Where Is Sri Lanka? Location, Map & Flight Times

Sri Lanka on the map

Sri Lanka sits in South Asia, in the Indian Ocean, close to the equator between roughly 6°N and 10°N latitude. India lies just across the Palk Strait to the northwest — at its narrowest point, only about 30 km of water separates the two countries, though there is no bridge, tunnel, or regular public ferry connecting them.

The island covers about 65,600 square kilometers. Its capital city (and main entry point for most travelers) is Colombo, on the west coast, while Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, a Colombo suburb, is the official administrative capital.

How far is Sri Lanka from major places?

Flight times vary a lot depending on where you're starting from and whether your route is nonstop or has a connection. As a rough guide:

• From London: around 10–11 hours on a direct flight, or 12–15 hours with one stop.
• From continental Europe: broadly similar to London, usually with one stop via a European or Gulf hub.
• From Dubai or Doha: roughly 4–4.5 hours.
• From Singapore: roughly 3.5–4 hours.
• From Chennai or southern India: about 1–1.5 hours.
• From Sydney or Melbourne: roughly 11–13 hours with one stop.
• Always check current routings when booking — see our flights guide for airlines and airports.

Time zone and language

Sri Lanka uses a single time zone, Sri Lanka Standard Time (SLST), which is UTC+5:30 year-round — the country does not observe daylight saving, so the time difference from the UK shifts between 4.5 and 5.5 hours depending on the time of year.

The official languages are Sinhala and Tamil. English is widely spoken in hotels, restaurants, and anywhere tourists visit, so it's easy to get by without speaking either local language.

Capital, government, and flag

Sri Lanka has two capitals: Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, a suburb of Colombo, is the official administrative and legislative capital where parliament sits, while Colombo itself is the commercial capital, largest city, and main international gateway — and the one most travelers actually mean when they say "the capital".

The national flag, sometimes called the Lion Flag, shows a gold lion holding a sword on a deep maroon field with a gold bo leaf in each corner, alongside two vertical stripes — green and saffron — representing the country's Muslim and Tamil communities. Its lion device traces back to the last Kandyan Kingdom, and the design was adopted around independence in 1948.

Religion in Sri Lanka

Buddhism, in its Theravada form, is the majority religion, followed by roughly 70% of the population and given the foremost place in the constitution. Tradition holds that Buddhism was introduced to the island in the 3rd century BCE.

Sri Lanka is nonetheless religiously diverse: sizeable Hindu, Muslim, and Christian communities live alongside the Buddhist majority, and their festivals and places of worship are part of everyday life across the island. Major Buddhist sites travelers visit include the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic in Kandy, the ancient cities of Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa, the cave temples of Dambulla, and Mihintale, traditionally considered the birthplace of Buddhism in Sri Lanka.

Frequently asked questions