Polonnaruwa

Understand

300px|thumbnail|Lankatilaka Temple The second most ancient of Sri Lanka's kingdoms, Polonnaruwa was first declared the capital city by King Vijayabahu I in the 11th century CE and maintained its status until the 13th century. In 1982 the ancient city of Polonnaruwa was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. What's nice about Polonnaruwa is that the ruins are in one compact area so you can visit them quite easily. Just one three wheeler ride from where you're staying to the entrance and you can walk about them all day long. If you don't have a lot of time and have to make a choice, the ruins at Polonnaruwa are much better presented and more interesting than the often repetitive ruins of Anuradhapura. There are only so many stupas you can see before you have "seen them all".

Get in

Polonnaruwa is 216 km from Colombo and 66 km east of Dambulla. To travel there, there are several options.

Get around

Bicycles are the best way to get around. Most guest houses will rent out bikes. Additionally there are bike rentals in front of the main entrance (not to be confused with the ticket office at the Museum), that charge 750-1000 LKR per bike (500 for kids bikes, child seats or tandem bikes are also available). Most of the bikes are pretty basic/old but sufficient for the main road along the historic sights. The sights are located next to each other so you can cover all of them easily using a bicycle in one day.

See

Just north of present-day Polonnaruwa town, 140km (90 miles) north of Kandy, are the ruins of ancient Polonnaruwa, which date from the late 10th century, when the Chola kings of southern India invaded Sri Lanka and conquered Anuradhapura. Alahana Pirivena Complex - Buddhist temples Topa Wewa Lake and the Parakrama Samudra (the Sea of Parakrama)

The 1-day entrance fee is 25 USD (March 2018). Unfortunately, the round trip tickets for the cultural triangle (50 USD) are no longer available. South Asian nationals receive substantial discounts of USD 15 on entrance fees, Therefore, if you have a South Asian passport, make sure to carry it with you on your visits.

Do

In this area, you can find plenty of wildlife reserves. Try to find a guide and visit places like Minneriya National Park, Kawudulla

Eat

Avoid eating from places where they sell the food in open markets. Do not go to places that need to have touts on the streets out and where you cannot see inside the restaurant from the street.

Sleep

There are plenty of budget hotels and guest houses to stay at in the new town. Prices start at Rs 1,500 to 2,000 per person for a night.

Stay safe

Don't even think of sleeping on the grass, due to the risk that you will get a bite from a venomous snake or insect.

Go next

Dambulla located 67 km west of Polonnaruwa Batticaloa located on the east coast of Sri Lanka Knuckles Mountain Range