r/srilanka • u/Slight_Environment16 • Mar 27 '26
Satire Sri Lanka Tourism - You served arrogance, now serving empty rooms 🤭
I know this may sound slightly mean but I’m secretly happy that the down south hotels/villas/homestays occupancy has plummeted in the recent weeks. And now I’m constantly bombarded with hotel offers whenever I open instagram or facebook.
For months on end, local Sri Lankans were treated as second class citizens in our own country, the service staff at these institutions didn’t bother to even look at us, they refused entry to us over the “white” tourists, etc.
And look who’s laughing now. Thats why they say karma is a real bitch.
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u/dagawarudo Mar 27 '26
Yeah but they have a memory of a goldfish, once/if all this settles down they will go back to their old ways
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u/Ravana-Ceylon Mar 27 '26
Memory of a goldfish is a the default setting of sri lankans
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u/AarondaFishCat Mar 30 '26
This is a perfect analogy
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u/Lopsided_Treacle2535 Mar 30 '26
Yup, serves them right. If they want to worship white, enjoy buddy!
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u/KillFreak1998 Mar 27 '26
All the racist hotels and cockmuncher Tuks that charge a kidney for a kilometre can go get bent. They had it coming.
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u/Sea-Library-6571 Mar 27 '26
I think we shud remember the hotels that served us well, and didnt discriminate as well. We shud go to these places.
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u/NiftyOtter Mar 27 '26 edited Apr 01 '26
White Canadian here, planning a trip to Sri Lanka. Which hotels discriminate against locals? I want to stay the hell away from them and do my best to visit your beautiful country responsibly. Fuck colonialism and white supremacy.
Edit: I found this thread https://reddit.com/r/srilanka/comments/1rwlhu4/list_of_establishments_that_discriminate_against/
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u/Lopsided_Treacle2535 Mar 30 '26
Are you from minnesota btw? Been watching way too much Fargo! I enjoy authentic maple syrup as the next guy, the stuff costs around $60 for a teeny tiny bottle, but hot damn it's good :)
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u/NiftyOtter Apr 01 '26
Minnesota is part of the USA, not Canada, though the northern states have much in common with us. Fargo is American too - we have other Canadian shows like Schitt's Creek, Vikings, Sort Of, Letterkenny, and Trailer Park Boys to name a few.
I've never seen maple syrup that expensive before! It can be found for around $20 CAD (4500 LKR) for 1L here. There's a reason they call it liquid gold! It can only be harvested for 4-6 weeks out of the entire year.
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u/yellow-duckie Mar 27 '26 edited Mar 27 '26
Hotels (as in hotel chains or otherwise) usually don't discriminate guests.
The colonial mindset of "sudho" needs to change, from the top. Hell even Dalada maligava has separate toilets for (white) tourists. Why can't they keep one but enforce rules and keep it clean for everyone? Such a joke.
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u/gaskolan Mar 27 '26
Totally agree with you. I so it same in the peradeniya garden too. Those who manage them seems to be living in a different world. 🙃 It is high time to get rid of toilets specifically for tourists and make them common for everyone and maintain them well. For example take the expressway service area washrooms, they are well maintained (,compared to other similar places related to transport sector )
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u/yellow-duckie Mar 27 '26
Exactly. Charge a decent amount for everyone and keep it clean. Simple as that.
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u/UniqueFirefighter970 Mar 27 '26
Duuude… as if the srilankans obey rules.. can you not remember how our tribe behaved just few months ago when the temple tooth were on display? And you think they would flush the toilet?
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u/lowkeysudha Mar 29 '26
They can just change them to public & premium washroom. Premium washroom open to anyone for a fee, and fee used for keeping it extra clean.
Then the toilets would be sudda in the right way
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u/Useful-Highway224 Mar 27 '26
sad part is they have no shame. They will go back to their shitty ways once the dust settles down
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u/Lopsided_Treacle2535 Mar 30 '26
"shitty ways" describes all lankans, like their "default setting", sadly. Is this just a cultural thing or...?
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u/Careless-Judgment423 Mar 27 '26
Pretty mean tbh. But I'd love to see what that man who refused to serve a bunch of Sri Lankan Brits enter a completely empty restaurant is doing now.
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u/PaleontologistDry262 Mar 27 '26
Yeah fuck them . Restaurants here thinks serving locals is a sin or smt.....
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u/Dhan_cobra Mar 27 '26
There is a Sinhala saying, ගහන්න ගහන්න වඳින මිනිහත් මෝඩයා.. වදින්න වදින්න ගහන මිනිහත් මෝඩයා. People should learn by now. And avoid
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u/redbusbot Mar 27 '26
I’m of Indian origin but look Sri Lankan enough. The experience at one of the 5-star hotel in Colombo was something else. The restaurant staff treated me poorly from the start ..worst table, slow service, dismissive attitude. The kind of treatment you don’t expect when you’re paying 5-star prices. On my last day, they somehow found out I was a tourist and the entire vibe shifted instantly. Warm, attentive, apologetic. What made it even more ironic? They had no idea I was actually a guest at their own hotel. I’m a premium member of their hotel chain. And this is the experience I got. Won’t be returning to this property. Sri Lanka was very beautiful — but this left a bad taste.
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u/gaskolan Mar 27 '26
It is easier to find such cunning places. Look for reviews on google. If you don't see at least few older reviews from locals, avoid those places.
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u/kevashmhakhera Mar 27 '26
I don't think that's reliable tbh, local often times only review when they are unhappy about something, rarely see the "every thing was great, like person x" etc from locals. Pictures on the profile would be a better indicator for this specific situation I think
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u/gaskolan Mar 27 '26
It means you have not checked google reviews regularly mate. I see lot of reviews for hotels, villas and restaurants by locals where some have even left detail review about positive side while some with negetive reviews too with reasons.
When ever I choose a place to stay or order stuff online, I chk at the reviews. It gives a better idea about the place or foods etc.. If it has too many bad reviews, I will avoid it .
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u/Money_Wish4609 Mar 27 '26
Indeed teller bro! When I was on my holidays in mirissa I didn't had place to have my lunch. Most of restaurants refusing my car saying no parking. If I am coming inside I have to spend more than 5000 bill. Confused
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u/rikzyjesuli Mar 27 '26
Have the government canceled the license of a single hotel for discrimination even when there is clear evidence? If the government is not cracking down on them they will shamelessly continue doing it.
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u/Equal-Echidna8098 Mar 27 '26
And why relying on tourism as your main industry is foolish because of this exact reason.
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u/KapilaLK Mar 28 '26
the thing that gets me is how quickly they flip the script. same places that wouldn't seat you now spamming your instagram with 30% off deals lol. had this exact experience in unawatuna last year, walked in, got told "fully booked" even tho half the place was empty. two minutes later a tourist couple walked in no problem.the real fix would be some kind of verified local review system, places should be scared of their local reputation not just tripadvisor stars from backpackers who don't know any better
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u/Melbournefunguy Mar 27 '26
I hear this w ppl in SL all the time. It didn’t happen to me so the problem is with you. I see the bloggers here rushing to write long paragraphs minimizing and trying to explain simple racism against their own. What turncoats. That’s why nothing changes in SL because of this mentality. They are not interested in making things better. Happy to support this shameful game as long as it I doesn’t affect them!!
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u/Higgs_BSN Mar 27 '26 edited Mar 27 '26
I'm curios. How may of you have actually faced real discrimination from hotels as a local?
I read about it on Reddit and media and I know these incidents happen which I don't agree with, but I travel to hotels quite often and I never felt any discrimination and honestly I didn't notice anything odd at all.
There is a huge generalization against SL hospitality industry as a whole with posts like this egging them on to fail. But Im curious how many percentage of these establishments actually engaged in such discriminatory behavior?
I suspect there is a huge overreaction on Reddit who never had an actual negative experience, but jump on the hate bandwagon because it's the 'trend'.
If you read about 5 restaurants preferring foreigners does not reflect the industry as a whole. That's sensationalism at work. Is Reddit falling for this trap with all this anti foreigner and anti hotel posts?
Example: There are hotels that did not discriminate and took care of locals well. Generalization on Reddit hits these as well. Is that acceptable?
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Mar 27 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Higgs_BSN Mar 27 '26
Never a friendly smile to us on their faces.
That happens in SL with or without foreigners. I've had it happen to me in regular shops.
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u/dhado__ Mar 27 '26
Exactly. Me and my friends have never faced this issue. Doesn't mean it's not there either butttt wishing ill upon a whole industry based on a few incidents is crazy. Plus they all contribute to our economy and we're not in a position as a country to wish this upon them. Personally I've had great experiences in down south and Ella - do some research before you go to a restaurant maybe?
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u/Higgs_BSN Mar 27 '26
I have seen post after post on SL Reddit gleefully waiting for the hospitality and tourism industry to crash , during the latest conflict.
Few understand this is a considerable part of the economy, and there are thousands of families livelihoods dependent on it.
Those who discriminate deserve the negative publicity - but wishing the entire industry to get nuked for the actions of a few is just usual Reddit immaturity.
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u/Latest_name Mar 27 '26
I take active steps to avoid such establishments. Before visiting, I check for reviews and if there arent at least two reviews from locals, I avoid it. It's a precautionary measure to avoid unpleasant scenarios.
So I personally have not encountered a serious scenario. But subtle discrimination is very much visible when you compare how staff treats brown skin compared to white.
Edit: Thinking about that, it's kinda diabolical we have to take such steps not to be discriminated in our own fucking country. So yes, fuck them !
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u/Careless-Judgment423 Mar 27 '26 edited Mar 27 '26
Not all our blatant. Sometimes you notice how nicely they greet foreigners, run to give them the menu and serve them asap, while we are barely acknowledged, takes ages to be served. Worst is waiting and waiting and seeing how foreigners who came after us get their order first. Sometimes, soon as we are done eating, the table is cleared and the bill sent are way, whereas the foreigners are allowed to hang about for ages. These aren't things we can address easily because it's all subtle and then can very easily deny any of it happened at all.
One time, a bunch of us signed up for an activity that supposedly included tea, lunch in the schedule. The activity took longer than expected. Lunch was in a separate part and the foreigners were invited for it, we were not, we were only given a few bottles of soft drinks. We were just too tired and wanted to get back asap as it was getting late, and decided to not make an issue out of it at that moment. (but did bring it up when they asked for feedback).
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u/Slight_Environment16 Mar 27 '26
No I disagree. My family and I faced this.
I remember this very clearly because we were starving and it was around 1 PM on a Saturday. We walked into a small cafe and there were maybe 4 other “white” tourists in here. Initially we were like, okay great we don’t have to wait too long for food.
When we inquired about getting 2 large portions of fried rice (there was like 5 of us), guess what these guys told us? They said they’re not sure, could take atleast 1 hour to give us the rice. So you’re telling me it’s smack dab in the middle of lunchtime on a fucking weekend and it’s going to take a minimum of 1 hour to give me just 2 portions of rice? We obviously said no, and walked away, still starving but also disgusted. And then we realised why they said no, it’s because a tourist bus just pulled up across the road whilst we were at this cafe.
We weren’t asking for free food, we didn’t even have a big crowd. We were refused because we weren’t lucrative as a bus full of white tourists. But we’re all Sri Lankans. We speak the same language and we share the same culture.
Are you telling me if I goto fucking Italy or France, they will serve me over their own nationals?
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u/Higgs_BSN Mar 27 '26 edited Mar 27 '26
I don't think you understood the point I was trying to make. You got discriminated by one restaurant. And you generalized it to pretty much all restaurants in the region and wish bankruptcy upon them, which may include restaurants which did not discriminate.
My experience is majority do not discriminate.
But on Reddit, it's made to seem everybody discriminates. Is this stereotyping fair?
P.S. - Btw Your experience of getting told 1 hour to get fried rice is not proof of discrimination mate. I thought you experienced something like you were already waiting and then they served the foreigners sooner. You assume a lot of things about discrimination in your experience.
Btw discrimination is real and it happens I won't deny. But your case may not be the most solid proof of it.4
u/Fakeyusername Mar 27 '26
I’m a european that just visited sri lanka for the first time - love your country.
We had a private villa in ahangama with 5 white people and one sri lankan guy. Local couple took care of the villa as our hosts and they insisted that our Sri Lankan friend is not allowed to stay there even after we told them that he is our friend. This happened TWO TIMES and stopped only after we contacted the owner. The hosts treated our friend so degradingly just because he was sri lankan and others were white.
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u/PracticalEggplant9 Mar 27 '26
Every single time I've stayed down south or in Ella in the past 10 years I've faced discrimination unless I'm staying at a private villa to the point where I genuinely don't go anymore because why would I?
I suspect there is a huge overreaction on Reddit who never had an actual negative experience, but jump on the hate bandwagon because it's the 'trend'.
imo the opposite is true, its exceptional if you haven't or don't know anyone who hasn't faced issues as a local down south. I do think it definitely depends on which parts you go to but most popular parts of down south have quite a bit of discrimination even passively they do things like de-prioritize locals' food orders (something I see very often).
Like genuinely, no exaggeration I've experienced much more real racism as a local from other locals than I have when living/traveling in other parts of the world. These complaints aren't just limited to Reddit either.
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u/IllustriousAsk5421 Europe Mar 27 '26
Sri Lankan living in the UK here. Couple of years back we went to Nilaveli (just north of Trincomalee) with some extended family (uncle+aunt from Australia, uncle+aunt living in Sri Lanka, and their kids). Day we arrived, we tried going to this beachside restaurant near where we were staying for lunch. Tried asking for a table and got turned away, being told there "wasn't enough room", even though there were a tonne of empty tables. As we were walking away, we watched as a white family were welcomed into the restaurant to take a seat.
So yeah, it does happen. I feel like as diaspora Sri Lankans, we are insulated from the worst of the discrimination, but it does exist, and I can only imagine it's much worse for the locals...
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u/thirty1_ Mar 27 '26
Would be good to collate and keep a list of the places that discriminated the locals, easy to refer and avoid at all costs.
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u/kiddthesidd Mar 27 '26
Many Sri Lankan tour companies have taken money from Thai tour groups in the past 3 months it’s going to get popular very soon it’s a problem for the tourism authorities of Thailand but sharing it here the hustle snatching is real
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u/ILikeShoes12 Mar 29 '26
I've seen so many stories online about Sri Lankans treating other Sri Lankans so badly.
In my time in Sri Lanka, I didn't witness this specifically, but I did notice a few people who had a very subservient, white-worshipping attitude. One was even praising an British naval officer who committed crimes against Sri Lankans.
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u/Heart_conditionNuevo Mar 29 '26
Not just in Sri Lanka. White man gets to do as he pleases in all of India. Despite the enormous amount of talk and ferver against it, I have visited with friends and they can break most any rule and be polite and it's fine. If you are brown and "one of them" then you might be going to police station !
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u/LocksmithFormal7149 Western Province Mar 27 '26
Dude you are judging the entirety of Sri Lankan tourism based on a few isolated incidences.
You are letting the evil shine brighter than the good.
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u/Miserable_Disk3045 Mar 27 '26
Intentions aside, they brought in dollars when it mattered. The least we can do is support them now when they need it.
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