Unawatuna

Why Visit

One of the most swimmable beaches on the south coast, sheltered enough for calm water most of the year and an easy pairing with a Galle Fort visit.

A sheltered, crescent-shaped bay a short drive from Galle, with calmer water than much of the surrounding coastline.

History

Unawatuna has no separate colonial fort or ancient monument of its own — its history is closely tied to neighbouring Galle, a few kilometres away, which it served as a fishing village and later a satellite beach community for. The headland of Rumassala at the bay's eastern end carries older folklore rather than documented history: in the Hindu epic Ramayana, it is said to be a fragment of a Himalayan mountain, dropped here while being carried by the monkey-god Hanuman on his way to deliver healing herbs to a wounded warrior, and the area is still associated with unusual plant species said to have taken root from that fallen fragment. The Japanese Peace Pagoda on the same headland is a modern addition, built in 1972 by Buddhist monks as one of a series of such pagodas constructed around the world to promote peace after the Second World War. Unawatuna's identity as a beach destination developed mainly from the late 20th century onward, alongside the broader growth of south coast tourism, and it, too, suffered damage in the 2004 tsunami before rebuilding.