Find Hotels in Colombo, Sri Lanka

It was too much. My advise is to smile politely and keep moving. stranger danger... Take care of yourself, be assertive. Most people are harmless but traveling alone I don't take to many risks in the company I keep. Take tuk-tuks and taxis. They are cheap and the normal mode of transport and meet new friends in populated places. The Dutch hospital was cool for live music and beers, if you're up for a night on the town.

The beaches are clean and a pleasure to walk upon.

Colombo being capital is well connected to other parts of the country by train and long distance buses. If you want to see Sri Lanka head for beaches in south or mountains in central province. Colombo has little to offer in terms of fine dining or shopping when compared with other Asian cities.

Colombo holds lot of history and religious interests.

My biggest dissappointment was the famous buddhist temple which really should not be called a temple. It is more like a commercial rip off disguised as a culture experience. Becareful too of the taxi's - only take Meter unless you have experienced an understanding of the fares. They will "get lost" and before you know it a normal 150 rupee taxi ride, turns into a 400 rupee taxi ride. Generally the people are incredibly genuine and speak english so it is easy to get around.

We were surprised beyond our expectations, apart from the fact that Srilankans take thier hospitality very seriously, the food was breathtaking. Yes, i use the word not usually reserved for food, but it was breathtaking. I cannot remember the names of the dishes, but i can tell you this, Attention to detail, pride and respect for age-old traditions are some things that Srilankans do not make a song and dance out of. 2000 year old recipes, tender coconut water on the menu, scented rice sprinkled with clarified butter and garnished with curry leaves, are just a tiny sliver of the life changing culinary experience that we had at Uppali's. If we didn't try the other recommendations it was only for want of time. Albeit, shopping wasn't exactly on top of our lists, we ended up looking at a few places and going on a tinyy spree at the "House Of Fashions" I am assuming it is common knowledge that Srilankan handicrafts are epitomes of detail. no complaints there. As for handlooms, there were places like Kolanka and Barefoot that were beautifully decked out with ethnic wear. Saree connoiseurs would find themselves spoiled for choice. Colombo is racked with history everywhere you look. Museums, temples, old town hall etc. We took our time to really soak ourselves in the Museum of History but ran out of time for the Natural History Museum. The Gangaramaya temple is another trip down history. located right next to a road that sees some traffic through out the day, the insides of the temple are chillingly quiet, built around a huge tree, it inspires awe and boggles the mind with some truly life like sculptures of the Buddha, the dieties and the sundry.

However - a much wider selection of dining options including reasonable western choices in Colombo than other parts

There is very little we could recommend about the place apart from where we stayed was quite good. The people are certainly very friendly but apart from that we would not put the city in the same league as the likes of Delhi, Bombay, Manilla, Bangkok, Jackarta etc. In fairness 2 of the 4 days we were there were election days - which we were naively not aware of until we arrived so perhaps this is partly our fault as well.

Transport is good with trains, buses and taxi. In general, a good place to start your holiday. The beaches are good for sun-lovers !

It is an easy city to visit.....much less crowded than in India or Thailand etc. There are many, many fine hotels at reasonable prices. Restaurants, spas are high value. The people are warm, friendly and very genuine. We took a city tour, visited temples, mosques, saw key government buildings, performing arts venues, parks. Being right on the Indian Ocean there is always a comfortable breeze blowing. We will definitely return for another visit.

There is lot of cultural diversities to see in Colombo(budhists,hinduists,muslims and christians)I walked through Colombo area 1,2,3 and 4 and rest of area i have seen by tuk tuk or bus.Nevertheless i wouldnt stay in Colombo more than 3-4 days because it is much Sri lanka to see except Colombo.

the city is clean, very clean... very well maintained. a bit hot during the day time but overall, it was good fun. we also visited Kandy, nice elephant rides, Ayurvedic centres and spas, great food.

Sight seeing and tour options are also plenty. And there are even more a few hrs away from the city.

For travellers, tuk tuk is a common method of travel, which now have meter, so, it is easy to use.

Its a very nice place to relax for a few days. The people are very nice and friendly, specially to Indians. Mostly can speak basic English. Not at all expensive. It has many tourist attractions as well. A must visit place for travelers.

The architecture is mostly drab, but there are colonial highlights. I didn't find it to be of good value unless you ate totally local. The people were friendly and we felt safe. We felt satisfied with a one day visit, and would have been fine missing it. Keep in mind we are not city people, but still, compare to Bangkok or Ho Chi Minh City, we found this to not be so exciting.

Something really special is how the authorities have renovated old buildings to become places for good food, stores and entertaining. Its habitants are warm and helpful. Public transportation with three wheelers or tuk-tuks is unique and fun.

The people are super nice!

Something should be done for public transport, MRT or tram to manage traffic.