What Not To Do in Sri Lanka: 22 Essential Tips

Last Updated on October 17, 2024

Sri Lanka is most known for its beaches, wildlife, tea plantations, and beautiful landscapes.  

Knowing what not to do in Sri Lanka will set you up for smooth and memorable travels around this beautiful South Asian country.

Read on to find out what not to do in Sri Lanka. You’ll learn must-know Sri Lanka travel tips, including the Sri Lankan cultural customs visitors should know.

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What Not To Do in Sri Lanka: 22 Important Tips To Know

1. Don’t Visit Sri Lanka Without Knowledge of Current Events

In early 2022, Sri Lankans started experiencing power cuts and shortages of basics such as fuel. The rate of inflation rose to 50% a year.

Measures have been taken to address the crisis, and the situation has improved significantly since 2022. But, Sri Lankans are still facing high inflation. 

When you visit Sri Lanka, you’re unlikely to notice any of the effects of the crisis. In fact, tourism is one of the factors that can help support the recovery of the economy. 

While in Sri Lanka, keep the crisis in mind, and do your best to ensure your tourism dollars go to Sri Lankan businesses rather than foreign-owned businesses.

2. Don’t Forget Essential Vaccines and Medications

There are specific vaccines that are recommended, as well as required, for visiting Sri Lanka. However, the requirements vary depending on your home country, or where you are traveling to Sri Lanka from. 

Ahead of your trip, visit your family doctor or a travel clinic to discuss what vaccinations may be needed or recommended. 

Parts of Sri Lanka are considered an active malaria zone. You’ll want to discuss with your physician or a travel clinic whether taking anti-malarial medication is right for you. 

3. Don’t Carry Large Bills 

Sri Lanka’s currency is the Sri Lankan Rupee (LKR). Sri Lankan rupees come in various denominations. You will most commonly find 20, 50, 100, 1,000, 2,000 and 5,000 notes in circulation, as well as coins in smaller denominations. 

While traveling Sri lanka you’ll find yourself wanting to buy little things here and there. Maybe some street food or a drink, or something to take home from the markets. You’ll also need to pay for meals, taxis, and hotels, and more. 

While credit cards are often accepted by hotels and tour agencies, most vendors, shops, and taxis, will only accept cash. 

It’s best to carry small bills while in Sri Lanka. Most of your daily expenses won’t cost very much and having small bills makes paying simpler because the vendor won’t need to find change for you. 

• Key tip! Go to People’s Bank when withdrawing cash in Sri Lanka. As of February 2024, there are no fees when you withdraw using their ATM. 

4. Don’t Barter for Unfair Prices

It’s okay to be budget conscious while traveling Sri Lanka, as long as you don’t go overboard with your budgeting practices, and you follow best practices for responsible budget travel. 

In Sri Lanka, bartering prices is a common practice, mainly in markets. Many shops have prices listed on items. 

What’s also common is the “tourist tax.” This is a colloquial term for when locals in a place charge higher prices when foreigners buy their goods versus other locals. 

For example, many tuktuk drivers will quote a price that’s higher than what a local would pay. But not always. Particularly in Colombo, we found some tuktuk drivers ran the meter rather than quoting a price.

Some travelers are upset by the tourist tax. But I think that it’s fair that locals maximize their income by setting prices based on what a buyer can afford. 

If a person has the means to travel, and is benefiting off of the strength of their home currency, paying a slightly higher price is reasonable.

If you can afford to travel, then you can afford to pay prices that are fair. And yes, that fair price may be more than what a local would pay. 

In practice, it is good to barter in Sri Lanka in the markets, but do so in a respectful and fair way. I recommend asking the initial price, and then barter down just once or twice from there. 

5. Don’t Photograph People

An important thing not to do in Sri Lanka has to do with taking photos. As with traveling anywhere, it’s important to be intentional and respectful when taking pictures. 

In Sri Lanka, be sure to ask for permission when taking photos of people. If you plan to share a photo of a person to your social media, or any online platform, it’s important to have explicit consent to do so. 

When you meet children, avoid the urge to take photos of them. Young children aren’t able to consent to having their photo taken like an adult is, and it’s inappropriate to take their picture without permission from the child’s parent.

When taking photos of the countryside, beaches, or streets around Sri Lanka, be aware of who might end up in the frame of the photo. Wait a moment until local people are out of the frame before snapping the image. 

It’s also important to think about what a photo depicts. Sharing images of poverty, children, or less developed communities for self-gratification is an unfortunate symptom of the White Saviour Industrial Complex. 

6. Don’t Disrespect Religious Sites

What not to do in Sri Lanka? Disrespect religious sites. Throughout Sri Lanka you’ll have the opportunity to visit religious sites like Gangaramaya Temple, a Buddhist temple in Colombo, and the Royal Cave Temple near Sigiriya.

Buddhists are very conscious of dress code, so when visiting religious sites, show respect by following these practices: 

• Wear clothing that covers your shoulders, and your knees. 
• If you can, wear white-coloured clothing when visiting a Buddhist temple. White is considered to be the colour of purity.
• Remove your shoes before entering a temple. There’s typically a designated spot where you can safely leave your shoes and collect them after your visit. 
• Do not take photos with your back to Buddha (this includes selfies).

7. Don’t Drink Tap Water in Sri Lanka

It’s best to drink filtered or bottled water while traveling in Sri Lanka. You don’t want to end up with a stomach bug that impacts your trip.

When eating at food stalls and restaurants, it’s best to buy bottled water, or bring your own filtered water. One solution is to bring a filtering water bottle with you to Sri Lanka. 

Filtering your own water is a sustainable tourism practice because it will reduce how much plastic waste you generate.

There are various systems to choose from that suit different needs, but all systems have the same function: they filter contaminants out of water, making it safe to drink. 

There are tons of options to choose from, Lifestraw is a popular one, but I personally love my Grayl bottle. 

8. Don’t Skip Local Sri Lankan Cuisine

Basically everywhere you go in Sri Lanka you’ll find Western meal options. What not to do in Sri Lanka, though, is eat Western food the whole time. 

Sri Lankan food is delicious and healthy, and so be sure to try it! Coconut is commonly used in dishes, and you’ll find lots of roti, curries, and rice. 

To get you started, here are three local dishes or meals to look out for. 

• String hoppers: Locally known as Indiappa, string hoppers are a very popular Sri Lankan breakfast dish. They are a type of steamed rice noodle with a unique shape that looks like a kind of noodle nest. The dough is typically made with rice flour, salt, and hot water. String hoppers are usually served with curry and spicy coconut condiment (pol sambol).
  
• Lamprais: This meal is a delicious combination of meat, rice and sambol chili sauce, wrapped into a banana leaf packet and steamed. The rice is cooked with meat stock – usually a combination of different meats like beef, pork or lamb – that’s infused with spices like cardamom, clove and cinnamon.
  
• Kottu: This popular meal resembles fried rice, except instead of rice, it’s made with a type of roti known as godamba roti (a flat, crispy bread). The roti is fried along with vegetables, meat, spices, and finally egg. 

For a detailed guide to Sri Lankan food, read What To Eat in Sri Lanka : A Sri Lankan’s Guide To Food In Sri Lanka.

9. Don’t Ignore Dining Customs

There are a few dining customs that are important to know while traveling Sri Lanka. 

It’s custom to eat without cutlery in Sri Lanka. We found that most restaurants would provide us cutlery, but in rare cases there wouldn’t be any available. 

When eating with your hands, use only your right hand. Your left hand can be used to hold the plate in place. 

There’s another important custom to know when eating curries in Sri Lanka. Often, a curry meal will come with several small bowls of curry to eat along with rice.

Instead of piling the curries onto the rice, keep the rice in the middle of your plate, and add the curries in a circle around the rice, so you can carefully mix them into the rice, separately. 

• Fun tip! If you’re given pineapple to eat with your breakfast, eat it the Sri Lankan way! It’s custom to sprinkle in a circle on your slice of pineapple a bit of salt, pepper, and chili powder. Then, squeeze a bit of lime over the pineapple slice before eating. It’s delicious!

10. Don’t Skip Learning Some Sinhala

You’ll find that many people throughout Sri Lanka speak English. We rarely had issues communicating with people we met. 

But, knowing some basic Sinhala (and Tamil, if you go to northern and eastern Sri Lanka) is a nice way to show respect, and communicate with people who may not know English.  

11. Don’t Skip Getting Mobile Data

Most hotels have wifi throughout Sri Lanka, but having mobile data available is convenient for when you’re out for the day and don’t have wifi access.

You have two good options for getting mobile data while in Sri Lanka. Your first option is to purchase a physical SIM card. 

To do this, you have to find a vendor selling prepaid local SIM cards, and then go through the process of purchasing and enabling the SIM. 

There are typically shops in the airports in Sri Lanka where you can purchase a physical SIM. Tourist SIM cards for up to 3500 LKR are sold at Colombo-Bandaranaike International Airport and normal stores.

The prices of SIM cards are a little less outside the airport, so you can also simply pop into a shop in Colombo (or wherever you are) and buy one. We found that Dialog is the best network throughout Sri Lanka, so buy a Dialog SIM if possible. 

Your second option is to purchase an eSIM. An eSIM, short for embedded SIM, is a digital SIM card that you can load into your device. 

With an eSIM, there’s no need for a physical SIM. Esims work exactly like traditional SIM cards, enabling your phone to connect to cellular networks and access mobile data. And eSIMs come with many benefits!

Unlike physical SIMs, eSIMs can be remotely activated, allowing you to easily switch between mobile carriers or plans.

You don’t need to visit a storefront to buy an eSIM, you can purchase them online. The information needed to activate your eSIM is then sent to you over email or via an app.

You can get online with an easily with a quick-to-install eSIM through Airalo. What I appreciate most about Airalo’s eSIM is its simplicity. You can quickly select and activate an Airalo eSIM for whichever country you are headed to. Selecting, downloading, and activating your eSIM takes less than 5 minutes, and it’s easy to top up your eSIM if you run out of data.

You can get started with an Airalo eSIM, right here.

12. Don’t Forget to Pack the Right Clothes

Most people think of Sri Lanka as having a hot climate. While it does, it’s important to know that when you’re in central Sri Lanka at higher elevations, it can actually become chilly, particularly at night. 

Given this, you’ll want to pack layers for your travels to Sri Lanka. Be prepared with long sleeve shirts, long pants, a sweater and a jacket for those cooler regions. 

You’ll also want to be prepared for rain. Particularly if you visit during the monsoon season, bring a packable poncho or a lightweight rain jacket to wear in the event of a downpour. 

13. Don’t Forget Bug Spray and Sunscreen

Don’t underestimate the sun in Sri Lanka, or the mosquitos. Regardless of where you are in the country, from Colombo to SK Town, you’ll want to use sunscreen and bug spray every day.

Because Sri Lanka is situated just north of the equator, the sun is no joke. Even on cloudy days, there’s the potential for a sunburn – so pack loads of sunscreen. If you run out, don’t worry, we saw sunscreen for sale in many shops. 

While mosquitoes in Sri Lanka aren’t all that bad (compared to Canada, at least!), they can carry diseases like dengue. Because of this, you’ll want to minimize mosquito bites to reduce the risk of illness.  

14. Don’t Overlook Cultural Norms and Traditions

Depending on where you’re traveling to Sri Lanka from, you might find that the culture and traditions are different from what you’re used to at home. 

Take the time to learn about Sri Lanka’s customs and traditions, and then be respectful of them. For example, in Sri Lanka, people traditionally dress modestly. 

When visiting Sri Lanka, women travelers can show cultural respect by wearing loose-fitting clothing that covers the upper arms, knees, chest, midriff and back. 

Another important custom in Sri Lanka is dining etiquette. When you eat in local restaurants, or are invited into a local’s home for a traditional meal, you might notice that dishes are eaten with your hands instead of using cutlery. It’s also customary to eat only with the right hand. 

15. Don’t Forget to Tip Generously

Tipping for services in Sri Lanka isn’t a cultural norm, but it’s become a custom for services related to tourism. 

In the last few years, Sri Lanka has faced several crises. The COVID pandemic was followed by an economic crisis that made life in Sri Lanka very difficult. Now, these crises are improving, but Sri Lankans continue to face very high inflation. 

Tips for guides, drivers, and hotels aren’t an obligation. But, the average salary in Sri Lanka is much lower than in Canada or the US, and so if you have the means to tip, it’s a great way to say thank you for a positive experience. 

16. Don’t Forget To Check Entry Requirements

Before entering Sri Lanka, check the entry requirements for your nationality. Citizens of some countries can visit Sri Lanka for 30 days by applying for an e-visa online. 

If you are one of those nationalities, you’ll be able to get your visa a couple days in advance through the online application. 

For some nationalities there is the option for a visa on arrival, but it’s recommended to apply online in advance if you can. 

Other nationalities need to have a visa or travel authorization to be eligible for visiting Sri Lanka. Be sure to check the requirements for your nationality, well ahead of your trip to Sri Lanka. 

17. Don’t Forget Your Travel Insurance

What not to do in Sri Lanka? Visit without travel insurance! Travel insurance is essential to pack for every single trip. 

Insurance coverage provides support, compensation, and medical care when things go wrong while you’re abroad.

Policies for travel insurance vary, but they can provide support and compensation if your luggage is lost, if you slip and break a bone, or if you need to return home because of an emergency in the family. 

Travel insurance is an important financial safety net for your valuables and for emergencies, so don’t forget it when you go to Sri Lanka.  

18. Don’t Skip Public Transport 

There is fantastic public transport infrastructure in Sri Lanka. Across the country is a strong network of buses and trains. Both are reliable ways to get around!

There’s no need to book bus trips in advance. You can simply go to the bus station or bus stand, and ask around until you find a bus heading to where you’re going. 

Second and third class tickets on trains can also be booked same-day at the train station. If you’d like to reserve a seat in advance, you can reserve a first class ticket a few days ahead of time at the station. 

19. Don’t Mix Up Head Nods in Sri Lanka

In most cultures, nodding the head up and down signifies “yes,” and side to side means “no.” In Sri Lanka, you’ll notice a wider range of head nods, and it’s important to know what they mean. 

Sri Lankans move their heads up and down to indicate “yes,” and shake side to side to indicate “no” – the same as in North America. 

What can sometimes confuse visitors is a third movement. When talking with Sri Lankans, they’ll sometimes move their head side to side gently. This move is meant to indicate agreement, or “okay.” 

In most conversations I had with Sri Lankans, I found it simply showed acknowledgement that the person was listening. This can be slightly confusing at first, but over time, you’ll get used to it! 

20. Don’t Forget to Download PickMe

PickMe is an app very similar to Uber. Although Uber is used in Sri Lanka, PickMe is more common and available throughout the country. 

Through PickMe you can call a taxi, tuktuk, or motorbike. The app simply reserves your ride, shows you the price, and connects you with the driver. You then pay the driver directly in cash. 

We didn’t use PickMe all the time – we found it the most useful for when we were doing longer drives and wanted to go by car versus tuktuk. For tuktuks, we typically checked the app to see what the average price for the trip was, and then hailed the closest tuktuk on the street.  

21. Don’t Waste Electricity

What not to do in Sri Lanka? Waste electricity. In the last few years, Sri Lanka has faced its worst financial crisis in 70 years. This has had a major impact on the price of electricity and other resources. 

As a visitor, you can help reduce the burden of expensive electricity by minimizing use of fans, AC, and lighting in your hotel or guesthouse rooms. When you’re not in the room, make sure all electricity is shut off. 

Honestly, this is a common courtesy to keep in mind, wherever you are in the world.

22. Don’t Culturally Appropriate

Cultural appropriation is when a person adopts elements of a culture that is not their own. It becomes controversial when members of a dominant culture appropriate from disadvantaged minority cultures.

Examples of cultural appropriation include when white people wear dreadlocks, or non-Indigenous people wear Indigenous dress as a halloween costume.

Cultural appropriation is a complex issue with lots of gray areas. And since much of travel revolves around experiencing and learning about other cultures, it can be tough to figure out what is and isn’t cultural appropriation while abroad.

But it isn’t impossible. When in Sri Lanka, consider the following to figure out if you are appreciating local culture, or appropriating it. 

• Consider whether you’re participating in a tradition, or wearing traditional clothing, out of honor or imitation.
• Consider whether you are aware of the significance, meaning, and history of the tradition or clothing. 

• Consider the situation: are you participating in a cultural tradition or wearing cultural clothing? Being invited to participate is key. 
• Think about whether you are participating to learn about a culture, or to perpetuate a stereotype.

Thinking about whether your actions in Sri Lanka are respectful, and considering the context you’re in, as well as your overall motivations, are all important when thinking about whether you are culturally appropriating.

Final Thoughts: What Not to Do in Sri Lanka

I hope these tips for what not to do in Sri Lanka help you plan a worry-free, memorable trip to this beautiful island. 

I wanted to share these tips because I truly believe that being an informed tourist is the best way to be a responsible tourist! Especially as Sri Lanka continues to recover from its financial crisis, these tips are important to keep in mind. 

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• Is Colombo Worth Visiting? 10 Reasons to Go
• Is Sigiriya Worth Visiting? 8 Must-Know Reasons to Go
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• 8 Things to Do in SK Town, Sri Lanka
• 5 Benefits of Using an eSIM for International Travel