Coast
Beaches & water sports
Jet-skiing, banana boats, windsurfing and calm lagoon swimming, all within walking distance of the main strip.
View beaches & activities →Where the river meets the sea
Bentota is the point where the wide, mangrove-lined Bentota River empties into the Indian Ocean — a strip of golden sand, water sports, turtle hatcheries and 500-year-old colonial forts, all under two hours from Colombo.
Four reasons travellers keep coming back
- 1Golden beaches
Wide, gently-shelving sand with reef-protected swimming and Sri Lanka's best water-sports scene.
- 2River & wildlife
Mangrove boat safaris past monitor lizards, kingfishers and crocodiles on the Bentota Ganga.
- 3Heritage & culture
Dutch and Portuguese-era forts, the Galapatha Vihara temple, and centuries-old mask carving villages nearby.
- 4Wellness
Sri Lanka's original Ayurveda resort belt, with spa retreats built into the coastline since the 1970s.
Explore Bentota by interest
Three ways to spend your time — pick a thread and follow it, or mix all three into one itinerary.
Nature
River safaris & wildlife
Glide through mangrove channels to spot monitor lizards, water birds and the turtle hatcheries near Kosgoda.
See places to visit →
Stay
Resorts & Ayurveda retreats
From backpacker guesthouses to five-star beachfront resorts and dedicated wellness retreats.
Browse accommodation →A quick snapshot
~65 kmSouth of Colombo
12 kmOf coastline
27°CAverage temperature
Nov–AprBest season
Ready to feel the tide?
Get in touch with your travel dates and interests and we'll help you shape a Bentota itinerary — beaches, river, culture, or all three.
Contact us