This is it, our last stop in Sri Lanka before heading back home to plan the next trip somewhere - no idea yet where. It sure has been an amazing trip and an experience to remember. We have visited places long been in our bucket list as well as places we found out about while on the road. I hope it has been a journey worth reading about and I do hope you will stick around for more travel stories to come.
Galle City
Galle is another easy one-hour bus ride away from Mirissa and two hours or 125km from Colombo. Galle is a relatively populous city with just about 100k people and only slightly smaller than Kandy. This city is most known for its fort making it one of the most recommended destinations within Sri Lanka.
Although many tourists go to Galle just for the fort and rarely venture out of the area, the city itself is worth visiting too. It is a bustling city just like the ones we have visited during our stay. The central bus station, where we arrived, is just a short walk away from the fort making the surrounding area seem scarily busy with buses arriving and leaving almost every minute. If this would've been our first destination, I probably would've been scared, but by now, we're used to the hectic life of Sri Lankan cities.
Galle Fort
Galle Fort is a destination like no other. While all the other places in Sri Lanka are rough around the edges and display the situation and way of life as it is, the fort is made into a typical rather too polished tourist destination. I've got several friends who have been to Sri Lanka and as from the same person, they all consider this their favourite place in the whole country. The Fort area is full of restaurants, shops and spas. Everything a luxury craving tourist would need.
Galle Fort was originally built by the Portuguese in the 16th century but got heavily fortified by the Dutch colonists during the 17th century.
The fort area is a lot quieter and walking around is a lot more relaxed way to experience Sri Lanka. I can see why the main demographics walking around in the area are a little older and less of a backpacker type of people. Whereas everywhere else, it is just the backpacker type we have encountered.
Of course, Galle has some amazing sunset spots and you can see people taking full advantage of it. Couples sitting on the fort walls enjoying the romance and tourists photographing the hell out of it alike.
Dalawella Beach
One more beach visit before the trip is over. Dalawella Beach is probably most known for the swing off from a palm tree and over the sea. Although our plan was to have a go for the photos, unfortunately, it is charged and we deemed it not worth it. Lucky for us, one of the locals was showing off so we could at least get something out of it.
If the swing is not your main goal, the beach is still worth the visit and is good for a walk to Unawatuna Beach which is a lot busier and has plenty of shops and restaurants and massage places. Something for everyone.
There is an easy coach back to the airport from Galle. This coach is not heavily publicised and might be a bit difficult to find, but once you find it, it is the most comfortable and cheapest way to get to the airport. The coach runs twice a day and drops you off just by the airport. Do arrive early as the bus can get busy and latecomers might not get on.