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Lanka Explorer is on Google Play

Lanka Explorer is a travel guide to Sri Lanka built around a hand-drawn map of the island. Tap a province and it zooms in, pins pop up, and each place opens as a postcard with a photo and the things you need to know before you go.

· 3 min read

Lanka Explorer: tap the island, discover Sri Lanka. 211 places, 9 provinces, 25 districts.

Why we built it

Sri Lanka fits beaches, ancient cities, tea country and wildlife parks into one small island, and from a list of search results it's hard to tell what's where. We're a studio in Jaffna, and we wanted visitors to see the whole island at once and explore it the way you'd look at a paper map: one region at a time.

Explore region by region

  • All 9 provinces and 25 districts on an interactive cartoon map
  • 211 hand-picked places, from Sigiriya and Ella to hidden waterfalls, quiet beaches and ancient monasteries
  • Top picks for each region, plus the full list of its places
The hand-drawn Lanka Explorer map with all nine provinces and how many places each has The Central Province zoomed in, with pins and a panel of top picks
Tap a province to zoom in and see its top picks.

Every place on a postcard

Tap a pin and the place opens as a vintage postcard: a photo, the kind of place, the best time to visit and how long you'll need. Open it up for the full story, its highlights and a local tip, then add it to My Trip. The places you save make up your own route.

Sigiriya shown as a postcard with its type, best time to visit and time needed The Sigiriya detail page with facts and an Add to my trip button
Sigiriya as a postcard, and its full page.

Find your kind of Sri Lanka

Search by place, town or district, or filter by type: beaches, heritage, wildlife, hill country, nature, culture and cities. Each place also suggests others nearby, with distances, and one tap opens directions.

A travel kit in your pocket

  • Useful Sinhala and Tamil phrases, from "hello" to "how much?"
  • Tap-to-call emergency numbers: Police 119, Ambulance 1990 and the Tourist hotline 1912
  • Tips on temple etiquette, money, getting around and the monsoons
The Discover screen with search and category filters The travel kit with Sinhala and Tamil phrases
Search and filters, and the travel kit.

Free, with no account

Lanka Explorer is free, with no ads and no sign-up. The places you save stay on your phone. Most of the place information and photos are built into the app, so you can keep browsing when the signal is patchy. The details are in the privacy policy.

Photos come from Wikimedia Commons contributors (credited in the app) and Unsplash, and the map data is © OpenStreetMap contributors via geoBoundaries. Opening hours, fees and seasonal closures change, so check them locally before you travel.

Know a place we should add?

If there's a spot you love that isn't in the app yet, or something we got wrong, email us at contact@airiz.dev. And if Lanka Explorer helps you plan a trip, a review on Google Play helps other travellers find it.