Anuradhapura, the ancient capital of Sri Lanka, was at one time a powerful city; today only ruins- many of them in very good condition- remain. Anuradhapura (the modern town) offers little scope for enjoying yourself, but the ancient city that lies to the north and west of modern Anuradhapura has some interesting monuments. Among these are some fine 'dagobas’ (Buddhist pagodas or 'stupas’), tanks and ponds, and royal palaces. The best known of Anuradhapura’s sights is the Sacred Bo-Tree, believed to be an offspring of the tree under which the Buddha received enlightenment. To enter the ancient city, you need a ticket, which can be bought from the ticket office, next to which is the Archaeological Museum (definitely worth a visit) and the Folk Museum.

You can get to Anuradhapura either from Colombo or from Kandy by rented car, train or bus -the ride from Colombo takes around 5 hours. There are hotels and rest houses to stay in at the modern town of Anuradhapura, but there aren’t too many of them. Fortunately, moving around the town is pretty easy, as it isn’t really all that big and taxis, three-wheelers and hired cycles are some of the options.