Ayurveda & Panchakarma
From a single oil massage to a full physician-supervised detox — at centres with a resident doctor, not spa imitations.
Ayurveda has been practised in Sri Lanka for more than two thousand years, and the coastal strip between Beruwala and Bentota holds the highest concentration of authentic centres anywhere on the island.
A short visit might be an abhyanga oil massage by two therapists working in unison, followed by a steam box and a herbal tea. A full programme is a different proposition: it opens with a consultation with an Ayurvedic physician who reads your constitution and prescribes a course of treatments, a diet and a daily routine over one to three weeks. Panchakarma — the deep detox — needs at least fourteen days to be worth doing. We only work with centres that have a registered resident physician, which rules out most hotel spas using the word.
What’s included
- Consultation with a registered Ayurvedic physician
- Abhyanga four-hand oil massage and shirodhara
- Herbal steam treatments and flower baths
- Daily yoga and meditation sessions
- Full panchakarma detox programmes from 14 days
- Prescribed Ayurvedic diet throughout your stay
Add Ayurveda & Panchakarma to your trip
Tell us roughly when you are in the country and we will check availability, arrange the transport to get you there and fold it into the rest of your itinerary.
- A reply within 24 hoursUsually the same working day.
- Fits around your plansWe work it into the days you already have.
- Nothing to pay nowNo card details to check availability.
Other things to do
All activities
Half day (two dives)Diving & Snorkelling
Coral gardens, colonial-era shipwrecks and reef sharks — on whichever coast is in season.
PriceOn enquiry
2 hours to multi-day campsSurfing
One of the easiest places in the world to learn, and a serious destination once you can stand up.
PriceOn enquiry
5–6 hoursWhale & Dolphin Watching
The largest animal that has ever lived, within a morning boat ride of the shore.
PriceOn enquiry