Colombo Natural History Museum of Sri Lanka and Ceylon

The Natural History Museum, Colombo, is maintained by the Sri Lanka Government Department of National Museums.

Colombo National Museum of Sri Lanka and Ceylon

The Colombo Natural History Museum, (entrance) Sir Marcus Fernando Mawatha, Colombo 7, opposite the junction of Cambridge Place is the oldest museum in Sri Lanka, behind the Colombo National Museum.

The Natural History Museum is closed on Fridays
- No indoor photography permitted

Well, what can we say! This museum is probably the worst 'National' museum we have been in anywhere in the world. A dark and dingy collection of stuffed, dried and pickled, badly presented examples of the country's flora and fauna.

NOT WORTH VISITING

*Please note that the Government of Sri Lanka discriminates against foreign nationals in their pricing of entrance ticketing. Charging many times the ticket price paid by Sri Lankan residents. In 2008 an entrance ticket to the Natural History Museum for a Sri Lankan was SLR 20.00 whereas foreigners were charged SLR 300.00 !

We apologise for the repetition of some place or proper names with different spellings, but there is no definitive spelling translation of these words.

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The conflict between the Government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE, commonly known as “the Tamil Tigers”) ended in May 2009. Although the conflict is over, the LTTE are believed to retain some capability to mount terrorist attacks such as grenade or explosive device attacks and shootings. The Government has relaxed the State of Emergency, under which it has extensive anti-terrorism powers but there are still heightened levels of security (e.g. checkpoints, road blocks) throughout the country. You should exercise a high level of vigilance. The risk for the most part is one of being caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. In order to minimise this, you should avoid military, government and paramilitary locations. Always carry formal photographic identification with you. Stop and show your ID when asked to do so. If you are detained, you should ask the authorities to contact the British High Commission.

Fatal attacks linked to the LTTE occurred throughout the country into 2009. Most attacks have been directed against Government and military targets though a number have been focussed on civilian targets such as crowded public places, public transport and market areas. Some of the most significant attacks included a suicide bomb at a political gathering in March 2009 and an air raid on military targets in Colombo in February 2009.

JeGraNet.com statement - 15 October 2008 - Quote from the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office website: "There is a high threat from terrorism in Sri Lanka. Fatal attacks have become more frequent. They have occurred in Colombo and throughout Sri Lanka, including places frequented by expatriate and foreign travellers. Further attacks may occur at any time. There is an increasing risk of British nationals being caught up in an attack". As independent travellers we left Colombo after just 9 days into our planned 6 month stay as a result of a feeling of insecurity, however we are sure that 'package tour' travellers to tourist resorts will probably enjoy a worry free holiday.