Mt. Lavinia is a popular public beach for sea bathing with many hotels and beach restaurants just 15 minutes drive south bound from Colombo?s city centre.

The city's name is built up around the original residence of Sir Thomas Maitland who was the Governor General of Ceylon from 1805-1811. At a welcoming party held in his honour on his arrival in the island he set his eyes upon Lovina, a local mestizo dancer, whose father was the Headman of the troupe. Sir Thomas was smitten by her smile and charms and soon found himself obsessed by her and took every measure possible to see more of her.

There are other explanations too rooted in the landscape, when it comes to the origin of the name Mount Lavinia. The Sinhalese who lived on the coastal belt had for long named the promontory "Lihiniya Kanda" or "Lihiniyagala" meaning the hill of the sea gulls. Legend also has it that a large treasure from a shipwreck was once hidden among the rocks here. Whatever the legends, the town came into official recognition when Governor Maitland used the postal address Mt. Lavinia, Ceylon, in 1805, while writing to the British Secretary of State, Lord Castlereagh.

The Governors House built in 1805 by Sir Thomas Maitland has now been converted into the famous Mount Lavinia Hotel, which is located overlooking the sea and has a direct view over the city of Colombo.

Being a popular beach amongst the locals, Mount Lavinia gathers large crowds on Sundays and public holidays for beach sports activities such as swimming, surfing, beach volleyball, beach rugby with music and entertainment by live bands and DJs.

The town of Dehiwela lies adjacent to Mount Lavinia on the border of Colombo with hyper-markets, department stores and apartment complexes dotting its skyline. It is also home to Sri Lanka's National Zoological Gardens which remains one of Asia's largest.

The wild-life inhabited Attidiya Lake provides excellent bird watching and is located in the vicinity of Mount Lavinia.

Mount Lavinia Beach Related references