Sammanthurai is a town of over 60,000 people in the Ampara District of the Eastern Province of Sri Lanka. It's renowned for its rice paddies and its inner harbour from ancient times - although it is now more than 4 km from the coast of the Bay of Bengal.
Sammanthurai is an important and historical place, and was the first place where Dutch people arrived in Sri Lanka. Sammanthurai derives its name from ‘Sampan,’ the vessel, and ‘Sammankaran’ who were Muslims from India who came to Sammanthurai during the Portuguese period.
Most people are Tamil speaking Muslims and they follow the Islamic tradition in their day-to-day life. Clothes are generally conservative but some young people are contemporary. Muslim women wear Hijab or Saree while the men wear Sarong, which could be either white or colour with typical Sri Lankan patterns. It is advisable for women, especially unaccompanied ones, to dress modestly and limit their interaction with unfamiliar local men.
The climate of Sammanthurai is tropical. Sammanthurai has two main seasons - summer and monsoon. Weatherwise, the best time to visit is during the North East monsoon season, which is November to April. Sammanthurai summers are humid and sultry; it's better to step out with an umbrella, bottled water and some oral rehydration salts (available from pharmacies and convenient stores). These come in handy if you happen to get dehydrated.
There are several private bus services operating from Colombo to Sammanthurai and Sammanthurai to Colombo. The drive takes about 7 hours and costs around Rs.900.
The train service is available from Colombo to Batticaloa, from where you can take a bus or taxi to Sammanthurai. The travelling time from Batticaloa to Sammanthurai about an hour and half or two depends on the traffic.
The local airport is in Ampara which is 18 km west of Sammanthurai. To get to Sammanthurai. Fly into Colombo the commercial capital and get a domestic flight to Ampara. From Ampara either you can take a taxi or public transportation to Sammanthurai.
There is air service to and from Colombo, provided by the national airline Sri Lankan Airlines. Flights are available from origins throughout Europe, United States, Southeast Asia, China, Japan, the Middle East, India, and Pakistan. Other airlines, include Qatar Airlines and Emirates. Colombo's international airport is at Katunayake.
These are private hire minivans, best if you need transportation for the whole day.
The locals get around on cycles, motorcycles and cars.
Amana Bank, the Bank of Ceylon, Seylan Bank, People's Bank, the National Savings Bank and the Hatton National Bank all have ATMs.
Special foods of Sammanthurai:
Traditional foods:
Sammanthurai dishes:
Water is obtained from:
Other drinks
Special "Iftar food" available in Ramzan (Ramadan):
The international code for Sri Lanka +94, for Sammanthurai area code 067 + the phone number. You can make long-distance calls from one of the many booths located in the town. Airtel provides landline phones and broadband internet connection to its subscribers in Sammanthurai.
Cell phone rates are pretty reasonable. There are five GSM service providers: Operators
and more than 5 coverage towers in here
There are several Internet cafes from where you can access the Internet for sending email or uploading your digital photos. Amir Ali Public Library has free Wi-fi zone to use Internet maintained by Sammanthurai Pradeshiya Sabah. Also there is a computer unit to access Internet.
Sammanthurai 24 | http://www.sammanthurai24.com | email: info@sammanthurai24@gmail.com
Sammanthurai News | http://www.sammanthurainews.com (dead link: January 2023) | email: info@sammanthurainews.com
Sammanthurai Net | http://www.sammanthurai.net | email: info@sammanthurai.net
NewsPlus | http://www.newsplus.lk | email: info@newsplus.lk
Makkal Nanban News | [http://www.makkalnanbannews.com (dead link: January 2023) | email: makkalnanbannews@gmail.com
There are three shops where local newspapers and magazines available.
2nd-order administrative division
Primary administrative division