Sports and Outdoor activities in Sri Lanka

Because Sri Lanka has such a pristine environment and a diverse range of landscapes, visitors looking for vacations that focus on the great outdoors and active pursuits have a wide variety of possibilities to choose from. Although there are a great number of other ways to stay active, such as mountain biking, hot air ballooning, and yoga, water-based activities, such as surfing and scuba diving, are quite extensively covered. When it comes to spectator sports, a visit to a match featuring Sri Lanka’s cricket team is an absolute necessity if you have the good fortune to time your trip to Sri Lanka around a game. There is always a great deal of excitement on a national level over this.

Play cricket in Sri Lanka

Cricket is without a doubt the cherished relic from the days of British colonial rule that is held in the highest regard by the typical resident of Sri Lanka. Cricket is the most popular sport in Sri Lanka, making it comparable to its popularity in India and Pakistan. Children engage in this activity anywhere and anywhere there is sufficient room, fashioning balls, bats, and wickets out of rolled-up pieces of cloth and discarded twigs. Meanwhile, when there are matches on the international stage, the nation essentially comes to a standstill, with ardent supporters clustered around every radio and television set that can be found.

In spite of the fact that the national side has only been competing in international cricket since 1982, when they were finally granted full Test status, they have more than held their own since that time. But when it comes to cricket played over the course of a single day, Sri Lanka has truly taken the world by storm. The highlight of their 1996 World Cup campaign was their batting lineup, which comprised the powerful Sanath Jayasuriya and the graceful Aravinda da Silva. This lineup was a large part of the reason why they were successful. They came within a hair’s breadth of reclaiming their title in 2007 and 2011 when they competed in the World Cup finals and came up just short.

It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise to learn that the accomplishments of the Sri Lankan team have been a significant source of national pride and camaraderie in the country. Muttiah Muralitharan, better known as “Murali,” is a Tamil player who is widely considered to be the best that Sri Lanka has ever had. This is despite the fact that Sinhalese players have previously dominated the squad. Other noteworthy players include Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara, both of whom are excellent batsmen and currently have test match batting averages that are higher than fifty.

Watching cricket in Sri Lanka

Attending a cricket match offers a completely unique experience in contrast to the typically serious tenor of English cricket grounds. The lively atmosphere and noisy audience at a cricket match make for a memorable and exciting time. Matches played over the course of one day or Twenty20 are especially encouraged. The Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Kandy, the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo, and the cricket ground in Galle are the three key locations on the island that host the majority of the island’s Test matches. The recently constructed cricket stadiums in Dambulla and Hambantota, as well as Kandy, Galle, and the Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, are the primary venues for international Twenty20 and One-Day cricket matches. Other major venues include Kandy and Galle. Tickets for the matches can be purchased from the venues that will be hosting them. It should be brought to your attention that Seerendipity Tours and Travels provides cricket vacations in Sri Lanka. Visit the webpage for Sri Lanka Cricket if you are interested in learning more about cricket in Sri Lanka.

Surfing in Sri Lanka

The fact that many of the waves that break on the shore of Sri Lanka originate in Antarctica explains why Sri Lanka offers a lot of outstanding surfing places; the waves come from Antarctica. Arugam Bay on Sri Lanka’s eastern coast is where you’ll find the most famous spot on the island. It’s the only area in the country that has a worldwide reputation among surfers. Other popular locations for surfing are Hikkaduwa, Medawatta (located nearby, on the fringes of Matara), and the community of Midigama, which is located on the island’s southern shore. At every one of these locations, you can hire skateboards. Numerous establishments in Arugam Bay and Hikkaduwa, as well as other areas along the coast, provide surfing tours along the entire coastline. Frequently, these outings are combined with visits to other areas. Between Arugam Bay and Midigama and Hikkaduwa, the surfing season goes from April through October, and between those two places, the season runs from November through April.

Things to do on the water, like whitewater rafting

Kitulgala is the ideal place on the island to go whitewater rafting since it is located where the Kelani Ganga river rushes down from the high region into boulder-strewn rapids of grade 3-5. You can either plan trips inside the area, or you can get everything ready in advance.

Due to the fact that its lagoon offers ideal conditions for a wide variety of water sports, including windsurfing, jet skiing, speed boating, inner tubing, and banana boating, Bentota is widely regarded as the centre of the water sports industry in Sri Lanka. Many of the beach hotels and other small vendors in Negombo make it possible to make reservations for various watersports. Due to the exceptional wind conditions and the presence of both open water and more protected lagoons, the Kalpitiya Peninsula and Negombo have emerged as two of the most popular locations in Sri Lanka for kitesurfers. The number of people wakeboarding regularly is starting to increase as well. Negombo and Hikkaduwa are two of the most important nodes on the island.

Swimming underwater and using a snorkel

Even if you aren’t planning to go to Sri Lanka specifically for the purpose of diving, you should still plan to spend at least a few days there scuba diving because the country has so many amazing underwater sites. Dive Sri Lanka provides an informative overview of the various options available. There are not many people who think of Sri Lanka as being among the best diving spots in Asia. Bentota, Beruwala, Hikkaduwa, Unawatuna, Weligama, and Uppuvel are some of the locations in Sri Lanka that are home to first-rate diving schools that also provide reasonable rates. When compared to the majority of other regions throughout the world, the costs of scuba diving packages and lessons are on the lower end.

The western coast of Sri Lanka is home to a sizable number of dive shops and training facilities. A plethora of marine life can be found here, in addition to a number of shipwrecks, stunning (although tough) underwater caverns, and rock formations. Despite the number of new and interesting wrecks to find, the dive sites on the east coast are still relatively undiscovered. One example of this kind of wreckage is the Hermes, a 270-meter-long aircraft carrier that went down during World War II and is presently lying at a depth of 60 metres below the surface of the water.

On the west coast of Sri Lanka, the diving season normally runs from November to April, which is also often regarded as the finest time to visit the country. On the east coast, however, the diving season runs from May to October. If you are particularly determined and don’t mind diving in stormy weather with low visibility, you might be able to find someone who will take you out during this time even though practically all of the diving schools on the island close for the season.

In Sri Lanka, there isn’t a lot of spectacular snorkelling to be had near to the coast because there isn’t a lot of coral there. However, this is more than compensated for by the large number of tropical fish that frequent the coast. If you don’t mind boats passing by while you snorkel, Pigeon Island, the beach at Polhena, and the Coral Sanctuary at Hikkaduwa are some of the best places to snorkel on the island.

Both hiking and trekking

The vast majority of Sri Lanka’s enormous trekking potential has not yet been explored. The hill country of Sri Lanka, in particular, offers ideal conditions for hiking thanks to its breathtaking scenery, panoramic vistas, and temperate climate. On the other hand, hiking through the lowland rainforests, such as the Sinharaja rainforest, which are home to an incredible variety of plant and animal species, may be a very rewarding experience. A select few of Sri Lanka’s tour operators also provide hiking and trekking excursions for visitors. Hotels and lodges that are environmentally conscious frequently offer shorter guided walks, and some of these establishments even have guides on staff to lead visitors on these excursions.

Cycling

Cycling in Sri Lanka may be an amazing joy if you stay off of the country’s main highways, which are known to be dangerous. Due to its diminutive size and rich natural diversity, the island is ideal for sightseeing, particularly in the island’s hill country, which is characterised by exhilarating switchback roads, a colder climate, and virtually an absolute absence of traffic. First and foremost, exercise extreme caution. Cyclists are particularly susceptible to being involved in accidents due to the fact that motorists operating large vehicles view them as a waste of valuable asphalt and do not consider them to have any legal right to be on the road. As a result of this, you should always be ready to make an evasive manoeuvre right away (in fact, it is often safer to ride completely off the pavement and along the dirt shoulder). You are not only in danger from oncoming traffic that is approaching from behind, but you also run the risk of being pushed into the ditch by cars that are legally on the side of the road that you are on, but they are passing you on the other side of the road.

You may rent bicycles in almost all of the cities that are popular with tourists; alternatively, you can inquire at the inn where you are staying; the staff probably knows someone who either has extra bicycles lying around or is willing to lend you theirs for a small fee. Renting high-quality mountain bikes is also an option at a number of different places across the country. Although the prices can be rather variable, they are almost always significantly lower than a few dollars per day.

Yoga and the practise of introspection

Despite the fact that many of the island’s many Ayurvedic institutes now incorporate yoga sessions in their treatment regimens and that it is sometimes possible to enrol in them without first taking an Ayurvedic course, yoga is not quite as popular in Sri Lanka as it is in India. This is the case despite the fact that there are many Ayurvedic institutes on the island. If that’s the case, you won’t have a lot of choices.

Kandy and the surrounding area offer the majority of the country’s meditation classes.

Various other activities

There are a number of firms that offer balloon rides, which provide passengers with a spectacular aerial perspective over the island. The Cultural Triangle, which includes Dambulla and Sigiriya, is the most common destination and departure point for flights in Sri Lanka; however, there are also occasionally flights to other areas, such as the south coast.

Day trips and multi-day excursions on horseback can be planned in a variety of destinations across the island, including Bentota, Sigiriya, Nuwara Eliya, Tissamaharama, Kalpitiya, and Dambulla, to name just a few of these spots.

Colombo, Kandy, and Nuwara Eliya are the three cities in Sri Lanka that are home to some of the country’s most stunning golf courses. Personalised golf experiences are offered by a great number of companies.