Trincomalee
The harbour everyone wanted
Trincomalee is a port city on Sri Lanka's east coast, built around one of the largest natural deep-water harbours in the world. Contested in turn by Portuguese, Dutch, French and British forces, it holds the Koneswaram temple on Swami Rock and the beaches of Uppuveli and Nilaveli.
The account
Trincomalee's harbour is the reason for its entire history. It is among the finest natural deep-water anchorages anywhere — sheltered, deep enough for the largest vessels, and positioned on the Bay of Bengal. Every naval power that reached the Indian Ocean wanted it, and most of them held it briefly. Portuguese, Dutch, French, British, in that rough order, with the fort changing hands repeatedly.
Koneswaram sits on Swami Rock above the harbour mouth, a Hindu temple of great antiquity on a headland that falls straight into the sea. The Portuguese destroyed the original in 1622 and used its stone in the fort below. What stands now was rebuilt in the twentieth century, and objects from the old temple have since been recovered from the seabed beneath the cliff.
The east coast runs on the opposite monsoon to the south and west, which is the practical thing to know. When Mirissa and Galle are being rained on from May to September, Trincomalee is dry and calm. It is the reason the beaches at Uppuveli and Nilaveli north of town fill in exactly the months the south empties.
The war closed this coast to visitors for decades and it is still much quieter than the south. That will not last indefinitely.
In brief
- Harbour
- among the world's largest natural deep-water ports
- Koneswaram destroyed
- 1622, by Portuguese forces
- Best season
- May to September
- Beaches
- Uppuveli and Nilaveli, north of town
- From Colombo
- approximately 6 hours by road
- Region
- Trincomalee, Eastern Province
- Coordinates
- 8.5874, 81.2152
Questions about Trincomalee
What is the best time to visit Trincomalee?
- May to September. The east coast runs on the opposite monsoon cycle to the south and west, so Trincomalee is dry and calm precisely when Galle and Mirissa are wet. The northeast monsoon brings rain here from roughly October to January.
What is Koneswaram temple?
- Koneswaram is a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva, standing on Swami Rock above Trincomalee harbour. An ancient and important site of pilgrimage, the original temple was destroyed by Portuguese forces in 1622; the present structure was rebuilt in the twentieth century on the same headland.
Is Trincomalee better than the south coast?
- It depends entirely on the month. Trincomalee is at its best from May to September, when the south coast is under monsoon; the south is better from November to April. Trincomalee is also markedly quieter, with less development and fewer visitors.
