{"id":2911,"date":"2019-03-03T13:08:10","date_gmt":"2019-03-03T13:08:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lemonsandpalmtrees.com\/?p=2911"},"modified":"2019-06-03T09:46:08","modified_gmt":"2019-06-03T09:46:08","slug":"best-family-beaches-in-sri-lanka","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lemonsandpalmtrees.com\/best-family-beaches-in-sri-lanka\/","title":{"rendered":"Best Beaches In Sri Lanka – Our Picks"},"content":{"rendered":"

The southern coast of Sri Lanka is full of amazing golden beaches and it can be difficult to decide where to go. <\/p>\n

What Beaches in Sri Lanka Generally offer<\/h2>\n

These are our picks of the most relaxed and family-friendly beaches. Note that waves are generally quite strong in Sri Lanka (why it’s popular for surfers), so you’ll need to look a bit if you’re not all that comfortable with “wild waters”.<\/p>\n

Besides the mentioned beaches, we also visited some that we didn\u2019t like that much. Like Bentota, where the beach itself was good enough, but we found the area quite awful. We also stayed in Mount-Lavinia just south of Colombo, and again the beach was indeed decent, but the area and vibe, was not as nice as on the mentioned beaches.\u00a0 Finally, the south coast of Sri Lanka offers much more beach options, and we didn\u2019t visit them all. Take the train or a car along the coast, and look for your favorite spot as well. We’ve heard many a good thing about Talpe and the area around Weligama.<\/p>\n

Quiet and Beautiful Talalla Beach<\/h2>\n

Talalla beach<\/a> is located between the cities of Matara and Dikwella. It is a beautiful beach, wide and long, with tall\u00a0palm trees and big waves, great for playing and bodysurfing. The beach has a very laid-back vibe, only a few places to eat and a handful of hotels\u00a0and we really liked that it\u00a0was so spacious\u00a0and quiet.<\/p>\n

\"Boats<\/p>\n

Where to Stay in Talalla Beach<\/h3>\n

Behind the hotels on the beach, you can find many homestays in the small streets. We chose Talalla BnB<\/a> which has a garden and a balcony attached to the rooms, only 5 minutes walk from the beach. We loved the homemade and very filling breakfast that was served on our huge balcony. While having breakfast we could watch the monkeys jumping around from the roof to the trees in the garden. Our friends (who were there at the same time) stayed at the big Talalla Retreat<\/a> next to the beach. The place has a great pool and garden. On the beach in Talalla, you can rent bodyboards and arrange surf lessons. For a surf lesson, you go to one of the beaches next to Talalla beach, as the waves are great for playing in, but not for starting to learn how to surf.<\/p>\n

\"Talalla
Talalla beach has wide sandy stretches and is perfect for an early morning run<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Kid
Cooling down by the pool at Talalla Retreat<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
A local fisherman at Tallala beach preparing his fishing net for the next morning<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Kid-Friendly Dikwella Beach<\/h2>\n

Matias booked a surf lesson at Talalla beach and was taken for the first lesson at Dikwella Beach<\/a>. Sixten and I tagged along to check the beach out.<\/p>\n

“Wauw!” This beach is so long, and the water so clear and beautiful. This is the beach to find peace and space to practice surfing! Some guys on the beach offer surf lessons for around 4000 LKR. For 1,5 hour.\u00a0 Dikwella beach is also very child-friendly as the waves break and become small before hitting the shore.\u00a0 The beach stretches all the way into Dikwella town, which has many small shops, a bigger supermarket, an old\u00a0playground<\/a>, and local eateries. Dikwella is also a transport hub, where you can easily find a bus to the very popular\u00a0places like Udawalawe National Park<\/a> and Ella<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Dikwella
Dikwella’s long sandy beach is known as a safe and child-friendly beach in the south of Sri Lanka<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Surfkid
Sixten trying out the surfboard and feeling very ready to go surfing<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Dikwella beach<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Hiriketiya Beach<\/h2>\n

Hiriketiya beach<\/a> is located in a little horseshoe shaped bay next to Dikwella and has become really popular, especially for families and surfers. We understand why. Besides the great waves, it\u00a0has a nice laid back vibe and many options for good local as well as western food. The waves hitting the shore are not as big as in Talalla, why it’s also good for families with kids. But still, it has waves that are great for surfers, beginners in one side of the bay and advanced to the left side of the bay, why it’s visited by many surfers or those\u00a0seeking to try it out.<\/p>\n

Both Matias and I got to rent a surfboard and try out the wawes there. It was great. Matias was also lucky to have a few encounters with some big sea turtles popping up to the surface for air, while he was waiting for the next wave.<\/p>\n

\"Surfboards
Sixten was happy to play on the beach while Matias and I went surfing together<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"Kid \"Surfing \"\"<\/p>\n

Where to Stay in Hiriketiya<\/h3>\n

We wanted to stay at the place called Salt Guesthouse<\/a>, but it was fully booked all the time we were in Sri Lanka. This guesthouse is surrounded by an aesthetic, peaceful garden with shaded cozy areas and a little pool. In the garden, you will find a restaurant, a good coffee bar, and\u00a0various seating areas, great for both working, reading and relaxing. The restaurant offers fresh salads, snacks, and shakes.\u00a0 We loved hanging out in the shade at this place, and to cool down in the little pool.\u00a0Upstairs is also an open-air yoga shala with daily classes, open for all levels.<\/p>\n

Blue Beach – Between Niwella and Hiriketiya Beach<\/h2>\n

From Hiriketiya you can do a little tour through backroads with local houses to the small beach\u00a0Blue Beach<\/a>. The beach was totally empty and can be nice as a break from the crowded Hiriketiya beach. There is also a little island you can walk over to, it has a beautiful natural pool on the top.<\/p>\n

\"Niwella<\/p>\n

\"Blue
We found lots of crabs and sea urchins around the stones at Blue beach<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Blue
Crossing to the little island at Blue Beach<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Snorkeling at Polhena Beach<\/h2>\n

Polhena Beach<\/a>\u00a0is relatively more famous among Sri Lankans than the tourists. It’s located two km from Matara town and is popular with local Sri Lankans, especially on the weekends and on Poya days. Polhena beach has a natural coral reef where it’s possible to spot big sea turtles and you for sure will meet lots of fish. Visibility is not that great though, maybe just around five meters. Due to the coral reef, the high tides and waves as we met on the other beaches are blocked. The water is thus calmer and great for smaller kids. We went on a Sunday where the beach was packed with locals, and there was a good weekend vibe. In the\u00a0eastern corner where the snorkeling is best, it was relatively quiet though.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Sunday is a busy day at Polhena beach<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

No matter which beach will be your favorite, all the beaches are easy to visit by train, bus, and tuk-tuk. You can easily stay at one beach and do day trips to any of them.<\/p>\n

Enjoy!<\/p>\n

\"Bus
You can catch one of the colorful busses from Matara to Polhena beach.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The southern coast of Sri Lanka is full of amazing golden beaches and it can be difficult to decide where to go.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2784,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[11,27],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\n