Sri Lanka Travel Forum

Hi all, I'm going to Sri Lanka (Beruwela) with my son who will be 10. How much spending money should we take for a week for food, drinks and excursions? Does anyone know what the weather will be like in October as everywhere seems to give different dates for the rainy season.

Any ideas for excursions my son would enjoy will be great!

Cheers all

Hi,

Firstly the weather has been pretty good these days with the occational shower and its not too hot. This type of consistency should prevail in to October, hopefully.

As to How much to take will depend on what you want to have and do.

Meals at a Star class hotel should be about USD 10/- per person per meal.
Drinks - A beer would cost approx USD3/- to 4/-
Scotch 50ml USD 5/-, soft drinks approx USD 1/-
Excursions - Depends on where you want to go, What your kid will love ?
Elephant Orphanage - USD 100/-
Turtle Hatchery, Kosgoda - USD 20/- to 30/-
Galle Fort - USD 50/- to 75/-

Hope this will help in making your estimates, do feel free to get in touch if you need any other assistance.
Hope you have a great trip to Sri Lanka.

Cheers,
Emile.

Hi,

I can give you a rough hint, what the weather in Beruwela could be like in October:
last year there were exactly 12 sunny days (no rain), 7 sunny/partly cloudy days and 12 rainy days. Yet, rain does not mean to expect a 24-hour downpouring. Frequently it rains hard for 1-2 hours and gets then cloudy, partly sunny afterwards.
Your spending will depend on your expectations, where you intend to eat etc. For local restaurants you might need about 5-10 USD per day, in small hotels about 15. International hotels charge internationally, i.e. roughly the same like elsewhere in Asia.
As to Beruwela-excursions have a look at my Bentota/Beruwela tips and at the excellent Sri - Lanke pages of Maxus !
Have anice trip & stay!

Hiya,

I’m not a local but from my experience travelling in Sri Lanka with kids is akin to having a ‘magic passport’ you and your son should have a pretty special time, potentially more exciting and rewarding than if you were travelling without him.

I think Sinhalese people are maybe at their very best when it comes to kids, it’s sort of a natural thing, something we’ve almost lost in the west, it’s as though a child is a gift to all of us, something precious, something to cherish and you will never be alone, if you encounter any problems just look around for another family and you will have instants allies and friends.

You will see a sort of ‘respect’ for your son both as a young man in the making and as a guest, with it comes a respect for you as a parent, something that I can’t really explain easily but it’s priceless.

Briefly, on kids in Sri Lanka generally. Despite all the problems that they’ve had in the country literacy rates here are not only high for this part of Asia but they would put several areas of my country to shame and by the way this is not about investment in one son, all kids get the opportunity of a good education and gender equality on literacy rates is unparalleled. Incidentally, these standards are maintained throughout the country, including the areas beset by civil strive. Civil strive won’t be an issue to you as a visitor but the education here is indicative of how highly the Sinhalese regard their kids and unlike some of their neighbours, people don’t invest in individual kids so they can look after their parents when they’re old, they invest in all kids as a society because they love kids.

When you check into your hotel on the first day you will find that the staff (from the gardeners and room boys to the managers) will take this young ‘poddy suddha’ to their hearts (not least as a welcome change from all us middle-aged tourists who they deal with everyday) they will treat him like a celebrity, everyone will want to know him and they will make it their business to see that he is safe and happy throughout his stay (and you can trust them, it’s almost like a matter of honour) he won’t get chance to be bored, they’ll be queuing up to amuse him.

Lots of activities that your son might enjoy will cost next to nothing and not just swimming in the hotel pool. Does he like fishing? does he play cricket? if he does the local kids will keep him busy, they will all want to know him, to have a new friend from overseas, they'll want to practice their language skills, they’ll want him to visit their homes and show him off to their village friends, maybe even invite him to visit school. Of course at his age you’ll go with him but don’t be worried about any of this, people are sensible here and they will look out for you.

A train ride in Sri Lanka is exciting and costs next to nothing, take him down to Galle for the day, with it’s fabulous fort (and real soldiers about the place) it’s exciting stuff for boys (and free) even a visit to a local Buddhist Temple at night, with the lights, colours and sounds is new and exciting, it’s not heavy, you’ll be very welcome and again it’s free (a donation is always nice of course) there is no end of things to keep a young man amused.

When you are out and about on trains etc just exchange a smile and then speak to ordinary Sinhalese families, as parents you will automatically have something in common, ordinary Sinhalese folk will be genuiningly pleased to meet you, delighted that you have brought your son to visit their country in the old fashioned Sinhalese way and they will want to make sure that you have a positive experience (and do their best to make sure that you don’t get hassled).

Obviously there are a few extra dangers to look out for, traffic mainly, the doors on trains don’t close and there are unguarded drops at Galle etc but keep an eye on him and he’ll have a magical time. Get stuck in, he’ll grow and you’ll grow with him. Fantastic!

Hi…..

Don’t worry about weather in October at south coast . you can expect sunny and little wormed shower in late afternoon. Beruwela is beach with more up grade accommodation, price range will be between 80-120 us$ per day(with breakfast).if you looking fro mid range accommodation cost will be around 40-50 us$.when you go to the local restaurant meal (a portion ) will be 2 us$ and same meal in the hotel your staying will be around 5-6 us$.
To talk about excursion i give you contact detail of local guide who living near beruwela, im sure he will help you.

Email-Karnal3@hotmail.com
Web- www.karnaldesilva.com
Tp -0094(0)776644295

Thanks you,


micy