Located a quick 3 hours bus rid south from the nations capital, Colombo, Hikkaduwa is a tiny hamlet-turned-tourist-mecca on the south west coast of Sri Lanka. Flanked on one side by the gorgeous Indian ocean and on the other by lush rain forest, Hikkaduwa is fast gaining traction as a must-see spot on an island already teeming with must-see beaches, temples and marvels. Take it from me though, Hikkaduwa is deserving of your time, money and attention, and anyone heading to Sri Lanka would do well to spend a night there at least. Read on to see how I spent 7 blissful days in Hikkaduwa.

Hikkaduwa

**WHERE**: South-West Sri Lanka
**WHY**: Beautiful beaches, excellent snorkelling/diving
**TIME**: 5 days

SCUBA diving

Hikkaduwa, known for its fabulous coastline is also known to have some pretty fabulous water adjoining said coastline. For this reason, upon arrival in Hikkaduwa I took the opportunity to upgrade my PADI Open Water Diving ticket to an Advanced Open Water. I opted to go with the Poseidon Diving School for my Advanced Open Water - it took 4 days, involving two dives per day and one night dive. The Poseidon school is located right on the main street of Hikkaduwa, smack bang in the middle of the action.

The 4 days that I spent diving were utterly fantastic - with each day involving us travelling to a far flung wreck, coral reef or underwater shelf. My instructor, Chanu was excellent, giving me the freedom to explore the various underwater wonderlands we encountered. While the water visibility wasn’t always fantastic, this was likely due to the time of year that I was there, and some of the marine life in the areas we dived were fantastic - we’re talking giant sea turtles, moray eels, angel fish and a pod of dolphins. 4 days spent scuba diving in Hikkaduwa wasn’t anywhere near enough! My personal pick for dives near the area was the ‘Conch’, a sunken oil tanker off the coast of Hikkaduwa - we spent half an hour exploring the wreck, involving several tight turns as we explored. We got down to about 22 m on this dive, so for a more beginner level, opt for the Wallduwa (Coral Garden) which ranges between 3-10 m.

SNORKEL

My hours spent aquatically in Hikkaduwa weren’t purely spent 3 metres below sea level. Some of the local beaches in Hikkaduwa have some of the most accessible and low stress snorkeling imaginable. Right in front of my hotel there was a small, public beach where we hired snorkel masks each afternoon to explore the surrounding coral reef. Descending to no greater than 1-2 metres, snorkeling on the beachfront in Hikkaduwa allowed me the chance to explore some vibrant coral reef, spot some truly magnificent fish, and hang out with some locals doing the same. It became an afternoon ritual to spent an hour floating and submerging in the coral reef out the front of our hotel - for the price of a bottle of water we’d be given a mask and goggles and given free reign - absolute bliss. For my personal pick for the best snorkel spots around Hikkaduwa head to the main beachfront, outside of the the Coral Sands hotel and dive straight in - there will be heaps of coral near the large rock formations about 5 metres out from shore.

SURF

As with much of my activity on the south coast of Sri Lanka, much of my time in Hikkaduwa (when not scuba diving or snorkelling) was spent searching for waves in the surrounding beaches. Hikkaduwa is actually close by one of the best breaks on the west side of Sri Lanka, and has been a popular surfing destination since the 80’s. The best place to catch a wave near Hikkaduwa is the nearby Narigama beach, which is about 2 km south of the main beachfront in Hikkaduwa. It is definitely possible to get on the reef break on the beachfront of Hikkaduwa, however, the extremely shallow water and nearby snorkelers may be a serious deterrent for anyone looking to catch a wave. My advice, take a Tuk-Tuk 2 km south to Narigama - almost guaranteed to have some swell most times of the year.

EAT and drink

The tiny township of Hikkaduwa has very few bars or restaraunts. However, what they do have is fairly reasonable, and I will admit to having eaten a few decadent meals in my time there. Every eatery or bar worthy of note is located on the main drag, which the Colombo-Galle highway. For a decent burger, the Nordic House cafe and Burgerhouse has you covered, for more local fare go to Get Fresh. The Bookworm library and cafe was a favourite of mine - go for the local fare here. If you’re looking to imbibe, then head down to Funky De Bar or the Chill Space Cafe. Every hotel along the beachfront will also have an attached bar - but the vibe is way better at Funky De Bar or Chill Space.

GIANT TURTLES

Of course, no post about Hikkaduwa would be complete without some mention of the Giant Sea Turtles that flock to the area. I stumbled upon them quite by accident, merely walking down to the southern edge of the beach, only to find a humongous sea turtle grazing for seaweed on the edge of the beach. Before long a throng of tourists had gathered around him, only too eager to feed him over priced seaweed that they had purchased form waiting locals. As cliche and touristy as the experience of feeding a turtle is, I have to say, it was pretty amazing just to be floating in the water near one of these behemoths. I’m often the first person to avoid any area packed with tourists clamoring over an animal, but just this once, it was actually pretty awesome to witness. To spot giant turtles simply walk southward son the main beach until you reach the beachfront in front of the Cinnamon Hotel - there should be some turtles there most afternoon looking for a feed. Absolutely worth it to spot a sea turtle and the commotion that they bring.

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