Conventionally Sri Lanka’s East would have been off limits due to this part of Sri Lanka being under terrorist control. But now…the east has been liberated and huge projects are under way to develop this region.

Tucked away in Sri Lanka’s east coast about a 7-hour drive from Colombo is Arugam Bay. A trip to Arugam Bay requires at least a few days stay, firstly to get over the weariness of the journey and secondly, once you visit you’ll really never feel like leaving. Arugam Bay is a laid-back little village. The unspoilt white sand beaches lined with swaying palm trees, the great surf, sand dunes, the many little guesthouses and restaurants serving excellent seafood are characteristic of this exotic beach town. Here is one of the world’s top surfing destinations. Die hard surfers love this place because they like to ride the perfect waves in this part of Sri Lanka. Low budget places are aplenty, so for the young surf-loving budget traveler, it’s ideal as they tend to stay for long durations like a month.

While the East Coast’s Arugam Bay may already be a surfer’s haven, mainstream tourism is yet to discover the largely untrampled stretch of coast. So this is ideal for those who yearn for a different beach resort experience, with less commercialism and more seclusion. There are also excellent places for bathing where the water is only waist high for many many meters from the shore.

If you’re also a wildlife lover…then a trip to the Lahugala National Park which is a small park that serves as a protected elephant corridor for elephants to move freely across the south-eastern part of the country, and the Kumana Bird Sanctuary home to an outstanding variety of aquatic birds is not that far off.

For the ardent beach-lover Arugam Bay is a must…and you’ll just have to plan a visit soon while these picture-perfect semi-secluded sands remain undiscovered for the moment…

A few places we would recommend are;