Colombo City Walks — Attraction in Colombo

Well worth it! Mark is a wonderful guide- very intelligent and passionate about the history of Colombo. He provides a detailed overview of the history of his city through its architecture. His tour is full of interesting facts and his delivery was very entertaining. He is extremely invested in understanding Colombo’s shifting cityscape and preserving its cultural history. His concern is that people all too often adopt the mindset of “out with the old and in with the new” and are too quick to tear down older structures in favor of modern buildings. His stories about the infrastructure of Colombo animate the city in ways that would otherwise be overlooked. He clearly loves the rich cultural history of Colombo and leaves this sentiment with his guests. Beyond this, Mark is genuinely kind and helpful; he provided our group with insights into the local tourism industry, making thoughtful suggestions so that we could maximize...

I urge you not to do a walking tour with Colombo walks. The guide spent so much time rambling in an almost inaudible fashion about his old job, his family life, and his opinions on Sri Lanka with little to no facts, and when he did say anything factual it tended to be slightly wrong or made up. In the first half an hour we visited a plaque in a car park and a foyer of a Chinese restaurant to look at some old photos of Colombo. It was a real moral dilemma for us but we walked away after this point, with 1 day in Colombo we did not want to waste 3 hours. We then spent the day ticking off things on a map, the main Colombo sights are easy on foot with the help of a couple of tuk tuks. Oh, and he was 15 minutes late to the meeting point at the start. Basically don’t bother with this...

Wow! Do not miss this, what a knowledgeable guy. We had an absolutely great time walking and learning so much about the origins of this wonderful city. From the Portuguese and Dutch settlements to Colonial times and what’s happening currently. We met some incredible characters, saw some fabulous sights and had a drink with a stunning view- none of which could we possibly have found on our own. So much to take on board and so much fun. Don’t hesitate, book now. We’ll also be going on the Foodie walk and the Dodgy Bar walk next time...