With four major religions, diverse culture and no less than 25 public holidays, the teardrop island of Sri Lanka is a land of vibrant festivals and colourful celebrations. Sri Lankan festivities don’t only showcase the culture and religions of the country, but also its intriguing history and beautiful traditions. Here is our list of the most exciting and intriguing festivals to experience whilst on a tailor-made Sri Lanka holiday.

01. Kandy Esala Perahera

The Kandy Esala Perahera is a week-long festival which is considered one of the oldest and most extravagant of Sri Lanka’s Buddhist celebrations. This grand holiday observed in the month of Esala (July or August), is also known as the Festival of the Tooth and pays homage to the sacred tooth relic of the Buddha, which is enshrined in the city’s revered temple. During this period, thousands of Sri Lankan’s flock to the central city of Kandy to watch and take part in the extravaganza. Throughout the festival, some 5,000 dancers, drummers, fire jugglers, musicians perform during various celebrations and processions who are all lavishly dressed wearing elaborate traditional costumes. Even elephants take part in the parade and are adorned with flamboyant garments and gems.With spectacular goings-on every day during the festival, the experience is unmissable if you are in Sri Lanka during this time.

02. Vesak Poya

Observed and celebrated by Buddhists, this important religious and cultural festival begins on the full moon of the lunar month of Vesak, which is May on the Gregorian calendar. This week-long celebration, known as the Festival of Light, commemorates the Buddha’s birth, attainment of enlightenment and his passing into nirvana. During Vesak, the whole island and especially Colombo, becomes a kaleidoscope of coloured lights and lanterns, whilst devotees hand out food and drinks to passers-by and spend the days in their local temple practising religious activities such as praying and fasting. Amid the festivities, the highlight is the colourful lanterns and lights outside ever Buddhist home, temple and shop, it truly is a mesmerising sight. If in Sri Lanka in May, Vesak Poya is a wonderful and vibrant festival for visitors to experience, however the sale of alcohol and fresh meat is usually prohibited during the week period.

03. Vel Festival

Vel is Sri Lanka’s most important Hindu festival which reflects the religious and cultural heritage of Hinduism. The main celebrations take part in Colombo which attracts thousands of pilgrims from all over the island. Dedicated to the war god Skandha, the festivities commemorate the victory over evil forces and worships his trident, the vel. During the main procession in Colombo which starts in Pettah and ends in Bambalapitiya, Skandha’s vel is placed in a dazzling gold chariot which is pulled by hundreds of devotees dressed simply in white with their faces smeared in holy ash. Accompanying the main event is hundreds of musicians, dancers, acrobats and elephants who snake through the various parts of the city.