Sri Lanka

[Pantherz]

11 minutes ago, Jawjaw84 said:

any updates on Sri Lanka 

None yet. Thinking of going in the next month or two and staying at Gomez Place, but just a bit worried about it being a bit rustic since I enjoy staying in nice hotels. I’d love to hear more first hand experiences. Also I’m wondering how many days I should plan on staying. 

[fedssocr]

As mentioned up thread, there's not a lot to do in Negombo. It's easy to arrange a car and driver for a private tour around the island. I have a couple of friends who are guides. I spent about two weeks on my first trip and was going to spend the same on my second trip before I had to leave in a hurry due to covid. If you send them your time frame, interests and budget they could come up with an itinerary.

There are lots of great national parks if you like nature and animals. Or plenty of historic sites if you like that. 

As for "rustic" hotels, there are many upscale hotels around, but for a couple of nights I can deal with pretty much any sort of place. I have not been to Gomez Place, but from the photos it looks more "basic" than "rustic" to me.

[macaroni21]

I have been to Negombo twice, both times because I wanted to be near the airport in the days before departure. As @fedssocr said, there's really nothing that would make Negombo an attraction in itself. The beach is difficult to access and is nowhere as nice as the beaches beyond Galle. Negombo is not even in a convenient location for accessing other attractions around Sri Lanka, which are mostly inland and in the mountains (other than the beach towns beyond Galle).

I did have a massage once in Negombo that included a handjob, a so-so experience. I cannot now remember what the name of the place was, but it's not something I would want to make a trip for. I just happened to be in the town with nothing better to do.