Bentota

Bentota occupies a rare piece of geography: a long spit of golden beach with the Indian Ocean on one side and the slow, mangrove-lined Bentota River on the other. The result is two holidays in one — mornings jet-skiing or lazing on a calm, resort-groomed beach, afternoons drifting upriver by boat through mangrove tunnels where water monitors bask and kingfishers dart.

This stretch is also the island's watersports capital and home to some of its most romantic hotels, including several by Geoffrey Bawa, whose garden estate at Lunuganga sits just inland and is open for visits. Turtle hatcheries, the Kande Viharaya temple, and easy transfers from Colombo round it out.

We've walked the trails, paid the fees, and rated every guide. Below: how to get there, when to skip it, and what nearby places pair well — the kind of advice a local friend would give.