Sri Lanka: Udawalawe > Hiriketiya

Apr 9-11 2025 |

After a decent 2-night stay at Udawalawe and multiple days prior in the mountains, it was time to head back to the beach. Rather than take the fastest route, I decided to follow the edges of Udawalawe and Lunugamvehera national parks, hoping to see some iconic wildlife, as done at Kumana. It was a good decision, I saw 2 elephants at Udawalawe, really close up from across the moat and electric fence separating the park from the road. While these elephants are wild and living in the park, I later realised they were waiting for a serving of bananas from tourists (I had none). The rest of the ride was uneventful, but nice regardless.

I also took this route as I wanted to ride and experience the entire south-west coast, from Hambantota to Colombo. I also wanted to see the port, a major development funded by China as part of their Belt and Road initiative (this was a futile endeavor as the port is secured and barely visible from the main road).

From Hambantota, I rode the final stretch to Hiriketiya, which I had only recently heard of. Honestly, in my prior visits to Sri Lanka, I never ventured further than Mirrisa, and I laughed at the name Dikwella on the map - it's the main town near Hireketiya. The joke was on me, as this area is amazing and I probably would have been a trailblazer going there in 1999, or even in 2018.

I stayed 2 nights at Hiriketiya White House, a new homestay. There's lots of good food around here, one highlight being the amazing pizza at Bacuzzi.

It's easy to see why Hiriketiya is becoming so popular: it's an amazing setting, a beautiful beach, hip crowd. While it largely caters to the backpacker wannabe surfers, you can see it will soon be one of Sri Lanka's elite beach destinations.

Right on the beach, there stands an ominous memorial: a large compound of gutted buildings in the most amazing location. Turns out it was the home of a local doctor's family, devastated by the 2004 tsunami.

Ride: 142 km

Stay: Hirekitiya White House, $20, 4/5