Sri Lanka is small enough that you will be sweating at sea level on Monday and shivering at 1,900 metres on Wednesday. That single fact drives most of this list.
Clothing
- Light, loose, natural fabrics. Cotton and linen. Synthetic shirts are miserable in 85 per cent humidity.
- A sarong. Buy one on arrival for a few dollars. It covers your legs at temples, dries you at the beach, becomes a towel, a pillow and a blanket on the train.
- One fleece or light jacket and long trousers. Non-negotiable if you are going to Nuwara Eliya, Ella or Horton Plains. Nights drop to 8–12°C and Horton Plains at dawn approaches freezing.
- A light rain jacket. Rain here is warm and brief; an umbrella is often more useful than waterproofs.
- Modest clothing for temples. Shoulders and knees covered, for everyone. White is traditional and appreciated at pilgrimage sites.
Footwear
Trainers or light walking shoes for Sigiriya and the hill walks, sandals for everything else, and shoes that come off easily — you will remove them at every temple. Serious hiking boots are unnecessary unless you are doing Adam’s Peak.
The things people forget
- Socks. Temple stone reaches 50°C by mid-morning and you must be barefoot. Thin socks solve a genuinely painful problem.
- High-factor sun cream. Expensive and limited locally. Bring factor 30 or 50 from home. Reef-safe if you are snorkelling.
- DEET repellent. Dengue mosquitoes bite in the daytime. Bring something effective.
- A filter water bottle. Tap water is not drinkable, and Sri Lanka has a serious plastic problem. A filter bottle removes both issues.
- Rehydration sachets. Cheap, tiny, and the fastest fix for both heat and an upset stomach.
- A torch or head torch. Power cuts still happen, and turtle watching at Rekawa uses red light only.
- Binoculars. If you care about wildlife at all. Jeeps rarely carry them.
Electrical
230V, 50Hz, plug types D and G. UK plugs fit most modern sockets. Bring a power bank — long drive days and long safari mornings drain phones fast.
What to leave at home
- Drones, unless you have written permission. They are restricted near heritage sites, national parks and airports, and confiscation is common.
- Camouflage-pattern clothing. Wearing military camouflage is illegal for civilians in Sri Lanka, including children’s clothes.
- Heavy jeans. They never dry.
- Too many clothes generally. Laundry is cheap, fast and everywhere. Pack for four days.
One thing about tattoos
Visible Buddha tattoos have led to travellers being refused entry or deported from Sri Lanka. It is not a hypothetical. If you have one, cover it, and think carefully before getting one while you are here.
