Colombo getting into colombo from katunayake airport · Getting into Colombo from Katunayake airport
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Getting into Colombo from Katunayake airport
Getting into Colombo from Katunayake airport
The international airport is closer to Negombo than to Colombo, so if you're arriving late, it might be a better option to head to Negombo for the night instead. Do an online search for those hotels. Star class hotels and budget guest houses are available. Ceylon tourist board(Controlled by Government) has a chain of hotels( ).
By taxi
Airport Taxi
Some taxi services are available at Air port as well.
Other popular Taxi services
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Local Taxi (mini van)
The taxi service provided by the taxi counter in the arrivals hall is one option. They provide a mini van without air conditioning, but it will be about a third cheaper than taxis provided by 'hotels'. It is worth noting that this service is primarily intended for the locals, so the counter staff may try to persuade you to go to one of the 'hotel taxi' counters outside the arrivals hall but insist that you only want a mini van. Insistence has not helped in some cases: counter staff maintained that the service is only for locals and refused to issue tickets for this service.
Hotel Taxi
Most 4 or 5 star hotels have their own counter just outside the arrivals hall. You can get a taxi from one of these places. They will provide an air conditioned car. As of May 2009, the cost to Galle Face (Colombo Fort) could be about Rs 2,800 (approximately 25 US$).
By bus
This is the cheapest way to get into Colombo, but will take some effort and time. The public bus (number 187) to Colombo Fort leaves from the airport bus depot which is located outside the airport. You can get there by free shuttle or walk (about 10 - 15 mins). To catch a free shuttle bus, come out of the airport, turn left and walk all the way to the end of the building. You will not find any signs, so be sure to ask airport personnel. You will see an old white bus with a sign that says main terminal. Catch it and it will drive for 5 minutes and drop you off at the bus depot. From the bus depot, catch any bus marked 187 to Colombo at a cost of 40 rupees (although the bus collector may try to make tourists pay more 'for luggage' etc, in fact the typical luggage a tourist may carry is not supposed to be accommodated in public transport, thus despite what some "know it all" may write here be prepared to not even be allowed in the bus if there is a crowd waiting to take the bus) to Colombo Fort station. Beware that only the big white buses (similar to the airport shuttle) will be 40 Rupees, the smaller buses with aircon will charge foreigners definitely more. Given that "more" might mean 70-100 Rupees, it's not that big of a deal, even though they might ask for 300 Rupees in the start, just hand them over a smaller amount and tell them it's not your first visit here.
The journey into Colombo Fort could take anything between an hour and fifteen to two hours. The bus will stop at major towns en route . They also have collapsible seats along the aisle which will get used as the bus becomes busy so, try to get a seat at the front. The one opposite the door is preferable! Ask the conductor to tell you when the bus gets to the Fort station (as opposed to the Colombo bus depot). Note that some buses do not go as far as the Fort station and stop at the bus depot, which is about 5 min walk from the station. Others go via the depot to fort station and then double back to the bus depot.
Once you reach Colombo Fort, you can get a three-wheeler (tuk-tuk) to get to your destination. You will pay a little premium for catching a tuk-tuk from the bus station or outside Fort station (on the main road so there will be a choice of tuk-tuks) but it should not cost more than Rs 150 to go to hotels near Galle Face (e.g. Cinnamon Grand, Taj or Galle Face Hotel).
You can also catch a bus to Galle Face (less than Rs 10) but you will not be welcome on-board with large luggage; however, a backpack may be accepted.
By train
This is probably the most unknown way to get into Colombo, but completely possible. Take either the free Airport to the bus station and then follow the road (Canada Friendship) to the Katunayaka South station (around 1km, if you don't have luggage) or, if you've luggage, best just to take a Tuk Tuk right from the airport to the train station. Should be 100 Rupees, if you're good at haggling you might get them down even a bit more.
Then, at the train station, get a ticket to Colombo Fort, you'll be arriving right next to where the buses drop people off. Cost is 30 Rupees. Trains are sometimes delayed, but driving relatively frequently, around 1 per hour, more during rush hour. It will take around 1 hour to get to Fort station, so definitely quicker than by travelling by bus, if you manage to just catch a train without much waiting. Check online timetable on one of the free computers in the terminal when arriving about the next train, if it suits you, it's an easy way into the city for very little money.
Tri-shaw (Three wheeler, tuk-tuk)
You can also take a Tri-shaw aka tuk-tuk from the bus depot(reach there by free airport shuttle bus) as on May 2011 it takes about 1500 LKR to take you from airport to Galle Road and with some bargaining it can reduce up to 1000 to 1200 LKR. On average it will take about an hour to raech Galle Road (these rates are highly unrealistic as even the meter taxi tuk tuks that cost about 40% less than the normal ones cost around 1400 for the same journey, a normal one, specially for a foreigner would cost substantially more.) So do be careful as you may be embarrassing your self following these exaggerations as to how cheap things are in Sri Lanka.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Colombo
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Colombo - updated May 2024
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Colombo Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.