Cheap flights to Sri Lanka (+ flight hacks)
The cheapest flight deals, discounted airfares, and travel hacks
Update on international flights to Sri Lanka
Two main airports: Bandaranaike International Airport (Colombo) and Mattala International Airport (Hambantota) have been opened on 21 January 2021. International flights are gradually being resumed.
Transit through Sri Lanka
Transit via Sri Lanka’s airports is allowed, as long as the connecting flight is within 10 hours of arrival. A transit visa is not required if you are not leaving the airport.
40%–80% off airfares to/from Sri Lanka
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Best time to fly to Sri Lanka?Here are the cheapest months/days to book flights
The best time to find the cheapest flights to Sri Lanka tends to be during the low season – May to August. It is when the country experiences a Yala monsoon season coupled with low humidity. The weather during these months is rather wet, especially in the south-western parts such as Colombo and Galle. From the beginning of December to the end of April falls the peak tourist season that attracts lots of visitors and sends airfares sky high. If you really have to travel to Sri Lanka during the high season it’s wise to book the flights well in advance.
Timing is everything
Bear in mind that plane tickets usually don’t get cheaper closer to the departure date. Even these reasonably priced flights in the low season sell out quite far ahead of the date of travel – it pays to book your ticket well in advance. The best time to buy can vary among airlines but the golden time for domestic flights usually falls between 3 weeks and 8 weeks before the departure. For international flights, give yourself even more time: start checking ticket prices at least 2-6 months beforehand.
There is one main rule airlines’ price algorithm use: the fewer seats an airline has left on a flight, the more expensive those available seats will be. Knowing how the flight ticket pricing work, will give you an advantage when booking the next flight. Watch this video to learn about the science behind the airline pricing strategies:
Reveal the lowest airfare for any route
The flight price calendar below is a good starting point if you want to find the cheapest possible airfare for your route. The prices are updated almost in real time. We’ve only listed three popular routes as examples – feel free to change them.
Use the settings icon to change the departing airport and the destination.
Click the selected month to see the exact date of the deal and to book the flight.
Airlines of Sri Lanka
Promo Radar™All airlines, all promotions, one place
Before booking a flight, check if any of these promotions applies to you:
- Watch for a good sale. Most airlines publish their web promotions frequently. To get a great bargain be sure to watch the airline sales over the course of several weeks.
- Avoid Sri Lanka's public holidays. Prices skyrocket during holidays and popular festivals – adjust your travel dates to avoid expensive tickets. Cheap flights to Sri Lanka are non-existent during popular “red days” such as Thai Pongal Day (January), Mahasivarathri (February), Sinhala (April), and Tamil New Year (April). If you really have to travel to Sri Lanka during these peak periods it's wise to book the flights well in advance.
- Fly in the low season. Flying to Sri Lanka during the low season (April – March) is one easy way to save money on flights. With significantly fewer visitors, everything (including air tickets) is cheaper. Book at least 2 months before departure in order to get a below-average price. Avoid the peak season – January, November, and December.
- Book your flights in the local currency. Flight fares that a search engine or airline website quotes you often vary depending on where you book from. Try to spoof your location and currency so that it looks like you're booking the flight from the same country that it’s departing from. For example, if you are in the US and you're booking a flight from Colombo, Sri Lanka to Bangkok set the country in a search engine to Sri Lanka, and the currency to Sri Lankan rupee (LKR). This simple trick doesn't work every time (not all websites set prices the same way) but it can sometimes save you a significant amount of money.
- Set the currency to the currency of the airline's country. It's a variation of a 'hack' described above. If you're booking a flight with Malaysian Airlines, try setting the country to Malaysia and the currency to the Malaysian ringgit (MYR). If the airline website detects your real location using your IP address and automatically applies the adequate currency, you can overcome this by using a VPN to spoof your location.
- Join Air Traveler Club. A proven way to get great prices on flights to Sri Lanka is to become a member of the Air Traveler Club. It is free to join, and deals that the members get every week are priced at least 40% below the average airfare for a given route. Some of these 'hacker fares' can save you up to 80% (!) on your next flight.
- Find the best economy seats. Contrary to the popular view, not all economy seats on a plane are created equal. Some seats have slight advantages over others. It all depends on the aircraft, so we recommend visiting the SeatGuru website, where after entering your flight number you will be presented with a detailed seat map. Hover over individual seats to compare quality, and check out other travelers’ reviews.
- Lost baggage prevention. Avoid lost luggage nightmares by removing old tags on your suitcases. Tags are printed with a barcode which is used for identification and tracking – so the old tags can really confuse baggage handlers and the conveyor belt scanners. They are one of the reasons so many bags miss their flight or get misrouted.
- DM instead of the call center. Use Twitter or Facebook Messenger to contact the airline customer service. If the problem arises, social media is usually a faster way to contact a real human that can answer your questions. Don't count too much on airline call centers, they are usually super busy.
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( votes)Cheap flights to Sri Lanka
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