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Is Sri Lanka safe for LGBTQIA+ travellers?

While travelling through Sri Lanka as an LGBTQIA+ is not necessarily dangerous, same-sex sexual activity is still illegal and we advise that travellers are discreet in public.

LGBTQIA+ rights in Sri Lanka

Even though same-sex sexual activity is illegal, as is same-sex marriage, discriminating against someone based off their sexual orientation has been illegal in Sri Lanka since 2017. That said, members of the LBTQIA+ community have been subject to abuse by both the public and police in the past, though things have improved over the last few years.

For more detailed and up-to-date advice, we recommend visiting Equaldex or ILGA before you travel. You could also contact Equal Ground, a Colombo-based organisation promoting LGBTQIA+ rights.

Solo travel and room sharing

If you are travelling solo on an Intrepid group tour, you will share accommodation with a passenger of the same gender as per your passport information. If you don’t identify with the gender assigned on your passport, please let us know at time of booking and we’ll arrange the rooming configuration accordingly. A single supplement is available on some tours for travellers who do not wish to share a room.

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