Due to the desire to constantly be in touch and share the impressions of the trip with family and friends, mobile communication is one of the most important items on the traveler’s list.
Going to Sri Lanka, you can choose the option that is convenient for you to stay in touch.
Buying a local SIM card will allow you to stay connected all the time.
In total, there are five mobile operators in Sri Lanka: Dialog, Mobitel, Etisalat, HUTCH and Airtel.
According to the statistics, the market distribution among mobile operators is as follows: Dialog ~ 35%, Mobitel ~ 27%, Etisalat ~ 17%, Hutch ~ 14% and Airtel ~ 7%.
Interesting! Mobitel is owned by Sri Lanka Telecom, the state-owned telephone company.
The coverage of local mobile operators on the island is very good. There is no difference in the quality of mobile communication between market leaders, operators Dialog and Etisalat.
Most of the places popular among tourists are covered by 4G, which provides good speed (10 Mbps or more). Where there is no 4G, there is usually always 3G.
There are few zones on the map where cellular communication of none of the operators does not work. Basically, they are concentrated in the eastern part of the island, as well as in the territories of nature reserves and national parks. Short breaks are possible when moving between cities or traveling to the Central Highlands of the country or to the area of the “Cultural Triangle” (Polonnaruwa – Anuradhapura – Kandy), that is, to the north-central part of the island.
You can buy a SIM card from local operators immediately upon arrival at Colombo airport. There are points of sale of all mobile operators in the airport building. For registration you need a passport. They will make a copy and write down your local phone number on it.
You can also buy a SIM card in the service center of any of the mobile operators, as well as in cities and tourist places there are points of sale of SIM cards. One has only to find a sign with the name of the operator.
Locations of service centers can be found on the official websites of mobile operators in Sri Lanka
Dialog – https://www.dialog.lk/
Mobitel – https://www.mobitel.lk/
Etisalat – https://www.etisalat.lk/
HUTCH – https://www.hutch.lk/
Airtel — https://www.airtel.lk/
Examples of travel packages
Dialog Tourist Plan:
Dialog SIM card with 10 GB Internet package (6 GB at any time of the day and 4 GB from 00:00 to 08:00). The package price is 1299 rupees (~8 USD) + the cost of the card is 150 rupees card (~ 1 USD).
Mobiteli turismiinfopaketi pakkumine:
Mobiteli SIM-kaart 40 GB internetipaketiga (20 GB igal kellaajal ja 20 GB 00:00-08:00). Paketi hind on 1999 ruupiat (~11 USD) + kaardi maksumus 150 ruupiat kaart (~ 1 USD).
Kui kasutate puhkusel aktiivselt Internetti, on Dialoogi operaatoril võimalus Dialoogi Interneti-kaardi täiendamiseks osta pakettkaart.
Nende hind varieerub 29 (~ 0,16 USD) kuni 6449 ruupiani (~ 36 USD). Need hõlmavad teatud arvu liiklust ja teatud arvu minuteid dialoogivõrgus kõnede jaoks.
Selliste pakettide näited:
- Internet 5,28 GB (2,64 GB igal kellaajal ja 2,64 GB 00:00-08:00) + boonus 1,32 GB igal ajal. Paketi hind on 349 ruupiat (~2 USD). Kehtib 30 päeva.
- Internet 28,6 GB (14,3 GB igal kellaajal ja 14,3 GB 00:00-08:00) + boonus 7,15 GB igal ajal. Paketi hind on 1449 ruupiat (~8 USD). Kehtib 30 päeva.
- Internet 154 GB (77 GB igal kellaajal ja 77 GB 00:00-08:00) + boonus 38,5 GB igal ajal. Pakett maksab 6449 ruupiat (~36 USD). Kehtib 30 päeva.