Whether lazing under the coconut palms with a cold drink, or stepping on to a moonlit white-sand beach, there is something about Sri Lanka that cannot be replaced by anything else.

Yes, the long-haul flight will put a dent in your budget – a return fare on a direct service from London to Colombo will set you back at least £700 – but once you get here everything else is incredibly cheap.

Thanks to a combination of a weak currency, a custom-starved tourist industry, and a government yearning for dollars and pounds, you can get sensational bargains – think luxury hotels for half or even a third their normal tariff.

What’s more, by coming here, you are doing Sri Lankans a big favour. Because they want us here. And it is rather nice to be eagerly welcomed. Especially with that modest bill at the end!

Heading 100 miles south of the capital Colombo along the coast to historic Galle, I could get a one-way Uber down the expressway for just £23, but I opt for something more romantic.

The train trundles along the seashore, meaning you can spend two hours watching fishermen hauling in silvery handallos (not unlike whitebait) from the comfort of your seat.

Pineapple and samosa vendors ply the platforms and carriages, so you won’t go hungry, either. And the price? A first-class ticket was 600 Sri Lankan rupees. That’s just £1.35.

Galle

Old Galle (pictured above) is a near-flawless example of an 18th-century Dutch colonial fortress town. Pre-Covid, it rather overrun with visitors, especially in peak season. However, now you can wander the uncrowned colonnaded, wood-and-whitewash streets from dawn to dusk.

At these prices, all of Sri Lanka is your Indian Ocean oyster. You could go inland to the hill-towns and tea plantations, or enjoy fabulous beaches at Hikkaduwa to the west or Marissa to the east. But I want a last taste of Colombo.

I tour the city’s vivacious markets, I buy cute souvenirs for pennies, I admire the temples, mosques, lakes and cathedrals, and walk five minutes along the boulevard to the great British-colonial Galle Face Hotel.

I drink rather too many excellent dry martinis on the oceanside terrace as I absorb the priceless beauty. And the cost? Several hours and blissful drinks in a world-famous beachside hotel was the same as two pints of lager in my local pub back home.

Getting there

Your biggest expense will be your flight. Sri Lankan Airlines (srilankan.com) flies direct from Heathrow to Colombo, with return fares in January 2023 from around £800.

Getting around

Trains are quite slow but extremely cheap, you can generally just turn up 20 minutes before your journey, and buy a ticket in 1st or 2nd class. 3rd is “characterful”. See rome2rio.com for times. For short journeys, tuk-tuks are best: reckon on about £1 per kilometre.