Book A Tour

To book a tour revealing the secrets and unique spots around Galle Fort or Colombo city, call the author Juliet Coombe on +94 (0) 776838659 or go to 60 Leyn Baan Street and book a tour with Juliet direct.

Walking Tours can be taken daily for an hour and a half early morning or late afternoon.

Cost:
One Hour - $20 US
Half Day - $75 US
Full Day - $150 US
(all prices are per person)

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Slave Island – you don’t need chains these days

The best way to kick off the walk is to get there via train, just like they did in the 1930’s, minus the steam engines of course. There is a train that leaves Colombo Fort at 3pm and arrives at the Kompanna Vidiya station 10 minutes later. However, if you aren’t in or near Fort, inquire from the nearest train station about the timings or call 1919 the main information services number.

Kompanna Vidiya translates into ‘Company Street’, which was the apt name in the early 1900’s because the area housed many of the biggest companies at the time. Step off the platform, cross the road and walk beside the rail tracks on Masjidul Jumaiya Road till you come to the Castle Hotel which will be on the right where the roads connects onto De Soysa Street. Down a glass of arrack in this infamous bar used in the 1980s Duran Duran video Hungry Life The Wolf. Arrack the local energizer, you can call it will pump you up for the rest of the walk. Outside the hotel, there will be youth playing cricket, try asking if you can join the game for a quick bowl, they are quite friendly.

Turn right after the hotel and head on down, if you like, stop by for some snooker at the pool parlour on the right or keep walking down the road and take some fun pictures in the studio, at the end of the road on the left. Continue and cross the road onto Sir Henry De Mel Mawatha. On the left is Ananda Pawn Brokers handy when desperate times call for desperate measures or your run out of holiday fun money due to gambling it away at Star Dust casino.

As you pass Al – Mina Hotel, you can see the chef preparing the rotti for the evening. If you’re lucky he’ll have it ready or you will have to comeback at 6pm, it costs Rs.10 per rotti. Proceed till you get to the Siva Subramaniya Kovil and if you’re lucky enough to do this in March you can witness, the temple’s annual feast and celebrations.  Proceed right, down Kew Street and turn onto Kew Passage and steer left at the end of it. Be sure to stop by the over 120 year old Nippon Hotel for some Chinese rolls, which they claim are the best, but don’t eat too much because the next stop is Burger’s King. Yes, that is spelled correctly and to get there, proceed down Kumaran Ratnam Avenue and turn right at the Ave Maria church, come down Justice Akbar Avenue and you will start smelling the burgers as you approach the connection onto Malay Street, let your nose lead the way. The best way to enjoy the burgers would be to take them away and go to Galle Face green in a tuk tuk.