17 things I Wish I Knew BEFORE travelling to SRI LANKA 🇱🇰

Here are 17 things I wish I knew before I visited Sri Lanka. Now, I've spent a couple of months in this country and there's definitely things you need to know before visiting. And the first one is the head bobble actually means yes or okay. Now, in the Western world, shaking our head means no, but actually over in Sri Lanka, it's completely different. When you first get there, it is quite a shock, but just remember that when you see someone shake their head. Once you go, you'll understand. Now, number two is something I actually read before coming to the country, and that is lots of the reviews are fake. And I wasn't too sure about this. After spending a couple of weeks in the country, reading reviews of restaurants, hotels, guest houses, there was like a hundred reviews with 10 stars each, and you're just like, that looks a little bit dodgy. So just take that into account when looking for stuff. Now, number three, Sri Lanka may look like a really small country below India, but actually it is pretty big and it takes a long time to get around the island. This is due to some of the infrastructure, but things like buses and trains, you could be on these trains for like eight hours long and only cover a small distance of the country. Now here, I'm talking about the public transportation. That's what takes a long time to get around the country, but it also means that all the public transportation is super cheap, as cheap as I've seen it anywhere in the world. We took a train journey for like seven hours and it costs like £1.50 in second class, which is incredible value. And number four, something I loved about Sri Lanka is the local people are super friendly and also really helpful if you're ever stuck. And the great thing, which actually surprised me a little bit, is they speak really good English. Not all of them, obviously, but a lot of people speak English. So it's really easy to communicate, ask about problems or whatever you got. Just ask people, they will help you out. Now, number five, this one's a little bit of a confusing one, so let's think about this for a moment. So there are two monsoon season in Sri Lanka and two dry seasons in Sri Lanka. And this, even though it's a small island, the country kind of splits in half when it's the monsoon season and the dry season. Now, the dry season, also known as the tourist peak season in the southwest of Sri Lanka, is between December and March. In the northeastern side of Sri Lanka, the dry season or the tourist season is between May to September. So depending on which part of Sri Lanka you're looking to go to, depends on which time you should go in the year. Now, number six, Sri Lanka is a big bargaining place. So this means things like tuk-tuks, taxi rides, market stuff, not in food or restaurants. That stuff is, you know, that stay is the same price, but all other stuff, you can bargain for it because otherwise you're gonna be spending a lot more than you actually need to. Now, as tourists, it's understandable we're paying a little bit more, but getting absolutely ripped off is not nice. Ask your hotels how much tuk-tuks should be and you can kind of get a rough idea. Obviously, I can't just tell you how much a tuk-tuk would be here because they vary. In Ella, things are more expensive, but then if you're in Colombo, things are cheaper. It just varies a lot. Now, number seven, which relates to the bargaining is actually use Uber or the local PickMe app. PickMe is like Uber, but the Sri Lankan style. You can get tuk-tuks on there, taxis, and they are really affordable and you can just put in the exact location you want and the driver will just drive there, pretty much like Uber. It also means you don't have to bargain. The app does it for you. Now, number eight, something you need to learn is to say no. As Western people, we always wanna be polite and be like, okay, yes. For example, if you take a tuk-tuk ride to the temple, he's probably gonna ask you if you want to return to your hotel or wherever. And in this instance, I would advise saying no because it means he's gonna be waiting. If you spend lots of time in the temple, you might feel bad. And honestly, I just feel like it's best to go with another tuk-tuk. There's always tuk-tuks around. Another instance is a tuk-tuk driver might stop you and try and take you into a shop to get commission for selling you turmeric or tea or something random. And you're allowed to say no. You're allowed to say, I don't wanna look in that shop. No, thank you. Now, number nine is about the safaris and which park you should actually go to. We went to the Islay National Park and it is beautiful. It's a really good chance of seeing the famous leopards and lots of other wildlife, but it is the busiest. It's the most touristy. Now, something I would advise you is to go to Willapattu National Park. This place is a lot less busy and also has a great chance of seeing leopards. Now, it's about two hours north of Ngombo, so it's not too far out the way. And without the crowds, it's probably gonna be beautiful. Now, number 10, if you're looking to rent a car or a motorbike or even a tuk-tuk, it will be a great way of getting around the country, but you actually need a Sri Lankan driving licence. Now, legally, an international driving licence is not enough and you need to get this converted to a Sri Lankan driving licence in Sri Lanka, and it's quite a bit of work. However, if you use the tuktukrental.com company, they can actually do this for you for a small fee and it's gonna make it a whole lot easier. So if you look to rent a tuk-tuk, as a lot of people do on their tour of Sri Lanka, then I'd highly recommend using this company. We didn't use them this time, but I think on our next trip, this is what we're gonna do. Now, number 11, the famous Sigiriya Rock is actually 30 USD, which is super expensive compared to everything else in the country. But there's actually a cheaper viewpoint and even a free viewpoint you can go to, which is gonna save you quite a bit of money. The first one is Pidulanga Rock, if I'm saying that correct, and it costs about 1500 rupees to go up. It has great views of Sigiriya and the surroundings. And the second option you can go to, which I'll leave it on a map and it doesn't really have an official name, is a spot just five minutes walk from Sigiriya town. When we went up to this viewpoint, there was no one else there. And so this is a little secret gem which you guys are gonna enjoy and it's not gonna cost you a penny. Now, if you haven't already, please go down and hit the subscribe button. I've given you all this information for free and the least you can do is just hit subscribe, maybe a like as well. Now, number 12 is about the Kandy to Ela Train. I'll leave our link to our video all about the Kandy to Ela Train just up here or down the description, because it's well worth a watch. But what you actually need to do for this journey is actually reserve seats, if you can. If you've planned out your journey a bit, then I highly recommend booking seats because you can go in the reserve carriages. Now, the best carriages to go in is second class and third class. If you book first class carriage, then all the windows and doors are gonna be shut. Unless you want that experience, then go for that. But if you wanna hang out the doors, take pictures and do all that kind of stuff, then you're gonna need to reserve second class and third class carriages. In the regular second class and third class carriages, it's gonna be super full, packs full of Sri Lankans, especially on weekends. On weekends, it gets super busy, so just take that into account. During the week, you might be all right and you might get a window seat or even a seat, but there's no promises. I'll leave a link in the description to reserve your seats on the Kandy to Ela Train. Now, number 13 is Sri Lanka's not as big of a drinking kind of party destination as other places in Southeast Asia. You're not gonna find big old full moon parties like you do in Thailand. You will find some small beach parties, especially on the South Coast, but in other areas, you're probably not gonna find them. You can still drink and it's easy to get some cocktails and beers, but you're just not gonna find those big party destinations. I also found that Sri Lanka's a bit more of an older vibe. I don't know if this has got anything to do with it, but kind of just what I found. Now, number 14, digital nomads, people who love to be on the internet. I'll be honest, the Wi-Fi hasn't been great in Sri Lanka. Compared to other places in Southeast Asia and Asia, it's not been anywhere close. I've been quite disappointed. I'll be honest, for a YouTuber, it's been really hard to upload videos, but if you're just doing small mundane tasks, maybe emailing like small websites, you might be okay. Now, another option is actually getting data and the data's actually been pretty good. So if you are really reliable on having Wi-Fi or 3G, then I highly recommend getting a SIM card. Now, I use eSIM cards with Airalow and I'll leave a little discount code here, but if you're looking for a cheap local provider, then yeah, I'll probably get them in the airport or ask your hotel where to get them because I'm not actually sure. Now, number 15, a little backstory. We were in the Maldives before Sri Lanka and there's actually lots of Sri Lankans who work in the Maldives. Now, a number of the Sri Lankans there actually said don't bother going to Colombo. There's not much to see, it's just a busy city. Now, in my opinion, spend maybe one day in Colombo and then get out there, get to the beaches, get to the mountains because that is where the good stuff is. Don't waste your time in Colombo. Now, number 16, something which was really disappointing is that elephant riding still happens in Sri Lanka and we saw it quite a bit there. Now, you might be asking me why can't I ride an elephant? I can ride a horse and it's fine. It's because elephants actually have to be beaten and tamed through violence and so they actually hurt and tortured into not chucking tourists off their back because you wouldn't get off a wild elephant. So yeah, they've been tamed in violent way. Please don't support it. Now, moving on to the final one, number 17. I've actually got two more, you're in luck. I've actually got 18. I'm sorry, I lied, I know. But number 17 is use the Bank of Ceylon ATMs. These banks are really common around Sri Lanka and they don't actually charge you any ATM. We withdraw fees, which is gonna save you some good old money. You realise when you travel Sri Lanka, cash is king. So make sure you always have cash on you because the chances are they won't take card. Number 18, the actual final one is the Sri Lankan food. The Sri Lankan food is incredible. If you like rice and curry, then you're in for a treat. Even if you're a vegetarian, they have a vegetarian rice and curry option, which is also super affordable, sometimes only 500 rupees and it's honestly amazing. The butternut squash, the dal curry, mm. Something which really surprised me is Sri Lankan's really up and coming, especially in Ella and the South Coast. And so there's really cool quirky cafes which are really up and coming if you're a vegetarian, you want smoothie bowls, all that kind of stuff. If you are just looking for Sri Lankan food, there's lots of options for you. Thank you so much for watching this video. And again, if you haven't already, please go down and hit the subscribe button so I can carry on giving this information to you. Thank you so much. I'll see you in the next video, bye.