Colombo, the trade capital of Sri Lanka is currently rising as a huge tourist destination with the opening of the lotus tower (Nelum Kuluna) standing in the city center. The tower has now become the icon of Colombo city.
Colombo lotus tower is one of the most famous tourist sites in the Colombo city centre. standing at a height of 356 meters this huge construction is the tallest tower in the world. The tower located in D.R. Wijewardena mawatha in Colombo 10. The lotus shaped tower was officially declared open on 16th September 2019. If you are planning to visit Sri Lanka, a majority in your tour will be around Colombo and now you have no chance to miss this beautiful creation and to witness the beauty of Colombo city in a panoramic view. This tower basically acts as a transmission tower for tv and radio so has a role of a communicator. Besides of all those communication purposes, the tower provides you various leisure time activities. T
here are hotels with suites for accommodation, shopping malls for shopping, restaurants for dining, banquet halls, museums, auditoriums and many more tourists’ attractions for tourists. The most breathtaking experience is with the revolving restaurant in the top of the tower which completes a rotation for every 90 minutes. This is a mesmerising experience which you got the chance to visit the best view of the town. Due to the enormous height of the tower, it’s really highlighting and gives a most scenic view. The tower is seen to the far of 10km from main city.
This massive creation attracts thousands of tourists worldwide and the locals are so much fond of visiting. You may wonder the period of time of the year you can visit the tower. This is open 24 hours of the whole year giving the travellers every second of time. As a tourist attraction, this site is a busy of All the times of the year. And in holidays, (special poya days, dipavali, Pongal, Christmas, and other) the interior tower is decorated accordingly.
The beginning of the construction of the tower.
Under the controversial belt and road initiative, Sri Lanka and china signed agreement in 2012 to build the tallest tower in South Asia. The major constructor of the tower is China national Electronics import and export cooperation (CEIEC). The construction was started at January 20, 2012 and it was opened for public in September 16 2019. Thus the constructions are not completed fully yet, but it is open for public giving the entertainment at its best.
Among different activities to here, here are some more awesome things for you to enjoy at the top of the tower.
- Roam around the tower – though the tower act as a communicator in a side, it has fine places to roam around with your loved ones. Choose from various types of restaurants and spend time leisurely. Just enjoy the view of the city and do not miss to have those scenes in your camera as this is a perfect place for photography.
- Dine in the restaurants – there are different types of hotels and restaurants around the tower in different floors. Choose from fine delectable dishes offered in those of restaurants. There are restaurants to dine in third and fourth floors but the most splendid experience is to have a meal in the restaurant at the top of the tower which is the revolving restaurant. It completes a round in every 90 minutes and this is the first revolving restaurant in Sri Lanka. Enjoy the delicious foods with the amazing view of the surrounding.
- Shopping experience – there are shopping malls in different brands in the tower. You can select from various brands of goods like clothes, accessories, shoes and bags, foot items and souvenirs. Most of the time the tourists are fond of souvenir shopping so that there is the chance for some souvenirs for your loved ones in here. The shopping centers and showrooms are located in mainly the lower floors like in third and fourth floors.
- Accommodate in hotels – As mentioned in the above, the travelers now have the chance to have a stay in the tower. The tower offers you comfortable hotels to accommodate as per your choice. If you feel like having a rest after your travel, just book a hotel and relax and stay comfortably in the hotel. The fifth floor of the tower offers you some hotels which you can choose from each one. Staying relaxed with the breathtaking view is something that will never forget in your lives.
- Visit the observation deck – you should not ever miss the deck at the top of the tower. This is the part which provides you the exceptional view around the city. Visiting deck is at the lotus shaped part of the tower where you can walk around to witness the best scenes of the surrounding. This is the place you can click amazing pictures and capture the memories to memorize your Sri Lankan tour.
After all those things, the tower is a fine spot for recreational activities all filled with joy and entertainment.
There’s something that everyone who visits the tower must be aware of. The structure of the tower or simply the basic parts of the tower and knowing them is really helpful to catch exact places you want to visit. The four parts of the tower mainly are,
- Tower base
- Tower stem
- Tower house
- Antenna mass
Tower base
Tower base is the first part of the tower which consist of 9 floors. At the base of the tower, the design is likely a lotus bud which illuminates colourful lights at night. When exploring the tower base, you can find,
- outdoor space of the tower which is a best part to organize shows and events.
- VIP entrance which is the home to a huge shopping complex that spreads for around 51000 square meters.
- Shopping centers
- The entrance is also here where there is also shopping complexes
- Basement of the tower, consist of a banquet hall and the revolving restaurant.
Tower stem
This part of the tower is situated in between the tower house and the tower base. The tower stem act as a main transportation area for passengers. The lifts that carry passengers from top to bottom are situated at this part of the tower.
Tower house
Tower house is the main part of the tower where there are the most popular locations. This is the leisure part the tourists love to visit and spend time. The tower house provides you various places of leisure, fun and adventure. The tower house too has different places to visit.
- Observation deck as mentioned above
- Lotus suite, the best part of the whole tower where you can have a stay relaxed with the magnificent view. The whole lotus suite offers you various guest houses so make the booking in one as per your choice and have a relaxed time with food and drinks.
- Revolving restaurant which is visited by thousands of tourists. This is something you will never forget to visit as it revolves giving you the chance to have a splendid panoramic view around the city. Have some delectable Sri Lankan dishes to make your stay in revolving restaurant a more fascinating one.
- Banquet halls are also the most popular and elegant places of the tower house.
- Transmission centers also located in tower house which are dedicated to transmission purposes.
Antenna
the top of the tower is Antenna part and this part act as the telecommunication of various tv and radio networks. The purpose of these antenna tower is to provide support hosting for tv and radio broadcasting channels.
Here are some essential facts you must know about the tower.
The location of the tower is quite easy to access from the Colombo city and it is 33km away from the Colombo international airport.
The entry fees are an important detail to know which is 20 US dollars for a tourist.
The tower is open for 24 hours throughout the year.
Best way to reach this is by car from the international airport and it’s just simple to access.
Some interesting facts about this massive creation
- This is the tallest tower of south Asia, the 11th tallest in Asia and 19th tallest in the world.
- This started the construction in 2012 and after seven years of construction, it was open to public by the president of Sri Lanka in 2019.
- This is seen from a distance of 10km.
- Act as a transmission tower for telecommunication purposes.
- There is a revolving hotel at the top which completes a rotation in 90 minutes.
- The lotus petals at the tower house is made of glass and framework of steel which illuminates lights.
The lotus tower is now open for both locals and foreigners and this time,during your Sri Lankan tour, never miss this amazing destination and make the tour more remarkable!
