Unawatuna Beach

Unawatuna lies on the south coast of Sri Lanka in Galle District, about 5 kilometres south east of Galle Fort. Its beach curves around a small bay protected by a reef and by Rumassala hill at its western end.

Local tradition links Rumassala to the Ramayana, saying it is a piece of a Himalayan mountain dropped by Hanuman while carrying medicinal herbs. The area was a fishing village before tourism grew from the 1970s. The beach was badly hit by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami and was rebuilt in the years after.

The reef keeps the water calmer than many beaches on this coast, so swimming is easier, especially from November to April. Snorkelling around the reef and rocks shows coral and tropical fish, and sea turtles are sometimes seen. Dive centres run trips to nearby wrecks and reefs.

A short walk over the headland leads to Jungle Beach, a small cove backed by forest, and to the white Japanese Peace Pagoda on Rumassala hill, with views back toward Galle. The forests around the bay are home to the purple-faced langur, a monkey found only in Sri Lanka. Restaurants, guesthouses and bars line the sand, and Dalawella Beach with its rope swing is just to the east.

There is no entry fee. During the south west monsoon from May to October the sea can be rough, and some businesses reduce their hours.

Sand has eroded in places over the years, and ATMs are available in the village and in nearby Galle. Unawatuna railway station is on the coastal line from Colombo to Matara, and the A2 highway passes behind the village, about 108 kilometres from Colombo.

The name itself comes from the Ramayana story. Una-watuna is read as "fell down", the place where a piece of Hanuman's mountain dropped. Another local legend tells of a shipwrecked Indian prince who reached the shore here and was later honoured as a deity; the devalaya, or shrine of the gods, at the west end of the bay is said to be more than a thousand years old. Each year in the month of Esala, pilgrims bring rice to the shrine for the Kiri Dana alms-giving, and fishermen set aside part of their catch earnings to ask for protection at sea.

European history also landed here. After taking Negombo from the Portuguese, the Dutch came ashore at Unawatuna in 1640 and marched on Galle. The fighting at Magalle cost more than 400 Dutch lives, but the Portuguese garrison surrendered after a four-day siege. The Dutch later built houses for officials in the village, and the Galle tower on Rumassala, known as Edward's Pillar, is believed to have been a dummy lighthouse built during the First World War.

Birdwatchers have recorded more than sixty bird species around the marsh and Rumassala, including Loten's sunbird and the black bittern. In December 2011 the authorities cleared many illegal structures from the beachfront, which opened up parts of the sand again. The turtle hatcheries at Habaraduwa are among the area's listed attractions.