Water Sports you Must Try During Your Holiday in Sri Lanka – Fun in the Water!

While not the most adrenaline-pumping of all water sports, this star of all family-friendly boat rides makes an appearance at most hotels or water sports centres around the island. This is because this much-loved boat ride is capable of carrying around six to eight people at once; and is suitable for almost everyone of all ages and abilities, from little kids to older adults, since all you have to do is sit on the inflatable boat and hang on, while the speedboat that pulls you along does all the rest. Non-swimmers just need to take extra precaution that their life jackets are in good order and strapped tightly to their body. All this has made the banana boat a popular group activity for families. To spice things up, you can always request the instructor to make sure to capsize the boat near the end of your ride so that everyone gets to muck around in the water. Make sure, however, that there are either no non-swimmers on your particular boat, however, or that they are comfortable with falling into the water.

Many water sports centres, both standalone ones and those that are part of a resort, offer this activity. Sometimes, you can even find individuals along certain beaches in Sri Lanka, such as the ones in Galle, who operate their own Jet Ski and rent it out to tourists for rides of around 15 minutes in duration. Usually how it works is that you don your life jacket, get a briefing of a few minutes on how the Jet Ski is operated, and what safety measures you must take, and then you set off on the Jet Ski along with your instructor. Depending on your preference and skill level, and how fast you want to go, your instructor may either sit behind you and allow you to drive the Jet Ski or sit in front of you and drive it themselves. If they are confident that you are an experienced user, and are unlikely to crash and cause harm to the Jet Ski and yourself, they may even let you take the Jet Ski out on the water unaccompanied.

This sport is sort of like a lying-down version of surfing for dummies. You use a small board which is scarcely bigger than the floats given to you to hang on to when you're first learning swimming and mastering the art of kicking properly in the water. The board is placed under your belly and you brace yourself against it as you ride the crest of waves back to shore, similar to what surfers do, only they do it standing up and on a full-size board. Boogie boarding is good for little kids, those who can't surf as well as the less athletic as it isn't as strenuous as surfing can be for beginners. It also requires almost no core strength of which a lot is required to even stand up on a surfing board. If you're interested in trying out this sport, many places such as Mirissa and Galle offer it. Consider organising a trip through one of the island's many tour operators such as Sri Lanka Tailor-made and similar others, who have experience crafting unique Sri Lanka luxury holidays to suit your budget and needs.

Now here's an activity that's both relaxing at times and gets your blood pumping at others. Places like Kithulgala in Sri Lanka are known as white water rafting hotspots. Jump into a kayak and navigate the rapids like a pro. Never been kayaking before? No problem. There will be trained professionals aboard to help you. They'll also equip you with all the necessary items and safety gear, and give you a brief training session on how everything works.