Blue whales off a golden beach
Mirissa
The largest animal that has ever lived, an hour off the coast, from November to April.
The continental shelf drops away fast south of Dondra Head, so blue whales feed within an hour of Mirissa harbour. Sightings are common between November and April. Back on land there is the coconut-palm headland, surf at Weligama, and a crescent beach that empties by dusk.
What we do here
- Whale watching with a responsible operator
- Surf lesson at Weligama Bay
- Snorkelling with turtles at Polhena
- Cinnamon estate visit inland
Worth knowing
- Blue whale sightings run at roughly 80 to 90 percent on good-season mornings
- Boats leave around 6.30 am and return by 10 or 11 am
- Weligama, 10 minutes away, has the gentlest learner surf in the country
- Dondra Head is the southernmost point of Sri Lanka
