Sri Lanka's breathtaking south-east coastline offers a spectacular surfing experience like no other. With its pristine beaches, consistent swells, and warm waters, it has become a tropical paradise for surfers from all around the world, and is a surfing safari waiting to be explored.

This is the ultimate and complete guide to waves in Arugam Bay, Hiriketiya Beach and its surrounding areas, holding insight into their size, character and ideal conditions - for all beginners, intermediates and advanced surfers.

Arugam Bay

Drawing interest from all sorts of vacation goers and beach bums, Arugam Bay is known for its vibrant culture, laid back lifestyle, and spirited night life, on top of being a mecca for surfing. In this part of Sri Lanka, the waves work best on S, SW and SE swells with westerly offshores. The waves surrounding Arugam Bay are better during the dry months of May to August as the south-west receives its monsoon season.

Surf Point or Main Point is the primary point break here. It can offer fast and slow right-handers up to 150 metres long, and can be firing on any tide. This spot is usually quite busy due to its central location in the bay.

Towards the south of Arugam sits Elephant or Crocodile Rock. It’s a 20 minute walk with boards down the beach, however this feat can be rewarded with less crowded line ups, and crumbling rights on all tides.

Peanut Farm is another beautiful right-hand point break that can be harder to find, but is a paradise for learners and twin-fin riders as it offers cruisy and mellow waves.

Speaking of mellow waves, slightly north of Arugam Bay holds THE mellow point break of Sri Lanka. Beginner friendly and super slow, this spot is known as Whiskey Point.

Pottuvil Point also sits North of A-Bay and is a playful right-hander that runs over a sandy bottom. However, being farther up the east coast, this spot needs more S, SE and ESE swells to work well, and will do this on a mid to low tide. The wave breaks quite close to shore but if you can navigate it right, it can gift you with rides up to a kilometre long!

As we retreat back towards the south, there is the wave of Okanda. Usually less busy than the other surf spots as it’s a bit more remote, this area hosts 3 point breaks for intermediate surfers and above, that work on all tides. The bottom composition and location of this spot allows it to receive the bigger swells of the Indian Ocean, holding waves of up to 10 feet (3 meters), however also leaves it vulnerable to windier conditions.

Hiriketiya Beach

Moving southward brings us to the next set of breaks that should not be missed when chasing waves in Sri Lanka. Hiriketiya Beach holds a wide variety of surf, spanning from heavy reef slabs to light beach breaks. As it’s located right at the southern tip of the south-east coast, the time to visit this spot varies with what you’re looking for. If you’re a beginner looking to stand up for the first few times, December to March would be the months to aim for as this is when the dry season shifts towards the south. This time of year, the dominant swells also shift and begin to come from the west, therefore breaking up and getting smaller before reaching Hiriketiya. If you’re a more experienced surfer, the fringe of this season might be a better bet as you could ideally catch improved weather, whilst the S and SE swells still persist.

The western edge of Hiriketiya is known for its sandy bottom, mostly left-hander beach breaks, therefore making it the ideal spot for novices and goofy-foot longboarders.

Situated in the middle of the bay there is an A-frame peak that can sometimes allow for 50 metre rides down the shoreline.

Towards the eastern end of this stunning beach there is a fast left-hander wave made for more experienced surfers. With a fast take-off section that can hold up to 6 feet (2 metres) of swell, and runs with a solid wall over shallow reef, some of these dreamy waves have the potential to take you 150 metres into the bay.

Nearby, there are also the beaches of Kudawella and Dikwella. These spots are epic to check out if the swell is a bit bigger, and you’re a beginner looking for some fun and chill waves. Theres plenty of board rental shacks on these beaches as well, so you’ll surely be taken care of.

Whether you regularly shred or have an interest in learning, Sri Lanka’s south-east coastline has it all. Don’t wait to check it out!

Written by Kayli Wouters

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