Sri Lanka, a South Asian island nation, has a bewildering array of things to see and do for visitors. Tourist attractions include the new Lotus Tower in Colombo's capital city, as well as the Pinnawalla Elephant Sanctuary, where you may assist feed the elephants. Outdoor activities include going on a leopard-spotting safari in Yala National Park or trekking a pilgrimage trail to Adam's Rock's peak.

All of these fascinating activities are complemented by some stunning natural scenery that range from tropical beaches to mountains to jungles. You get one of the world's best holiday places when you combine thousands of years of culture, interesting foreign colonial influence, and extremely pleasant people.

With this list of the best tourist sites in Sri Lanka, you can plan your sightseeing in this fascinating country.

1. Yala National Park

This is where you can go on a safari in the style of Sri Lanka. The vast national park, which borders the Indian Ocean, contains a diverse spectrum of ecosystems. From the coast's maritime environment to the grasslands and tropical rainforests inland, there's something for everyone.

Elephants, leopards, and crocodiles are the most popular creatures to visit here. In addition, the park region is home to over 200 bird species, including several peculiar to Sri Lanka. Apart from the fauna and flora, the park is home to two historically significant and popular religious pilgrimage sites. The Situlpahuwa and Magul Vihara temples attract four times the number of tourists to the park as the animals do.

Yala National Park is located near the city of Hambantota on the island's southeast coast.

2. Colombo Lotus Tower

One of Sri Lanka's most popular tourist sites is also one of the country's newest. The Colombo Lotus Tower, South Asia's largest free-standing tower, debuted in the fall of 2019. The lotus bulb-inspired tower, which stands 1,168 feet (368 metres) tall and offers the greatest views and photo opportunities in the city, overlooks the entire city and the Indian Ocean.

A shopping centre is located at the base of the tower, after which you can take super-fast elevators to both the inside and outdoor observation decks. At the top, there's a revolving restaurant that's a popular site for romantic evenings. The tower's façade is illuminated by LED lighting, and there are light shows every evening and on important occasions.

3. Sri Lanka National Museum

The National Museum of Colombo is a vast museum that tells the wonderful narrative of the Sri Lankan people and their culture. The museum's collection includes a wide range of items, including antiques, artwork, jewellery, coins, money, arms, and crafts.

The museum is multi-leveled, with cultural and natural history displays. Everything is presented in chronological order, beginning with the prehistoric history of the island.

The museum is located near Viharamahadevi Park in central Colombo. It's housed in a Victorian colonial structure that opened in 1877 and was custom-built for the museum.

4. Pinnawalla Zoo

The Dehiwala area is home to the city's original Colombo Zoo. It is one of Asia's oldest zoos. Because the zoo was landlocked as Colombo grew, a second zoo was established in Pinnawalla outside of the city. This enormous animal park allowed the zoo's management (both zoos are controlled by the government) to start with a blank sheet of paper and practically infinite area to build an ideal environment for animals.

A large leopard compound with a large leap (pack) of leopards is located at the zoo. There's also a deer enclosure with several different species of deer living together in a wide natural setting. Because the trip to the zoo (three hours from Colombo) can be long, tourists can enjoy a petting zoo before purchasing tickets. As soon as you come, you'll see ducks, turkeys, swans, and pea fowl, as well as turtles, rabbits, and other animals.

5. National Museum of Natural History

After learning about Sri Lanka's cultural history at the Sri Lanka National Museum, visit the neighbouring National Museum of Natural History to learn about the country's physical, animal, and natural history.

This museum displays the country's incredible indigenous natural history, including endemic animals, plants, and minerals to the South Asian island. The island's prehistoric and ancient history is also on show, with several interesting fossils and skeletons, including dinosaur skeletons.

It's in central Colombo, across from Viharamahadevi Park.

6. Pinnawalla Elephant Sanctuary

This enormous institution was established in 1975 near the Pinnawalla Zoo, some three hours outside of Colombo, to care for orphaned elephants found in the wild. Sri Lanka is home to Asian elephants, and it's a fascinating tourist destination that allows tourists to connect with these incredible animals. It's an elephant orphanage, as well as a nursery and a captive breeding area. They hold the world's largest captive Asian elephant population, with roughly 100 animals.

Visitors may observe the infants being cared for and fed with bottles, which is a great way to learn about elephants. They can assist in feeding the adults and see them bathe in the river on a daily basis. Female elephants and baby elephants live in a group and are free to roam. Twice a day, they are led to the river to drink and bathe.

7. Gangaramaya Temple

This 19th-century Buddhist temple complex, located near Bere Lake in Central Colombo, has an excellent vintage car museum. A sleek Mercedes and an extremely rare 1920s Rolls-Royce Ghost are among the vehicles on display. The temple also serves as a religious museum, displaying holy currency, jewellery, and sculpture.

A sacred relic, a lock of the Buddha's hair, was housed in the temple, which was built around a sacred tree. A festival and procession across the area is held every year during the Poya or full moon ceremony in February, headed by the temple's resident elephant.

8. Red Mosque

A visit to the beautiful red and white brick Red Mosque (also known as "Jami Ul-Alfar Masjid") will provide some insight into local Islamic practise as well as some fantastic Instagram photos.

The mosque's interior features traditional religious artwork and decor, but it's the outside that truly sets it apart. The outside red and white bricks are placed in spirals, swirls, and alternate patterns that are occasionally befuddling. As a result of the impact, the mosque has become a visible landmark, easy to see from approaching ships.

The mosque's minarets are topped with onion-shaped domes, evoking Red Square. The style is known as "Indo-Saracenic," and it was a popular architectural style in Asia at the time this mosque was erected in the early nineteenth century.

9. Sigiriya

This old rock fortification was originally the island's king's hilltop palace. The palace ruins, which are believed to have been built in the 4th and 5th centuries CE, are located at the top of a 660-foot (220-meter) rock structure.

Massive frescoes were painted on the mountain's sides, and a giant doorway sculpted in the figure of a lion stands halfway up the mountain. In ancient Sanskrit, the structure's name means "lion rock."

The palace above and the city complex below are two of the most important examples of first-millennium urban design in the world. The ruins are located near Dambulla in Sri Lanka's Central Province.

10. Adam's Peak

This massive, sacred mountain (7,359 feet/2,243 metres) is crowned by a religiously significant rock structure. A big boulder at the peak bears an indentation that resembles a footprint. It is the footprint of Buddha to Buddhists; the footprint of Adam to Muslims and Christians (hence the site's Western name); and the footprint of Shiva to Hindus.

Whatever your beliefs, Adam's Peak is a lovely natural spot to visit, and climbing the mountain is an exciting endeavour. The pilgrimage walk is mostly made up of steps and stairs, and each journey takes at least a couple hours. The peak may be reached by trails that start in the central Sri Lankan settlement of Nallathanniya. Between December and May is the optimum time to climb it.

There are six pathways that go to the summit, each with a different journey time and degree of difficulty. The routes are lit at night, and the pastime is wonderful for families because even small children can participate. Along the trip, there are rest breaks and food sellers.

11. Golden Temple of Dambulla

Natural caves have been widened and excavated to be made into cave temples all around Sri Lanka. They venerate Buddha and other deities (as well as a few rulers) with enormous statues and relics, just like other temples.

The UNESCO World Heritage Site of Dambulla Cave Temple. It's the country's largest and best-preserved complex. The stunning, now-preserved and protected colourful wall murals that adorn the cave walls are of great importance.

Aside from the cave temples, the location is also known as the Golden Temple of Dambulla because of a massive golden Buddha statue at the mountain's base. Dambulla is a two-hour drive from Colombo.

12. Galle Dutch Fort

This enormous tourist attraction has been built around a 16th-century Dutch fortress complex. The majority of the structures were built during the Dutch colonial period in the 17th century and were originally established by the Portuguese in the 16th century. It's more of a walled community than a fort, with homes, churches, a mosque, and numerous shops all within the fortress walls.

There are tours of the fort and the lighthouse available, as well as various museums and large commercial districts. The Fort is a popular tourist destination on Sri Lanka's southwest coast, about two hours south of Colombo, with many boutique hotels, some within the fort's walls.