
Kovilan Point lighthouse lies in the Jaffna peninsula on the north western corner of the Karativu island about 25 km from the Jaffna town. This is the largest island in the peninsula and is connected to the mainland though a causeway. This island also boast of one of the best beaches in Jaffna.
The lighthouse is a 30m high tower built in 1916. This is a round masonry tower 30 meters in height. Due to the terrorist activities in the past this has not being operational and or maintained. The surrounding area has been under the Sri Lankan Armed Forces and was not accessible to the general public. But with the LTTE terrorist organisation crushed, this area is now accessible to the general public.
This lighthouse was declared as an protected archaeological monument in 2011.
Also See
- Lighthouses of Sri Lanka
- Attractions of Sri Lanka
- Heritage of Sri Lanka
- Other Places of Interest Within Close Proximity
Map of Kovilan Point Lighthouse
The map above also shows other places of interest within a approximately 20 km radius of the current site. Click on any of the markers and the info box to take you to information of these sites
Zoom out the map to see more surrounding locations using the mouse scroll wheel or map controls.
Travel Directions to Kovilan Point Lighthouse
Jaffna can be reached through 2 directions. The first one is over the Elephant Pass which is the normal route to Jaffna. The other entrance is from Pooneryn over the newly built Sangupiddi Bridge. This road connects to Mannar.
Route 01 from Colombo to Jaffna (Through Kurunegala) | Route 02 from Colombo to Jaffna (Through Puttalam) |
Through : Kurunegala – Dambulla – Anuradhapura – Vavuniya Distance : 400 km Travel Time : 7-8 hours Driving Directions : see on Google map | Through : Puttalam – Anuradhapura – Vavuniya Distance : 400 km Travel Time : 7-8 hours Driving Directions : see on Google maps |
Route from Jaffna to Kovilan Point Lighthouse |
Through : kareinagar Road Distance : 23 km Travel time : 40 minutes Driving directions : see on bing map ( google maps are not complete) |