Day 12, 13 & 14 – Merissa

Day 12 Mirissa

Tuesday 11th August, 2026

This morning there was an optional additional safari offered at a cost of 23,000 LKR each. Tania was not going to be a starter and although Graeme considered maybe going, opted not to in the end. It was also leaving at 5.30 am which made the decision a bit easier. Most of our group did go.

Graeme didn't sleep well, it was a hot night, and was awake and decided to go on the morning walk around the camp at 6.30. There were 2 of us and a guide and it was good to see some different birds, trees and hear a little about conservation and wildlife.

About 1.5 hours later, back in camp, Tania was up and feeling much better after her 12.5 hour sleep. We sat out for breakfast which was fruit followed by a cooked plate.

The safari goers returned after 5 hours - only to report seeing leopard tracks, but no actual leopard !! Very disappointing for them. They had time to shower and pack and we left Yala at 11:30 starting a 3 hour drive direct to Mirissa where we went straight into our lunch stop. It was a lovely setting right on the beach front with waves crashing onto the shore very close to the restaurant. The service was pretty slow here with meals coming out at irregular intervals, and some not being served at all as it was getting late.

We checked into our hotel at 4:30, and while we were being shown to our room the porter said to us we had the best room in the house ! - and he was right. We had scored the penthouse suite, two rooms, mini kitchen, balcony with seating and 3 seperate outer doors opening back into the room, it was great and we were there for 3 nights !! The 4 poster king size bed with mosquito netting was very comfortable but the only downside was the A/C was not working, so the first night we slept with ceiling fans on full speed. The staff were so apologetic and were going to move us to another room but we were happy for the A/C to be fixed the next day.

We walked down to see the sunset from Coconut Hill Lookout, but it was cloudy and raining, so sunset was not an event tonight. The weather is 28C but feels like 33C and 80% humidity.

Day 13 Mirissa

Wednesday 12th August, 2026

The hotel staff were appreciative that we didn't complain about the air conditioning not working but first thing in the morning it was repaired and it cooled the room down nicely.

A very relaxed morning and no hurry to leave the hotel, breakfast was great and a fresh omelet and fruit served up. This morning Tania was having a hair trim from Steve, one of our fellow travellers on our balcony.

Yesterday, Graeme tried to apply for our Indian e-Visas, but the online site wouldn't let him choose the entry date of 14th August, only from 16th onwards, so he rang our travel agent (Phil Hoffman) and asked her to try and arrange it, which she was able to sort straight away --- (or so we thought!)

Today was a free day after breakfast, Tania and I had booked in for another massage each to a spa called Secret Root, on the recommendation of another couple holidaying from Dubai who had been there already. We booked for a 90 minute full body deep tissue massage, and it was a 20 min walk from the hotel. It was located along a lane off the main road, and when we got to the lane, a lady asked if we were here for the massage ?

Great - she had come out to meet us ! Anyway she took along the lane and showed us into the massage room, two girls gave us a massage and we showered after. Tania says it was the best massage she had ever had !! Big statement. Cost 8000LKR (AUS $34.00 ea) each plus we tipped each girl another 1000LKR. While paying, we noticed the sign of the spa said Serene Massage.

We stopped for our daily coffee on the way back at Loose Keys, back in time for a shower and join our group at 4.30 for a tour down to Fort Galle. Fort Galle was developed by Portuguese, Dutch and English over different periods of time and basically was there to protect shipping trade routes, sometimes called the maritime silk road. An interesting point noted by our guide was that all the cannons at the fort pointed back to the land as that was where the highest threat was, from the indigenous tribes ! It is located on a peninsula piece of land so was easy to barricade and fortify the land side.

We had a tour group farewell dinner at Fort Galle, as one couple were leaving us the following day. Dinner was excellent with a wide variety of food types to choose from, Graeme had a Mexican quesidilla and Tania had vegetable lasagna. The music was great and the owner encouraged us by allowing us to select our own songs. There was a round of shots and dancing to Abba music. The bus home was also lively with us singing songs from each of our countries. A great night !

Day 14 Mirissa

Thursday 13th August, 2026

After breakfast, the group had the option of catching the bus to an adjoining beach called Weligama. We had driven through Weligama yesterday and there appeared to be more things to see and do there than in Mirissa, so we decided to go along. While some went to sit on the beach, we walked along the beach front, seeing surf schools and then a local fresh fish market.

We then made our way back through the main street shops with similar style shops and stalls. Graeme was able to buy another pair of bathers after his old ones split along the seams yesterday after the massage. After about 2 hours there we caught a local public bus back to Mirissa. This was another highlight of our trip, the bus inside was painted all over, had disco lights going and loud reggae music blaring out. The young driver was going as fast as he could and had his hand on the horn a lot of the time. When getting on I asked the conductor how much, he said 200LKR, I said each, he said 100LKR, I said each, but in the end I paid him 100 LKR for both of us. I was happy but I think he undercharged me. It was very cheap entertainment and so much fun.

Back at Mirissa we stopped for another coffee at Loose Keys with a cool breeze blowing through the outdoor breezeway. While we were there, Gabrielle called us on her own new mobile phone, she was so excited about having her own phone, she was heading to Cairns with her Mum.

We headed to our hotel and jumped into the pool and kept Ravi active with ball tossing. Our group then went for our final dinner together at Petti Petti restaurant right on the beach front about a kilometre up the road from our hotel. Pleasant night !