Live like a local for a week before you commit to a year.
Seven nights in a real Sri Lankan setting, not a resort. Choose a vetted local family (all meals included) or a 3-star or 5-star hotel or villa. Shop where locals shop, test the internet, feel the daily rhythm, and find out whether the place suits you before signing a 12-month lease.
Price: From $350 (7 nights · three accommodation styles)
- 7 nights, three styles from $350
- Homestay · 3-Star · 5-Star
- Orientation and a mid-stay check-in
Holidays hide daily life
A resort tells you nothing about power cuts, traffic, the weekly shop or the neighbours. An ordinary home tells you everything.
Matched to you
We place you using your lifestyle assessment answers, in an area you are genuinely considering.
Someone to talk it through with
A local orientation on arrival and a check-in during the stay to discuss what you are noticing.
What's included
- 7 nights of accommodation, matched to your answers in the lifestyle assessment
- Homestay — $350: stay with a vetted local family, all meals included (+$100 per child under 12)
- 3-Star — $750: 7 nights in 3-star-or-higher hotels or villas (+$150 per child under 12)
- 5-Star — $1,500: 7 nights in 5-star-or-higher hotels or villas (+$250 per child under 12)
- An everyday setting, not a tourist strip — the point is ordinary life
- Local orientation so you know where to shop, eat and work
- A check-in during the stay to talk through what you are noticing
Prices cover accommodation and coordination for 7 nights; the child supplements apply per child under 12 travelling with you. Flights, food (except the all-meal Homestay option) and personal spending are yours. Volunteers with JICA, KOICA, Worldpackers and similar programmes can ask for a discounted rate.
How it works
- Assessment: Your answers tell us which areas and homes to consider.
- Match: We propose a home and dates that fit.
- Arrive: Local orientation: where to shop, eat and work.
- Live it: Seven ordinary days, with a check-in mid-stay.
- Decide: Use what you learned to choose where, and whether, to move.
Good to know
How much does it cost?
Three options, all 7 nights: Homestay with a vetted local family, all meals included — $350 (+$100 per child under 12); 3-Star — $750 (+$150 per child under 12); 5-Star — $1,500 (+$250 per child under 12). All options include placement matched to your assessment, a local orientation and a check-in during the stay. Flights, food (except the Homestay meals) and personal spending are not included.
Will it be comfortable?
These are ordinary homes, not hotels. Power cuts, water interruptions, insects, neighbourhood noise and changing weather are part of daily life in Sri Lanka, and part of what you are here to test.
Can I change my dates?
Dates are fixed once confirmed. Changes are subject to availability, and leaving early or not arriving is not refunded.
What if the home becomes unavailable?
We move you to a comparable alternative. If none is available, we refund the nights that cannot be provided.
Plan your trial-stay
Tell us when and where you are thinking of. We reply within one business day with a proposed home and dates. Email hello@liveinlanka.lk or WhatsApp +94 76 885 4419.