Colombo Dutch Museum
A museum of the Dutch colonial era set in a restored 17th century townhouse in Pettah, with period furniture, coins and artefacts around a shady inner courtyard.
Step off the crowded streets of Pettah and into the Colombo Dutch Museum, and the noise seems to fall away. The museum lives in a restored seventeenth-century townhouse, one of the few buildings in Colombo that still carries the feel of the Dutch colonial era.
The house itself is the real star. Thick walls, tall ceilings and wide verandas open onto a shady inner courtyard, and you can get a good sense of how wealthy colonial families lived. Over the centuries the building had several different uses before it was restored and opened as a museum.
Inside, the rooms hold period furniture, old coins, ceramics and other artefacts from the Dutch period, when the Dutch East India Company controlled Sri Lanka's coastal trade. It's a small collection, so don't expect a vast gallery, but the pieces help bring the history of Colombo's old port to life.
Give yourself about 45 minutes. The museum usually opens from 9am to 5pm and closes on Sundays and Mondays, and there's a small entry fee. Opening days can change, so it's worth checking before you make the trip.
It makes a great pause in a busy Pettah day. Wander the markets in the morning, then duck into the museum's quiet courtyard when the heat and crowds start to build. It's one of the calmest corners of central Colombo.
At a glance
- Entry fee: Small entry fee
- Opening hours: 9:00am to 5:00pm, closed Sundays and Mondays
- Time needed: 45 minutes
- Best time: Daytime
How to get there
In the Pettah district of central Colombo.