Chilaw is a large town which belongs to the Puttalam District of Sri Lanka, its situated 80 kilometers North of Colombo. The majority of Chilaw is mainly Tamil, but the balance weighs with other religions and ethnic groups such as Buddhists and Muslims. Many nobels such as Mahatma Ghandi has visited the town in its prime. The western side of Chilaw are covered with sandpits, facing the Indian Ocean.

By train

You can either pre-book a train, its not a very long trip per-se, you have to get onto the train at the

maradana railway station

and continue your journey for 2 hours at tops.

• Chilaw train station

  phone: +94 32 2 222 271
• 1st Class= Rs. 260
• 2nd Class= Rs. 140
• 3rd Class= Rs. 75

By bus and taxi

since there are no direct public buses to Chilaw, You can go to the Katunayake bus station from the

Colombo Bastian Mawatha Bus Terminal by bus and continue to Chilaw by a taxi. If you are travelling with a group, it is best to hire a private bus for the journey.

• Rs. 130- bus fees to travel from Colombo to Katunayake Bus station
• Call- +942581120-29 for operator details
• 45 minutes- estimated time

From Katunayake to Chilaw by taxi

After getting off from the bus, it is required to hire a taxi, even though hiring a taxi is easy in the parts, it would not be easy to find a taxi that would go to chilaw. In this case, you must consider pre-booking a taxi that is willing to go to Chilaw.

• Rs. 2700-3300- Estimated price
• 58 minutes- estimated time
• 53 km - Travel distance

By car

• Estimated time- 1 hour and 19 minutes
• Fuel costs- Rs. 1000-1600
• Distance- 81 km

By taxi

Going to chilaw directly by taxi is also an option, but it cost extra compared to the other two options. If you are travelling alone, it is recommended to hire a small vehicle at a low cost, otherwise it wouldn't be fair for you financially. Hiring a small nano cab is the best given option when travelling alone. When travelling with family and friends, a taxi isn't the best option, a van would be the way to go.

Estimated price- Rs. 4100-4900

Estimated time- 1 hour and 19 minutes

Distance- 81 km

Compared to it's history, Chilaw has quite a few tourist sites that relate with ancient architecture, but Chilaw also has a nice coastal line which supports tourism of the country.

• Sri Munneswaram Devasthanam

  phone: +94 322 224 833
  address: Maha Devalayam, Wariyapola Road
  Completed in 1753. A Hindu temple with a great regional importance in Sri Lanka. The temple complex consists a total of five separate buildings and was dedicated to the hindu gods. The temple displays the architectural skills of the early hindu society of Sri Lanka. The temple is located in the village of Munneswaram, where both Sinhala and Tamil populations exist. In its mid-history, the temple was destroyed twice by Portuguese troops, later on it was reconstructed to its original form. The temple now, is a tourist site and is important to both the sinhalese and tamil culture of Sri Lanka.

• Chilaw Silver beachA beautiful sandy beach where you can enjoy the sunset. It's not crowded and no money will be needed.

• Chilaw Sandpitsa sandy beach, renowned as a location for birdwatching by the Ceylon Bird club. A sandy beach facing the Indian Ocean, Many waterbirds such as terns, sandpipers, egrets, gulls, shanks and thick-knees can be found along the coast. It is located 3 kilo-metres North of Chilaw. The pit. Taking a camera or a binocular when you visit is necessary when you visit.

• UdappuA tamil fishing and shrimp farming village situated a few miles north of Chilaw. The west of the village is bordered by the Indian Ocean and the south by Andimunai Sand dunes. The majority of the village are Hindu tamils and the population density is estimated up to fifteen thousand individuals Due to the effects of the civil war, many tamils have taken refuge in this village.

• Birdwatching- Bird watching is ideal in the sandy beaches. Searching for waders would be really interesting in these parts. If you are interested in bird watching, you should bring along a binocular and a camera a lens measuring upto 200mm at minimum. Bringing along a small notebook to sketch would work instead of the camera, but wouldn't help you with the specification of the bird.
• Sightseeing- Sightseeing in places like the munneswaram temple which has been here since the 18th century is really interesting. You can get to know how the town was maintained during the Civil war and its history related to all the religious groups.
• Photography- Chilaw beaches are filled with scenic places. It's best if you take your camera with you. A camera to shoot great photos in this area would be a short ranged camera (with a built in lens) or a DSLR which has a lens difference of atleast 100mm. If you like to take portraits of you or any other person, its recommended to take photo's from your phone.

• Souvenir shops or little snack shops can be found along the streets in Chilaw. For buying groceries and cosmetics, you should visit the Super markets. Although many supermarkets exist in Sri Lanka, the trusted markets are limited down to 3, the can be simply identified as cargills, keels and laugh supermarkets, other than that, corperative markets such as co-op city are ideal places to purchase grains.

• Cargills food city

  phone: +94 32 2 223 307
  address: 98 Chilaw - Colombo Main Rd
  It is a supermarket, best to buy snacks.

• Many food shops can be found along the road as well... but be sure to eat from trusted restaurants. If the restaurant/shop is not clean, you shouldn't eat from there. Unless you want stomach aches in the morning.

• Chilaw Rest house

  phone: +94 32 2 222 299
  A great average budget hotel.

• Pizza hut

  address: Chilaw
  Most trusted pizza restaurant.

• Beach boat family restaurant

  phone: +94 77 900 0299 (mobile)
  address: Chilaw - Colombo Main Rd

• Singing fish restaurant

  phone: +94 32 2 222 316
  address: Corea St

Eating fast food is not such a good idea, they might not be well prepared as n the major fast food companies such as burger king and Mc Donalds. Enjoying a fairly good traditional meal would add new experience. Eating something healthy like rice would help you to stay fit during the trip. The best given way to enjoy rice is on a banana leaf. This traditional way of serving a meal can be found in many local themed restaurants. Sometimes it is stated in the banner at the entrance.

• Water or 'Kurumba' (King Coconut) are the best types of drinks in these types of areas. Soft drinks can also be obtained from small roadside restaurants.You can drink tea from small rest stops. The local soft drink brand is renowned as elephant house, even though coca cola, sprite and fanta are in stores as well, elephant house drinks are more common and cheap. Judging by the climate, a cold drink would be a perfect refreshment when traveling from place to place. Hot drinks are only recommended in the evening.

An overnight stay is not really necessary, but it would also be fun if you spend a night without deadlines. The hotels are usually welcoming, most have adequate facilities for a nice one day stay. Booking a luxury hotel at a large cost would not be the best idea.

• Chilaw Far Inn Hotel

  phone: +94 32 2 222 954

• Hotel pearl gate

  phone: +94 71 657 8791 (mobile)
  address: 215, Ebert Silva Estate, Colombo Road
  Very low budget hotel.

• Grand Hilton Hotel

  phone: +94 77 723 9808 (mobile)
  address: 77 Corea Watta
  Contact for more information.

List of hospitals

• General hospital

• District general hospital

  phone: +94 32 2 223 261

Pharmacies in the area

• Suhada Pharmacy

  phone: +94 32 2 223 474
  address: No. 02 Road Chilaw, Colombo

Go next

• Puttalam: A city next to Chilaw.