--- title: "Top 10 Things To Do in Jaffna, Sri Lanka | Wimup" description: "The 10 best things to do in Jaffna, Sri Lanka: Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil, the rebuilt Public Library, the Delft ferry, Keerimalai and Casuarina Beach." url: https://wimup.com/city/jaffna type: City guide updated: 2026-09-08 publisher: Wimup (https://wimup.com) --- # Top 10 Things To Do in Jaffna Jaffna, Sri Lanka · Asia · By Wimup Editorial, 13 min read Sri Lanka's northern capital reads as a different country from the south: Tamil and Hindu where the rest of the island is Sinhalese and Buddhist, flat, hot and hemmed by lagoons. Thirty years of war closed it. The train has run again since 2014. ## Quick answer Give Jaffna three days. One for the town, which is Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil, the Dutch fort and the library that was burned in 1981 and rebuilt. One for the islands, taking the Kurikadduwan ferries to Nainativu and Delft. One for the peninsula: Keerimalai springs, Casuarina Beach, the dunes at Manalkadu and the stupas at Kantharodai. Book nothing in advance except the train. ## Quick facts - **Best months:** January to March, plus August for the Nallur festival - **Ideal length:** 3 days, 4 with Delft - **Budget per day:** $30-70 - **Language:** Tamil, with Sinhala and English widely spoken - **Getting around:** Tuk-tuk in town, hired car or bus to the peninsula - **Tourism board:** [Official site](https://www.srilanka.travel/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ## The 10 best things to do in Jaffna ### 1. Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil Hindu temple · Point Pedro Road, Nallur, Jaffna 40000 The gold-ochre gopuram over Nallur is the defining building of the north, rebuilt on this site in 1734 after the Portuguese destroyed the original. Come for the evening puja, when the brass lamps are lit and the drums start. Men enter bare-chested, everyone barefoot. - **Time:** 1 hr - **Cost:** Free - **Best at:** Evening puja - **Tip:** Shoulders and knees covered; shoes off at the gate Links: [Northern tourism](https://tourismnorth.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 2. Jaffna Fort Colonial fort · Fort Road, Gurunagar, Jaffna 40000 Portuguese in 1618, rebuilt by the Dutch into a pentagon that was among the largest forts in Asia, then shelled to rubble in the war. Restoration has put the ramparts and the Dutch church footprint back. Walk the walls for the lagoon and the whole town. - **Time:** 1 hr - **Cost:** Free - **Best at:** Late afternoon - **Tip:** No shade on the ramparts, so carry water Links: [Archaeology Department](https://www.archaeology.gov.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 3. Jaffna Public Library Library · Esplanade Road, Jaffna 40000 Burned by a mob in 1981 with around 97,000 volumes inside, an act that hardened the war and is still the rawest wound in the north. The white Indo-Saracenic building was rebuilt and reopened in 2003. It is a monument, and it is also a working library. - **Time:** 30 min - **Cost:** Free - **Best at:** Late afternoon - **Tip:** Readers are using it, so ask at the desk before going past the lobby Links: [Public library](https://jaffna.dlp.gov.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 4. Delft Island Island · Neduntheevu, ferry from Kurikadduwan jetty, Punkudutivu An hour by ferry from Kurikadduwan: a flat coral island of dry-stone walls, a small Dutch fort, a baobab planted by Arab traders and several hundred semi-wild horses left behind by the Portuguese. Sailings are few and passenger numbers capped. - **Time:** Full day - **Cost:** Ferry ticket - **Best at:** First sailing - **Tip:** Reach the jetty well before departure and hire a tuk-tuk at the pier Links: [Sri Lanka Tourism](https://www.srilanka.travel/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 5. Nainativu (Nagadeepa) Island temples · Nainativu, ferry from Kurikadduwan jetty, Punkudutivu Twenty minutes off Kurikadduwan, a small island carrying two pilgrimages at once: the Nagapooshani Amman kovil in blue and gold, and the Nagadeepa Purana Vihara, one of the oldest Buddhist sites on the island. Boats run through the day. - **Time:** Half day - **Cost:** Ferry ticket - **Best at:** Morning - **Tip:** Modest dress and bare feet at both shrines Links: [Sri Lanka Tourism](https://www.srilanka.travel/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 6. Keerimalai Springs and Naguleswaram Kovil Springs and temple · Keerimalai, Kankesanthurai, Jaffna District A walled freshwater pool that fills beside the sea, fed by a spring credited with healing and used for ancestral rites. The Naguleswaram kovil stands above it, one of the five great Shiva sites on the island. Bathing is segregated, men in the open pool. - **Time:** 1 hr - **Cost:** Free - **Best at:** Early morning - **Tip:** Bring a change of clothes; women bathe covered Links: [Naguleswaram temple](https://www.naguleswaram.org/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 7. Casuarina Beach Beach · Casuarina Beach, Karainagar, Jaffna District Karainagar's white-sand bay, named for the trees behind it, and the calmest water on the peninsula: it stays waist-deep a long way out. The causeway means it is the one beach that works as a half day from town rather than a full one. - **Time:** Half day - **Cost:** Free - **Best at:** Late afternoon - **Tip:** Shade runs out past the tree line, so take an umbrella Links: [Sri Lanka Tourism](https://www.srilanka.travel/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 8. Point Pedro and the Manalkadu dunes Coast · Manalkadu, Point Pedro, Jaffna District The northernmost point of Sri Lanka, a lighthouse and a working fishing coast. South of it the Manalkadu dunes have swallowed a Portuguese-era church, its gable still standing clear of the sand. The drive crosses the palmyra flatlands. - **Time:** Half day - **Cost:** Free - **Best at:** Morning - **Tip:** A tuk-tuk hired for the day is the practical way to link the two Links: [Northern tourism](https://tourismnorth.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 9. Kadurugoda Viharaya Archaeological site · Kandarodai, Chunnakam, Jaffna District Dozens of squat stone stupas packed into one field at Kandarodai, the clearest Buddhist remains on a Hindu peninsula and among the oldest excavated sites in the north. Twenty minutes here reframes everything else you look at in Jaffna. - **Time:** 30 min - **Cost:** Small entry fee - **Best at:** Morning - **Tip:** Shoes off inside the enclosure Links: [Archaeology Department](https://www.archaeology.gov.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 10. Jaffna market and the Grand Bazaar Market · Grand Bazaar and Hospital Road, Jaffna 40000 Where the peninsula sells itself: palmyra jaggery and odiyal flour, dried fish by the sack, curry powder ground to the Jaffna formula, and Karuthakolomban mangoes when they are in. Buy the curry powder. It is the one thing you cannot get at home. - **Time:** 1 hr - **Cost:** Free - **Best at:** Morning - **Tip:** Cash only, and bargaining is expected ## Best temples & kovils in Jaffna Six shrines that carry the peninsula's calendar, town first. 1. **Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil** (Nallur · Free · Nallur): The big one, and the reason August belongs to Jaffna. [Website](https://tourismnorth.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) 2. **Naguleswaram Temple** (18 km north · Free · Keerimalai): One of the five great Shiva sites, above the Keerimalai pool. [Website](https://www.naguleswaram.org/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) 3. **Nagapooshani Amman Kovil** (Nainativu · Ferry · Nainativu): Blue and gold, on Nainativu, reached by the Kurikadduwan boat. 4. **Maviddapuram Kandaswamy Kovil** (16 km north · Free · Kankesanthurai): A Murugan temple with a chariot festival, rebuilt after the war. 5. **Vallipuram Alvar Kovil** (Point Pedro · Free · Point Pedro): A Vishnu temple by the northern shore, and an old gold-plate find. 6. **Selva Sannithi Murugan Kovil** (20 km north · Free · Thondaimanaru): The Thondaimanaru shrine families come to before exams and journeys. ## Best islands & ferries in Jaffna Five islands, by how far the boat or the road has to go. 1. **Mandaitivu** (8 km west · Free · Mandaitivu): The nearest island, joined by causeway, lagoon on both sides. 2. **Kayts** (20 km west · Free · Kayts): A quiet colonial port town, and the jetty for Hammenhiel. 3. **Karainagar** (20 km northwest · Free · Karainagar): Reached by causeway, and the road to Casuarina Beach. 4. **Punkudutivu** (20 km west · Free · Punkudutivu): The end of the causeway chain and the Kurikadduwan jetty. 5. **Delft Island** (Ferry · Full day · Neduntheevu): An hour of open water, wild horses, coral walls, a baobab. [Website](https://www.srilanka.travel/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ## Best beaches in Jaffna Four stretches of coast, nearest to town first. 1. **Chaddy Beach** (3 km west · Free · Gurunagar): The town beach at Gurunagar, for a walk rather than a swim. 2. **Casuarina Beach** (20 km northwest · Free · Karainagar): Shallow, calm and white, the best swimming on the peninsula. 3. **Kankesanthurai Beach** (18 km north · Free · Kankesanthurai): A north-coast strip beside the old harbour and the springs. 4. **Manalkadu Beach** (35 km northeast · Free · Point Pedro): Dunes, a buried church and a long empty shore at the top of the island. ## Best colonial & war heritage in Jaffna Five sites that hold the Portuguese, the Dutch and the war. 1. **Jaffna Fort** (Gurunagar · Free · Gurunagar): Portuguese, then Dutch, then rubble, and now walls you can walk. [Website](https://www.archaeology.gov.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) 2. **Jaffna Public Library** (Esplanade Road · Free · Jaffna town): Burned in 1981, rebuilt and reopened in 2003. [Website](https://jaffna.dlp.gov.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) 3. **Cankili Thoppu Archway** (Nallur · Free · Nallur): The stone gateway left from the palace of the last Jaffna king. 4. **Mantri Manai** (Nallur · Free · Nallur): A ruined courtyard house tied by tradition to the same court. 5. **Elephant Pass** (60 km south · Free · Elephant Pass): The causeway that held the peninsula, with the war memorials on it. ## Best restaurants in Jaffna Five kitchens, from a 1950s bazaar cafe to the hotel dining rooms. 1. **Malayan Cafe** (Grand Bazaar · $ · Jaffna town): Marble tables, banana-leaf thali, dosai and milk coffee in a dabara. 2. **Mangos** (Hospital Street · $ · Nallur): Pure vegetarian, near Nallur, with a garden and a family crowd. 3. **Rio Ice Cream** (Point Pedro Road · $ · Nallur): The Jaffna institution for falooda and a cone after the temple. 4. **Cosy Restaurant** (Stanley Road · $$ · Jaffna town): Northern rice and curry, crab when it is in, on Stanley Road. 5. **Green Grass Hotel** (Hospital Road · $$ · Jaffna town): A hotel dining room that does the local crab curry properly. [Website](https://greengrass.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ## Best neighbourhoods in Jaffna Four parts of town, and what each one is for. 1. **Nallur** (Northeast · Temples · Nallur): The temple quarter, and where the festival crowds sleep and eat. 2. **Jaffna town** (Centre · Markets · Jaffna town): The bazaar, the bus stand and most of the guesthouses. 3. **Gurunagar** (West · Coast · Gurunagar): The fishing quarter under the fort, Catholic and coastal. 4. **Chundikuli** (Southeast · Colonial · Chundikuli): Quiet colonial streets, the old schools and the cathedral. ## Best day trips in Jaffna Four runs out, all doable and back in a day. 1. **Elephant Pass and Kilinochchi** (60 km south · 1 hr · Kilinochchi): The war's front line, its memorials and the water tower. 2. **Dambakola Patuna** (22 km north · 40 min · Maviddapuram): The landing where the Bodhi sapling is said to have arrived. 3. **Chundikulam National Park** (80 km east · 2 hr · Chundikulam): Lagoon, flamingos in season, and almost nobody else. 4. **Nilavarai Well** (15 km east · 30 min · Puttur): A spring-fed well that legend calls bottomless, out at Puttur. ## Festivals & annual events in Jaffna (2026) - **Thai Pongal** (January): The Tamil harvest festival. Rice boiled over in the courtyard, kolam drawn at the door. - **Maha Shivaratri** (February or March): The night vigil for Shiva. Naguleswaram at Keerimalai fills and stays open through it. - **Puthandu** (April): Tamil new year. Family visits, temple offerings, and the town quiet in the middle of the day. - **Nagapooshani Amman Mahotsavam** (June or July): Sixteen days on Nainativu, with a chariot procession. The Kurikadduwan boats run packed. - **Aadi Amavasai** (July or August): Ancestral rites at Keerimalai. Pilgrims bathe in the pool beside the sea from first light. - **Nallur festival** (August to September): Twenty-five days at Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil, ending with the chariot and the water cutting. - **Deepavali** (October or November): Oil lamps along the walls, new clothes, and sweets pressed on anyone who visits. - **Karthigai Deepam** (November or December): The festival of lamps. Rows of them on temple walls and doorsteps across the peninsula. ## Must-try dishes in Jaffna, Sri Lanka - **Jaffna crab curry**: Lagoon crab in a dark roasted gravy, hot with the local curry powder. - **Odiyal kool**: The northern seafood broth, thickened with palmyra flour. Eaten with the hands. - **Masala dosai**: Crisp, folded over spiced potato, with sambar and coconut chutney. - **Idiyappam with sothi**: String hoppers under a thin coconut milk gravy, with sambol on the side. - **Mutton curry**: Slow-cooked with the Jaffna blend of roasted chilli, fennel and coriander. - **Panangkilangu**: Palmyra tuber, boiled or dried. Sweet, fibrous and sold on the street. - **Karuthakolomban mango**: The peninsula's own mango, dense and honeyed, in season mid-year. - **Falooda**: Rose syrup, basil seed and ice cream, layered in a glass. Rio does the classic. ## Jaffna transport & airports - **Jaffna International Airport** (JAF): The former Palaly air base, 16 km north at Kankesanthurai, reopened to civil traffic in 2019. Regional flights to Chennai; check the schedule before planning around it. [Website](https://www.airport.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - **Rail from Colombo** (Northern line): The Yal Devi runs the length of the island to Jaffna and on to Kankesanthurai. Roughly seven hours from Colombo Fort. Book a reserved seat, since it is the one thing here that sells out. [Sri Lanka Railways](https://www.railway.gov.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - **Bus and the A9** (Road): The A9 highway is the overland route, about 400 km from Colombo. Government and private intercity coaches run it. Local buses leave Jaffna Central for the peninsula and the Kurikadduwan jetty. [Sri Lanka Transport Board](https://www.sltb.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - **Tuk-tuk and hired car** (Local): Tuk-tuks cover the town and are the sane way to do the peninsula, hired by the half day. PickMe works in Jaffna. Agree the price before setting off if the meter is not running. [PickMe](https://pickme.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ## Jaffna at a glance - **Country:** Sri Lanka - **Region:** Jaffna District, Northern Province - **Population:** 88,138 in the municipal area (2012 census), about 583,000 across Jaffna District - **Founded:** Capital of the Jaffna kingdom from the 13th century, taken by the Portuguese in 1619 - **Nickname:** Yalpanam, and the Tamil capital of the island - **Language:** Tamil, with Sinhala and English widely spoken - **Currency:** Sri Lankan rupee (LKR) - **Time zone:** UTC+5:30, no daylight saving - **Calling code:** +94, area code 021 - **Airports:** Jaffna International (JAF) 16 km north, Bandaranaike International (CMB) about 390 km south - **Power:** 230V 50Hz, type D, G and M sockets - **Emergency:** 119 police, 110 fire, 1990 ambulance ## Interesting facts - The 1981 burning of the Public Library destroyed around 97,000 books, among them palm-leaf manuscripts held nowhere else. - Delft's horses descend from stock the Portuguese kept on the island; they still run loose across it. - The railway to Jaffna closed in 1990 and did not carry passengers again until 2014. - Kantharodai holds dozens of miniature stupas, evidence of Buddhism on a peninsula that is now almost entirely Hindu. - Nallur's festival runs 25 days, the longest annual temple festival anywhere in Sri Lanka. ## Jaffna travel FAQ ### Is Jaffna safe to visit? Yes. The war ended in 2009 and the peninsula has been open to visitors since. Ordinary travel precautions apply, and the roads and railway are in normal use. Some coastal and northern land remains under military control and is signposted; do not walk into an area that is fenced. ### How do you get to Jaffna from Colombo? Three ways. The Yal Devi train up the Northern line takes roughly seven hours from Colombo Fort and is the pleasant one. Intercity coaches run the A9 highway, about 400 km. Jaffna International Airport at Palaly handles regional flights, so check what is scheduled before relying on it. ### How many days do you need in Jaffna? Three is the honest answer: one for the town, one for the islands off Kurikadduwan, and one for the peninsula. Add a fourth if you want Delft, because the ferry timetable makes it a full day on its own rather than a stop on a longer one. ### When is the best time to visit Jaffna? January to March is dry and clear. June to August is also dry and quieter, and August carries the Nallur festival, when rooms in town are hard to find. October to December is the northeast monsoon and the wettest stretch of the year. ### How do you reach Delft and Nainativu? Both leave from Kurikadduwan jetty on Punkudutivu, about an hour west of Jaffna by road along the causeways. Nainativu boats run through the day and take about twenty minutes. Delft has few sailings, a capped passenger count and an hour of open water, so arrive early. ## Nearby guides - [Anuradhapura](https://wimup.com/city/anuradhapura.md): Sri Lanka · 10 picks - [Trincomalee](https://wimup.com/city/trincomalee.md): Sri Lanka · 10 picks - [Kandy](https://wimup.com/city/kandy.md): Sri Lanka · 10 picks - [All of Asia →](https://wimup.com/asia): 109 cities Part of the [Sri Lanka guide](https://wimup.com/country/sri-lanka.md) · [Asia](https://wimup.com/asia.md) ## Sources - [Jaffna tourism board](https://www.srilanka.travel/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil: Northern tourism](https://tourismnorth.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Jaffna Fort: Archaeology Department](https://www.archaeology.gov.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Jaffna Public Library: Public library](https://jaffna.dlp.gov.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Keerimalai Springs and Naguleswaram Kovil: Naguleswaram temple](https://www.naguleswaram.org/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Green Grass Hotel (official site)](https://greengrass.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Jaffna International Airport (official site)](https://www.airport.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Rail from Colombo: Sri Lanka Railways](https://www.railway.gov.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Bus and the A9: Sri Lanka Transport Board](https://www.sltb.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Tuk-tuk and hired car: PickMe](https://pickme.lk/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - Rankings are Wimup editorial picks. Prices, durations and budgets are editorial estimates, not live quotes; check the official site before you go.