I fell in love with Sri Lanka before I had even set foot on the island. That was forty years ago. I was 19, had saved hard, and spent five unforgettable months exploring.
It was even more magical than I’d imagined—and to this day, I still feel the same. Over the decades, I’ve returned nearly every year, drawn by its warmth, beauty, and charm. Now, my wife and I are taking it a step further: we are going to spend six months of every year here in retirement.
When friends ask us why, it’s hard to know where to begin…
The World’s Best Retirement Havens for 2025
The World’s Best Retirement Havens for 2025
20 Countries Compared, Contrasted, Ranked, and Rated. You don’t have to be rich to enjoy a pampered retirement, you just need to know where to go. With our 34th Annual Global Retirement Index, our experts hand you a detailed roadmap. Details—and a Special Offer—Here
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Why We Love Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka offers year-round sunshine and some of the best beaches we’ve found, whether tucked into quiet coves or stretched along sweeping bays. It’s a place where ancient cities and colonial architecture coexist; no country has more UNESCO sites packed into such a small area.
The cost of living is almost unbelievably low, and the people are warm, genuine, and endlessly welcoming. English is widely spoken, and the country feels safe and easy to navigate.
We never tire of the scenery. The national parks are awe-inspiring, with rare and endangered species and outstanding, vividly colored birdlife that must be an ornithologist’s dream. And you will see elephants—lots of them. The food is vibrant and fresh, with tropical fruits and rich, flavorful dishes. And the train rides? Easily some of the most scenic we’ve ever taken.
Best of all, Sri Lanka’s visa policies are among the most flexible in Asia; you can stay up to nine months at a time or settle in for good. I’ll share more on how we manage that later.
It’s no wonder Sri Lanka’s nickname is the Pearl of the Indian Ocean. For us, Sri Lanka truly has it all.
Where We’re Spending Time in Sri Lanka
When and where we like to stay is determined by the monsoon seasons. Like everything in Sri Lanka, even the weather is unique. Sri Lanka has a year-round tropical climate with distinct wet and dry seasons. Like nowhere else in Asia, it has two monsoon seasons.
From May to July, the southwest monsoon brings rain to the southern and western regions.
From December to March, it's the northeast monsoon that arrives, bringing rain to the north and east of the island.
In other words, when it is raining on one side of the island, it is dry on the other. Therefore, we time our stay to overlap with three months in the west and three months in the east. We follow the sun.
Arugam Bay – Bohemian Beach Life
We commence our stay in March, at the incredible beach town of Arugam Bay on the east coast. We love the laid-back, relaxed vibe and the brilliant beach. It is also situated next to national parks and lots of elephants. You will find elephants everywhere in Sri Lanka, even nonchalantly crossing major highways—well, they own the place.
We have noticed the full-time retiree community in Arugam Bay has increased over the last couple of years. According to our long-term friend Mr. Halim, owner of Arnie’s Place, “My villas have never been so occupied with long-term expat rentals. I believe that number is going to grow exponentially. I have never had so many online enquiries. Although the bohemian, rustic surf town atmosphere might not be for everyone, there’s no harm in giving it a trial run.”
Galle – A Fusion of Past and Present
After three months at Arugam Bay, we head for the historic town of Galle on the southwest coast. The town has a fascinating Portuguese, Dutch, and British colonial history, with architecture that demonstrates its storied past. It also has the largest population of expats, and all the facilities—entertainment, international schools, and sporting clubs—testify to this.
Galle is a walled fort city made for wandering the quaint lanes without purpose, no prearranged destination required. Trendy Instagram bars, restaurants, cafés, and boutiques are housed in attractive, colorful colonial buildings that are hundreds of years old, nestled next to traditional Sri Lankan eateries.
The best time to see Galle is in the evening when the busloads of tourists have returned to their beachfront hotels. Then it’s time to tread the ancient walls of the majestic fort that still stands proudly and watch hundreds of youngsters indulge in their passion for cricket. Sri Lanka is a cricket-mad country, a legacy of its British colonial past.
Exploring Beyond the Big Two
After our time in Galle, we like to head out again. There’s just too much to see and enjoy in Sri Lanka to stay in one spot.
We explore further up the coast to the first beachside tourist town of Hikkaduwa. Then, a few weeks in Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka, which is one of my favorite cities in the world. It’s easily traversed and has two of the most marvelous colonial hotels that are not to be missed, even if just for high tea!
After Colombo, we travel by train to the hill country. There are many options: Kandy, Bandarawela, ancient cities like Anuradhapura, or Nuwara Eliya, where a stay at the Hill Club is a must. Here, the weather is cool, and you’ll find a hot water bottle in your bed when you retire. Jacket and tie must be worn after 7 p.m. if dining or playing billiards!
The train rides on the charming, delightfully dilapidated railways offer some of the most scenic rides anywhere. The cost is $4.00 for six hours in first class, although third class is much more fun—and even cheaper!
We love a trip to Sigiriya. At first sight, it will stop you in your tracks. It should be the eighth wonder of the world. It rises dramatically from the central plains, vertical walls soar to a flat summit that contains the ruins of an ancient civilization.
There are so many places of interest to visit on the west coast and in the interior. Part of the fun is devising your own itinerary and exploring, which Sri Lanka is made for. Although some of our expat friends are content staying in one beach town.
What It’s Like to Live in Sri Lanka
Of course, life in Sri Lanka isn’t just about sightseeing. The everyday lifestyle here—what you eat, how you spend your time, what it costs—is part of what keeps us coming back.
Sri Lanka offers a healthy lifestyle that is hard to emulate in the West. Obviously, the weather is a big factor, but also the affordability. Surfing, scuba diving, spearfishing, windsurfing, and kitesurfing are readily available—and all can be taught. Hiking is popular. Golf, tennis, and many other sporting activities are available, especially around Galle and Colombo.
International restaurants, cafés, and cocktail bars are slowly but surely increasing, especially in the main tourist hubs in the south. Colombo has some great restaurants. The Bavarian German Restaurant, just across from the Galle Face Hotel, and the Ministry of Crab (bib included) in the old Dutch Hospital, now an entertainment venue, are two of our favorites.
Colombo offers some amazing, don’t-miss Sunday brunches. Our favorite is at the Kingsbury Hotel. This alone is worth coming to Colombo for: $40 for free-flow champagne and beer, lobster, crabs, prawns, and oysters are just part of the buffet. It’s a wonderful indulgence. My wife always puts a tag on me reading, “If found, please return to...!”
One of our great pleasures and special treats is staying at the marvelous colonial hotels. The Galle Face Hotel, an institution opened in 1864, and the Mount Lavinia Hotel, which opened in 1877. Staying in these hotels, like everything else in Sri Lanka, is very affordable and feels like stepping back in time. The Royal Hotel in Kandy and the Bandarawela Hotel are other favorites.
A quirky experience is to go watch Sri Lanka play cricket. Even if you know nothing about cricket, just soak up the atmosphere and excitement, especially if they are playing India or England!
I would not recommend self-driving. There are different rules, and the buses drive at breakneck speed. With the cost of hiring a car and driver so cheap, it is prudent to do so.
Cost of Living and Accommodation
Now, what about the costs? This is one of the most compelling reasons we return year after year.
Sri Lanka is ridiculously cheap. We’ve met expats who live a happy life on $1,000 a month. You can rent a basic room for $250 a month. In Arugam Bay, we take a villa at Arnie’s Place, right on the beach—this costs $700 a month. Alternatively, in Hikkaduwa, we stay a ten-minute walk from the beach, and that costs $390 a month. Proximity to the beach dictates pricing. In Galle, we stay in the old fort city, and that is $850 a month. In general, our overall budget is between $1,800 and $2,700, depending on activities and accommodation.
If you have U.S. dollars, they seem to continually work in your favor against the Sri Lankan rupee. Food shopping, especially if you frequent the local markets, is cheap. A meal in an international restaurant with drinks comes to $40 for two; food at a local eatery is only a couple of dollars. The farther upcountry you get, and the farther you get from the up-and-coming tourist hot spots, the cheaper everything gets.
Home help/maid service is only $10 a day. We have friends in Kandy, in the center of Sri Lanka. The wife has debilitating arthritis, so a gardener, cook, maid, and driver are all employed. The monthly wage bill is under $500. Transport is very cheap; a four-hour taxi ride is approximately $70. Gym membership, a yoga class, a massage, laundry, and a day in a spa all cost around 20% of what you’d pay in the U.S. or other Western countries. Sri Lanka is one of the cheapest, if not the cheapest, in the region. Another reason we enjoy spending half our retirement here.
Visas Made Easy
Staying long-term in Sri Lanka is not only appealing, it’s also surprisingly easy.
Getting a Sri Lankan retirement visa, called My Dream Home by the government, is one of the easiest retirement visas to get in Asia. Any national aged 55 or over can apply for a long-stay visa. These come in two-year allocations. It requires a $15,000 USD fixed deposit in any approved Sri Lankan bank. Additionally, a monthly deposit of $1,500 for the primary applicant and $750 for a spouse or partner. Many retirees opt for this visa as it negates the hassle of leaving the country to get a new visa. Perfect for retirees wanting to make Sri Lanka their full-time home.
We circumvent this, and it is quite an easy process. The following is how we do it:
Visitors must obtain an ETA (Electronic Travel Authorization) via the official website of the Department of Immigration and Emigration: www.eta.gov.lk. The cost of this ETA is $50 USD for most nationalities. It is valid for 30 days from the date of arrival, although it may be easily extended, making a long-term stay easy to undertake.
A visitor wishing to stay more than 30 days in Sri Lanka may apply for an extension online. The initial 30-day ETA can be extended for 60 days on the first extension, and 90 days for the second and third instances. This facilitates a maximum stay of 270 days. The only documents needed to extend are a return air ticket, accommodation address and phone number, a photograph of the applicant, and a valid passport.
For many countries, including the U.S., Canada, the UK, and Australia, extending the ETA from 30 to 90 days costs $100 USD per person. Extending from the 90th to the 180th day is free for U.S. nationals, but for most countries will cost $150 USD. Extending from the 180th to the 270th day for any country costs $200 USD.
Therefore, we can stay for nine months without leaving. This is the perfect visa for us, as we still have close ties to Bali and Thailand, and spend the other six months of the year in those countries. We’ve found that 30% of retirees in Sri Lanka prefer this option, especially if they lead a more itinerant retirement lifestyle.
Growing Infrastructure
Being able to stay is one thing. But what’s truly exciting is how life here keeps getting better, thanks to ongoing development and returning talent.
At the National Maritime Museum in Galle, I fell into conversation with Professor Malik, a native of Sri Lanka who has lived in southern England for 25 years and lectures in town planning. He is now spending more and more time in Sri Lanka. We ended up, with our wives, having dinner at the Galle Fort Hotel, a superb heritage hotel housed in a 300-year-old Dutch mansion.
He told me: “Now the wealthy diaspora are returning. New developments are springing up. This, in turn, will attract tourists and expat retirees. Services are improving. Look at the substantial improvement in internet availability and speed; this is all too evident with the influx of digital nomads. The government realizes the importance of the tourist dollar and the benefits that long-term expat retirees would have on the country and its economy. They’re going to do everything to encourage them.”
With a stable government comes investment and tourism. With tourism comes progress and development. The new terminal at Bandaranaike International Airport is scheduled to be completed by late 2025, and the runway can take the A380. New hotels, shopping malls, and sporting venues are all underway. Sri Lanka is actively developing its road network, with new expressways and elevated highways. All of these improvements will enhance any expat retiree’s quality of life.
Healthcare Options
Of course, health care is a key concern for retirees. Sri Lanka offers a surprising range of options.
In Sri Lanka, there is a disparity in healthcare treatment. In short, if you can afford it, you will receive far superior medical care. Private hospital medical care is efficient, professional, and has state-of-the-art equipment—and is half the price you’d pay in North America. The major private hospitals are based in Colombo or Galle. Expats pay a nominal fee at any public hospital.
The following hospitals, situated in central Colombo and Galle, are among those with the best reputations (though there are several others):
Durdans Hospital (Address: #3 Alfred Place, Colombo 03). This hospital is known for its excellence in the critical care department and has been around for seventy years.
Asiri Hospital of Sri Lanka (Address: No. 10 Wakwella Road, Galle 80000, Sri Lanka). This hospital is the expat choice—boasting excellent care and professional staff.
Retirement in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka is unique—and in many ways, unbeatable. It’s no wonder the visionary science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke, who could have lived anywhere, chose to retire here in 1956 and stayed until his death in 2008.
In the coming years, Sri Lanka has the potential to become a world-class retirement destination. It’s an adventure, an exploration, a constant learning experience. You never wake up thinking, We must find something nice to do today. The choices are endless, but you always have the option of wriggling your toes in the powdery white sand and finally reading that book you’ve been meaning to start.
Here, you’re surrounded by nature, wildlife, and the rich colors they bring. Even in the larger towns, there’s a sense of living in harmony with the natural world. The locals are kind and considerate, and we’ve met travelers and expats of all ages—retirees, backpackers, and digital nomads—all eager to connect, learn, and share new Sri Lankan experiences.
It’s amazing how little money you need to enjoy a better, healthier, more fulfilling lifestyle.
This is living.
The World’s Best Retirement Havens for 2025
The World’s Best Retirement Havens for 2025
20 Countries Compared, Contrasted, Ranked, and Rated. You don’t have to be rich to enjoy a pampered retirement, you just need to know where to go. With our 34th Annual Global Retirement Index, our experts hand you a detailed roadmap. Details—and a Special Offer—Here
By submitting your email address, you will receive a free subscription to IL Postcards, The Untourist Daily and special offers from International Living and our affiliates. You can unsubscribe at any time, and we encourage you to read more about our Privacy Policy.