How to check train times & fares...

On this page you'll find timetables & fares for the most popular trains, stations & routes:

Colombo - Kandy - Hatton - Nuwara Eliya - Elle - Badulla

Colombo - Galle - Matara

Colombo - Galoya - Polonnaruwa, Batticaloa, Trincomalee

Colombo - Anuradhapura - Talaimannar/Vavuniya - Jaffna

Colombo commuter:  Negombo, Mt Laviniya, Kalutara, Puttalam, Avissawella

You can check train times between any two stations at www.railway.gov.lk, the official Sri Lanka Railways website.  Click English, then click the pink Train schedule button and use the journey planner.

You can also check train times & prices between specific stations using the journey planner at slr.malindaprasad.com.  This site is mobile friendly, so you can add it to your smartphone's home screen and take it with you to Sri Lanka.

These sites only handle direct trains, so don't expect them to tell you how to get from (say) Kandy to Galle except on the once a day direct train.  And they may only show trains as having 2nd & 3rd class even if they also have 1st - although relatively few trains offer 1st class.  And the two sites sometimes disagree, so always double-check times locally.

For a detailed zoomable map of the Sri Lanka train network on openstreetmap.com, click here.

How to buy tickets...

...for unreserved cars

Sri Lanka Railways 2nd & 3rd class unreserved cars cannot be booked in advance.

Tickets are only sold on the day at the ticket office, sometimes from only an hour before departure.  Turn up, buy a ticket and hop on, it's easy.  Tickets cannot sell out.

Virtually all trains have unreserved cars.  The unreserved cars are often crowded, whether you get a seat depends on whether you're joining at the starting station or en route, and how busy that day or time is.  If all seats are taken you stand, ideally wedged in an open doorway with a breeze wafting in and great views...

At Colombo Fort station, specific ticket windows are designated for specific routes:

 - Counter 1 for Anuradhapura, Vavuniya, Talaimannar & Jaffna.

 - Counters 2 or 8 for Kandy, Hatton, Nanuoya, Haputale, Elle, Badulla.

 - Counter 3 for Batticaloa or Trincomalee.

 - Counter 4 for any station, 1st & 2nd class tickets only.

 - Counters 13 or 14 for Galle & Matara.

 On the Colombo-Galle-Matara route, virtually all seats are unreserved so pre-booking is neither necessary nor possible.  The same goes for all Colombo Commuter trains including the Puttalam & Avissawella lines.

 Tip:  Many trains to Galle & Matara start at Colombo Maradana station before calling at the main Colombo Fort station.  Rather than board at Colombo Fort when most of the seats will already be taken, if you board at Colombo Maradana you stand a good chance of getting a good seat on the coastal (right hand) side of the train.

 ...for reserved cars

What is a reserved car?

Many important longer-distance trains have a designated 2nd class reserved car and sometimes a 3rd class reserved car, in addition to the many unreserved cars.  Some trains have a 1st class car and 1st class seats are always reserved.

Seats in these reserved cars can be booked up to 30 days in advance - increased from 10 to 45 days in 2013, then reduced to 30 in 2016.

If you buy a ticket for a reserved car you are guaranteed a seat, and a specific seat number will be printed on your ticket.  The reserved cars are jealously guarded by an attendant, indeed he may lock off some exterior & gangway doors to control access, and there are no standees allowed - so reserved cars aren't crowded.

Demand for reserved seats exceeds supply...

Tickets for the reserved cars often sell out, so it's a good idea to buy tickets in advance before you get to Sri Lanka as explained in the next section.

Seats in 1st class observation cars & the air-con 1st class car on the blue trains from Colombo to Kandy & Badulla usually sell out almost as soon as booking opens as do 1st class sleeping berths on all the Night Mail trains.  2nd class reserved cars also sell out well in advance on the Hill Country trains from Colombo to Kandy & Badulla, so book ahead.

If you are told that a train is full...

..this only means that the reserved cars have sold out.  You can still buy an unreserved ticket at the station on the day for the 2nd & 3rd class unreserved cars, these cannot sell out.  So you can still travel on that train, just without a reserved seat.

Tip:  If 2nd class reserved is sold out, ask for a 3rd class reserved ticket (if available).  A reserved seat in 3rd is much better than standing in 2nd unreserved.

At Colombo Fort...

...you can buy tickets for 1st, 2nd or 3rd class reserved seat cars at the Berth/Intercity Reservations Office at Colombo Fort, marked counter 17, accessed from the front of the station towards the left hand end of the station facade.  Inside the office there are separate counters for specific routes.  According to the Sri Lanka Railways website it's open 05:00-14:00, closed for lunch 12:30-13:30, but I have found it open as late as 17:00.  Go figure, as the Americans say...

The Railway Tourist Information Office at the front of Colombo Fort sells expensive tours, but not train tickets, so don't bother with this.

In Kandy, you can make reservations at ticket office counters 1 & 2, marked as the Intercity counter.    

How to buy tickets online...

Sri Lankan Railways don't offer online booking, so to buy tickets for a reserved car before you get to Sri Lanka you'll need to use an agency.

Option 1, buy online at 12go.asia.

You can order Sri Lanka train tickets from 12go.asia, a reliable agency specialising in rail & bus booking throughout Southeast Asia and already popular for train bookings Thailand and Vietnam.

You must order tickets more than 32 days before travel - this allows 12go.asia to process your order and buy the tickets for you as soon as Sri Lanka Railways opens booking, which gives you the best chance of getting the date, train & class that you want.  Even so, tickets are in high demand, so I recommend selecting the Flexible option when you book, so that if your first choice of train or class is unavailable, they'll get you the next best class or next best departure on the same day.

You collect tickets from an office in Colombo or for a small extra fee tickets can be delivered to your hotel.

Note that 12go.asia have programmed their site with all the most popular station to station journeys including Colombo to or from the main tourist destinations of Kandy, Nanuoya & Ella, but not every possible station to station pair.  Also remember that only reserved seat tickets can be ordered, unreserved tickets must be bought at the station on the day.

Feedback would be appreciated if you use them.

Option 2, VisitSriLankaTours.  Another recommended agency is visitsrilankatours.co.uk/train-tickets-1.html.  I have had numerous positive reports from people who have used them, and I have used them myself.  Tickets can be collected at most major railway stations.

Option 3, Tourmastertravelservices.  Another agency with an easy-to-use website with a page for ordering train tickets is tourmastertravelservices.com.  I have had at least two very positive reports about Tourmaster so far, more feedback would be appreciated.

The privately-run ExpoRail & Rajadhani carriages Colombo-Kandy/Hatton-Nanuoya-Elle-Badulla & Colombo-Galle-Matara can be booked online at www.exporail.lk & www.rajadhani.lk.  But currently, Exporail have ceased operation and their website is down.  Rajadhani's website says they are temporarily suspended too.

Remember these agencies only make bookings for the 'reserved' cars.  Even if you're told the train is 'fully booked', you can always buy a ticket on the day and travel 'unreserved', see the explanation above.