The pear-shaped island of Sri Lanka is only 270 miles long and 140 miles wide, but it’s swathed in beauty and is alluring to visitors seeking sun-soaked vacations. Travelers booking flights to Sri Lanka are sure to spend time on the beaches, but there is more to do and see besides bake in the sun. Sri Lanka is filled with various ethnicities and cultures, all providing a little flare to this tiny island.
Buddhist art and architecture dominate the Sri Lanka scenery. First time visitors booking flights to Sri Lanka will want to spend a few days in Anuradhapura exploring the ancient city. It was pronounced the capital city in 380 BC and Sinhalese kings ruled from Anuradhapura for more than 1000 years. Buddha is the defining figure throughout Sri Lanka and there’s good reason: legend has it that Buddha achieved enlightenment from the Sacred Bo-Tree and his right collar bone is in the Thuparama Dagoba, the oldest temple in Anuradhapura.
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Thanks to the tropical weather that graces the island, there is no bad time to book your flight to Sri Lanka!
Peak Season: Flights to Sri Lanka tend to be full from November through April, when the resorts open up to accommodate the swell in tourism.
Off-peak Season: Cheap flights to Sri Lanka are plentiful during monsoon season, when tourists shy away from the Sri Lankan shores pummeled by heavy precipitation. Try booking your Sri Lanka cheap flight for the weeks following monsoon season before the resorts and flights fill up.
After your Sri Lanka flight arrives in Colombo, board domestic Sri Lanka flights to nearby cities or head into the city center courtesy of taxi or train. The bus and train networks of Sri Lanka are wide-reaching, making travel within Sri Lanka affordable and easy to coordinate. With four international ports, Sri Lanka sees many cruise ships in its harbors, though the regular ferries that formally serviced South India and Sri Lanka are no longer running due to international conflict.
The following chart gives approximate journey times from Colombo (in hours and minutes) to other major cities and towns in Sri Lanka.
Colombo Bandaranaike Airport (CMB): (Katunayake) Sri Lanka cheap flights arrive at Colombo Bandaranaike Airport, which is located 19 miles north of the city.
Several nationalities, including North American and most European citizens, receive a 30-day tourist visa upon the arrival of their flight to Sri Lanka. Visa extensions are available for a fee and can be arranged before your Sri Lanka flight, or in Colombo once you arrive in Sri Lanka.
For U.S. citizens traveling to Sri Lanka, a passport valid at least two months after the visa’s expiration date is required, as is a return ticket or proof of onward travel.
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