Sri Lanka, a terrific spot for beaches, cuisine and culture, says Condé Nast Traveller

Sri Lanka has southern Asia’s most fascinating beaches, ancient Buddhist temples, cave paintings, and historic hill towns, states Condé Nast Traveller in a report published recently.

The writer says that the Sri Lankan Riviera, as it is unofficially known, wraps around a great swathe of the island’s west and south coasts.

“Beaches with sand the golden-tan colour you’re hoping to achieve are backed by palm trees and a patchwork of gardens, smallholdings, mangosteen orchards and rice paddies, interspersed, further south, with the bright-green sweep of the lowland tea plantations,” the writer further said.

South of the bustling capital city, Colombo, the beach stretches for miles. Sheltered from the prevailing easterly winds and currents, it has a ringside view of some spectacular sunsets.

The Condé Nast Traveller writer advises travellers to sip a glass of cold lime soda and watch the evening sun goes down, setting the Indian Ocean on fire. But this is also a rowdy coastal strip, and the hotels that colonise it tend to be gated enclaves, in order to create a corner of quiet in a world of colour and chaos, the writer adds.

The countryside becomes more verdant and at the same time a little wilder, with fields, orchards and rice paddies backing onto steamy rainforest tamed here and there by tea plantations.