Affectionately referred to by many as ‘Trinco’, Trincomalee is a seaside town on the east coast of Sri Lanka.
Trincomalee is a great spot to switch off and unwind for as long as you need. We spent the majority of our time relaxing on the beach whilst we recovered from some backpacking burnout.
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Where to stay
There are 3 main locations to stay in the Trincomalee area. These are Trincomalee town, Uppuvelli beach and Nilaveli beach. Trincomalee town has more history to explore whilst the beachside are ideal for a relaxing couple of days. It is a 10-15 minute drive from Trincomalee town to Uppuvelli beach and a further 20 minute drive to Nilaveli beach.
An accommodation of note for the animal lovers is Alass Ga near Uppuvelli beach. The owner has rescued many cats and dogs and cares for them onsite whilst renting out some rooms to help fund his mission. He also feeds strays in the local area.
Things to do
Snorkeling
One of Trincomalee’s main attractions is its diverse marine life. Whilst much of the turtle conservation is in the south of the island, it is possible to see turtles here on snorkeling tours to the nearby Pigeon Island. Pigeon Island is the main snorkeling site to visit from Trincomalee and is 1km offshore from Nilaveli beach. The island is within a national marine park which means entry comes with a pretty hefty price tag (US$42). You will also need to pay for your boat ride and hire of snorkeling gear. The shallow reef is home to blacktip reef sharks, turtles (Hawksbill, Green and Olive Ridley) as well as plenty of reef fish. Pigeon Island was unfortunately out of our budget for this trip but we would love to visit on a return trip.
There are other snorkeling sites around Trincomalee which don’t incur the marine park fee. If you’re interested in these we suggest directly discussing your options with a local provider.
Beachside relaxing
Many restaurants have sunbeds on Uppuvelli beach with no daily cost to hire them, just a purchase necessary. This allowed us to keep our spending within our backpacker budget. We chose to stay within walking distance of Uppuvelli beach so we could swim whenever we wanted to.
If you decide to enjoy some R&R on Uppuvelli beach there are a number of good restaurants serving a variety of cuisines. We enjoyed the food in the following restaurants; Chef’s restaurant & chef’s mozzarella, Rice ‘n’ Curry restaurant (Vegetarian buffet highly recommended), Abrazo Tacos & Burritos. As is to be expected, we found the beachside restaurants, including Fernando’s food market, to be more expensive compared to restaurants one road back from the beach.
Top Tip!
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Fort Frederick
Constructed by the Portuguese in 1623, this fort remains functional today. There is also Dutch, French and British history at Fort Frederick. The fort contains a Hindu temple so make sure to dress appropriately if you plan to visit the temple. Keep an eye out for the deer who call the area home.
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