What is Kogalla Resort in Sri Lanka? How to get to Koggala. Of great interest to tourists is the Museum of Folk Art and Culture. The exposition of the museum is collected from a variety of products of craftsmen and household items of indigenous people.
AND port city. Koggala is perfect place for solitary a relaxing holiday away from the bustle. Special attention deserves, which is a broad sand strip, where coconut palms and mangroves grow, and, of course, côte d'azur indian ocean. Despite the attractiveness of this beach, it is extremely rare to meet tourists here, even in high season.
Like everything south coast Sri Lanka in Koggala almost all year round the sun shines. However, in low season from June to October there is a high chance of rain and the ocean is turbulent.
The infrastructure is poorly developed, so it gives the impression of primordial nature, untouched by civilization. There are several hotels along the coast that have swimming pools, fitness centers, restaurants, and you can also find inexpensive guesthouses (near Koggala Airport). Here is one of the best hotels Sri Lanka 5*. locals live mainly on tourism income. There are several functioning factories in the vicinity of Koggala.
What to do in Koggala
Apart from beautiful beach, in Kogalle there are at least beautiful place. Exactly this big lake on an island surrounded by mangrove forests, which is home to a variety of wild animals, reptiles and birds. Among tourists, boat trips on the lake are very popular; the cost of a two-hour excursion will cost you about 2000 rubles. You can combine a walk on the lake with a visit to the three islands that are located around it. One of them is the island of the “Temple of the Buddha” (Temple Island), where Buddhist temple. This island is very popular among local pilgrims, so on the full moon, which is considered a sacred event in Sri Lanka, about 4,000 people come here. The next island is called Ananda Spice garden, where the locals grow a variety of spices for sale. And the third island - "Cinnamon Island" (Cinnamon Island), there are plantations of cinnamon, which can also be purchased.
Koggala is known for its airport, which is symbolized by an airplane located close to the coast. For a fee, you can get on board this aircraft.
You can go diving at Unawatuna Beach and surf at Weligama Beach.
Also in the village there is a folklore museum named after famous writer Martin Wickramasinghe Folk Art Museum, which presents a unique collection of household items from different districts islands. It is said that Koggala became famous thanks to this writer, who in his novel Madol Duwa (translated as Mangrove Island) mentions small island near the resort.
Among other things, you can visit the turtle farm (Koggala Turtle Farm), take a boat trip or take a picture with the symbol of Sri Lanka - local fishermen sitting on long poles. Fishing from the shore is also very popular; the caught fish will be immediately cooked for you in any restaurant.
Tours, hotels, reviews
How to get to Koggala
How to get to Kogalla described
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From my point of view, quite interesting and worthy of close attention. It must be said that Koggala belongs to the category of "elite" resorts, because there are no such number of 5 * hotels in any other resort in Sri Lanka. However, it cannot be said that this resort is experiencing an invasion of tourists, as for example this is the case in Unawatuna. Rather the opposite. The whole atmosphere is more characterized as a club. Koggala has a fairly wide and long beach. Walking along this beach, even during the peak season for the southeastern part of the country, you will feel free. People will come across to you very rarely.
How to get to Koggala
With a transfer here, you will not have big problems. Like all resorts in the southwest, Koggala is located right on the A2 highway, connecting with the southern city of Matara. So you can immediately take a taxi from the airport, and rush here in 2.5 hours. The cost of a taxi for you will be about $120 per car.
Advice: if you speak a little English, you can take the initiative and find fellow travelers at the airport by dividing the cost by the number of passengers, this is often done there, mostly, however, by foreigners.
If money is tight, take a trip by bus. It will take a little more time. You will need to travel from Suvarnabhumi airport free shuttle bus to Ariewata bus station, there transfer to the nearest (run every half hour) bus to Colombo. In Colombo itself, at the bus station where you arrive, transfer to any bus going to Matara or Tangalle.
In principle, you can go on an excursion to Koggala if you are at any of the resorts or. This can be done in the evening, there is no more than an hour bus ride one way.
Weather
In Koggala, seasonality is quite pronounced, which, by the way, is typical for all resorts in the southeast of Sri Lanka. The ideal time to go here is from December to March inclusive. I especially recommend coming here by mid-March, when almost all fruits, especially such delicious ones as mango, ripen, and their cost tends to zero. During the period from December to March, you will almost never find cloudy weather. At this time, a very light sea breeze blows.
Hotels in Koggala
As I said above, the atmosphere here is clubbing, this is due to the fact that many of the hotels that are located here are part of various club chains. It is difficult for me to imagine the situation, how you can buy a tour to a club hotel, but sometimes everything is possible, and our compatriots quite often flicker on the territory of quite respectable hotels located here. Clubness - denoting closeness from strangers, implies that people in their homeland pay certain club fees (golf clubs, yacht clubs). With the money raised, the clubs set up hotels abroad, which are available at any time for their members (investors) and their families. Very rarely, especially out of season, club hotels open to "strangers" in order to earn money to support local staff. So, if you managed to get into a hotel like this, consider it pretty good luck.
Hotels to look out for:
All windows of the hotel overlook the ocean, located on the first coastline, quite well-groomed and a beautiful hotel with an incredible panorama from the windows of the rooms. Almost ideal for a passive beach holiday.
warning: Personally, the sound of the ocean annoys me, so when I travel with my family, I swore to rent accommodation close to the sea. If you do not have such problems, I see no problem why not stay at the opportunity in this wonderful hotel.
Club Koggalla Village
The hotel is one of the first hotels built in Sri Lanka. It has been renovated several times. Mostly measured and unhurried Europeans rest here. Very close located to the beach.
Koggala Beach is located in the south of Sri Lanka, between Unawatuna and Mirissa. There are practically no people on Kogalla beach. They are as rare as the cafes along the coastline. The beach is long, like everything else. In our independent travel in Sri Lanka we stopped for 1 day to rest in Koggala.
Northern part of Koggala beach
The central part of the Koggala district. The Habaraduwa area also belongs to this part. Here is the longest and widest beach. They even called it Long Beach, as it is really long, as much as 4 km of yellow sand. The waves are big, swimming in the ocean will not work normally. There are several large hotels on the first line:
- Koggala Beach Hotel
- The Long Beach Resort
- Club Koggala Village
- KK Beach Hotel
Fishermen on sticks
In the Kogalla area, you can watch "fishermen" sitting on perches in the water. For a fee, they let you take pictures of them. You can even try to climb a stick yourself and take a picture with a fishing rod. This tourist attraction the fishermen are not real. For a photo they ask from 100 to 500 rupees. Climb on a stick 1500 rupees. A point on the map .
Southern part of Koggala
We did not stop at the main beach of Koggala, since all the hotels there have too low a rating, except for the 5 star Fortress for $500 per night. Therefore, they chose south side. The beach at the South Lake Resort. This section of the beach can be walked in 15 minutes. It is convenient to walk, the beach is flatter, like, the sand is not so sinking, although it also consists of all sorts of pebbles and fragments of shells.
The ocean on Kogalla Beach is as violent as anywhere else. Waves are present, where without them in Sri Lanka. Swimming in such waves is not safe. People go to the far left side of the beach, where it is relatively calm and you can swim a little or ride the waves. This is where the South Point Villa is located.
We did not swim on Koggala beach. But we walked here for 2 hours with pleasure. It is quiet here, there are no merchants and stuck, as on other beaches of Lanka, and this is already half the battle.
There is no shadow on Kogalle. A small curtain from the sun in the form of a sprawling tree is, again, in that nook on the left, where it is most convenient to swim. Also in the center of the beach there are a dozen sun loungers with umbrellas belonging to the hotels South Lake Resort and South Beach Resort. You can order something to drink or eat there.
Where to eat in Koggala. Cafe on Kogalla south beach
In this part of the beach, we visited the only cafe in the South Beach Resort hotel. It looks very decent, but they were dissatisfied with it. The waiting time for food for all the few visitors was (!) more than an hour. We waited for our order first on sunbeds, which reminded us of beds on the beach. We even fell asleep a little. Sunset had already begun, and we all waited and waited. And now, they finally got it! So much waiting and got two tasteless dishes. I was served uncooked fish (it could have been turned into coals in an hour!!). Classic restaurant in Sri Lanka - everything is very long, from cooking, to waiting for the bill, and then also delivery
Kogalla video
Hotels in Koggala
- South Lake Resort
- South Point Villa
- The Fortress Resort & Spa 5*
- Koggala Beach Hotel
- Long Beach Resort
- Club Koggala Village
- KK Beach Hotel
All hotels in the area
Small resort town has its own legend. Tradition says that not so long ago this city could not be found on the world map. The omission was corrected when the Sri Lankan writer Martin Wikramasingha sang Kogalla in one of his works.
The best beach in Sri Lanka
Why is this resort so good? It is in Kogalle that the beach, which has the glory of being the best in Sri Lanka, is located. It is a strip of light soft sand bordering on azure waters ocean. paradise, a place where you can hide from the hustle and bustle of the city.
There is a lake in Kogalle, the value of which lies in its ecological integrity, this is an island wildlife where you can watch beautiful exotic birds and enjoy an extraordinary sunset.
Local beaches are framed by water: on the one hand, these are the waters of the ocean, on the other, the lake.
Holidays in Kogalle are a godsend for diving fans. Swimming weather is almost always here, and the diversity of marine life and the beauty of coral reefs cannot be described in words. Even divers who have seen a lot will not remain indifferent.
Best hotels of Kogalla
- Dream View Villa 1*- good and one of the best cheap hotels Kogalli, suitable for avid surfers and divers whose goal is not beach holiday with all amenities, and the elements and the ocean. Prices for accommodation in a DBL room - from $ 35 (without meals).
- Dalawella Beach Resort 3*- mid-priced offer with excellent service, the hotel, as the name suggests, is located right on the beach, on the Indian Ocean, next to Unawatuna beach. Price per DBL room - from $ 90 (Breakfast).
- Niyagama House 5*- is considered one of the best hotels not only in Kogalla, but throughout Sri Lanka. The hotel has only 7 rooms, the hotel itself is located at the very top of the operating tea plantation. Price per DBL room - from $200 per night (Breakfast).
You can book a hotel in Kogalle through a special form on the right.
The best time to travel to Kogallu is from November to April, as the rainy season runs from May to October. But despite this, if you are here in rainy weather, you will still find something to do, you will not be bored here.
Kogalla Sri Lanka is the cradle cultural monuments and attractions. Very close is the ancient city of Polonnaruwa, palace ruins have been preserved here. Definitely worth a visit as well Palace with Buddha statues, Watadage temple And museum of folk art and culture.
In Kogalle, tourists are offered numerous excursions, for example, visit to the nursery Panavella, where you can see elephants at arm's length and even ride these exotic animals. Here you will see spice garden, cinnamon and tea plantations and bewitching with their beauty and power waterfalls. On excursions Safari you can see wild animals: crocodiles, mongooses, peacocks, monkeys, and when traveling to a turtle farm, hold the turtles in your arms. From November to April, whales swim off the coast, you can admire them by choosing the appropriate tour.
Special charm to the Kogalla resort is given abandoned hotels located along the beach. Local residents calmly and kindly meet tourists who want to visit these places. On the islets of Lake Kogalla are Buddhist huts, which are available for visiting after special permission.
Who is suitable for a holiday in Kogalle
Kogalla is a corner of Sri Lanka designed for a relaxing quiet rest body and soul, for meditation and contemplation, immersion in oneself and unity with extraordinary nature. At the same time, this resort attracts tourists engaged in water sports sports - divers and surfers. Lovers of golf and tennis will easily find something to do.
Going to Kogallu, do not forget sunscreens and repellents, as in all of Sri Lanka, the sun is scorching here, and the mosquitoes are bloodthirsty, but with the right preparation, this will not spoil your impression of staying in an amazing and adventurous corner of the planet.
The perfect choice for your little one polish fabric for kids. Quality 100% cotton. Delivery in Moscow and the region. Possibly postage.
Hello everyone :) Two weeks ago we returned from Sri Lanka. Since before the trip, trying to learn more about this country, the reviews of other tourists helped me a lot, I decided not to be lazy and write my own review :)
We rested at the resort Koggala, Koggala Beach Hotel in September 2012. I must say, we hit the mark! The hotel is cool, everything is clean, tidy, the beach is just awesome, wide, beautiful, like in the pictures. I want to say, for those who will choose hotels in Koggala, even the 5-star Fortress hotel does not have such a beach nearby, moreover, they don’t have a beach at all :) Where the hotel territory ends, there is a small cliff and that’s it. There is no beach :) Approximately the same situation in Koggala Village, but better, closer to a normal beach.
But, the main thing is the OCEAN. Many have already written, but I repeat - this is Something. As we joked towards the end of the trip: the sea is a big puddle compared to the ocean. It's just unreal power and beauty. There is nothing like it on planet Earth!
By the way, they write the truth, you have to be careful with the ocean. His traction is enormous. The guys swam longer, but I couldn’t take more than 10 minutes, you get tired, as if you were swimming in the pool doing 15 swims there and back :) We usually went out exhausted :) But the pleasure is a sea. The waves on the sea are not even close.
And in general, not only the ocean, but also the nature of the country, of course, amazed us, the beauty is incredible. And the climate, by the way, is quite pleasant, there is no strong stuffiness and humidity is not felt as much as in other countries of the Asian region, so it is very comfortable to relax.
About the transfer. Everything was great. Thank God, the Sri Lankans began to build autobahns. The autobahn from Colombo (the capital) has already been built along the entire southwest coast. So we got to the hotel quite quickly, about 3 hours, of which 1 hour we traveled around the outskirts of Colombo and, since the traffic there was terrible, it was very long :) But when we got onto the autobahn, the speed of movement increased significantly :)
By the way, at the airport the most favorable exchange rate, in mid-September was 130 rupees for 1 dollar, in a hotel 123 rupees. At the airport on the return flight, according to the receipt that was given to you during the exchange upon arrival, you can exchange back the unspent rupees for dollars at the same rate. When exchanging, immediately ask to exchange several large bills for small ones (50-100 rupees each), you can also approach the hotel at the reception and ask to exchange them for small ones, but they don’t always happen. It is simply necessary to always have small bills with you, at least because giving change is not part of the mentality of the Sri Lankans; as well as for tips.
It is also very profitable and inexpensive to buy a SIM card for a mobile phone at the airport. It is better to take Mobitel, the connection is better. It costs 1000 rupees (approx. 7.5 bucks), of which 850 rupees falls into the account. There are booths of operators almost in front of the exit from the airport on the left. The connection is very cheap, they talked with Chisinau, Kiev, Moscow, even at the end of the vacation they puzzled over who else to call to chat, so that they could blurt out the money, so as not to be wasted :) In Koggala, a SIM card is welded many times more expensive, something around 700-800 rupees for sim card only, empty.
We arrived at the hotel at 8 am, we were immediately settled, which was just wonderful, given the difficult road.
We took All Inclusive and did not regret it. Guys, there is nowhere to eat outside the hotel. There are two cafes, one right next to the hotel, the other a little further. Or in shops to take something dry. In the hotel itself, it is expensive to take lunch or dinner separately. Alcohol is sold only in separate shops, in Galle (about half an hour by tuk-tuk). All Inclusive, according to our calculations, cost us an order of magnitude cheaper than we would eat and buy drinks and alcohol ourselves. By the way, who will try their famous red rum: in the hotel, red rum sucks. If you want really tasty local red rum, take Calypso rum in their alcohol shops, this is the best Sri Lankan red rum, it’s checked :) It costs a small bottle of 375 ml - about 700 rupees (approx. 5-6 dollars), a large liter - about 1400 rupees (10-11 bucks).
And, I would like to warn you right away. Everyone wants a tip there. Hotel staff (and everyone, not just maids), bus drivers, salespeople, just passers-by. On the tea plantation, women workers immediately ran up to us to take pictures, and then asked for money. In the elephant nursery, the workers bring the elephants closer to the tourist so that he can be photographed, then they ask for money. Even in a free toilet in a restaurant in Kandy, on the way back, we ran into an aunt, a cleaning lady, who tried to ask for money. Everything is clear, the country is poor, much poorer than ours, but. Of course, you need to give sometimes, but here it’s 100 rupees, there 100 rupees (about 1 dollar), and if you don’t hold back, you can be left without money :) We gave out in the early days, and then we began to slow down to avoid bankruptcy :)
More. For those who smoke, stock up on cigarettes as there are no normal cigarettes in Sri Lanka. This is trouble. There is only a lousy Dunhill (500 rupees - 4 bucks) and Marlboro smuggled from Vietnam on the beach from the locals, very strong, 400 rupees (about 3 bucks), and they sell only 10 packs. For me, who smokes light thin cigarettes, this is a disaster. In addition, all and sundry shoot cigarettes, again because they don’t sell good cigarettes, but they apparently want to smoke normal tobacco. Therefore, everyone is asking: beachboys, security guards, lifeguards, etc. :) Again, maybe only here, maybe not, but it was much easier for us to smoke there than at home, maybe because of the climate, but it took twice as many cigarettes per day than at home.
Excursions definitely need to be taken on the spot from local guys. They have everything already set up there, they have their own tuk-tuks, buses, guides, etc. And much cheaper.
By the way, I would like to mention two guys: Gemini and Nimal, especially Gemini, he helped us a lot, we went on two excursions with him, ordered delicious ready-made shrimp from him (I’ll write about it later), brought us coconuts, took us to Galle, to the shops on his tuk-tuk, if necessary, he found us more tuk-tuks, if we had a company and needed more tuk-tuks, he treated us local fruits, sweets, sometimes advised us where to go, where it was cheaper. He brought us a durian fruit for free (we really wanted to try it because we had heard about this fruit, Gemini brought us one to try, why one - it just stinks like a rotten onion, but it tastes sweet. In general impression still something. The guys ate, but I couldn’t swallow because of the smell :) As Gemini said, this fruit greatly increases the potency in men :)
Gemini and I went on two excursions. I want to note that he worked well, he looked at everything in time, so that we would have time everywhere. For example, in elephant nursery it was necessary to be in time in such a way as to catch the elephants first from the nursery itself, and then they are taken to bathe, if you are late, you will miss all the fun. Stopped us at different places beautiful so that we could take pictures, drew our attention to some things that we ourselves would not have noticed. If there were requests to stop to buy something, he told the driver to stop when we got to a place where it could be purchased. It was clear that he was trying to do a good job. Both speak Russian quite tolerably, you can understand. If you call, just tell which hotel you are in, they themselves will come to the beach in the reception area or to the hotel gate from the side of the road. When meeting, it is much easier and clearer to talk to them than by phone :) They are not allowed to enter the hotel territory, like the rest of the local population.
Our first excursion: the Pinavella Elephant Orphanage + ride elephants (the fee for riding is not included in the price, it’s expensive, about 12 bucks per person, you can ride only two) + watch the elephants bathe in the river, then the spice garden, then Kandy and the temple Buddhas, then waterfalls and mountain tea plantations of Nuwara Eliya. The tour was awesome, we were completely delighted. Very Beautiful places. They returned full of emotions and new impressions. The tour cost 75 dollars per person (including all entrance tickets, i.e. we gave our guide 75 bucks, and he himself paid for us for entrance tickets, taxes, etc. throughout the entire excursion), in time - from 4 am to 12 am. Don't worry, it's worth it to get up at 4 in the morning :) The bus is excellent, comfortable, with air conditioning. By the way, who will go, do not hesitate to ask for a dry ration at the hotel on the evening before departure, so that at 4 in the morning they give you breakfast to go, and in the evening they leave you a dry ration-dinner at the reception. We ordered rations for ourselves and for the guys who went on an excursion with us and who did not have all inclusive, and even the guide and the driver :)
By the way, after the tea plantations, we were brought to a tea factory with a tea shop at the factory. At first, we didn’t want to buy anything, we thought it was a scam and it would be cheaper in supermarkets in cities. Turned out to be WRONG. There is no such tea in supermarkets, mostly cheap tea is sold for locals. By the way, in duty free in Colombo, too, the choice is not so hot, and expensive. So we did not regret that we decided to buy a real mountain bike there in Nuwara Eliya. Ceylon tea, even the guys at the hotel, who went after us, ordered more tea to buy. At a cost of 100 grams, a pack of about $ 2, 300 grams - about $ 3 is black tea, green tea is about $ 3 per 150 grams. There, at the shop, you can sit on the terrace to try tea, they bring it for free. Silver or white tea is very expensive, they have some special varieties, but again we asked on the terrace, they brought us a brewed one to try, we didn’t feel anything special. Maybe we're just not experts :)
Second excursion: Dondra Lighthouse (the most south point Sri Lanka) and jeep safari in the Yalla reserve. The lighthouse is very beautiful and the area around is awesome. It’s not worth climbing the lighthouse, honestly, you won’t see anything super interesting there, and climbing along a narrow spiral staircase quite tiring, even for our guys, although they are quite strong :) Besides, it is very stuffy inside. The guys after the lighthouse went to swim right in their clothes, as everyone was soaked through with sweat J And I soaked in the sink for about 5 minutes :)
The safari didn't really impress us. On a jeep with poor tires, moving along a petrified sandy road was a little problematic, sometimes it seemed that your teeth would fly out :) We saw animals: elephants (very far), buffaloes, crocodiles, a lot of roe deer, magunsta (far), monitor lizard, wild rooster, peacocks, one monkey, a wild boar that was eating up another wild boar left after a predator, and even a JAGUAR. As I read earlier in the reviews, it is rare to see him, so we were unrealistically lucky. He ran right in front of our jeep and hid in the bushes and from there looked at us with displeasure. The rest of the jeeps that drove up to our contented squeals had no time to see anything, since the jaguar had already run away somewhere far into the bushes. And so, all the way I wanted to get out of the jeep and get closer to the animals in order to take a closer look, but of course it was forbidden, so there was not much enthusiasm, since all the animals were at a decent distance. But from a cognitive point of view and the desire to see more in this wonderful country, it was interesting. By the time we left the hotel at 9 am, with a stop at the lighthouse, then to Yalla. We had a bite to eat in a restaurant, and from 3 to 6 pm we rode in the park. Then go home. The tour cost $60 (including all entrance fees).
Galle didn't impress us at all. Noisy town, dirty, it stank from time to time with absolutely exotic combinations of smells for us J We wandered through the ruins of a Dutch fort; we tried to buy fruit at the local market, but it did not work out, because seeing foreigners, local merchants begin to beat simply breathtaking prices, and we drove back home. Galle is about half an hour by tuk-tuk and 400-500 rupees (3-4 dollars) for a trip for one tuk-tuk round trip. One tuk-tuk accommodates 3 people maximum. If you want to get into the city, it's better to go to Matara, it's the other way from the hotel than Galle, an hour's tuk-tuk ride, but it's much more fun there.
We went to the turtle farm. Everyone, including adult men, while holding little turtles in their hands, had just touching facial expressions :) The entrance costs 400 rupees (approx. 3 bucks) plus a tuk-tuk ride back and forth for about 5 minutes and 200 rupees for a tuk-tuk ( 1.5 bucks).
By the way, if you are being taken somewhere by tuk-tuk, the tuk-tuk is waiting for you until the end, as long as you need, while you are there, see enough.
We went to Lake Koggala. A normal motorboat ride is enough. We stopped at some peninsula where monkeys were sitting very high on two trees, it was almost invisible, we could only see through the camera lens. We saw one monitor lizard in the water. The motorboat trip cost 10 bucks per person (plus 200 rupees for a tuk-tuk to the lake), don’t give us more, our guide Gemini immediately told us that it was 10 dollars, so when we told the boaters about this, they immediately agreed without talking, although At first they tried to breed more. I don’t even know if it was worth the trip, I wouldn’t advise. But then again, for the sake of sporting interest, you can.
We ordered shrimp from Gemini several times, he brought them ready-made, they were with a delicious garlic-tomato sauce, they were just boiled in water with salt. Very large, Cost 800 rupees per kilogram (approx. 6 bucks). Overeat!
They really wanted to have a picnic on the beach for my birthday. Did not work out. By the way, if you are told that this is possible, do not believe it. The police won't allow it. The locals promised to do it for us a few days before the birthday, as a result, on the birthday itself, they told us that it was impossible, and offered to just bring ready-made shrimp and hang out on the beach together. It was clear that they just wanted to eat and drink nashara. In the market in Galle, again, it is impossible to buy fish and shrimp, since, seeing foreigners, prices increase sharply. For 1 kilo of shrimp, they wanted 15 bucks from us.
Be careful with the "whale watching in the ocean" tour - whales swim off the coast of Sri Lanka from about November to April, if you are offered such an excursion at other times of the year - this is a scam.
As already mentioned in other reviews - when planning any trips, consider the length of the day. Day and night here for 12 hours. It starts to brighten at 6 and by 7 it is already light, it gets dark at 18 and by 19 nothing is visible.
Gemini also took us to a store of various wooden products. Beautiful, mostly ebonite or rosewood. We bought a small Buddha figurine, rosewood, approx. 18 centimeters, 2000 rupees (15 bucks), an ebonite ashtray 600 rupees (4.5 bucks), a rosewood elephant 1200 rupees (9 bucks) and a cute plywood tuk-tuk for 600 rupees. They did not spare money, everything is very beautiful, good memory about the trip. You can immediately see how a boy works nearby in the workshop, who grinds all these figures. When buying more than one piece, they give a good discount. In other places, specially watched, much more expensive. I'm talking about the hotel in general. At the prices that they put there, you can buy the floor of the shop.
About insects. The mosquitoes there are just bastards. Unlike ours, they are inaudible and practically invisible. Sitting outdoors in the evening, it is better to smear yourself with something. And so, everything seems to be in order. There were no extreme insects. There is a small iguana living on site, mostly in the grass between the pool and the beach, and some very funny chipmunks. We fed them nuts and cookies.
Also, it is worth taking a more powerful sunscreen with you and be sure to take an after-sun cream with panthenol, since the sun is very strong, even the guys who were already tanned before were burned. And also a first-aid kit with native medicines, if something is not very good there, they have a main bias in alternative medicine :)
As for linen, I read reviews before the trip that the linen was dirty, gray. We didn't have anything like that. Everything is white, clean, towels are changed every day, ie. everything is within the normal hotel management :)
There is a safe at the reception, it costs very ridiculous money, we paid 2 bucks for 10 days. You come with your key, which is kept with you all the time, and you take everything you need from your cell day and night. Very convenient and safe.
The hotel also provides laundry services. We also laughed for a long time when we saw the prices. For a mountain of underwear that we threw ourselves off upon arrival, and these are two pairs of pants, two pairs of T-shirts, a warm jacket, socks, underpants, well, that is, everything that we had, we paid 5 dollars! Haven't seen this anywhere. They felt like bourgeois with their husbands, when for the n-th time they handed over things for washing. And they wash well, they never spoiled anything, things are neatly folded, very pleasantly smelling. It’s just that because of the humidity, things take a long time to dry, so we even attributed slightly dirty things to them like washing them, although the main goal was to dry things :)
About sockets. Inconvenient, because they are not ours. At the reception they can give an adapter, but not enough for everyone. If you are unlucky, the socket is there like one hole on top, two on the bottom, so take a pen and poke into the hole from above, do not be afraid, there is no current there, the two lower holes will open and you can insert
A little more about prices:
Guys bring coconuts - 5 rupees each;
Local beer Lyon - 200 rupees (approx. 1.5 dollars) for a bottle of 650 grams;
Plain water 0.5 - about 40 rupees (30 cents)
Fanta, Cola 0.5 - 90 rupees (70 cents)
In cafes, Lyon beer - 370 rupees (3 bucks)
Massage at the Koggala Village Hotel - $ 10 per hour (cool, from earlobes to heels);
Prices in a restaurant right next to the hotel (by the way, a very nice restaurant and delicious) - 600-900 rupees (5-7 dollars) for a decent dish with something marine (fish, squid, etc.) + french fries + salad. Plain water in a bottle 100 rupees 1 liter. Milkshake - 250 rupees (2 bucks).
By the way, who has children, grandchildren, nephews. Very cheap baby clothes. We don’t have children, but our neighbors from Kiev got a whole package of all kinds of clothes for ridiculous money. For example, a very cute dress for a girl (the fabric is good, don't think it's cheap) cost $1.
For the guys who fly from Kyiv with AirArabia and FlyDubai low-cost airlines. Airplane food is very expensive. A very small something, like shawarma, costs 5-7 dollars, beer 0.33 - 7 dollars, juice 200 ml or plain water 0.5 liters - 3 dollars, strong alcohol 50 grams - 7 dollars. Watching TV series - $ 3, movies - $ 9. For comparison: at the Dubai airport, when transferring, if you have a bite to eat at McDonald's: a cheeseburger - $ 3, a double cheeseburger - $ 6 (one double cheeseburger is about the same as two shawarmas on an airplane in size and degree of "fullness" :) Sweet water, mineral water at Dubai airport - $ 1 . You can safely carry it on the plane. So stock up on food and drinks in Kyiv and Dubai.
About magnets, knowing that many people buy gifts for friends, including us, I cannot but say. The hotel is very expensive, if you see nice ones somewhere in the cities, shops - take it, they cost 300 rupees on average (2-3 bucks), at the airport the choice is very poor, the prices are the same, not cheaper than in the city. We read somewhere earlier in the reviews that it is cheaper at the airport. Nothing like that, the entire airport was covered.
About the visa. In principle, travel agencies should speak, but still I will clarify. Eat electronic registration visas on the official website of immigration eta.gov.lk. Everything is quite simple there. Fill out a short form, pay by card. The visa costs $20. Upon arrival, you can also apply for a visa, but these are queues, time, and the visa costs $ 25. Therefore, Sri Lankans recommend registering online. You need to print out the notification that will come to your email and show it when you arrive in Colombo.
For tea lovers, there are a few varieties of Ceylon tea (for example, I didn’t know, maybe it will be useful for you):
Orange Pekoe - black leaf tea from the leaves following the bud;
Pekoe is a rolled leaf of black tea from side shoot leaves or from the third and fourth leaves;
BOP - Broken Orange Pekoe, i.e. chopped Orange Pekoe. It is considered the golden mean among teas;
BOPF - Broken Orange Pekoe Fannings, i.e. very finely chopped Orange Pekoe. Usually used in sachets;
fop - flowery orange pekoe, black leaf tea from the leaves following the bud, with a sufficient content of tips (buds, which are the main source of tea aroma)
FBOP - flowery broken orange pekoe, crushed tea Fop
Dust is dust, the finest tea is what remains as a result of processing tea leaves. It is mainly drunk by the Sri Lankans, because. the cheapest.
As they explained to us at the factory, the finer the tea is ground, the stronger it is.
