Colombo City Tour

Tour Overview

Colombo City Tour is designed for tourists those who would like to explore the Colombo city. This tour is ideal for foreign and local tourists. 

Some notable destinations of Colombo City Tour

Galle Face Green

Galle Face is located in the heart of Colombo, the financial and business capital of Sri Lanka. It was a notable place for historical events. Today, 5 hectare strip of land between Galle Road and the Indian Ocean is the largest open space in crowded Colombo city. It is a popular destination for children, local vendors, teenagers, lovers, kite flyers, merrymakers and all those who want to indulge in their favorite pastimes next to the sea under the open sky. On Saturday & Sunday evenings and full moon Poya days, the land is crowded with day trippers, picnickers and food vendors who sell cooked crabs prawns and sea foods, tasty local varieties slices of mango with pepper & salt other local foods. The site is used as the venue for Sri Lanka's national day celebration held annually on 4 February. It hosted the Guinness recorded world’s tallest artificial Christmas tree on 25 December 2016. The old parliament building lies near the Gall Face Green which is Neo-Baroque-style, build in 1930. Also, old and new famous hotels are found in this area.

Gangaramaya Temple and Seema Malaka

Gangaramaya Temple is one of the most important temples in Colombo, Sri Lanka, being a mix of modern architecture, cultural essence and eclectic mix of Sri Lankan, Thai, Indian, and Chinese architectures. Today, it serves not only as a place of Buddhist worship. Most notable for tourists is the architecture of the Simamalaka Shrine. It includes several imposing buildings such Pagoda, Bodhi tree, Vihara Mandiraya, and relic chamber. Also, it has museum, library, residential hall, educational halls and an alms hall. Closer to Gangaramaya, Seema Malaka (assembly hall for monks) is located. Seema Malaka temple is mainly used for meditation and rest, rather than for worship. It is situated in the beautiful Beira Lake. Golden building with blue roof gives additional beauty. It attracts many tourists and it features as Colombo landscape in many photographs. 

Independence Memorial Hall

Independence Memorial Hall is a national monument in Sri Lanka built for commemoration of the independence of Sri Lanka that happened on February 4, 1948. It is located in Cinnamon Gardens, Colombo. It also has Independence Memorial Museum on the basement. Today, it is the venue for religious events and annual national celebrations. The design of the building is based on the “Celebration Hall”, the Royal audience hall of the Kingdom of Kandy - the last native kingdom of the island.

National Museum

National Museum of Colombo (Sri Lanka National Museum) is the largest museum in Sri Lanka. It holds contains a collections of much importance to Sri Lanka such as the regalia of the country, including the throne and crown of the Kandyan monarchs as well as many other exhibits telling the story of ancient Sri Lanka. The museum was established on 1 January 1877 by its founder Sir William Henry Gregory, the British Governor of Ceylon. It built as Italian architectural style and add beautiful landscape to Colombo city. 

Arcade Independence Square

The Arcade Independence Square is a shopping complex in the city of Colombo in Sri Lanka, housed in a group of renovated buildings including the former Jawatta Lunatic Asylum (later known as the Auditor General's building) and the former Western Provincial Council Building. It was built as a part of the Independence Square Redevelopment program initiated by the Sri Lankan Government. In 2012 the Urban Development Authority commenced the renovation of the buildings and special care was taken to preserve their original architectural features whilst adding modern technological features and amenities. 

Viharamahadevi Park

Viharamahadevi Park (formerly known as Victoria Park) is a public park located in Colombo, next to the National Museum in Sri Lanka. It is the oldest and largest park of the Port of Colombo. Situated in front of the colonial-era Town Hall building, the park is named after Queen Viharamahadevi, the mother of King Dutugamunu. The park was built on land donated to the Colombo city by Charles Henry de Soysa during the British rule of Sri Lanka, and used to be named "Victoria Park" after Queen Victoria. During World War II it was occupied by the British Army with Australian 17th Brigade based at Victoria Park. After the war the park was restored and opens to the public in 1951. At the edge of this park, Commonwealth War I Memorial momentum is built. Also, Town hall landmark is found in front of the park.

Nelum Pokuna Theatre

Nelum Pokuna Theatre (aka Nelum Pokuna Mahinda Rajapaksa Theatre) is a performing arts center in Colombo, and it was opened on 15 December 2011. The architecture of the building is inspired by the 12th century lotus pond (Nelum Pokuna) in Polonnaruwa. Nelum Pokuna of Polonnaruwa built by King Parakramabahu the Great. Polonnaruwa's Nelum Pokuna is shaped as a stylized eight-petal lotus flower. It was previously known as National Performing Arts Theatre.

Pettah

Pettah is famous for the Pettah Market, a series of open air bazaars and markets and landmarks. It is one of Sri Lanka's busiest commercial areas, where a huge number of wholesale and retail shops, buildings, commercial institutions and other organizations are located. The main market segment is designed like a gigantic crossword puzzle, where one may traverse through the entire markets from dawn till dusk, but not completely cover every part of it. Pettah has some notable landmarks such as Wolvendaal Church, the Jami Ul-Alfar Mosque, Kayman's Gate, Old Colombo Town Hall, Colombo Dutch Museum, Khan Clock Tower, flooding market, etc. Pettah has neighborhood city, Fort which is famous for modern and historical landmarks such as Cargill’s building, Colombo World Trade Center, Bank of Ceylon, Fort railway station, Sambodhi Chaithya, Colombo Lighthouse, former Dutch Hospital (now Shopping Precinct), etc. 

For more information, visit Colombo City Drive or see the e-flyer.