Most travellers ride the hill country train, hit the south coast, and fly home thinking they have seen Sri Lanka. The island's other half, the dry-zone plains of the ancient kingdoms and the long, quiet east coast, gets a fraction of the visitors and holds some of the country's most staggering sights. This route swings north from Colombo through the Cultural Triangle and then east to the beaches, and it flips the seasons: come between May and September when the south-west is being rained on.
Into the Cultural Triangle
Start with the train from Colombo to Anuradhapura, four to five hours through paddy and scrub for a few dollars in reserved second class. Anuradhapura was a capital for over a thousand years, and its scale is hard to absorb: brick stupas the size of small hills, moonstone thresholds carved twelve centuries ago, and the sacred Bo tree grown from a cutting of the tree the Buddha sat beneath, tended continuously since 288 BC. Rent a bicycle for a couple of dollars and ride between the monuments at dawn with white-clad pilgrims. The site ticket is 25 US dollars.
Sigiriya and the lion rock
Buses run from Anuradhapura toward Dambulla in about two hours; hop a local connection to Sigiriya village. The rock fortress needs no introduction: a 200-metre column of granite with a fifth-century sky palace on top, frescoes of cloud maidens painted into a sheltered gallery halfway up, and a final staircase that passes between two enormous carved lion paws. The 36-dollar foreigner ticket stings, so here is the honest advice: pay it once, at first light, before the tour buses. For sunset, climb neighbouring Pidurangala instead, about 3 dollars, where you look across at Sigiriya itself glowing orange. Stay in a village guesthouse and listen for elephants; wild ones move through the scrub here at night.
Polonnaruwa by bicycle
An hour and a half south-east by bus, Polonnaruwa is the younger, tidier ancient capital and the best cycling day on the island. The 25-dollar ticket covers a compact archaeological park where you pedal shaded lanes between royal baths, a circular relic house, and the Gal Vihara, four serene Buddhas cut from a single band of granite, including a 14-metre reclining figure whose pillow dimples like real cloth. Toque macaques, the ones from every documentary, run the ruins.
East to the coast
From Polonnaruwa, buses reach Trincomalee in about two and a half hours. Trinco's deepwater bay held navies for centuries; travellers now come for Uppuveli and Nilaveli, long pale beaches ten minutes north of town where guesthouses sit at 12 to 20 dollars a night. Snorkel Pigeon Island's reef, and between May and September join a morning boat watching for blue whales and spinner dolphins.
Then make the long swing south to Arugam Bay, five to six hours by bus with a change, or a 40-dollar shared van. A-Bay is Sri Lanka's surf capital, a single sandy street of board shops, juice stands and hammock bars. Main Point serves experienced surfers; beginners paddle out at Whiskey Point or Peanut Farm, with boards at 5 dollars an hour and lessons around 25. At dusk, tuk-tuk drivers run you to the lagoon edges where wild elephants come down to drink.
Practicalities
Budget 35 to 45 dollars a day, more on days you buy the big site tickets. Buses are the glue of this route: absurdly cheap, frequently thrilling, always playing music. Carry small rupee notes, sunscreen from home, and patience; the east runs slower than the south, which is exactly the point.