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After a few turbulent years, Colombo, Sri Lanka's biggest city, once again attracts tourists. Shaking the political upheaval following the country's economic collapse in 2022, the city has proven its resilience, making it more democratic and left-right. Most visitors know Colombo, with a population of around 4 million in the Metropolitan region, but now there is a clear interest in the revival of its cultural heritage, as for its monumental lotus-shaped towers and the array of vast temples and mosques. The recent arrival of new fairs such as the Ceylon Literature and Arts Festival and the Matara Arts Festival has led to a more international focus on the southern cities of Colombo and Sri Lanka. And in February, Jagath Weerasinghe, one of the nation's leading authorities on art and archaeology, co-founded a new gallery called Millennium Art Contemporary, just outside Colombo, on the outskirts of Atulgiriya.
Also, more internationally, there has been appreciation for the art and design that has emerged from the unique circumstances of Sri Lanka over time, from the tropical modernist style of late architect Jeffrey Bawa to the male erotica of Colombo-born photographer Lionel Went. Among the many modern talents in the country is fashion designer Amesh Wijesekera. AmeshWijesekera works with artisan craft textiles and dead stock fabrics left behind in Sri Lankan factories to produce boundary broken pieces that address the gender identity and sexual identity of South Asia. Sri Lanka's first international tourism campaign over a decade and expansion of its visa-free entry program since 2023 have contributed to the rebound of visitors, with over 2 million arrivals and a 38% increase last year. Many of them feel that the Colombo gallery and restaurant scene and its new designer hotel are just as tempting to draw as they do with Sri Lanka's famous tea trails and Southern Surfing Beach.
Here, four Colombo Insiders offer tours of locations promoting a new sense of optimism in the city. “As an archaeologist, I can say that the island has been accepting international people since the 3rd century BC,” says Weerasinghe. “It's written in our cultural genes because it has been a cosmopolitan place for thousands of years and for centuries.”
insider
Trained as an architect, Shayari de Silva is the leading curator of the Geoffrey Bawa Trust. She also performs a pottery practice called clay bodies.
Colombo-born Rishi Narendra is the chef behind Cloud Street, Kotswa and the station, the last Singaporean restaurant that opened in the first week of March.
Artist and archaeologist Jagas Weerasinge co-founded Colombo-based Telsa International Artist Collective, which promotes experimental arts in Sri Lanka in 2000.
Fashion designer Amesh Wijesekera returned to Colombo in 2024 after five years in London and five years in Berlin, three people founded their own studio.
Illustrations by Richard Pedalin
“The Geoffrey Bawa Trust is a nonprofit that generates operating profits through visits and stays. Experience the garden on Bawa's former country grounds (about two hours by car south of Colombo), and there is a magically magical lake at sunrise all day. Bawa used it so that staff at the main house could find him when they moved around the courtyard all day.” (rooms starting at around $410 per night)
“Columbo has some very interesting homestays throughout Colombo, including Jeffrey Bawa's former home, which has a guest suite that includes two bedrooms. Staying here is a special and immersive way to understand Bawa and his world. Daswatte.” (Rooms starting at about $250 per night at ISHQ, rooms starting at about $70 in Highberry Colombo, suites starting at about $350 at No. 11) – Shayari de Silva
“The newly built hotel, called Cinnamon Life at Dreams City of Dreams, has over 900 Sri Lankan art, including my collection. This is a fantastic hotel in a building designed by Cecil Val Mondo, who was part of the team that designed the Bird Nest Stadium in Beijing (rooms starting at around $138 per night) – Jagath Weerasinging Weerasing
“Tintagel is a boutique hotel located in a historic home where many important political moments took place. The interior is very grand (and yes) by the family behind the Paradise Road Gallery Cafe.” (rooms starting at around $250 per night) – Amesh Wijesekera
“About a year and a half ago, three brothers opened a restaurant called Gini (their name) which means “fire” for the Sinhalese people. Most food is grilled or characterized by a fire component to prepare methods. (Arak is a liquor made from the fermented sap of coconut flowers).
“The Gallery Café, located in a fantastic space, an old office in Geoffrey Bawa, has been Colombo's favorite for decades.
“The Palmyra Restaurant is located in the noble basement of the Lunuka City Hotel, but there are great foods that include northern dishes such as Cool (seafood stew) and Jaffna crab curry. The best crab and shrimp dishes are from the north. The spices tend to roast even more. – SDS
“We can't talk about Colombo without talking about the crab ministry. Sri Lanka is well known for our giant mud crabs (also known as lagoon crabs), but the interesting thing is that we don't often eat them in Sri Lanka. Where you should go – sometimes, if you're lucky, you can get one or two kilos of crabs weighing one or two kilos.
“If you're on a flight, Club Ceylon in Negombo is convenient for the airport. Liznoris is a semi-English half-Sri Lankan chef dish, in a colonial home that is a four-minute drive from Lerama, the country's best fish market.
“In Sri Lanka, we call everyone an uncle or an aunt, so it's hard not to want to drink at a bar called an uncle. Drinks change frequently and (bartenders use many local ingredients).
“There's this crazy tradition at Galeface Hotel when a bagpiper dressed in a quilt puts his flag down every day. Green green, hotel pubs, bite a bit. Over 100 years.” – Rishi Narendra
“If you need a good Jaffna dish (Jafna is the largest city in northern Sri Lanka), Orai in Werowat is a small, family-run restaurant. Many Jaffna people are vegetarians, and Orai's cuisine includes putu. – JW
“Barefoot (in the 1960s), originally called the Colombo Gallery, was launched (in the 1960s) by textile designer Barbara Sansoni, who was approached by a good adviser to the mother of the Good Shepherd sister (the order of Catholic nuns). Just like that.” – SDS
“Several stores support young designers in Sri Lanka. PR is a very high-end concept store started by Anicafe Runando on Paradise Road. This is an iconic store for everything. Design Collective (the main entrance is located inside Gandara, with a wide range of designers with high-end furniture and interior designers.” – Ah
Go home
“The country is truly known for producing black tea and spices. The best cinnamon comes from Sri Lanka too. You can get beautifully packaged on Paradise Road and barefoot, but you can also find it at grocery stores. Tuna with a distinctive flavor.” – SDS
“My wife loves tapioca chips salted with chili and roasted cashew nuts (found in the supermarket), and I always take them home. I cook short grain rice into stock and add them to mixed curry, ashes plantains, carameled onions and fish cutlets. Book in advance and they're ready to pick up. – RN
“The home products, organic spices and everything is designed in Sri Lanka (sold) in the city islands (sold).
“Kala Pola is a large outdoor art fair that occurs on the streets once a year (usually in February) where all artists across Sri Lanka try to show their work in booths set up around Viharamahadevi Park. – Ah
“The National Museum of Colombo is one of my favorite places, because you can literally be the only person in this large building. Many national museums tend to be quite heavy on the story, but somehow you can take it more in your own words.” – SDS
“The best place to see art is the Sapmal Foundation, a gallery of one of the members of the '43 group, Sri Lankan avant-garde modernists Saskia Fernando (PRSFG) and Dominique and Nazleen Sansoni (Balefut).” – JW
“The Kelaniya Temple is a beautiful Buddhist place with lots of Buddhist murals from the early 18th to early 20th century. Soligasaiyaya has two temples, Asokoramaya and Ishipasanaramaya, built in the late 19th to early 20th centuries. The result is Gossami Viharaya, a very kitschy and north drive from the early 20th century, in the mural of George Kit, the temples of Timbiligasaya and Gossami Viharaya are painted to the same audience. Sri Lankan Association.” – JW
“Lawling is the best way to explore the Petta market because you never know what you find. One alley leads to an e-shop with the craziest ones. Cargillsville.” – Ah
These interviews have been compiled and condensed.
