TikaWeeks #20/2026: Sri Lanka update
Posted by John on 13th May 2026
Free 30-day visa for 40 countries including the UK
In breaking news, the Sri Lanka parliament has approved, but the government has not yet ratified, a free 30-day visa facility to 40 countries including Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, UK, and USA.
Previously, the free visa facility was available only to citizens of China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Russia and Thailand.
However, you will still need to apply for an Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) as before, but the fee will be waived.
Although the free visa facility will cost the government around US$75 million in lost income, it is estimated that the free visa facility will bring in an extra 247,000 tourists to the country, potentially generating US$317 million in revenue, a net profit of US$242 million.
Watch this space for further updates…
Santani featured in Vogue’s Global Spa Guide
If you are a spa aficionado, then the news that Santani Wellness Resort & Spa, nestled in the misty highlands above Kandy, is included in Vogue’s inaugural Global Spa Guide of the world’s finest spa and wellness destinations will not come as a surprise since it is the latest in a constellation of international accolades that have firmly established this Sri Lankan retreat as a world-class wellness destination.
Santani, a Sanskrit word meaning in harmony with, is precisely what its name promises. Perched at 900 metres above sea level within 19 hectares of tropical forest and former tea estate land near the Knuckles Mountain Range, the resort was conceived not simply as a place to stay, but as a philosophy made physical. Its award-winning architecture of silence deliberately dissolves the boundary between indoors and out: open-sided treatment pavilions, floor-to-ceiling glass walls, and polished concrete floors cooled by the highland breeze rather than air conditioning. The surrounding landscape is not a backdrop; it is the therapy itself.
The resort comprises of 20 stand-alone chalets, 16 with sweeping mountain views and four with lush garden outlooks each designed to encourage stillness, with rooms intentionally free of televisions and Wi-Fi available only on request. The message is quietly radical: be here.
At the heart of Santani’s offering is a deeply personalised approach to wellbeing, grounded in Ayurveda, the 5,000-year-old Indian system of healing that Sri Lanka has practised and refined for centuries. Every guest begins with a consultation with the resort’s Ayurvedic physician, from which a bespoke programme of treatments, therapies, meals and movement is crafted.
The spa itself is a three-tiered, open-air sanctuary where treatments are administered to the ambient soundtrack of birdsong and rustling forest. Wet and dry saunas, open-air thermal salt pools and Ayurvedic treatment rooms sit alongside yoga pavilions and meditation spaces. The dining concept “Rasa Haya” is equally purposeful: plant-forward, locally sourced menus calibrated to each guest’s constitution and wellness goals, a programme that recently earned Santani a prestigious Michelin Key recognition for 2025.
Vogue’s own previous recognition of Santani through its Hong Kong edition, which named it among the most idyllic Ayurvedic retreats on Asian soil and the best wellness resort in Sri Lanka, paved the way for the resort’s global debut in the magazine’s spa guide.
For Asia-based travellers, Santani represents a rare opportunity: a world-recognised wellness retreat that is close to home, deeply rooted in regional healing traditions, and set within one of the continent’s most captivating landscapes. Sri Lanka’s accessibility from major Asian hubs, with Colombo’s Bandaranaike International Airport approximately four hours from the resort and scenic seaplane connections available, makes it an entirely viable long weekend escape or the centrepiece of a longer island itinerary.
In an age of wellness tourism that can often feel curated for Instagram rather than genuine restoration, Santani stands apart. There are no gimmicks, no spectacle, just the quiet discipline of a retreat that asks you, gently but firmly, to slow down, tune in, and come back to yourself.
Categories: Accommodation, Health, News, Sri Lanka, Sustainability, Travel tips
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