Things to do in Kandy
-
A
Victoria Golf & Country Resort
The Victoria Golf & Country Resort is 20km east of Kandy. Surrounded on three sides by the Victoria Reservoir and with the Knuckles Range as a backdrop, it’s worth coming for lunch at the clubhouse and to savour the views. Claimed to be the best golf course in the subcontinent, it’s a fairly challenging 18 holes.
reviewed
-
B
Kandyan Art Association & Cultural Centre
The Kandyan Art Association & Cultural Centre has a good selection of local lacquerwork, brassware and other craft items in a colonial-era showroom covered in a patina of age (see above). There are some craftspeople working on the spot.
reviewed
-
C
Asgiriya Maha Vihara
The principal viharas (Buddhist complexes) in Kandy have considerable importance – the high priests of the two best known, Malwatte and Asgiriya, are the most important in Sri Lanka. This temple is the headquarters of two of the main nikayas (orders of monks). The head monks also administer the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic. The Asgiriya Maha Vihara is off Wariyapola Sri Sumanga Mawatha northwest of the town centre. It has a large reclining Buddha image.
reviewed
-
D
White House Restaurant
Down the street from Devon, this restaurant is tacky but cheap. It has snacks, drinks and ice cream, or you can fill up on meals such as mixed fried rice, chicken fried noodles and sweet-and-sour chicken.
reviewed
-
E
Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic
Just north of the lake, the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic houses Sri Lanka's most important Buddhist relic - a tooth of the Buddha. The temple sustained damage when a bomb was detonated - by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), according to the government - near the main entrance in early 1998, but the scars have been repaired.
The tooth is said to have been snatched from the flames of the Buddha's funeral pyre in 543 BC, and was smuggled into Sri Lanka during the 4th century AD, hidden in the hair of a princess. At first it was taken to Anuradhapura, but with the ups and downs of Sri Lankan history it moved from place to place before eventually ending up at Ka…
reviewed
-
F
National Museum
This museum once housed Kandyan royal concubines and now features royal regalia and reminders of pre-European Sinhalese life. On display is a copy of the 1815 agreement that handed over the Kandyan provinces to British rule. This document announces a major reason for the event …the cruelties and oppressions of the Malabar ruler, in the arbitrary and unjust infliction of bodily tortures and pains of death without trial, and sometimes without accusation or the possibility of a crime, and in the general contempt and contravention of all civil rights, have become flagrant, enormous and intolerable. Sri Wickrama Rajasinha was declared, ‘by the habitual violation of the chief…
reviewed
-
G
Kandy Lake
A lovely centrepiece for the town, Kandy Lake was created in 1807 by Sri Wickrama Rajasinha, the last ruler of the kingdom of Kandy. Several small-scale local chiefs, who protested because their people objected to labouring on the project, were put to death at stakes in the lake bed. The island in the centre was used as Sri Wickrama Rajasinha's personal harem, to which he crossed on a barge.
Later the British used it as an ammunition store and added the fortress-style parapet around the perimeter of the lake. On the south shore in front of the Malwatte Maha Vihara there's a circular enclosure that is the monks' bathhouse.
A cement footpath dotted with benches encircles the…
reviewed
-
H
Tea Museum
This museum occupies the 1925-vintage Hanthana Tea Factory, 4km south of Kandy on the Hanthana road. Abandoned for over a decade, it was refurbished by the Sri Lanka Tea Board and the Planters’ Association of Sri Lanka. There are exhibits on tea pioneers James Taylor and Thomas Lipton, and lots of vintage tea-processing paraphernalia. Knowledgeable guides can answer the trickiest of questions – trust us, we tried to stump them – and there’s a free cuppa afterwards in the top floor tea room. Commandeer the telescope for great views while you’re up there.
reviewed
-
I
British Garrison Cemetery
This cemetery is a short walk uphill behind the National Museum. There are 163 graves and around 500 burials. Some of the deaths were due to sunstroke, elephants or jungle fever. The Cargills of supermarket fame lie here. James McGlashan survived the battle of Waterloo but later succumbed to mosquitos. Donations are appreciated.
James McGlashan survived the battle of Waterloo but disregarded instructions given on mosquitoes, which ultimately proved deadlier.
The office, once the chapel of rest, has pamphlets and the old cemetery records.
reviewed
-
J
Lyon Café
Among locals this is one of Kandy's most famous restaurants. There are three dining rooms, a fan-cooled room downstairs and two slightly fancier, air-con rooms on two separate floors upstairs. About two-thirds of the menu is Chinese, a third Sri Lankan, but for dinner just about everyone orders the Sino-Sinhalese 'Lyon Special', a huge platter of fried rice, boiled eggs and your choice of devilled meats.
One plate will easily feed two or three people (though that doesn't stop most Sri Lankan patrons from downing one platter each).
reviewed
Advertisement
-
K
Sri Dalada Museum
Behind the main tooth shrine of the Sri Dalada Maligawastands the three-storey Alut Maligawa, a newer and larger shrine hall displaying dozens of bronze sitting Buddhas donated by Thai devotees. The upper two floors of the Alut Maligawa contain the Sri Dalada Museum with a stunning array of gilded gifts to the temple. Letters and diary entries from the British time reveal the colonisers’ surprisingly respectful attitude to the tooth relic. More recent photographs reveal the damage caused by the truck bomb in 1998.
reviewed
-
L
Kandy Muslim Hotel
No, it’s not a hotel, but it is an always bustling eatery that offers Kandy’s best samosas, authentically spiced curries and heaving plates of frisbee-sized, but gossamer-light, naan. It’s a largely male domain, but women travellers will be treated with respect and offered a seat in the family section out the back. Don’t miss the frantic theatre of the kotthu rotti (doughy pancake chopped and fried with meat and vegetables) guy out the front.
reviewed
-
Kandy Garrison Cemetery
This beautifully kept garden cemetery was founded in 1817 for the internment of British-era colonists and is managed by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. There are many 19th-century graves, most date from WWII. The most famous is that of Sir John D’Oyly, a colonial official who planned the bloodless British capture of Kandy in 1815 and then succumbed to cholera in 1824. This cemetery is 2km southwest of Kandy. Donations are accepted.
reviewed
-
M
History Restaurant
With dishes from India, Italy, Thailand and Sri Lanka, this place could almost be called ‘Geography’. The food’s OK and there’s a good selection of booze, but the real reason to go are the interesting B&W pics of old Kandy. And no, you’re not required to take notes during the Kandyan history PowerPoint presentation that runs silently in the background. Monkeys look on from outside and already know all the answers.
reviewed
-
N
Malwatte Maha Vihara
The principal viharas (Buddhist complexes) in Kandy have considerable importance – the high priests of the two best known, Malwatte and Asgiriya, are the most important in Sri Lanka. This temple is also the headquarters of two of the main nikayas (orders of monks). The head monks also administer the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic. The Malwatte Maha Vihara is across the lake from the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic.
reviewed
-
O
Amaya Hills Ayurvedic Treatment Centre
You could also splurge at the Ayurvedic treatment centre at Amaya Hills. The body oil massage and steam bath takes 1½ hours - the steam bath is very hot. The 40-minute facial treatment includes an oil massage, sandalwood/turmeric mask and steam. Although Amaya Hills is a bit far from town you can relax around the pool after the treatment with a drink, and make an afternoon (or morning) of it.
reviewed
-
P
Sri Lanka Cricket Office
The modest Asgiriya Stadium, north of the town centre, hosts crowds of up to 10,000 cheering fans at international one-day and test matches. Ticket prices depend on the popularity of the two teams. India versus Sri Lanka matches are the most value. Tickets are also sold on the day, or you can book grandstand seats up to a month in advance through the Sri Lanka Cricket office at the stadium or online.
reviewed
-
Q
Bake House
Downstairs from The Pub (opposite), Bake House is versatility plus, with tasty baked goodies out the front and a more formal dining room concealed under the building’s whitewashed colonial arches. At the time of research, a makeover was being planned to up the ‘colonial’ spin of the architecture. Pop in just after 3pm, when the second bake of the day comes out and the short eats are still warm.
reviewed
-
R
Paiva's Restaurant
The Rs 175 lunchtime rice and curry is a handy intro to Sri Lankan cuisine, with three different rices and a multiplate array of curried accompaniments. In the evening choose between Chinese or North Indian à la carte menus. Both are good, and the friendly waiters will respect your request for ‘spicy please?’ Just as well the beer is cold, eh?
reviewed
-
S
Buddhist Publication Society
The Buddhist Publication Society, on the lakeside 400m northeast of the Temple of the Tooth, is a non-profit charity that distributes the Buddha’s teachings. Local scholars and monks occasionally give lectures, and there is a comprehensive library. See online for free information downloads. It’s a good place to ask about meditation courses.
reviewed
Advertisement
-
T
Rams
In a new, larger location, Rams continues to serve good South Indian food, including vegetarian thalis('all-you-can-eat' meals consisting of rice with vegetable curries and pappadams) and a variety of dosas (paper-thin rice- and lentil-flour pancakes) in a wonderfully colourful setting featuring Hindu devotional art.
reviewed
-
U
The Pub
Does what it says on the tin, with Carlsberg and Lion Lager on tap, a few cocktails and the occasional Saturday night jazz gig. The Western food (think chips, pasta, club sandwiches) is uninspired and overpriced, but the twilight view from the balcony on to Kandy’s noisy rush hour is an enlivening end to any day.
reviewed
-
V
Royal Palace Park
There are many walks around Kandy like the Royal Palace Park constructed by Sri Wickrama Rajasinha. Further up on Rajapihilla Mawatha are even better views over the lake, the town and the surrounding hills. For longer walks, there are paths branching out from Rajapihilla Mawatha. Ask at your guest house.
reviewed
-
W
Bombay Sweet City
Fulfil your longing for sweet Indian snacks – especially if you’ve just flown in from India – at this hole-in-the-wall, eat-on-the-go kind of place. The cashew barfi(fudge-like sweet) is very moreish, and there’s an orchard full of fresh fruit juices to battle Kandy’s occasional three-wheeler haze.
reviewed
-
X
Kandy Garden Club
At the far end of the lake, this venerable gentlemen's club is open to visitors, and for a temporary membership fee you can relax in the bar or on the veranda with a Lion Lager and fried devilled cashews. For a fee, rack up on the old tables in the billiards room, still something of a male bastion.
reviewed
