Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Getting There & Around
BUS
There are plenty of buses linking the towns along the coastal road. They leave from the
bus station in the centre of Galle, opposite the cricket stadium. Major destinations include
the following:
Colombo
via the coast road and Hikkaduwa, regular/air-con Rs 150/300, three hours
Hikkaduwa
Rs 37, 30 minutes
Matara
Rs 67, one hour
Air-con buses using the Southern Expressway from Colombo (Rs 420) take 75 minutes
and depart from the southern Colombo suburb of Maharagama near Kottawa. Buses run
constantly from 5am to 8pm.
CAR
Galle is an exit on the Southern Expressway, which ends at Matara (30 minutes). It takes
about 75 minutes to travel from the Galle entrance to Kottawa (the current northern ter-
minus and a short way northeast of Colombo). This saves at least two hours compared to
taking the road along the west coast. Note that it can take up to 2½ hours to drive from
Galle to Bandaranaike International Airport, but this will shorten as additional sections of
expressway are opened.
TRAIN
The railway route along the coast from Colombo Fort to Galle's vaguely art-deco train sta-
tion is easily the most scenic and atmospheric way to journey between the cities. There are
up to 10 express trains a day and they take slightly over two hours on the recently rebuilt
tracks (2nd/3rd class Rs 180/100). Local trains serve Hikkaduwa (2nd/3rd class Rs 40/20,
30 minutes) and Matara (Rs 80/40, one to 1½ hours). There's a daily express to Kandy (Rs
320/175, 6½ hours).
Around Galle
The area around Galle is dotted with sights, both religious and natural. You can easily visit
several in half a day by tuk-tuk.
