A long, wide stretch of golden sand lined with fishing boats and palmyrah palms, one of the north-east's most peaceful and undeveloped beaches.

Overview

Mullaitivu Beach runs for kilometres along the coast beside the town, a broad ribbon of golden sand backed by palms and dotted with the brightly painted boats of local fishermen. Almost entirely free of resorts and crowds, it offers a rare taste of an unspoilt Sri Lankan shore, best enjoyed on foot at sunrise as the fishing fleet comes in. The warm dry-zone climate keeps it sunny through much of the year when the west coast is under monsoon.

History

Fishing has been the lifeblood of Mullaitivu for centuries, and the beach was the working shore of a small trading harbour. The coastline was devastated by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami and scarred by the final phase of the civil war, but the fishing communities have since returned and rebuilt along the sand.