dambulla

Blessed with the best of essence, Dambulla, a fascinating town near Colombo, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site of great reverence.

Oozing with spirituality, Dambulla's cave temples and their spellbinding architecture has been an attraction since ages. But, Dambulla is not just about temples, it is overflowing with rich cultural history from Portuguese to Dutch period. Once in the town, a visitor will be amazed to see the Ironwood Forest, Ratnagiri Museum, Minneriya National Park and Na Uyana Aranya among many others. No matter what age group you are, Dambulla will leave you wide eyed with its incredible offerings.??

What to See
Dambulla Cave Temple
Ancient Buddhist pilgrimage and a World Heritage Site, this is the best preserved cave temple complex in Sri Lanka. A cluster of 5 major caves, inside one will find more than 150 Buddha statues which are spellbindingly beautiful. Other than statues, there are cave paintings, murals and statues of various Lankan gods and goddesses.

Buddhist Museum & Museum of Wall Paintings
Before entering the Dambulla rock temple, you will come across a huge golden Buddha statue which marks the entrance to the Dambulla Museum. The Buddha statue in Dhyan Chakra Mudra is the largest statue in Asia. The path leads takes you to the terrace where you can take a quick walk through the museum. The small museum exhibits the Sri Lankan art.

Minneriya National Park
One of the best places to see wild elephants, Minneriya can be best aquainted by taking a jeep ride in the deep forest. April to October is the right time to witness hundreds of elephants who come to the water tank to drink water. Other inmates include sloth bear, leopard, slender loris and axis deer. Bird population includes lesser adjutant, painted stork, and spot-billed pelican, little cormorants, Great white pelican, ruddy turnstone, and grey heron.

Ibbankatuwa Megalithic Tombs
The pre-historic site dates back to Iron Age and takes you back to the life of Sri Lankan people who lived here eons ago. This site also has a museum which has safely treasured clay pots, urns, copper & gold jewellery, gemstones; dug out from the site.

Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium
All cricket fans must visit the Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium, spread over 60 acres. It has a seating capacity for 30,000 people.?

Kalu diya Pokuna
Pond with black water, as it means, a hiking trip the top of the hill will reward you with exhilarating views and colourful butterflies. There is also a small pond and remnants of an ancient Buddhist temple. Also spot some caves which were used by Buddhist monks for meditation long ago.

Best time to Visit
Dambulla has a consistent climate and it experiences heavy rainfall from April till January. This can make travel uncomfortable. The best time to travel to Dambulla is between? January and May.

How to Reach Dambulla
By Air
Bandaranaike International Airport, Katunayaka is the nearest to Dambulla. From there, you can hire a cab or board a bus to reach Dambulla.

By Rail
Gal Oya Junction is 45 km from Dambulla. From here, you can hire a cab or board a bus from here to Dambulla

By Bus
Dambulla has an impressive network of roads and is well-connected by bus to popular towns like Colombo, Kandy and Sigiriya. The bus station is is on the Kandy Road which is a 1 km from walk.