Given that it’s located around 10km away from Bandaranaike International Airport, it goes without saying that Negombo is often used by travelers as a mere stopover for the first or last night of their holiday. However, this north-west coastal town is certainly worth visiting in its own right, regardless of its convenient location – as one of the island’s fishing capitals, Negombo’s coastline is dotted with colorful catamarans and fishing boats, which you can see being hauled up the sand in the early morning as the local fishermen bring in the day’s catch. As well as this, it is home to an expansive lagoon, and is close to the Muthuraja Wetlands in which a variety of Sri Lanka’s flora and fauna thrives.

Negombo was once one of the island’s most popular tourist destinations and has a long-held reputation as a great location for water-sports, particularly kite-surfing. This popularity means that there are many hotels in Negombo, ranging from large resorts to small guesthouses, as well as a selection of villas. Of the villas in Negombo, our favourite is Casa Heliconia, tucked away just inland with beautiful views of paddy fields framed by the distant jungle.