TRAVEL SRI LANKA
The neglected southern
neighbour, Sri Lanka, has emerged as a favoured foreign destination in recent
years. With its temples, hills and beaches, wildlife and scenic beauty, it's a
must-visit country. "It's good both in terms of cost and engagement,"
says Wego's Ashwin Jayasankar.
Sri Lanka is very
affordable, whether it's the flight, internal commute, stay or sightseeing.
This is the reason you can extend your stay to five nights, six days on a
budget of `1 lakh. Air fare and accommodation will form the biggest chunks of
your budget, but you can easily tweak it depending on what you want. If you
want to focus on sightseeing, cut down on lodging and commuting; if you want to
have a comfortable stay and travel, slash the sightseeing.
Flight
As a direct Delhi-Colombo
flight will easily cost `16,000-20,000, you can cut down on costs by splitting
your journey. Take a cheap domestic flight from Delhi to Chennai or Bengaluru,
and then from there to Colombo.“A good option is metasearch travel sites and
mobile apps for the best air fares. Look for low-cost carrier options on
shorter duration flights for more savings. Also, set up price alerts in the
app, so that you can be notified when a good air fare is available for your
destination,“ says Jayasankar.
In fact, you can use apps
to combine flight and hotel bookings, further bringing down the cost. Among the
low-cost options are IndiGo, SpiceJet, Air India, Mihin Lanka and Sri Lankan
Airlines.
Flight duration: Direct
(non-stop) Delhi-Colombo one-way flight takes about 3 hours, 35 minutes.
Accommodation
You get a wide range of
staying options, from boutique villas, heritage homes and bungalows to
homestays, hostels, guest houses, ho tels, rented apartments and Sri Lankan
Tourism resorts. These suit every budget and preference. While a good hostel
such as the Colombo City Hostel will cost under `1,000 a night (search for
hostels at http:www.hostelbookers.comhostelssri-lanka?affiliate =roughguides1),
a good 3-star hotel can cost upwards of `3,000 a night. You could also search
for hotels at Hotels.com or Agoda.com “Homestays are probably the best option
since you can get the flavour of the place and know the local people and
cuisine,“ says Bengaluru-based Roopa Sreedhar, who is the founder of TAG India,
a travel adventure group. “This also makes food and drink very cheap,“ says the
woman who took a 20-day trip to Lanka with her husband, in 2012.
“If you want to stay in a
hotel, it's best to book 2-3 months in advance to get the best deals,“ says
Gurgaon-based Piya Bajwa. You can also ask for upgrades and additional
discounts on arrival. You can check out the various options on the Sri Lankan
tourism website, http: http:www.srilanka.travelindex.php?route=commonhome.
Another good search option is aggregator sites like Ixigo, Wego and Expedia,
which can fetch better deals in combination with flights.
Food
You can easily experiment
with local food, which is extremely cheap. You can get meals for `100-200 per
person and even a three-course meal in a good restaurant will cost `500-700.
Internal commute
There are buses and trains,
but the latter is a better option. “Travel by train within the country here as
the prices are quite low,“ says Karan Anand, Head, Relationships, Cox &
Kings Ltd. The second and third class Colombo-Kandy train ride will cost you
around `130 and `80 per person, respectively. The first-class AC train travel
will cost `230, while luxury trains, Expo Rail and Rajdhani, will come for
around `500 and `660 per person.
“Another comfortable option
is cabs with drivers who double as guides,“ says Sreedhar.Agrees Neelu Singh of
Ezeego1: “For internal transfers between different tourists sites, take a hired
car, which can cost around `3,000-4000 for a day.“
Sightseeing shopping
You could cover the main attractions
across the island or pick a specific circuit, such as the one involving
Buddhist temples and beaches, or wildlife and national parks. “It is best to
book online in advance to save on time and money. You can also pick from the
thousands of holiday activities offered by Expedia,“ says Ahluwalia.
If you pick a package, the
sightseeing costs will be included. Since you are likely to have surplus money
for shopping, you could buy clothes and handicrafts which are really cheap
here.
Most offer travel to a
limited number of cities and it is better to build your own itinerary.
MMT: STUNNING SRI LANKA
package @ `45,990 for a couple.
COX & KINGS: SUPER
SAVER SRI LANKA @ `97,998 per couple.
SOTC: SCENIC SRI LANKA
starting @ `26,693 per person.
ETW18APR16
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