Colombo Airport to Sigiriyaby shared taxi
About 3h 15min by road (146 km)
AlsoGoing is where travellers already crossing Sri Lanka post a trip, or find one to join. Free, always.
2 trips open right now across Sri Lanka
The platform
How it works
Three taps from here to a seatHow AlsoGoing works
Find someone going your way
Search a route and see who has already booked a car, van or tuk-tuk with room to spare.
Agree in the chat
Message them, settle where and when to meet. Nobody commits before they have spoken.
Split what it costs
The same journey, divided between you. Nobody pays for empty seats.
The route
Why this route
Sigiriya's rock fortress, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is at the heart of what's called the Cultural Triangle, with Dambulla's cave temples and the ancient cities of Polonnaruwa and Anuradhapura within reach. Plenty of travellers go there straight off their flight and start the island from the north, working their way south.
Your options
Getting there
There's no railway to Sigiriya itself. The nearest stations, such as Habarana, are a tuk-tuk ride away, and reaching them from the airport would mean going back through Colombo first. By bus it takes two changes, in Colombo and again at Dambulla, and most of a day.
By taxi it's about 3h 15min (146 km). A taxi is paid for the car, not the seat, so shared between four travellers each pays a quarter. How sharing a taxi works
There's no fixed fare on AlsoGoing. What you share, if anything, is agreed between you in chat before you travel.
On the day
Where to meet
At Colombo Airport
Meet in the arrivals hall once you are both through customs, and swap flight numbers beforehand: the later landing decides when the car can leave. The airport is at Katunayake, north of Colombo, so it is not the same meeting point as the city.
In Sigiriya
Sigiriya is a village around the rock rather than a town, so the entrance to the rock or the guesthouse one of you is staying at is the easiest place to name. Dambulla and Habarana are separate towns nearby: if either of you is staying there instead, say so.
Before you go
Common questions
Can I share a taxi from Colombo Airport to Sigiriya?
Yes. Travellers post the trips they are taking, often in a taxi they have booked with seats left, and you ask for a seat. You agree the split between you and settle it in person. Nothing is paid through AlsoGoing.
Is there a train from Colombo Airport to Sigiriya?
No. There's no railway to Sigiriya itself, and the nearest stations, such as Habarana, are reached from the airport only by going back through Colombo first.
How long does it take to drive from Colombo Airport to Sigiriya?
About 3h 15min by road (146 km).
Other routes
The other way
Sigiriya → Colombo Airport
Heading back from Sigiriya? The same road, the other way.
Colombo ⇄ Kandy
Colombo is where almost every visitor arrives, by air or by sea.
Kandy ⇄ Ella
From Kandy the road climbs into tea country.
Ella ⇄ Arugam Bay
Arugam Bay is one of Sri Lanka's best-known surf towns, on the east coast.
Ella ⇄ Mirissa
Mirissa is one of the south coast's main beach towns, known for whale watching and its curve of sand.
Colombo Airport ⇄ Kandy
Almost every visitor lands at Colombo Airport (CMB), at Katunayake north of the city, and many skip Colombo and head straight inland.
Going somewhere soon?
Post the trip and let people find you, or answer someone already on the road.