Archive for the 'services' Category

Good Opportunities at Arugam Bay

Published on 19/01/2012 in From our own Correspondent, Money Matters, accomodation, front page, hotels and the bay. 0 Comments

Arugam Bay has not enough quality rooms.
To cope with the unprecedented demand.

So far, there have been few improvements since 2004.

Aerial View of the Bay


Room capacity just has not kept up with the amount of visitors wishing to explore the Bay and  its unique surroundings.

Below are just two examples of current projects in the Bay looking for suitable partners:

Owner driven Apartments with Surf Point View

3 Star Hotel planned

Some excellent opportunities exists now.
Arugam Bay is very popular and will have a brilliant future.
Property prices are set to rise sharply.
Wise investors are looking at the Bay.
They seem to realize that good profits will be made .

last weekend "Arugam Surf" passed 80,000+ friends

Basically, the entire Country just had 800,000 visitors last year, 2010.
Arugam Bay has attracted more than 10% of them on its Facebook page.
A strong indication how popular the remote, little Bay will become!

Cool Idea!

Published on 17/01/2012 in From our own Correspondent, Money Matters, front page, services, shops and the bay. 2 Comments

“……No more plastic bottles would be littering the beautiful Bay…”

This article was first published on arugam.info on 14th March, 2007
We re-publish it today, in response to “The Island” article above.
*****************************************************************

Fresh drinking water at Arugam Bay still presents a major problem, to this very day.
None of the educated (?) NGO’s, who claim to be “experts” in their chosen fields ever managed to came up with a true, ‘sustainable’ idea which actually worked.
In more than two years (after our Tsunami) .
Instead, they managed to waste millions of donor’s hard earned cash.

Arugam.info sees no real problem.
Forward thinking Thais,  just 2,000 km due East of Arugam Bay, have long embraced popular reverse osmosis water dispensers.
Even in the USA some, unlike “Mercy Corpse”  may have heard of it….:

osmosiswaterdispenser.jpg
Indeed, on every street corner in the Kingdom of Siam you will see residents refilling their PVC bottles and containers with fresh, clean, and fully trusted water.
A good contribution to the environment:
Every sane person should be concerned about PVC waste piling up and spoiling the environment! And this  for ages, maybe even 500 years ahead. Continue reading ‘Cool Idea!’

This weekend’s last supper

Published on 15/01/2012 in From our own Correspondent, Traveler's Reports, front page, people, stop over Ideas and wild life. 0 Comments

Another beautiful, mild & sunny weekend comes to a close
At Arugam Bay
Below are a few impressions how some enjoyed their last supper.
The Eastern Coastal road still ends at  Arugam Bay & beyond,.
A real Dead End, at the the wide river at Kumana.
No modern catering  facilities there. So far.

A rare leopard at Kumana. He had his dinner ...

Waiting. For his second supper....

Arugam Bay by Duncan MacFarlane

Published on 09/01/2012 in Arugam Bay Surf Club, Arugam Surf Club, Arugambay Surf Club, Blogs, Facebook Fan Club: Arugam Surf, Surf competition, Traveler's Reports, front page and surf. 0 Comments

Arugam Bay. Main Point in front, P'Ville & Whiskey Point shown on top, up North

Arugam Bay by Duncan MacFarlane

Trips abroad are always a tasty side-dish to the long hours on the sand that are most surf photographer’s meat-and-potatoes, but when Duncan Macfarlane got the call from 18seconds Magazine earlier this year to jump on the next plane to Sri Lanka he knew he was in for a particularly spicy assignment. Several weeks later he was back, reeking of curry, with a hard-drive full if images, a beard full roti crumbs and head full of stories about mindless right-handers.

The chef’s special on Sri Lanka’s menu-board of uncrowded points is Arugam Bay.

SPOT CHECK – Arugam Bay

Arugam Point
Arugam Point is the main wave in the area and generally the most crowded. An average wave breaks for about 100 metres, but if you find a pearler you could ride for 300 metres or more. The wind is always best in the morning before the trades come up around 10-11am. The point can handle plenty of swell up to eight-foot.

Inside point
Some 300 metres in from the Point is Inside Point. It doesn’t connect with the outside section, so don’t get too exited. On an average day this wave is a fun, gentle break for beginners learning to surf, but it’s wedgy and out of the wind.

Potuvill Point
Several hundred metre right point on sand bottom. The wave is generally about half the size of Arugam Point and is more protected from the trade winds than other places. It’s only a few kilometres away and faces roughly the same direction. Continue reading ‘Arugam Bay by Duncan MacFarlane’

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The Basses. Just South of AbaY

Published on 14/12/2011 in Blogs, From our own Correspondent, Traveler's Reports, front page and people. 1 Comment

Sunken Treasure, Golden Pearl Island

Sri Lanka Holidays: Sunken Treasure, Golden Pearl Island and Ravana’s Swaymbhu lingum by bunpeiris

If a sheer single word could bring about the most divine joy, the word “treasure” would take the pole position to race against the most precious of all words: father, mother, son, daughter and lover. Of course, you may re-order the words, for your lover would hardly approve the sequence. Of course, you may hold the sequence at your peril but nobody would twitch a muscle nor bat an eye. Keep your eyes peeled and ears open for there’s more to swing low and final thrust of the argument is still ahead. If such is the magic of the single word, the ultimate magic could perhaps be encapsulated in a pair of words: sunken treasure.

The Great Basses Lighthouse off KirindaThe Great Basses Lighthouse off Kirinda

In the year1958, Mike Wilson discovered a hitherto unknown spectacular underwater territory that sparked interest in snorkling, scuba diving (skin diving), wreck diving and submarine photography (underwater photography) in the southern coast of Sri Lanka Holidays. The location was the Great Basses Reef, 6 miles away (as the crow flies) from Kirinda in the mainland (island of Sri Lanka). Great Basses Ridge and Little Basses Ridge run almost parallel to the southern coast of Sri Lanka. The wave-swept line of submerged rocks of Great Basses is home to Great Basses Light house while the Little Bases Ridge houses Little Basses Light house. Both light houses were then run by Imperial Light House Service of Great Britain. Close to the location of Little Basses light house is Daedalus Rock the site where Her Majesty’s ship Daedalus had been wrecked upon.

In the year 1959, Arthur C. Clarke and Rodney Johnklass joined Mike Wilson on an expedition. Arthur narrates: around the lighthouse was a fantastic submarine fairyland of caves, grottoes, coral-encrusted valleys-and fish in numbers such as I have never seen anywhere else in the world. Sometimes they crowded round us so closely that we could see nothing but a solid wall of scales and had literarily to push our way through. They were inquisitive and completely unafraid. During our visit we met eagle rays, turtles, angelfish, jacks, tuna (up to three hundred pounds!), groupers, and sharks, especially the latter. Arthur C. Clarke: The Indian Ocean Treasure (1972)

The Great Basses Reef and The Little Basses ReefThe Great Basses Reef and The Little Basses Reef

In the year 1961 Mike Wilson was once again at the Great Basses Reef. Arthur C, Clarke and Rodney Johnklass missed him. But then Mike managed pretty well without them, for he was accompanied by a couple of first class divers, members of the official U.S. community. They were young fellows. Arthur C. Clarke had no idea how his buddy Mike had managed to persuade the parents of Boby Kriegal and Mark Smith. They were only fourteen and thirteen years of age respectively.

Travel to Kirinda from Colombo (175 miles)

Quote Arthur C. Clarke: Mark Smith’s (14) diary, March 12, 1961 “Arrived.” That one word covers a 175-mile drive down the beautiful, palm-fringed, southwest coast of Ceylon-surely one of the loveliest in the world-past dozens of fishing villages with their picturesque outrigger boats drawn up on the beaches. The journey goes through the ancient port of Galle-which, say some historians, may be the Tarshish of the Bible–and beyond that into a lonely landscape of still lagoons and patches of jungle. You may meet wild elephants here, but they seldom bother motorists. Unquote

The tricky rope trip from boat to the LighthouseThe tricky rope trip from boat to the Lighthouse

The seaport of Galle is home to VOC Galle Dutch Fort, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Galle is a conveniently located to make visits to Sri Lanka Holidays Wild life sanctuaries Udawalave, Ruhuna Yala as well as to Sri Lanka Holidaysancient cities of Kataragama andTissmaharama of Ruhuna, the cradle of the heroes of then Lanka and now Sri Lanka.

Boat ride from Kirinda to Light house of Imperial Light house Service at Great Basses Ridge (10 miles, as you sail)

Kirinda, a small fishing village is home to the boat house built by the imperial Light house Service of the colonial ruler, Great Britain. The boat “Pharos” leaves for the Light house Continue reading ‘The Basses. Just South of AbaY’

Arugam to get Rail- & Motorway connections

Published on 03/12/2011 in Historical sites, front page, press coverage, taxis, the bay and wild life. 2 Comments

Hambantota - Panama - Arugam Bay. - Batticaloa?

New road and rail line to connect Sri Lanka’s Southern port city to surf city in East Dec 02, Colombo: The Sri Lankan government has decided to construct another expressway to connect the rising Southern port city of Hambantota to the popular surfing destination in the East coast, Arugam Bay. Hambantota district parliamentarian Namal Rajapaksa has revealed in the parliament Friday that the government has taken a policy decision to build a direct expressway and a rail line parallel to the road. Situated to the 310 kilometers east of Colombo, Arugam Bay is a fishing village in the dry zone of Sri Lanka’s southeast coast. It is known as a popular surfing and tourist destination for its best surf. The government is developing the Southern port city of Hambantota as a metropolis away from the capital Colombo. The second international airport currently under construction near Hambantota is expected to be operational by the end of 2012.

Progress. Unstoppable

source: http://www.colombopage.com/archive_11B/Dec03_1322852510CH.php

Arugam’s Sun “Set”

Published on 12/11/2011 in Traveler's Reports and the bay. 1 Comment

Sun "Set" at Arugam BayFound on WorldNormads.com.

Description:
” sunset in Arugam Bay, Sri Lanka; the Sun is setting while it is still giving a d…?”
Arugam Bay only sees the Sun Rise. Being located on the East Coast of Sri Lanka.
But is this actually AbaY in the first place?
source:
http://journals.worldnomads.com/traveladdict/photo/31471/824864/Cambodia/sunset-in-Arugam-Bay-Sri-Lanka;-the-Sun-is-setting-while-it-is-still-giving-a-d

Oz to AbaY overland: drivingoz2uk2.com

Published on 30/10/2011 in Blogs, From our own Correspondent, Traveler's Reports, accomodation, cabanas, front page, people and the bay. 0 Comments

….it’s been an exception here (at Arugam Bay) and we’ve been a bit more sociable and met loads of nice people from all over – Poland, Germany, Israel, UK et al Weirdly enough we…….

It was sad to leave Ella again but Andrew was chomping at the bit to get to Arugam Bay before the (surf) season was well and truly over. So after a last curd and honey we drove out past the Rawana Ella falls and eastwards towards the coast – the temperature climbing as we drove

After we hit Pottuvil a little Muslim town on the coast we drove on through the edge of the Lahugala National Park where we were really lucky to have our own ad hoc safari! First we saw a cobra -when we almost hit it when it reared up at us from the middle of the road, then we saw elephants in the wild – Continue reading ‘Oz to AbaY overland: drivingoz2uk2.com’

Daily News

Published on 26/10/2011 in Arugam Bay Surf Club, Arugam Surf Club, Arugambay Surf Club, Environmental, Money Matters, Security & Safety, accomodation, bars, cabanas, front page, guesthouse, hotels, people, press coverage, restaurants and the bay. 3 Comments

Arugam's second 'Tsunami'

….. several illegal constructions in Arugam Bay were demolished last week……

Illegal constructions out in coastal belt

Disna Mudalige

* More powers to CCD by new law

*Demolition costs to be recovered from offenders

The Coast Conservation Department (CCD) has decided to take strict action against illegal constructions in the coastal belt using the new powers vested in it under the amended Coastal Conservation Act approved by Parliament recently.

CCD Director General Anil Premaratne told the Daily News that court cases will be filed against owners of these illegal buildings and a fine not less than Rs 5,000 and not more than Rs 25,000 will be imposed on them at the first conviction.

He said that if the offenders who maintain the illegal constructions continue the same offence disregarding the court decision, the amended Act has the provisions to impose a fine not less than Rs 1,000 and not more than Rs 5,000 per day on them.

He said that unauthorized constructions in the coastal belt have resulted in accelerated coastal erosion and pollution and therefore the CCD has decided to strictly implement these laws.

Premaratne said that the unauthorized buildings which are built very close to the sea will be demolished and the expenses spent on them will be recovered from the offenders. He said that several illegal constructions in Arugam Bay were demolished last week and this process will also be carried out in other coastal areas.

He observed that the coastal stretch in the Southern Province comprises the majority of illegal constructions.

He also explained that legal action will also be sought for the illegal fillings of water bodies and sand mining. The amended Act has also made provisions to arrest an offender without a warrant for violating its laws and regulations aiming for an efficient coastal conservation and coastal resource management.

source:

http://www.dailynews.lk/2011/10/26/news26.asp

Link to  Facebook page “Save Arugam Bay”:

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100003041452272&ref=ts

New A/c Bus Service. A Logic logistic Idea

Published on 16/10/2011 in Ideas, Security & Safety, front page and services. 7 Comments

Luxury Bus Service to Arugam Bay

At long last!
The air conditioned bus service, which we last proposed back in 2007 (see article below) has become a reality.

Shown the Yellow bus. Parked nr. Muslim School @ AbaY

Two new purpose build coaches serve the Colombo – PottuVille (Arugam Bay) sector every day now.
Departure: 21:00 daily at SLT office, Punchi Borella, nr. Maradana, Colombo10. This is near the Immigration Dept.
Arrival at Arugam Bay:  approx. 04:00 am

Return:
Departure 21:00  PottuVille  Town Cente,
Arrive : Back in Colombo before sunrise.

Price: Rs./ 750 per journey

Clean interior, airy, with a TV & sound

Phone numbers are shown. Other contact given is: 0773 864 656

Just for the record, here is an extract of our ideas 4 or 5 years ago:

Published on: Mar 19, 2007 @ 6:33

Apart from security concerns the main problem facing the Bay is the distance from the only International Airport, Colombo. And the high cost of getting across the island.

To hire a taxi, van or minibus to take you over 320km of bumpy roads today cost you even more than a flight ticket to Bangkok ($110).
So far, there is no comfortable, reliable bus service connecting the Bay.
AbaY Tourist Bus Service
Arugam.info thinks that a good, say 60 seater air conditioned, second hand Tourist Bus could be purchased for about the same price as one of the houses (nobody really wants anymore) is being put up in the back woods of the Bay, i.e. 1.4Mill. rupees (14,000$).

By removing half the seats, fitting the bus out well, including a good sound and vision system and with a team of 4 drivers on rotation shifts this service could travel EVERY day:
06:00 Airport- 08:00 Colombo/Galle Face- 18:00 Arugam Bay
20:00 Arugam Bay- 06:00 Airport- 08:00 Colombo/Galle Face

With the new Southern Highway a motorway a stop off at Hikkaduwa should  also be possible. Making this a very interesting and highly lucrative bus route linking the Nation’s capital City with the island’s two main Surf resorts. We are certain, that even locals would love to use this kind of service in future.

Furthermore, Arugam.info would totally paint the Tourist bus all round with nature motives of the Bay and Yala East for three reasons:

  • 1.) To promote Arugam Bay and make the resort known in the capital
  • 2.) To demonstrate that regular, daily travel presents no problem
  • 3.) To show checkpoints that this is a TOURIST Bus by such it will make control easier

Indeed, if the operator, drivers  and conductors would be security trained: Continue reading ‘New A/c Bus Service. A Logic logistic Idea’

Arugam Bay should retain its charm and character

Published on 08/09/2011 in From our own Correspondent, Surf Federation News, Surf competition, Traveler's Reports, front page, people, press coverage and the bay. 0 Comments

By Harischandra Gunaratna
Michelle Mitchelle and Natalie Loos Moutou, two sisters of Sri Lankan origin living in Sydney,Australia were on holiday in Arugam Bay and they were mesmerised with its bounden beauty, the sandy beaches and calm waters.

Sri Lankan emmigrants returned to base

But they had a word of caution “Arugam Bay should retain its tranquility and rustic charm and the authorities should not allow unnecessary development such as high rise buildings and overcrowd the area. Such action would ruin the pristine beauty for which Arugam Bay is known internationally.”

Michelle and Natalie are the daughters of Claudette and Patrick Loos, a Sri Lanka couple who migrated Down Under in the 70s and made Sydney their home.

Michelle and Natalie (from Down Under)

Continue reading ‘Arugam Bay should retain its charm and character’

Arugam Bay. “The Health Resort”

Published on 08/09/2011 in Historical sites, Traveler's Reports, front page and stop over Ideas. 0 Comments

The Automobile Association Handbook (1935 !) advises:


AAC's Travelers guide to Ceylon. 76 Years ago.


“Arugam Bay: EP (=’Eastern Province’) . 68 miles from Batticaloa on the east coast road. This is a health resort for residents in the malarious inland areas, (such as the Moneragala planting district), with its fine sea front and facilities for sea-bathing; while there is good sport to be had in the vicinity.”

. I dedicate this article to the memory of my maternal grandfather Arumugam Thiyagarajah (1910-1982)

Rest Houses and Shooting Tips (circa 1935)

Continue reading ‘Arugam Bay. “The Health Resort”’

Arugam Airport News

Published on 17/08/2011 in Facebook Fan Club: Arugam Surf, From our own Correspondent, Share Transfer, Traveler's Reports, front page, taxis and the bay. 3 Comments

The first Commercial Flight took off from the Arugam Bay lagoon this lunchtime

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Arugam Bay and the Arugam Bay Surf Club

Published on 31/07/2011 in Arugam Bay Surf Club, Arugam Surf Club, Arugambay Surf Club, Blogs, Facebook Fan Club: Arugam Surf, Surf Federation News, Traveler's Reports, front page, guesthouse, people, restaurants and surf. 2 Comments

…..” Then he told me about a strange building above the bay called ‘the castle’:
‘It’s thirty years old – very old.
It was made by an English guy called Richard” …..

Arugam Bay and the surf point

Arugam Bay has been known as a top surfing area for many years now. During the season, from about May to November, it is easily the most popular destination for foreign visitors to the east coast. It’s a working fishing beach and there is quite a lot of rubbish on the sands, compared with the southern beaches, and is perhaps not the best place to come just for a beach holiday: most foreigners I met were there for the surfing. Many locals want to clean up the beach, however – see below – so this may change. For now it’s still very pretty, and quiet, if you want a place to gather your thoughts, and you can visit nearby mangroves on Pottuvil lagoon, or go to Kudimbigala Forest Hermitage to see Buddhist shrines. The Lahugala-Kitulana National Park is 16km inland from Pottuvil and large herds of elephants move there during the dry season (July and August).

Fishermen on Arugam Bay

The road from Arugam Bay is now completely open so you can travel south to Okanda and visit Yala East National Park. This park was Continue reading ‘Arugam Bay and the Arugam Bay Surf Club’

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Badulla-Arugam Bay

Published on 28/07/2011 in Blogs, Traveler's Reports, accomodation, front page and guesthouse. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

…..Finally we reached Arugam Bay, a beachfront collections of shacks and hotels, stretching around the bay……

….Apparently, after dusk the road to Arugam bay becomes chock-a-block with insomniac elephants who decide to wander the roads. Hence, travelling there is dangerous…..

"Watermusic" @ Arugam Bay

Part 1: They Mostly Come Out At Night, Mostly

We strode out of Badulla station, and I was still for pushing on right through to Arugam Bay.

There was a solitary minibus tout and he offered to drive us for $50. Each.

Llyw quickly shot this down, at which point the fella, who exuded dodginess from every pore, explained why a night time voyage was so expensive-

Nocturnal elephants.

Apparently, after dusk the road to Arugam bay becomes chock-a-block with insomniac elephants who decide to wander the roads. Hence, travelling there is dangerous. Continue reading ‘Badulla-Arugam Bay’

Living Dreams

Published on 08/07/2011 in Blogs, Traveler's Reports, accomodation, front page, guesthouse, hotels, people, restaurants and wild life. 0 Comments

….. Curiously Lahugala has no boundary fences or entrance fees allowing visitors to simply stroll into the park at will whilst elephants stroll right through the little hamlets and villages at its boarder and are often seen roaming around Arugam Bay at dusk…..

A Stay in the Bay

The ride to Arugam Bay is not without incident; a few minutes in to the journey we narrowly avoid colliding with a rather large lorry, sending our hearts racing and our stomachs reeling! As we descend down the winding road to the plains below the landscape changes from lush jungle to dry bush and the roads become heavily potholed; an hour in and there’s a large bang- a flat tyre- so we pull over and Polly replaces the wheel while driver and Sam lift the tuk-tuk. We’re soon driving through the ‘Elephant Corridor’, a long straight road that cuts through the wilderness of Lahugala National Park, and sure enough, to our amazement, we spot a herd of wild elephants Continue reading ‘Living Dreams’