Lankans tend to forget that in some countries the sun shines for only one or two months. For most European visitors sun bathing is the thing they most enjoy when visiting this beautiful country. It still amazes me how much they enjoy a weekend in a beach resort working on there tan.

Being a island there are plenty of beaches for you to enjoy and relax but there are few famous beaches in Sri Lanka that provide you with that extra beauty and comfort.Nilaveli beach in Trincomalee was opened to the public recently and it is one of the most purest white sand beaches in Asia. Other than that there are some famous tourist destinations like the Beruwela-Benthota beach area and Negombo beach area which have luxurious hotels to go with beautiful beaches. Mount Lavinia beach is probably the best beach that is closest to Colombo and if you are a surfer then Arugam bay is the place for you since it is considered one of the top ten surfing destinations in the world.

Watching wildlife is another major tourist attraction which is evident by the number of national parks in the country. Yala National park is the most famous of the wildlife parks in Sri Lanka but there are plenty more with each having unique attributes. If you are looking to see leopards then Yala is the best place, Wasgamuwa is famous for bear sighting and somewhat adventurous Elephants.Elephants, Peacock, Wild buffaloes, Crocodiles, Wild boar,deer and monkeys are also found in almost any national park.A wide range of birds are also found in these national parks and if you are specially interested in bird watching then Kumana bird sanctuary is the best place for you.

If few hours of Safari ride is not enough for you there are bungalows and camping sites inside the parks so you can watch wildlife in a more relaxed manner. Most of these bungalows are located near stream and are a great location to view wildlife in the evening and early morning. You can view them at night as well during the full moon.

As Elephant watching is a major tourist attraction there are some places specifically created where you can watch and mingle with them in semi wildlife conditions.Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage is one such place where you can indulge in activities like bottle feeding baby elephants and also have a very close look at Elephants bathing in the river.

Sri Lanka has a written history that goes well beyond 2000 years and the splendor of those grand old days are yet intact in some places. There are eight world heritage sites in Sri Lanka and and six of them are cultural ones. The most visited of them all is definitely the Sigiriya rock fortress which is sometime known as the eighth wonder of the world as well. There are so much to explore and enjoy in these historic sites that it will take a lifetime to visit all those places. Although you can visit a place like Sigiriya, Dambulla rock temple in one day you can never experience all the things the ancient city of Anuradhapura holds in one day. You can see the magnificent dagobas, beautiful palaces and the moonstones and guard stones surrounding them, beautifully carved ponds built for the clergy and royalty or enjoy hundreds of beautifully carved statues of Lord Buddha and other kings. If you are a lover of historical places there is no place as Sri Lanka to see them.

Eco-tourism in Sri Lanka is a growing industry and if you are someone who loves to spend a relaxing holiday close to nature then Sri Lanka might be just the place for you. There are many nature resorts in Sri Lanka, mostly these are bungalows converted to resorts. Mostly they are in a secluded area in a forest beside a fresh water stream or a waterfall with a natural pool to enjoy a safe bath. Although there are luxurious nature resorts most of them focus on providing a relaxing experience close to nature so you want find satellite TV, High speed internet and other modern luxuries in most of these resorts. What you will mostly find is nature trails leading through waterfalls and forests and some trekking for the more adventurous.

Boutique hotels is another growing trend in Sri Lanka with the rise of the tourism, For tourists who have some money to spend this might be the best option. Most of these are exclusive places where you have a private pool, your very own butler, all the modern day luxuries and a whole lot of other delicacies. These are places where they go that extra mile to make you happy and worth the prize you are paying for it.

The government is constantly on the lookout to ways to attract tourists and cheap shopping is another area that is getting some serious incentives. Recently the government has cut down on the taxes for luxury items like watches, electronic gadgets making it a worthwhile buy when you visit Sri Lanka.The capital Colombo has many shopping malls and it is truly a bargain when you compare them to the prizes in Europe and United States. Although almost everything is cheaper than in Europe the best deals are found in clothing. There are plenty of clothes shops in shopping malls and in other places and the variety you find in them is truly amazing. Exporting clothes is one of the main income streams of Sri Lanka and here you can buy them for the fraction of the cost because you will bypass the taxes and the export costs etc. Jewelry is another great buy in Sri Lanka and some people just cant believe some of the prize tags attached to gem embedded jewelry claiming it simply is not possible.

Another Sri Lanka specialty is the spicy food. From the traditional rice and curry meal to the exotic sea food meals there is something for everyone. Cuttle fish, crab, prawns and shrimp are in high demand because of lack of availability in most European countries. Then there are the tropical fruits found in Sri Lanka like pineapple, rambutan, durian and papaw and of course traditional Sri Lankan food like milk rice. There are hundreds of restaurants in the Colombo city alone and sea food restaurants by the sea are the most popular among tourists.

Night life is heavily encouraged by the government with special streets specially allocated for this purpose filled with food stalls, music and other entertainment.

There are hundreds of other reasons for you to visit Sri Lanka. Friendliness and the hospitably of the Sri Lankans are renowned world over and rightly so.Years of hardship during the civil war failed to wipe the smile out of Sri Lankans with the peace returning the beautiful country is becoming the tourist paradise it used to be. The range of activities available to you is truly amazing and it is considered one of the best tourist destination in the world because of all these reasons and Sri Lankan style weddings by the beach are also getting popular. If you are looking for a place to spend your holiday then Sri Lanka is the place where you can get your dream holiday without spending a fortune.