Travel Guide Kataragama

170 km southeast of Galle and 285 km from Colombo. Kataragama is one of Sri Lanka's most important and ecumenical religious sites. It brings together Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and Christians in the same fervor. All these religions, each with its own religious edifice, share a common focal point: the Maha Devale, dedicated to the god Murugan.If you visit Kataragama in July and August, you'll be overwhelmed by the thousands of devotees who gather for the 10-day Kataragama Festival, the biggest event of the year. They are joined by pilgrims completing their "Long Walk", or Kataragama Pada Yathra, a road journey begun two months earlier in the north of the country. The hustle and bustle is almost identical on Poya days. Outside these periods, and perhaps at weekends, the city is of little interest and will seem quite empty.