A guide to Sri Lanka – Everything you need to know before you go! Sri Lanka with kids and our Sri Lanka family travel itinerary.
You can view our Full Sri Lanka Itinerary here or watch our Sky Surfers Family Travel Sri Lanka YouTube Episode here
Let’s start off by saying how much we absolutely loved Sri Lanka. We found it to be one of the most underrated places we have ever been too! From the warm and welcoming people to the food, beaches, attractions, adventures and scenery! It really does offer a little bit of everything! One of the main questions we get asked is, is Sri Lanka safe? And our answer is absolutely! In fact, it was one of the most friendliest countries we visited!
Follow our travels on Instagram @sky_surfers_ and see more of our Sri Lanka highlights in deeper detail.
VISA REQUIREMENTS – Yes, you need a Visa for travel to Sri Lanka. You will likely need an Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) or a visa, depending on your nationality, as the free visa policy for 35 countries, announced in August 2024, did not come into effect unfortunately. Check for the latest updates via the Sri Lanka Immigration and Emigration Department Website.
ITINERARY PLANNING & WEATHER – Sri Lanka is an easy country to navigate and plan an itinerary. You really do just loop the Country (If time allows). We recommend at least 2-3 weeks. You just need to decide weather you will do this by going south to north or north to south! This will hugely depend on the weather, as Sri Lanka has 2 Monsoon Seasons. One being the Maha (October to January) which is in the Northern and Eastern areas and the other being Yala (May to August) which is in the South and Western areas. To make things easier, we’d recommend to plan your Sri Lanka holiday from December to April and head south then make your way up to the north over 2-3 weeks. The temperature in Sri Lanka averages 25-32 degrees and can be very hot and humid with a tropical climate, although there is always an inviting beach to relax on and cool off in and if you’re lucky from January to March you may even see Blue Sperm Whales.
TRANSPORT – Getting around in Sri Lanka – Sri Lanka has Uber, so we recommend downloading the App before your arrival. You won’t need to pre arrange transfers or a driver for your arrival because there will be local drivers everywhere looking for your business. Most of the time, they will give you their personal card so you can continue to use them as your driver if you wish to. They are also happy to drive long distances. Otherwise there are Tuktuks or even trains! We hired our own Tuktuk for $20 per day! There are several companies that offer this and you won’t struggle finding one!
eSIM – Have you ever received a huge roaming bill after a trip abroad? Have you ever lost phone service or connectivity while traveling – and found yourself desperately searching for free Wi-Fi? Have you wasted time anxiously looking for a SIM vendor at the airport? We experienced all of these things, this is why we use Airalo. Simply download and instal your digital data pack, depending on where you are in the world and you are good to go. This saved us so much time, effort and money when we arrived into a new country. We got off the plane and immediately had Internet! See more info here – Airalo ESIM
ARRIVAL – The first stop will most likely be Colombo, as that is where you will fly into or pass through at some stage. Colombo is extremely busy and good to see and experience but aside from the beach front it really didn’t offer us much at all as a family. Our tip would be to hold on tight to your kids so you don’t loose them and only spend one day here. Focus your time on the main areas of the Southern Beaches, Yala National Park, Ella, Kandy and Sigiriya.
COSTS & BUDGET – Sri Lanka is a very affordable country to visit. If you have watched our Sri Lanka YouTube Episode you would have seen the huge homes we were staying in which were booked via Airbnb. They were 3 story, new homes with 4 bedrooms and only cost us $450 AUD for a week! One even came with a cook, who came and cooked us the most delicious Sri Lankan dishes for dinner. We couldn’t believe this value! Transport is also affordable as is food, depending on where you choose to eat of course and most tourist attractions. Again you can view our thorough Sri Lanka Itinerary here where we share information on the best beaches, day trips, places not to miss, hidden gems, tours, where we stayed, our detailed itinerary, how you can feed baby turtles, go on Safari and so much more.
Sri Lanka really does leave you wanting to go back for more!
You can follow along on our Instagram to see more of our worldwide travels, get bucket list holiday destination inspiration and family travel ideas.
If you’re wondering how we afford to travel so much as a family read this post.
Enjoy our Sri Lanka YouTube Episodes below where we show you how to travel Sri Lanka with kids and explore some of Sri Lanka’s most incredible destinations such; Yala National Park and go on a Safari, Mirissa Beach, Sigiriya, Kandy, Ella and more!
