Negombo
Beach Resorts Close to the Airport
Negombo is for many the first port of call as the international airport at Katunayake is close by. One of the first sun and sea destinations in Sri Lanka over 40 years ago, Negombo has grown into a large resort area with varied accommodation. The tourists who now visit Negombo are not the first foreign invaders to take the area by storm. The arrival of the Portuguese in 1505 brought Christianity to the island and vestiges of this proselytizing are evident in the churches around Negombo where many fishermen were converted. The people of Negombo are ‘Karavas’, Tamil and Sinhalese fishermen who converted to Catholicism under the influence of the Portuguese. The Karavas are also famous for their unusual fishing boats, called ‘oruwas’, distinctive catamarans fashioned from a hollowed-out tree trunk attached to a massive sail. Hundreds of these vessels are still in use today and make an unforgettable sight when the fleet returns to shore. Negombo has a lively fish market, a large lagoon and a maze of Dutch-constructed canals.
Why visit Negombo?
Convenient for a stay on arrival or at the end of a holiday, Negombo is an established and busy beachside resort area with a wide variety of accommodation to suit all budgets close to the international airport at Katunayake.
Muthurajawela Wetlands
A boat safari around the 6000-hectare Muthurajawela Wetlands, which is a brackish, integrated coastal ecosystem of great biological diversity including birds, butterflies, fish, crocodiles, monitor lizards and snakes.
Most of the principal sites of interest can be enjoyed on a 2-hour boat safari from Negombo.
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