Avoiding bus stand touts when finding the express bus out of Pettah

Asked about 2 months agoSeen by 1,744 travellers35 found this helpful
J
Jack W.7210 rep2
asked about 2 months ago

We need to catch the Highway Express bus from Pettah to Matara. How do we avoid the touts trying to push us onto the slow 6 hour local buses.

35
asked about 2 months ago
J
Jack W.7210 rep2

3 Answers from travellers

Accepted Answer

The Expressway buses (EX01) do not leave from the main chaotic Pettah stands; they leave from Bastian Mawatha, but it is better to take a quick Uber to the Makumbura Multimodal Center (Kottawa) outside the city center. It is a modern, airport-style terminal with zero touts, digital screens, and guaranteed highway AC buses to the south.

10
answered about 2 months ago
N
Nimali D.7590 rep1

Makumbura is 100 times better. It saves you an hour of sitting in Colombo traffic just trying to reach the highway.

31
answered about 2 months ago
R
Ruwan P.7950 rep1

If you must go to Pettah, literally ignore anyone speaking to you and look for the luxury buses parked at the far end with "Expressway" written in English.

2
answered about 2 months ago
S
Sophie T.14090 rep2

Fair TukTuk Prices

Help travelers avoid overcharging!

Be the first to report a price

You must be logged in to post an answer.

Log In to Answer