Sri Lanka, Surf and safety

Hi
Don't need to worry,,, there is no war in down south,, have a nice time

R

thanks. is xmas/new years a zoo, like it gets in india??

yes

Hi there. The south/west coast is pretty quiet at the moment and not a lot of tourists are expected this season for various reasons so may not be as much of a "zoo" as normal. Lots of nice waves to be caught at lot of different places along the coast, the most popular being Hikkaduwa. You could start there and work your way further along the coast for less crowded waves. Weligama can be good for smaller long board waves but in all just depends on the weather in all places. Enjoy.

Planning on heading over to SL from India in about a week also. Looking to surf monstly, but left my boards at home. Sounds like Hikkaduwa's the spot... hopefully I can rent a board there for a reasonable price? Any recommendations on where to stay?

There are lots of guest houses and hotels in and around Hikkaduwa catering for all budgets. I would suggest you just turn up and look around at a few, depending if you are wanting to stay jungle side or on the beach. Wewala is probably the most central area and close to the reef break. There are quite a few places to hire boards; I'm not sure how much they charge as I have my own but I'm sure you can negotiate.

i have been reading that there has been a travel warning against public transport, as well as that normaly "safe" tourist areas like Hikkadawa and Colombo are, and have been, subject to terror. i am not usually put off easily, but i am seeing some conflicting reports. what has the situation been recently?? thanks a lot. i wanna surf, but i don't wanna get in the middle of grief.
also, i am scheduled to arrive at 2:30 am into Colombo.....what to do? anyone suggest staying one day in colombo, or how would i go about going south without breaking the bank???

Hi

A few years ago i caught a similar flight. When I arrived at the airport waited a couple of hours then caught a taxi to Colombo in time to catch the first train to Hikkadua (6am?). Depends how much you want to sleep or see Colombo.

Doug

1st train,, listed as 0710. gets to Hikkaduwa at 0933.
Rod.