Tangalle is an authentic fishing village, from where you can get a feel of an aspect of real Sri Lankan life.
Shopping
You can take a tuk tuk (400rs one way, we can call one for you) or walk 2km down the charming beach road for any shopping requirements.
All kinds of shops and many banks with ATM are available in town.
Grocery
There are two big supermarkets, Cargills Food City and Keels, in town. They sell food, vegetables, fruits, meats, pharmarcy, bathroom and house items, stationary... They don't have clothes.
Many grocery stores are run by families. It would be nicer to shop in family grocery shops to help the families instead of the big companies. They are in town or between the town and Patini. We use Gayana Supermarket, a small and private supermarket without fruits and vegetables; Jayalath Grocery and the shops inside the daily market.
Fruits and vegetables
A small fruits and vegetables store is located at 1km from Patini.
During the high season, some people sell fruits along the beach road.
We buy our fruits and vegetables at Tangalle Fair, the weekly market. Small and big sellers, from all the areas around Tangalle and further come to sell their products. At the Tangalle Fair, we have more chances to find unusual fruits and vegetables. It is also cheaper. We can find the usual fruits and vegetable at the daily market.
Clothes
In town, many shops sell clothes and fabrics. The price is written on the label. You can't be cheated. Bargain is not usual in shops.
If you search well and you are lucky, you will find famous brands. They are sold as normal clothes with normal prices. Usually, they are the clothes the factories can't sell. The factories are in Sri Lanka.
Alcohol
Alcohol is sold only in two shops in Tangalle. It is not available in supermarkets because they stand within 500m from a temple. The liquor or alcohol shop stands near the weekly market. The private shop is before the weekly market and the government shop is after the weekly market. The liquor shop is open every day included the week-end, from 9am to 8pm. It is closed on Poya Day and some other special days decided by the government (elections, important Poya Day). Better to go before 5pm, before the workers are crazy to get their alcohol after a hard working day…
The quality of the wine is not good because it is not store in the right conditions. The wine is also very expensive. It is not worth to buy an expensive bottle.
Markets
Tangalle has two kinds of market, the daily market and the bigger weekly market (called Tangalle Fair on Google Maps). The daily market offers fruits, vegetables, grocery, ceramics. The weekly market is held all day on Wednesdays and Sundays. It offers fruits, vegetables, ceramics, clothes (medium qualities, the price labelled is high, bargain) and different fabrics (saree, sarong, fabrics, etc),...
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Souvenirs
Indika Art Gallery, Just Look and Wise sell many kinds of souvenirs from Sri Lanka.
The shops as Lovers (three shops in Tangalle) and Sanu sell souvenirs. They are cheap but not good quality.
Art Gallery
Indika Pathmananda, a Sri Lanka's leading artist, shows his paintings at Indika Art Gallery at Madilla Beach (500m west from Patini).
Harbour
Have a look at the colourful fishing harbour. The big boats are inside the main harbour (entry 100 LKR per person). The small boats are on the beach east side of the harbour or at Medaketiya Beach.
Bath or snorkel at Parewella beach, after the harbour, no wave at all, not deep. Perfect for the children. On the week-end and holiday, there could be a lot of locals, so better for the women to wear short and tshirt to bath. Be careful, this beach could have sandflies. You can enjoy the ocean and come back to your guesthouse to sun bath...
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Diving / Snorkelling
A diving center opened in 2018 at Tangalle, Ruhunu Diving Center. The few guests who went diving with them enjoyed a lot. Its TripAdvisor reviews are great.
Three snorkelling spots are available at or around Tangalle. They are not beautiful spots, but you can see some colourful fish.
- at the beach of Tangalle harbour called also Navy beach or Parewella. It is nice to watch the fish while swimming. This beach is also perfect for the children to bath because no wave at all and not deep. On the week-end and holiday, there could be a lot of locals, so better for the women to wear short and tshirt to bath.
- at Pallikkudawa Beach, in front of the Cactus Loung Restaurant, west side of Tangalle. It's a very good restaurant. Some times, a turtle can be seen in the bay. Some times, this turtle comes to the beach.
- at Unakuruwa, about 6km from Patini west side, also a surfing spot. Unakuruwa Beach has two accesses; East and West sides of the bay. The East side is better for snorkeling and the west side is better for surfing. You could see a turtle near the beach some times.
Mask and tuba are available at Patini under your responsability (the lost has to be paid).
Further West, these following beaches offer beautiful spots for snorkeling:
- at Polhena/Madiha, near Matara, about 1h drive from Patini. You can see turtles in the water near the beach.
- at Mirissa, about 1h30 drive from Patini. You can go to watch whales in the morning and chill on the beach and snorkel in the afternoon.
- at Unawatuna, about 1h45 drive from Patini. You can take a boat to go snorkel at nice spot... You can snorkel/dive in the morning and visit Galle Fort in the afternoon
Surfing
You can surf at:
- Unakuruwa, km 192, about 3km west side of Tangalle, about 6km from Patini west side. This surfing beach is a reef break, so for experiment surfers with a good skill. Beginners can surf from the main sandy beach. This beach is also for snorkelling (few colourful fish and sometimes a turtle) on the other side of the bay.
- Hiriketiya, about 20km west side from Patini, just before Dickwella. This beach is for all kinds of surfers, beginners to good surfers. It's also a calm beach if the surfers leave you some rooms to bath...
If you like surfing lesson, you can contact Bandula Surfing School. Or you can contact him directly at +94776357734. Better to contact him enough in advance (even months before) to be sure to get a lesson, he is very busy. He is expensive because he is the only professional surfing coach in the area. Many cheaper surfing schools are available in Tangalle and directly at the surfing beaches.
We have body boards on request.
Cooking Classes
Some cooking classes are available at Medaketiya and Madilla. You can walk on the street and see the boards. Google and TripAdvisor give some contacts. Other classes are also available without being listed on these two websites.
Yoga Classes
Some Yoga classes are available at Medaketiya and Madilla. The Yoga teachers change regularly. The classes' availably depends on the season. It seems that the following Yoga Shala are settled in the area:
Yoga Tangalle it classes are displayed on its website.
Yogakala Madilla. She doesn't have reference page. She is located near Yoga Tangalle.
Coppenrath hostel has a roof top yoga. It organizes morning and evening session. The teacher change regularly and so the quality also.
Meditation Classes
Chaminda from Alpha Monkey organises meditations with a monk on the beach. On request, we can give you his contact.