✦ Central Province
Dambulla
A cave temple complex filled with Buddha statues and painted ceilings, at the heart of the Cultural Triangle.
Photo: Tstriker7 / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Destination guide
About Dambulla
The Dambulla cave temple (also known as the Golden Temple of Dambulla) has been a sacred pilgrimage site for over two thousand years. Its five caves contain more than 150 statues of the Buddha, kings and deities, and their walls and ceilings are covered with Buddhist murals. It was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991.
Dambulla sits at a crossroads of the Cultural Triangle, close to Sigiriya, and is also home to one of the island’s largest wholesale vegetable markets and the prehistoric burial site at Ibbankatuwa.
Why visit
- UNESCO World Heritage Site (Golden Temple of Dambulla)
- Five painted caves with more than 150 statues
- Views over the plains from the cave terrace
- Central base for the Cultural Triangle
Things to do in Dambulla
- Visit the cave temple early, before the heat
- See the prehistoric burial site at Ibbankatuwa
- Walk through the Dambulla wholesale vegetable market
- Combine with Sigiriya and Pidurangala
Tours that include Dambulla
Heritage
Sigiriya–Dambulla
Sigiriya and Dambulla 3-Day Private Tour
Painted ceilings glow in the dim caves above Dambulla, and a short drive away Sigiriya's sheer rock rises out of the forest.…
- 3 days / 2 nights
- Dambulla → Sigiriya
★ Featured
Cultural
Anuradhapura–Sigiriya–Dambulla–Polonnaruwa
Sri Lanka Cultural Triangle 6-Day Journey
Read Sri Lanka's history in stone, from the sacred city of Anuradhapura to the medieval courts of Polonnaruwa. Along the way, travellers…
- 6 days / 5 nights
- Colombo → Polonnaruwa
Heritage
Sigiriya–Dambulla–Kandy–Galle–Sinharaja
Sri Lanka UNESCO Heritage Focus 8-Day Tour
Eight places in Sri Lanka carry UNESCO World Heritage status, and this route links five of them in one logical line. Climb…
- 8 days / 7 nights
- Colombo → Galle
Culture
Kandy–Dambulla–Anuradhapura–Mihintale
Temple and Pilgrimage 6-Day Tour
In the cool of early evening, white-clad pilgrims carry lotus flowers towards the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy. Six days follow…
- 6 days / 5 nights
- Kandy → Anuradhapura
Where to stay near Dambulla
Luxury Nature
Dambulla
Heritance Kandalama
Iconic hillside hotel integrated into the landscape near Dambulla.
Dambulla
Amaya Lake Dambulla
Lakeside resort near Kandalama Lake with traditional-inspired design.
Dambulla
Jetwing Lake
Lake-side resort close to Dambulla’s cultural attractions.
🍛 Local flavours
Food to try in Dambulla
- Rice and curry with village-style vegetables
- Fresh tropical fruit from the market
- Kurakkan (finger millet) roti
- King coconut (thambili)
Best time to visit Dambulla
- JanUsually the best months
- FebUsually the best months
- MarUsually the best months
- AprUsually the best months
- MayPossible, with more rain or heat
- JunUsually the best months
- JulUsually the best months
- AugUsually the best months
- SepUsually the best months
- OctPossible, with more rain or heat
- NovPossible, with more rain or heat
- DecPossible, with more rain or heat
January–April; generally dry again June–September
Sri Lanka has two monsoons, so when one coast is rainy the other is usually dry — weather varies from year to year.
Dambulla on the map
Destinations near Dambulla
References / Sources
- UNESCO World Heritage Centre — Golden Temple of Dambulla: https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/561
- Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau: https://www.srilanka.travel
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