Columbo to Maldives

After a 7 day trip around the highlights of Sri Lanka a friend and I are considering 3 days in The Maldives.

Would anyone sacrifice the southern coast of Sri Lanka - Mirrisa, Tangalle and Galle for a trip to The Maldives which appears an hour away? Any advice/views partisan or not would be appreciated.

After the travelling to the internal sights of Sri Lanka we thought it would be great to relax entirely on a beach then take a flight back to Columbo to catch our scheduled flight home to London.

We are in a quandry....Help!!

Blue

Columbo to Maldives

Hi Blue...

Maybe i am a ';little'; biased here, but personally i would not go to Maldives in preference to staying that extra week in Sri Lanka.

Ok, so you will have spent 7 days touring around, and most likely in need a a rest and being generally lazy, but for me the beaches around south, and south west would take preferrence over the Maldives anyday, and of course Sri Lanka is MUCH cheaper too !!

Regards

Dave

Columbo to Maldives

Hi there,

a) Yes the beaches in Maldives ARE better. Much nicer coral reefs and silence.

b) But it%26#39;s much more costly there. Also the 1-hour flight is ridiculously expensive if purchased separately, something like USD 200-250 return. Only when purchased as part of a bigger itineraty, e.g. Srilankan Airlines or Emirates or some charter airlines, the extra is maybe USD 100 and feasible.

Hope this helps a bit,

%26lt;Erik%26gt; %26amp; [Sandya]

Hi all and thanks for your views and guidance.

I wonder if I could prevail upon you again?

Is there a train from the Pinniewalla area (Elephant Sanctuary) to make it down further south to the coast. Or would it be better to take a private car?

So then 3 days traveling from Pinniewalla along the coast to then end up in Columbo for flights home. Any 3 day itinerary suggestions with places to stay?

I do not want to break the bank.

Thanks.

Blue

Hi,

The closest railway station to Pinnawala is Rambukkana - 2 km away.

From Rambukkana you can go by train as far as Matara with a change at Colombo Fort. Fares 2nd class: Rambukkana-Colombo LKR 140, Colombo-Matara LKR 230. If you want to go to Mirissa you may have get down at Weligama as not all express trains stop at Mirissa. If you want to go to Tangalle you will have to take a bus from Matara.

Back to the airport you can take the train to Colombo Fort and the airport bus (route 187) to the airport.

A private car to take you from Pinnawala to e.g. Galle will cost you around LKR 16000. Hiring a private car for 3 days to take you from Pinnawala to Mirissa and back to airport will cost you around LKR 18000-2000.

Hans