Mirissa whale watching, beach holidays  and surfing

Mirissa beach is about 120 km south of Colombo, and it takes about 2 hours to reach the destination from the Airport.  It is boasted to have one of the most beautiful, secluded beaches of Sri Lanka and provide affordable Mirisa hotels. Due to the low popularity as a beach holiday destination, despite the splendid sandy beaches, the Mirissa beach does not attract as many tourists as most other beach resorts in Sri Lanka such as Bentota and Negombo. But Mirissa beach includes in many Sri Lanka road trips because whale watching Marissa is one of the most sought-after activities in southern Sri Lanka.

Facilities in Mirissa

The tourism infrastructure is yet to be developed in many ways here. You will not be able to see big hotels, there are no large-scale accommodation providers here too, which is an acute shortcoming of Mirissa as beach holiday destination, and a large number of small guesthouses and rest houses are the accommodation options for holidaymakers. Due to the sluggish development of infrastructure, the natural environment of Mirissa is still largely intact, especially the beach. Other than the beach bars, beach restaurants and nearby guest houses and rest houses there are no noteworthy constructions to disturb the holidaymakers.

Mirissa beach is a budget holiday destination in Sri Lanka similar to Hikkaduwa and attracts a large number of solo and backpackers. Most of the travellers you encounter here are repeaters. They are very familiar with the settings here.  More than 90 per cent of the travellers, who come to these beaches, are repeated travellers and most of them have been here many times. Most of the travellers attracted to these beaches are individual travellers and organize their accommodation through the internet or private contacts.

Mirissa Beach

Secluded beaches of Mirissa give the holiday makers a very tranquil atmosphere for an enjoyable holiday. There are many seafood restaurants around Mirissa giving the choice for tasty seafood. The nearby city of Galle is just 15 minutes away from Mirissa, which is a world famous world heritage site in the island. Galle is a beautiful city in the Indian Ocean; it has a very rich and vibrant history and culture. Galle had been the centre of spice trade during the Portuguese and Dutch colonial era. Galle still plays a big role in the economy of Sri Lanka. Another world popular natural world heritage site known as Sinharaja rain forest is also located near Mirissa beach. It is one of the oldest rainforests in the world and provides awe-inspiring natural scenery within its borders.

It is also getting popularity among the international travellers in parallel to other holiday destinations in southern Sri Lanka such as Hambantota and Weligama. The main reason for it is to become a popular holiday destination among the international travellers is identified as the opening of the expressway in southern Sri Lanka. Very long transfer (6 hours) was the major reason that kept travellers away from these beaches in the past. With the newly constructed highway, it will be reduced to just 2 hours from the airport.

Mirissa hotels

There are no large-scale Mirissa hotels and most Mirissa hotels are small and can accommodate around 20-30 guests at a time. Most Mirissa hotels are categorized under the guest house, rest houses, dormitories, home stays. The number of star class hotels in Mirissa are very few. Mirissa hotels provide very comfortable and safe accommodation facilities for travellers, who choose Mirissa beach for their beach holidays. Due to the competition among the owners of Mirissa hotels, the services and facilities are of very high quality compared to the prices demanded by them.

Most Mirissa hotels are just a few meters away from the Mirissa beach because Mirissa beach is the main attraction here and almost every traveller demanding easy access to the Mirissa beach. In the recent past, several new luxurious boutique hotels were constructed due to the increasing demand from the high-end travellers. Most of the boutique hotels have a limited number of rooms and can accommodate only a few customers at a time.

Paradise beach club is one of the very few middle-class Mirissa hotels. This Mirissa hotel is located just on the beach giving you the pleasure of sea breeze all day long. It offers a lovely setting for your beach holiday you can have a sea view room and step into the beach whenever you need. All rooms at Paradise beach club has Air conditioning, Minibar and TV. WIFI is available for in-house guests at no extra fee. All rooms are spacious and located around the pool. If you wish to stay at Mirissa beach club please wite us on info@seerendipitytours.com to get to know about the rates and availability.

It is easy to find a place to live here

There is a large number of family hotels with few rooms and most of these properties provide an attached bathroom for each room. Therefore you can expect the safety and privacy you required. A single room cost around $15 per night. If you can afford to pay slightly more than that (  about $ 5) you can go for an air-conditioned room without any trouble. Most travellers prepare food for them while some others depend on nearby beach restaurants for their meals.

Whale watching in Mirissa

This beaches holiday destination has a reputation for being the starting point of whale watching tours in Sri Lanka. Most groups, who are on whale watching tours are starting their tour in Mirissa and you have the opportunity to see whales within a 2 hours boat from the beach. Dewundara, further south of Mirissa is the emerging whale watching spot in Sri Lanka and it is starting to become a popular place for whale watching tours.

Surfing in Mirissa

Mirissa is an ideal place for surfing enthusiasts, in fact, surfing is one of the most popular activities here, perhaps the most popular water sport in Mirissa. The waves are suitable for newcomers to the sport as well as for the well-experienced players.

Best time for beach holidays

Make a research to find out the best time to show up yourself here, otherwise, it could be a reason to be a disappointment. As a rule, the rain season in Mirissa starts in May and lasts till October. It is a good idea to keep away from these beaches during the rainy season. Because the sea is not suitable for a sea bath due to the underwater current. Surfers also do not make a visit here and they are heading to other popular surfing destinations such as Arugambe.

The 6 months from November to April is considered as the best time of the year to go to Mirissa (North-East monsoon). During the North-East monsoon, the sea is calm and it is safe to go to the sea. Mostly the dry weather prevails in the region during this time, tempting you to engage in many outdoor activities.

Swimming & Watching sunset

The beaches in Mirissa is simply gorgeous, travellers can swim throughout the day and watch the sunset from the beach as the day wind-up. It is a quiet and nice clean sandy beach beside the local village, if you opt to stay in the village (away from the beach) there are many opportunities to find affordable accommodation facilities. Still, most of these properties are just a few minutes away from the beach. If you stay in a hotel near the beach and have a sea view from the room your accommodation cost is higher.

Getting to Mirissa

It is very easy to go to Mirissa from any part of Sri Lanka. Because of Mirissa just 13 kilometres from Matara, which is one of the major cities in Sri Lanka. Matara is connected to all corners of the island by land and air transport. Therefore travellers can find direct buses from all major cities in Sri Lanka to Matara.

Same times there is a busy schedule of trains between Colombo and Matara. I presume Train is the most convenient way to travel to Matara, but only the trains of the coastal railway line can take you to Matara and Matara is the end of the coastal railway line. If need to travel to Matara hop into the “Galukumari” or “Samudradevi” train, you can reach Matara with many conveniences and it is cheap, fast and safe too.

From all major cities like Colombo, Kandy, Trincomalee, Sigiriya, Anuradhapura you can reach Matara by public or private transport. Then head to Mirissa by TUK TUK or by taxi.

Do you think this is a good island for a beach holiday? Please leave us comments.