How to get to Kandy, transportation

Most often Kandy is visited as part of Group sightseeing tours. Such tours are one-day, when the group is brought to the city for one day, introduced to the Temple of the tooth of the Buddha and the Royal Botanical Garden of Peradeniya. There are also overnight tours, and then tourists are given free time to walk around the city. You can purchase such excursions at any resort in Sri Lanka.

But if you want to visit the city for a longer period, or just go here for one day with an overnight stay, there will be no difficulty in getting to Kandy from anywhere in Sri Lanka. You can get there by train, bus, taxi, and even fly by plane. Here are brief instructions:

• Airport-Kandy. The airport can be reached directly by local bus, or by bus and train via Colombo. If finances allow, you can fly by plane in 30 minutes and 150 dollars.
• Colombo-Kandy. There are many buses and trains from Colombo. The cost of the trip from 159 rupees (from 0.48 USD).
• Negombo – Kandy. Bus No. 245/1 departs from Negombo every 20-60 minutes. The journey is 4 hours.
• Sigiriya – Kandy. There are no direct buses, you need to transfer to Polonnaruwe. To Polonnaruwa bus goes 3 and a half hours, from 180 rupees.
• Nuwara Eliya. Bus 2 hours, from 120 rupees, or train to Nanu Oya (Nanu Oya).
• Dambulla. There are direct buses
• Hikkaduwa. You need to go with a change of bus or train to Colombo.
• Anuradhapura. There are direct buses, or connecting to Colombo by train.

Below on this page is detailed about all the ways to get to Kandy. If you do not want to go into the complexity of public transport, you can book a tourist transfer to Kandy, which can be done through the search form below. In this case, the driver of a personal car will meet you at the airport of arrival with a sign. Payment is made online, Russian-language support is present. Payment is per car, not per person:

✈ By plane

Near Kandy is a small airport, where flights are operated on small propeller aircraft. Flights are carried out on small propeller aircraft, are very expensive, from $ 150 one way. Flights are operated from Colombo Bandaranaike International Airport by Cinnamon Air twice daily, and by SriLankan Airlines. The flight takes 30 minutes. From the landing point of the aircraft on the river or landing strip to the center of Kandy can only be reached by taxi.

You can find and book flights to the main airport of Colombo in Sri Lanka through the search form. The search is very flexible, and allows you to find flights on different dates, with or without transfers, both ways or one, etc.:

ЦЕНА	ПЕРЕСАДКИ	АВИАКОМПАНИЯ	ДАТА ВЫЛЕТА	ДАТА ВОЗВРАЩЕНИЯ
Купить от 45278 ₽	1 пересадка		18.06.2026	16.07.2026
Купить от 54858 ₽	1 пересадка		09.07.2026	16.07.2026
Купить от 54684 ₽	1 пересадка		09.08.2026	08.09.2026
Купить от 51095 ₽	2 пересадки		25.09.2026	08.10.2026
Купить от 52732 ₽	1 пересадка		07.10.2026	22.10.2026
Купить от 51416 ₽	2 пересадки		30.11.2026	21.12.2026

🚆 By train

This is not the fastest, but the most exciting option for a trip to Kandy. The route passes through picturesque hills sheltered by tea plantations, the views are mesmerizing. Moreover, in the first class there are special cars with a viewing platform at the top. Tickets are not very expensive, and if you do not have a goal to get very economically, we recommend getting to the observation deck at least once during your trip to Sri Lanka. But keep in mind that if you plan to travel by train from Kandy further towards Nuwara Eliya and Badulla, there the views will be even better.

Direct train to Kandy can be reached from Colombo, Matale, Hutton (to get to Adam's peak), Nanu Oya (near Nuwara Eliya), Ella, Badullah. With a transfer to Colombo, you can get from any other city in Sri Lanka where there is a railway.

In terms of time, the trip from Colombo takes just under 3 hours. Trains leave at least 9 times a day. Schedules from Colombo and other cities can be found here - https://eservices.railway.gov.lk.

A third class ticket costs 105 rupees (from 0.45 USD), the second-190, the first reaches 500. Tickets for the second and third class are purchased immediately before departure, first class is best booked in advance.

To get by train directly from Colombo Bandaranaike International Airport, you must first take a taxi or bus to the railway station in Colombo – Colombo Fort. How to do this is detailed here - how to get to Colombo.

The railway station in Kandy is a kilometer from the center (railway station on the map). With light backpacks, you can walk from here to the city center or take a tuk-tuk for 100 rupees (from 0.3 USD).

Read more about traveling by train in Sri Lanka...

And here are the train and bus schedules in Kandy available for online booking:

🚌 By bus

Bus is the cheapest option to get to Kandy. You can come to Kandy directly from almost any city, including the airport. In rare cases, you will need a transfer to Colombo. Buses are large intercity air-conditioned, and there are simple regular buses. The latter are much cheaper.

In Kandy there are several bus stations, that's just the most important:

• Main bus station Goods Shed Bus Station (station on the map). A huge bus station, where all buses arrive from distant destinations. From the Center/Lake to it a little more than a kilometer.
• Stop near the clock Tower (stop on the map). It is the stop where most buses of non-long-distance destinations stop, and buses to Peradena, Matale, Kegal.
• Commercial bus station (station on the map). Superior buses to Colombo, Negombo and other cities depart from their bus station on Station Road.

If you get confused with the stations, it's easier to do this: when you arrive, you will find yourself at one of these stations, and they are all nearby and not far from the center, so you can get to the hotel or the lake on foot or by tuk-tuk for about 100 rupees(from 0.3 USD). If you need to go to the Botanical Garden, elephant nursery or other attractions in the area, go to the clock tower. If you need to go to Colombo and other cities, go to the main or Station Road, and ask the locals.

There are many flights, they go often. Kandy is a very important city, so from anywhere in the country you can go directly or with a transfer to Colombo and other cities. There is no point in studying the schedule, since buses run everywhere often, every 15-60 minutes.

• By bus from the airport

  From Avariwatta bus station, two kilometers from the airport (Avariwatta bus station on the map) there are direct buses No. 245 to Kandy. They ply only in the daytime, are sent on filling, about 1-2 times a month. The journey is 3 hours, cost 140 rupees. You can get to Averivvat by tuk-tuk for 50-100 rupees (bargaining), on foot for 20-30 minutes (walk 2 kilometers).

  Another way is to get first to the bus station in Colombo, and then from there to Kandy, but neither in time nor in money will the benefits work, rather the opposite.

• By bus from Colombo

  From a bus station in Colombo (Colombo station on the map) there are many buses to Kandy. There is a direct route to Kandy (Route 1), and there is a passage to other cities. They are sent every 15-20 minutes. To find the right bus, ask the locals and the drivers, they will indicate which one will suit you. Travel time is 3 and a half hours, cost from 150 rupees.

Transport, how to move around the city

The center of Kandy, where the sights are located, is very small, you can walk around everything. You can also get to the railway station or bus station on foot (a little more than a kilometer from the lake), or take a tuk-tuk for 100 rupees.

To see the sights in the surrounding area, it is cheaper to take buses. There are a lot of routes, you can get there for a penny. To find the right bus, it is most convenient to come to the ring to the clock tower, and call the local or drivers the place where you need. Also in ourlist of attractions in Kandy we have indicated, if possible, ways to get to each of them. Peak hours when buses are very crowded: from 06:00 to 09:00 and from 16:00 to 19:00.

Transport rental in Kandy is not developed, we (the authors of the site) could not find motorcycle rental here. But in recent years, a new option has appeared-tuk-tuk rental. You can find and rent a tuk-tuk directly from the owners, or you can do it through the site - https://tuktukrental.com/. Rental prices are $ 25 per day, discounts for the long term.