Sri Lanka · Asia · northern hemisphere
Sri Lanka South Coast is at its best for lakes & coastline in December to March. Good but not prime in April and November. Crowds peak in January and bottom out in May.
| J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Swimming | 95 | 95 | 95 | 67 | 13 | 13 | 16 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 67 | 85 |
| Lakes & Coastline | 98 | 99 | 90 | 65 | 13 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 69 | 81 |
| Hiking | 89 | 91 | 89 | 66 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 42 | 68 |
| City & Culture | 97 | 99 | 95 | 67 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 67 | 81 |
| Wildlife | 90 | 90 | 90 | 67 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 67 | 90 |
| Crowds |
Swipe the table sideways for the rest of the year.
Two monsoons split the island. The south and west coasts are dry December to March while the east is wet; from May the pattern reverses, and October and November are wet on both — so “is it rainy season in Sri Lanka” has no single answer
Walks in the hill country, plus one overnight pilgrimage climb. No guide needed on the coast, but park entry needs a paid permit.
Booking the south coast for May–September. That is the southwest monsoon; the east coast is having its best months instead.
December–March, hardest over Christmas and New Year
Long transfers on slow roads, strong currents on parts of the south coast, and whale-watching boats that get rough.
Galle Fort is the postcard and is priced like one. Unawatuna is ten minutes away for a fraction; Weligama and Ahangama are thirty to fifty, and the surf is better.
The south-west monsoon hits this coast while the east coast has its best months. The island has two monsoons and they are six months apart.May · Jun · Jul · Aug · Sep
Kept out of the score on purpose. Averaging a rare catastrophe into a monthly number would tell you something false; the warning is the honest form.
The hill country is laced with tea-estate paths, almost none of which need a permit or a guide.
0 is this destination’s own quietest month and 100 its busiest. The scale never compares one destination to another. Source: Wikipedia — Unawatuna
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