Trincomalee

Trincomalee sits on one of the largest natural harbours in the world, a deep sheltered basin that made it strategically prized for centuries, and its practical importance today is that the east coast runs on the opposite monsoon to the west. When Colombo and the southwest are being rained on from May onwards, Trincomalee and its beaches at Uppuveli and Nilaveli are dry and calm. Pigeon Island, a short boat ride offshore, is a marine national park with shallow coral where blacktip reef sharks patrol in water you can stand up in. Blue whales pass close to shore here in season, and the Koneswaram temple sits on Swami Rock above the harbour, a cliff-top Hindu shrine with a straight drop to the sea below.

What you actually see

• Pigeon Island - shallow reef snorkelling with blacktip reef sharks and turtles.
• Koneswaram Temple - the clifftop Hindu temple on Swami Rock above the harbour.
• Uppuveli and Nilaveli beaches - long east coast sand, calm in the western monsoon.
• Whale watching - blue whales offshore in the season, from local boats.

When to go

April to September, when the east coast is dry and the sea is calm; this is precisely when the south and west coasts are wet. Whale season runs roughly within that window. From November to February the northeast monsoon reverses the picture.

Honest expectations

Pigeon Island is small and can get badly overcrowded with boats and snorkellers, and reef damage from people standing on coral is a real and visible problem; go early and stay off the coral. Infrastructure on the east coast is thinner than in the south. The region carries the legacy of a long conflict, which shows in the pace of development rather than in daily travel.

Nearby

Anuradhapura is inland to the west; the Jaffna peninsula lies further north.