East Coast
Sri Lanka
Remote stillness — and world-class diving — beckon.
Cut off for the last 30 years because of civil unrest, the east coast of Sri Lanka offers a collection of new hotels like the eco-conscious treehouse-inspiredJungle Bay resort, the barefoot-casual Maalu Maalu and private villas from the local brand Anilana. Wildland Adventures offers back road cycling and leopard-spotting land safaris, and Abercrombie & Kent now extends access to forgotten Hindu temples in newly revived Trinco as well as the region’s main draw, unexplored diving sites: the world-class wreck MV Cordiality and the1922 British Sergeant, a marine oasis leaning on its side. Add on snorkeling with blue whales off Pigeon Island National Park, plus remote surfing, and the boxes are all ticked.
