Kanniya Hot Springs
A cluster of seven square wells of naturally warm water enclosed in a walled courtyard, an ancient site where visitors draw and pour the water believed to have healing powers.
About 8 km from Trincomalee town, just off the main road toward Anuradhapura, seven square shaped wells sit arranged together, each only 3 to 4 feet deep, their water clear enough to see straight to the bottom despite noticeably varying temperatures from one well to the next. Local legend, tracing back over 5,000 years to the era of King Ravana, holds that the springs emerged when Ravana, mourning his mother's death during a severe drought, struck the ground seven times with his sword while performing her final rites, each strike releasing a fountain of hot water that continues flowing to this day, a story with deep roots in Ramayana tradition and pilgrimage practice stretching across South Asia.
Archaeological investigation has added a rather different layer to that legend, excavations at the site uncovering a stupa mound belonging to the early Anuradhapura period alongside an inscription dating to the 1st or 2nd century AD, which records that the water from several nearby tanks was reserved specifically for the use of Buddhist monks residing in a temple once located here. A 1955 travelers' handbook described the springs as sacred to Buddhists, Hindus and Muslims alike, with ruins of a dagoba, a Vishnu temple and a mosque once standing together near the site, evidence of a genuinely multi faith sacred landscape that's since been formally recognized, the seven wells and surrounding ruins designated an archaeologically protected monument in September 2011.
Today, visitors and pilgrims alike step into the shallow wells to bathe, believing in the water's therapeutic and healing properties, particularly for rheumatic conditions, a practice the Dutch themselves once encouraged by constructing stone enclosures around each spring. Quiet, warm and genuinely soothing, Kanniya offers a very different kind of Trincomalee stop than the area's beaches and temples, a place where mythology, archaeology and continued daily ritual all sit together in the same small, unassuming square of ancient wells.
At a glance
- Entry fee: Around LKR 200 for foreign visitors
- Opening hours: 7:00am to 6:00pm
- Time needed: 30 to 45 minutes
- Best time: Morning
Getting there
About 8km northwest of Trincomalee off the Anuradhapura road.
Frequently asked questions
- How much does it cost to visit Kanniya Hot Springs?
- Around LKR 200 for foreign visitors.
- What are the opening hours at Kanniya Hot Springs?
- 7:00am to 6:00pm.
- How long should I spend at Kanniya Hot Springs?
- Plan for 30 to 45 minutes.
- When is the best time to visit Kanniya Hot Springs?
- Morning.
- How do I get to Kanniya Hot Springs?
- About 8km northwest of Trincomalee off the Anuradhapura road.